NASCAR's Biggest Fan – Girl of the Week | Ron Ripple

The Budweiser Shootout was an intense race to watch from start to finish with 14 different leaders, 23 lead changes and eight cautions, it was one for the record books.

Kevin Harvick started out the evening hanigng out in the back of the pack with a few minor mechanical challenges.  Lucky for him, with the way these races are set up, he was able to get them fixed and then work his way back to the front.

With only four laps remaining, Jamie McMurray lead the pack down the track with Johnson, K. Busch, Mears, Hamlin, and Harvick not far behind.  On the last lap, McMurray decides to cover his inside lane, when out of no where Kevin Harvick takes the high side and drives right by him.  It was almost as if he dropped it into “7th” gear and said “sorry buddy… you thought you had me. I’m checkin out.”  Click on the video below to watch this incredible finish.

If the Bud Shootout speaks for what’s to come throughout the rest of the season, I would have to say we’re going to have another wild season.  Get excited because the biggest race of the year is only one week away.

All my fellow race fans, clean out your keggerator lines and start ordering some extra kegs because the Daytona 500 is getting closer.  For any of you attending the race make sure you e-mail me so we can get together.

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Last week I had this incredible gut feeling that Greg Biffle was going to do some “surprising” this weekend,  and boy was my gut right.  Greg Biffle raced his ass off and won his first race of the season at this weekend’s race in Louden, New Hampshire. (it took him long enough)

Greg Biffle has had a great year setting himself up for the Chase but hasn’t won a race all year.  If Greg Biffle was going to win a race, this was the race to win.

The race in Louden, New Hampshire was an exciting one at that.  Early in the race it looked like it was going to be all about the two drivers Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards… but on lap 65 Jimmie Johnson took over and Greg Biffle started charging through the pack.

Just when you think Jimmie Johnson is going to hold off Biffle, Biffle shows up knockin on his bumper screaming at the top of his lungs… “Excuse me Mr. Johnson, but I wore my “1st place panties” today and I just really need to get by you.”  Jimmie Johnson tried to answer by driving with his mirrors but it’s an extremely tough thing to do when Biffle had not only the fast car and driving skills, but his green “1st place panties” on.

After the race Biffle goes on to explain he was holding off till the end and knew he had a winning car which made me a bit nervouse.  It’s not every day that I go on the long shot 12th place in points solid top 5 but no win finisher so I was excited as can be for the guy.

Some racers who couldn’t find the spotlight this past weekend was Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr.  Kyle Busch had one of the worst days of the year… and ended up finishing in 34th.  He started strong but lost a part early in the race that created havoc for him throughout the day.  After spinning out and a 1 lap penalty for coming in the pits when the pits were closed, the 1st place in points Kyle Busch is now sitting in 8th place 70 points behind the leaders.

Dale Earnhardt Jr had a decent day but was extremely upset with the results.  After leading midway through the race, the team put on a fresh set of tires that as Dale would say were [Bleepin bullbleep]“  He lost 10 positions after putting those tires on and he was fuming.  Here’s what he had to say over the radio during the race…. “We need a security guard over there watching those [bleeping tires], I can’t figure out why we keep [bleeping] up in the middle of all these races. Every [bleeping] time.”

I can’t blame the guy for getting upset especially after running that well.  I would have thrown a few [Bleep] Bombs over the radio as well.  I can’t [bleeping] stand a set of [bleeped] up tires.  When I put on a pair of [bleeped] up tires on my truck that make me lose a few postions at the stop light, I get [bleeping] fired up.

Overall I’m impressed with how my pick Greg Biffle did this weekend and I’ve got an incredible feeling he’s going to continue it.  It’s almost like all of NASCAR read’s my predictions prior to each race because I’m like a “picking Machine”, I’m just shocked I haven’t been hired over at hatepicks or another sports picking websites. I think it’s going to come down to Jimmie Johnson and Greg Biffle over the next 9 races… and so far Greg Biffle has Johnson’s [bleeping] number.

Make sure you keep checking back this week because we’re going to have a “Gas Card” giveaway and other special offers!

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Jimmie Johnson dominated this past weekend’s race at Fontana by leading 228 laps of the total 250.  He led the race from the drop of the green flag and only lost the lead when coming in to pit.  That didn’t last long either… it seemed as though when he got back on the track he drove by the leaders as if they were just keeping his “seat warm.”

