Thursday, April 28, 2011

Night Racing at Richmond


The Sprint Cup boys are back on the track this week at Richmond International Raceway for a night race under the lights.

Team Nationwide for Harry is looking to bounce back after a tough finish in Talladega. Things can get tricky on this 0.75 mile oval but we're primed for a chase for a victory.

Here is who I went with this week and why:

#18 -- Kyle Busch -- $41K -- Rowdy has kicked ass here lately including finishes of 1st and 2nd last year. He is our favorite to win this weekend.
#24 -- Jeff Gordon -- $35K -- What a great price for Gordon and we like his chances to run for a Top 5, and maybe even sneak a win. He was damn close last week.
#29 -- Kevin Harvick -- $40K -- Team Nationwide for Harry has been riding Harvick and we're doing it again. Expect a Top 10 or better from Harvick.
#33 -- Clint Bowyer -- $35K -- Is this his year? It's certainly looked like it so far. Bowyer has won here and consistently finishes in the Top 10.
#71 -- Andy Lally -- $7K -- We've also run the Lally train a few times this year and the youngster has produced for what is expected. An important note for this week, however, the #21 is NOT entered, so the #71 moves into a guaranteed starting spot. Team nationwide for Harry says that is $7K well spent.

Thus we spent $158K and left $2K on the table, but I'm quite pleased with this lineup and think it has a chance to win. Finally, we did not take Denny Hamlin this week, a favorite by many standards, well, because he is a bum and never comes through for us. Let's hope he finishes poorly this week as I'm guessing many other team will be riding with him.

Qualifying Update: We're rolling 5 again and I'm pretty happy with the breakdown after qualifying. Here's how Team Nationwide for Harry will line up:

No. 33 -- Clint Bowyer -- 3rd
No. 24 -- Jeff Gordon -- 6th
No. 29 -- Kevin Harvick -- 12th
No. 18 -- Kyle Busch -- 20th
No. 71 -- Andy Lally -- 41st

Post-Race Update
A crash at lap 300 took the wind out of the sails for Team Nationwide for Harry. The crash parked Jeff Gordon for the night and our chances at winning.

Here is our breakdown:

No. 18 -- Kyle Busch -- 1st
No. 33 -- Clint Bowyer -- 6th
No. 29 -- Kevin Harvick -- 12th
No. 71 -- Andy Lally -- 27th
No. 24 -- Jeff Gordon -- 39th

Thus, another great night for the rookie Lally. For the week, we finished 14th and fell one spot to 16th overall. On to the Lady in Black next week.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Tough Time at Talladega



Team Nationwide for Harry heads to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend as it looks to continue a good run of high finishes. These races are always a crapshoot as you must beware of 'the big one.' This week will be no different but at the end of the day, as Harry would say, let's 'get after it'.

Here is who I went with this week and why:

2 -- Brad Keselowski ($30K) -- Very affordable, solid on superspeedways and has won here before. Like him a lot as a sleeper pick.
11 -- Denny Hamlin ($36K) -- This bastard usually screws me every time I take him. That said, I'm rolling the dice again and he's kinda cheap.
22 -- Kurt Busch ($41K) -- Another driver who has not been good to me, but has owned this track lately. Expect a Top 5 from him.
29 -- Kevin Harvick ($40K) -- The consensus pick to win this week. I think he bounces back after an average finish last week.
46 -- Bill Elliott ($12K) -- 3 cars will go home this week, Awesome Bill won't be one of them. He'll get in on speed but can use the past champion's provisional if he needs to.

Thus I left $1K on the table out of the $160K salary cap. I would have strongly considered Dale Earnhardt Jr. had I another $1K and would have swapped him for Hamlin. But the above is who we're rolling with.

Team Nationwide for Harry currently sits 13th overall in Green Flag racing and can easily climb into the Top 10 with a solid week.

UPDATE: Qualifying
It wasn't the best day of qualifying for Team Nationwide for Harry but we did hit our goal of rolling five drivers in the field.

Unfortunately and quite surprisingly, we had to rely on the past champion's provisional to get our 5th car in the field but I'll take it.

Keeping things in perspective, this is a superspeedway so I'm not worried all that much about the qualifying results.

