Pepsi 500 Race Preview - The Chase Closes In

No doubt the Pepsi 500 should be very exciting this year.  Carl Edwards, a few weeks ago, said that he wanted to win the remaining race before The Chase starts.  After back-to-back wins at Michgan an Bristol, he now is on his way to California Speedway holding the ranking as the top ranked driver on the PreQ forecast.  Having won 3 out of the last 4 races, he has been on quite a role and is definitely a favorite heading into the Pepsi 500.

Matt Kenseth on the other hand is currently considered to be “on the bubble” for The Chase.  If he does a good job at California during the Pepsi 500 next week, he should be able to solidify his position for The Chase.  In 13 career starts he is averaging a 10th place finish with two wins and nine top 10s – including six straight. Kenseth has posted back-to-back top 10s and looks to be picking up steam at the right time. 

For Jimmie Johnson, this has not been the season he expected.  Keeping in mind that he had back to back championship season recently, this year has fallen short of many expectations.  Its not that he wont prove a good competitor once The Chase begins, but some consistency would certainly be required to give him the extra edge he seems to have been lacking all season.  This season, he has yet to get a top 10 finish in half of his starts.  He even has had 6 finishes where he was outside the top 20!   Perhaps, one thing playing in Johnson’s favor is the fact that he loves this track.  In 11 career starts Johnson has had 7 top 3 finishes with 2 wins as he averages a 6th place finish. Also, Johnson is the defending race champion. Expect Johnson to begin a run of successful finishes starting this weekend at California.

While Johnson loves the California track, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s wishes he felt the same way. In 13 career starts he is averaging a 20th place finish with just four top 10s. Earlier this season he had a 40th place finish at this very same track which so far has turned out to be his worst finish this season.  He has been struggling lately having posted only 1 top 10 finish in the last 9 races, and 3 outside the top 20! If he is looking to break his slump, maybe he should avoid the #88 Mountain Dew Chevrolet for this race.

Finally, Casey Mears is most likely on his way out of of driving the #5 Kellogg’s Chevrolet. Mears has yet to show ANY of the results that Kyle Busch did a season ago in the same car and has been lacking in his performance with Hendrick Motorsports in his career. This season, he only has four top 10s this season and ranks 24th in the point standings. He would like to get back on top of the scoring pylon but that is doubtful at California. In 10 career starts at the track he is averaging a 24th place finish with just two top 10s. Like junior, Mears had one of his worst performances of the season at California earlier this season recording a 42nd place finish. The end of the 2008 season cannot come soon enough for Mears.