Part articles 2003

It's sometimes pretty tough to keep this updated seeing as how this site is strictly a hobby and definitely non-profit but if you are at all interested in the view of NASCAR® from a typical Canadian race fan's couch, stop by every week after the race. The only thing I can promise is that if I write something there is a good chance someone won't agree. Feel free to straighten me out, but don't count on much success. :)

Well the first quarter of the 2003 Winston Cup season is upon us and I just noticed I had not made any updates since the Daytona 500. Sorry race fans, but one must pay the bills - and this place doesn't.

The racing has been great, even if my coverage has not. In 9 races so far this year we have had 9 different winners. A few years ago this would have created a lot more excitement than it has this year as this level of competition has become the norm.

The competion may not be any more intense than it has been the past few years but it is different. Michael Waltrip just celebrated his 40'th birthday and he is the oldest driver in the top 10.

Matt Kenseth did not make my list of top 5 finishers in the points for 2003, but hindsight being 20/20 it is not surprising that he is sitting atop the pile right now. It is early, yes, but this cat is going to be hard to beat. He has already shown that he can win races and Championships and he proves every week just how patient and tenacious he can be. I'll pick Matt to get Roush's first Championship whether it is this year or some other year. God help us all if Rubberhead beats him to it.

It is apparent now that whoever wins the 2003 Championship they are going to have to beat Dale Earnhardt Jr. What an impressive run these guys have put together in the last 7 races. After finding themselves in 38'th place after the Rock they have posted 5 top 5's and 6 top 10's in only 7 races to move into 2'nd place, a mere 51 points behind Kenseth. No-one else has been even close to that good.

I can't think of many scenario's that will be any more entertaining than a season long battle between Kenseth and Earnhardt Jr.. Both run hard but give each other and their peers a lot of respect. While you might expect there to be some bad blood between these perennial competitors they are in fact close friends. All the same, you can absolutely count on each desperately wanting to beat the other to be the first to hoist the Cup.

It is no particular surprise to anyone to see Jeff Gordon in the top 5 but you've got to be impressed with his team-mate Jimmie Johnson's strong start to the season. It would appear that Jimmie has not heard of the sophomore jinx.

I guess if you followed the last 6 races of 2002 you wouldn't be shocked to see Rubberhead in 5'th place either, but that doesn't mean any of us have to like it. The good news is that he only held the points lead for one week and has been fading since.

Kevin Harvick is having a much better year this year than last but 3 top 10's in 9 races is a far cry from what we have all come to expect from the Richard Childress team. I cannot help thinking that Kevin's time in this car may be limited, certainly not because of a lack of talent, but maybe just chemistry. This team EXPECTS to win, and often. The simple truth is that they are not.

Tony Stewart too is off to a much better start this year than last and with 27 races to go obviously a 238 point deficit means nothing except that we are shaping up for a Titanic points battle this year. Tony seems like the kind of guy who would take ownership of a Championship title. He is not going to relinquish it easily.

Michael Waltrip has, as expected by nearly everyone, faded since his win at Daytona but don't close the book just yet. The NAPA Chevrolet team has shown a lot more muscle this year than they ever have before, gaining 2 other top 5's so far. I admit to not actually looking it up but I am pretty sure Mikey had fallen out of the top 20 by this point last year. All indicators point to a new level of success for this team. It is good to see Mikey so confident.

Of all the teams in the field I wonder how many fans would have had the foresight at Daytona to pick Ricky Craven and the single car team of Cal Wells to have won a race and be in 9'th place after 9 races. It certainly is not undeserved as they have a lot of depth and talent on the Tide team but everyone except these guys has pretty well written off single car teams. Quite aside from the fact that I think Ricky Craven is a hell of a nice guy I enjoy seeing these guys run so well. As far as I am concerned the sport will be better off as soon as someone figures out how to truly limit ownership to 1 team per person. Unfortunately, that is neither realistic nor likely so in the meantime I'll keep pulling for Ricky. Thank goodness they had the presence of mind to switch to Pontiac. I find it nearly impossible to cheer for a Ford. (hmm, might that be why Kenseth did not make my Predictions for the top 5 in 2003 - absolutely!!).

The Daytona 500

Hmm, a snoozefest by any standards but all in all it wasn't too bad in that Mikey won it and Ryan Newman was not hurt.