Here's where Team Nationwide for Harry will start:

6th -- Kurt Busch -- car no. 22
19th -- Brad Keselowski -- car no. 2
29th -- Denny Hamlin -- car no. 11
38th -- Kevin Harvick -- car no. 29
43rd -- Bill Elliott -- car no. 46

Post-Race Update
Past history definitely reared it's ugly head today leading to a disappointing 22nd place finish for Team Nationwide for Harry. The off week dropped us back two spots to 15th overall.

This will be the last time we take shitstain Denny Hamlin. Moreover, our dear friend Kurt Busch, who usually screws us, took care of our sleeper, Brad Keselowski, wrecking him early in the race. The 26th place finish by the no. 46 car of Bill Elliott/JJ Yeley was a nice surprise but meant little on an otherwise lousy day at the track.

Here is the final breakdown:

5th -- Kevin Harvick
18th -- Kurth Busch
23rd -- Denny Hamlin
26th -- Bill Elliott/JJ Yeley
33rd -- Brad Keselowski

The boys are off next week for the Easter holiday so we'll be racing again in two weeks on Saturday night at Richmond (April 30).

Friday, April 08, 2011

Nationwide for Harry Grabs 2nd, Jumps 5 Spots in League



This week's Sprint Cup race takes Team Nationwide for Harry to Texas Motor Speedway. This 1.5-mile oval is always quick and this weekend should be no different.

The strategy in Green Flag Racing (our fantasy league) always revolves around a $160K salary cap and the desire to get five drivers in the show.

Here is who I went with this week:

No. 16 Greg Biffle -- I like him and he's been good here. A bargain at $34K.
No. 17 Matt Kenseth -- My sleeper for a great finish/win this week, cost $39K.
No. 29 Kevin Harvick -- Red hot looking for 3 wins in a row. Harvick cost $41K.
No. 48 Jimmie Johnson -- The champ is due and still 'affordable' at $41K.
No. 71 Andy Lally -- Young rookie and a gamble to get in at $5K.

Thus I spent the allotted 160K. Here is how the boys will start after qualifying (note, we're rolling 5 Harry!):

4th -- no. 17 Kenseth
6th -- no. 48 Johnson
9th -- no. 16 Biffle
29th -- no. 29 Harvick
43rd -- no. 71 Lally

Not too bad and hopefully Lally can stay clear of wrecks and finish 35th or higher. Updates to follow after the race Saturday night.
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Post-race Update

It was a solid run for Team Nationwide for Harry in Texas bringing home another 2nd place overall finish (second in three weeks) and mounting a charge up the standings from 18th overall to 13th. Our sleeper pick Matt Kenseth ended a 76-race drought, led the most laps and took the checkered flag.

It was also a solid run for two other drivers including Greg Biffle, finishing 5th and Jimmie Johnson, finishing 8th. Rounding out the team were Kevin Harvick, who struggled but worked to a 20th place finish and our cheap driver ($5K) Andy Lally, who exceeded expectations and drove to a 32nd place finish.

Sunday, April 03, 2011

Team Nationwide for Harry Moving Up...Slowly



I took over a fantasy NASCAR team when one of my best friends, Harry Stiff Jr., passed away on March 17. Harry was a very astute racing fan and his team meant a lot to him so I have taken it upon myself to keep his legacy going.

Last week at Fontana, Team Nationwide for Harry had an impressive week moving up big time in GFR Racing.

I finished 2nd and moved Harry from 20th to 12th place overall.

I was excited and looked forward to this week's entry at the famed Martinsville short track. Well, this sport is tough and here's who I took and how they fared:

11 Denny Hamlin -- 12th (led 88 laps).
14 Tony Stewart -- had trouble all day and finished 34th and off the track.
33 Clint Bowyer -- Kicked ass early and finished 9th (led 91 laps).
48 Jimmie Johnson -- Another early charger who ended up finishing 11th (led 65 laps).
71 Hermie Sadler -- 'The Herminator' and a Harry favorite, this $4k driver far exceeded expectations and had a solid 28th place finish.

So to recap, that's finishes of 9, 11, 12, 28 and 34. The Stewart collapse will prevent Team Nationwide for Harry from improving and making up ground.

Still assessing the new scoring rules but this week proved disappointing. Team NFH finished 21st and dropped to 18th overall in the standings. We're still up two spots from where we started but not anywhere near where I want to be.

Harry once told me this phrase when I used the word if. Well, "If your uncle had tits, he'd be your aunt."

So, the KK 'if' scenario for the week was the fact that I wrestled with taking the no. 18 of Kyle Busch but elected to take Stewart. Busch finished 3rd.