A Few Thoughts on the Auto Club 400
Credit: (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Here are a few of my thoughts on Sundays Monster Energy Cup race from the Auto Club Raceway in California.
Positives:
Best Car Won
You’d be hard pressed to argue that the #18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was not the best car on Sunday. The Toyota Camry driven by Kyle Busch was far and away the fastest car for the entire race on Sunday, winning both stage one and stage two and leading a gaudy 134 laps.
A mid race pit road speeding penalty did make it a more challenging day in what otherwise would have been without any suspense. It sure was entertaining to watch Busch race his car through the field rather quickly before a late race restart allowed him to get by the Penske Ford teammates of Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski.
For Busch it marked the second time this season that he’s finished first. He is quickly establishing himself as the team to beat in 2019. Busch currently leads the point standings by 15 points over last season’s Champion, Joey Logano.
Talent Showed
One of NASCAR’s stated goals of the much maligned new race package, was to put the emphasis on the drivers. Sunday race certainly showcased the cream of the crop in the Cup Series. The three that best exemplified this on Sunday were Martin Truex Jr, Kurt Busch, and of course Kyle Busch.
Early in the race we saw Truex march his way through the field after starting the race back in the field after a poor qualifying effort. It even appeared for a time that Truex might even have a car to challenge his Joe Gibbs teammate, Kyle Busch.
That is until Truex Jr. got caught up in a mess and suffered damage to the rear portion of his car. His crew continued to work on repairing the damage and Truex was able to find enough speed and handling to salvage a 6th place finish.
The Chevy’s have been struggling for nearly two seasons now but someone apparently forgot to tell Kurt Busch. Driving the #1 Chevrolet formally piloted by new FOX Broadcaster, Jamie McMurray, finishing in 9th place.
The elder Busch, who last season drover a Stewart Haas Ford, might just be the veteran presence that the manufacture needs to figure out what they need to do to make this car more successful.
Much has been said about Kyle Busch and his 200 wins. There is very little to dispute the man’s ability on the race track and Sunday was another reminder of what a generational talent he is. Watching him race through the field might have been the most entertaining part of the entire 400 mile race. It certainly was if you are a Kyle Busch fan.
400 miles vs 500 miles
Fairly or not NASCAR gets a lot of heat for many of the decisions it makes. Shortening many of the races from 400 miles to 500 miles should not be one of them. This track is made for a 400 mile race. The sense of urgency that comes from a shorter race is what the Doctor ordered.
Negatives
New Race Package
Oh boy. The much anticipated new package has thus far failed to produce any of the tight, close racing we thought we would see. Sunday was another example of cars stretch along the track with not very different racing as we have seen under the old package. Someone described it to me as being the same old same old, only slower.
Perhaps Clint Bowyer said it best when he was suffering engine issues he said he couldn’t tell if it was his motor or the new lower horsepower. Ouch!
Qualifying Debacle
That was just plain embarrassing. It was embarrassing to the teams and embarrassing to NASCAR. Not one single car in the final road registered a time as the cars all sat on pit road waiting for others to go first.
I’ve heard boo’s at a race track before but never heard boo’s for the entire field and may I dare say sport. I sure hope the brains at NASCAR figure out a way to avoid a repeat of that disaster in the future.
Track Attendance
A beautiful sunny day with temperature reaching 80 degrees with nearly a cloud in sight. No excuse for racing fans in California to make the trek to Auto Club Speedway, right? I’ve seen attendance estimates as low as 35,000 for Sunday’s race.
NASCAR has made it known that scheduling is one of the things that is on the table for further discussion. If attendance is one of the criteria for decision making, Southern California and NASCAR may be on shaky ground.
Heroes: Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Truex Jr., Austin Dillon
Zero’s: Hendrick Motorsports, Jimmie Johnson, race package
Thanks for reading. You can catch me on WTBQ Radio, 1110am, 93.5fm or streamed wtbq.com on Monday and Friday as I join the gang on The Frank Truatt Morning Show with The NASCAR Report. You can follow me on twitter @Jimlaplante