I cannot say I was surprised by Mikey's dominance although I had predicted that it would be Little E showing the way. Seriously, you cannot pick one without the other at this track.

Rubberhead's second place finish was a surprise though. The Roush team cars are not very often at the top of the heap on the restrictor plate tracks but they seem to be turning the corner on that in the past couple of years. Team-mate Mark Martin was 5'th and Jeff Burton was 11'th..

Jimmie Johnson had to settle for 3'rd when he was unable to keep Jr. and Mikey from hooking up at the end. Once those two DEI Chevy's were nose to tail it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that they were going around Jimmie. Truthfully, from what we had seen earlier in the week I suspect Mikey could have gotten by Johnson on his own as well.

Kevin Harvick and Robbie Gordon, 4'th and 6'th respectively, put the exclamation mark on the point that no-one knew more about restrictor plate racing than the late Dale Earnhardt. His presence is still felt in a dominating fashion.

Tony Stewart has started out 2003 some 36 positions better than 2002 and there is no reason to think that his new Chevrolet is going to be any slouch at the shorter tracks. Rest assured he will put up a spirited title defense. Indeed, now that the title is his, I doubt he ever plans on giving it up.

Mike Wallace should get the driver of the week award for Speedweeks '03. Not only was he the first driver to ever run all three of the big races (Truck, Busch, Cup) but he finished in the top 10 of each one as well. It absolutely defies the imagination why this guy does not have a full time Cup ride. Business being business, if I were Roger Penske I'd fire Rusty's ass and put Mike in the Miller car in a heartbeat.

The comeback of the year award for Speedweeks '03 would have to go to Kyle Petty. He was fast all week and finished 13'th. Everything seems to be going according to the plan he has been talking about for the past couple of years. As I long time Petty Fan, I for one am looking forward to a great year.

The 2003 Bud Shootout

February 9, 2003 - The Shootout is in the books and Jr. didn't disappoint. It may be an all new Monte Carlo under that familiar red paint but one thing has not changed. The #8 Bud car was in a league of it's own all night.

The telecast on the other hand was definitely 3'rd rate. Of Dale Jr's 14 lap charge from 19'th to first they caught precisely 2 of his passes; the one from third to 2'nd and 2'nd to first. Similarly, when he found himself shuffled back to 7'th or 8'th in the late going his move back to the front went completely undocumented. Fox stayed glued to the front of the pack no matter what else was happening.

Barring some bad luck, there is no way anyone other than a DEI car is going to win the 500 next Sunday. On several occasions Jr. simply pulled out alone and drove past as many as three cars. No-one else could pass one without a trainload of help. He was so dominant that there just wasn't anything else in the race worth mentioning, unless it was the absolute invisibility of Dale Jarrett's UPS Ford.

February 8, 2003 - Well, look at that. After being conspicuously absent from the top of the speed charts in January none other than Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip have topped the charts in early morning practice. It is not exactly shocking that the 3'rd fastest car belongs to that of RCR driver Jeff Green. Mike Wallace, in his Andy Petree Chevrolet was the fastest car in Florida in January but today managed only the 22'nd fastest time. Steve Park knocked down the 7'th best lap.

It's funny how the closer we get to the green flag every year the less "parity" we see among makes. Practice doesn't mean much. There are 6 Chevrolets in the top 10 today, and NO Pontiacs.

You might have expected to see the Dodge of Sterling Marlin in the top 10, but I'll bet not many people predicted that Kyle Petty would be setting down top 10 laps. On the final day of practice in January he actually sat atop the charts. This is a huge turnaround for the Petty Enterprises Organization. It will be interesting to see if they can keep everything headed in the right direction now that Robin Pemberton has again left. Note to Richard and Kyle: DO NOT HIRE THIS GUY AGAIN !! He might be good, but he is apparently not very committed.

My 2003 Predictions

Bud Shootout Prediction

I will go out on a limb though for the Shootout. Actually, it's not a limb at all, it's a nice thick branch. I don't think anyone will touch Dale Jr.

Daytona 500 top 3: Dale Jr., Mikey and Kenny Wallace. If Kenny Wallace does not finish 3'rd he will win, wreck, or spin trying to get past the DEI cars.

Most wins: Jimmy Johnson

Winston Cup Champion: Sterling Marlin

Top 5 in points: Marlin, Dale Jr., Stewart, Johnson, Wallace,

First time winners: Greg Biffle

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