From the start of the season, Jimmie Johnson had more hype from the fans than Kyle Busch had kleenex boxes after the Bristol race.  Jimmie Johnson started out the season a little slower than expected but he is finally living up to his hype, and he’s showing the fans he’s working on making it a three-peat.

(Photo Compliments of NASCAR.com)

If you remember correctly, this is exactly what he did last season coming into the chase.  He won the labor day race in Fontana and then won at Richmond that set him on fire to win four more races once the Chase started.  The kid is on fire and if you don’t think the momentum is in his favor, then you better start figuring it out. 

Momentum plays a big role with the drivers these days.  Carl Edwards has it… Kyle Busch has it… and now Jimmie Johnson has it.  These are going to be the drivers to watch out for, mark my words. 

Things are looking pretty good for these three drivers when it comes to the Chase.  Kyle Busch will be starting out with 50 extra points, Carl Edwards will be starting with 30 extra points, and Jimmie Johnson will be starting with 20 extra points.  Obviously things may change depending on who wins Richmond, but it’s going to be quite the battle once the chase starts especially if Jimmie Johnson races like he did this past weekend in Fontana.  These guys are going to have a tough time competing.

Not to get off subject… but another area Jimmie Johnson dominates in is his significant other.  Jimmie Johnson is “dominating” the field with his wife Chandra Johnson.  You all know I have a little thing for Chandra Johnson, so writing about Jimmie just gives me another reason to post a link to her infamous bio.  Check her out!

Ok… back on subject!  Jimmie Johnson did a great job this weekend and it only makes the Chase that much more interesting.  I can’t wait for the chase to start and I don’t know who to bet on. 

Who would you bet on to win the Championship?

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The unstoppable Kyle Busch sweeps in Chicagoland. He not only wins the Nationwide Cup race but also surprisingly wins the Sprint Cup race on Saturday night on the last lap. I don’t know about my readers, but I’m sick of hearing and talking about Kyle Busch. I love watching him on the track, don’t get me wrong… but with all the wins Kyle Busch has it seems as if this website is geared towards him. And it’s not. How can I stop talking about him? The kid continues to amaze the world with his relentless victories.

Saturday Night’s Sprint Cup race was one helluva race.  Leaders included Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle, Vickers, Johnson, Kenseth, Kurt Busch and well… I had my heart set on my boy Tony Stewart who ran hard and in the top 5 all race but unfortunately lead for a VERY short time. I was hoping and praying that he would have a chance to take this race home but it never came to fruition. I was on the edge of my seat the entire race and may have quite possibly drank 10 to many beers, but what happens during a NASCAR race happens. I reckon I can’t be accountable for something that I just can not control and when my boy is in the top 5 is when I really start to pound the beers.

The last 25 laps came down to three of the strongest cars all night: Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick. It looked like once again Kyle Busch was going to win this race unchallenged, and that’s when Jimmie Johnson charged to the front passing Kyle Busch on the inside. The man exploded past Kyle and never turned back it was lap 16 and there was no stopping him. Busch was heard radio’ing to his crew “race over”. It was evident Jimmie had the strongest car at that point and there wasn’t much that could be done until Gililand caused a yellow flag giving Busch another opportunity. Jimmie Johnson wasn’t concerned, “Before that last caution came out, we were gone. … And you know, we had such a great car I really felt like the restart would come and we would march off and be fine,”

Take a look at the last 16 laps and the incredible restart Kyle Busch had… with two laps left Busch was able to squeeze by Johnson on the outside where it was all over but the crime.

Side Notes: Carl Edwards has had a strong season thus far and lead a few laps here in Chicagoland, he unfortunately broke his splitter brace which would put him out of contention. Earnhardt struggled all race finishing in 16th along with Kasey Kahne in 15th. The Newman joining Stewart talk is still running rapid in the pits and it sounds to ME that Newman will in fact be racing for Stewart-Haas. The two are friends on and off the track, they’re both from Indiana and it just so happens Newman’s contract is up after this season with Penske.

For those of you who heard the rumors of Obama sponsoring a Sprint Cup team. “The Obama campaign will not be sponsoring a car in the Sprint Cup Series, though we will continue to look for ways to reach out to voters and convey Senator Obama’s message of change.” said Bill Burton, an Obama campaign spokesman. I also read a news article written by USNEWS.com where they interviewed Jimmie Johnson and Chandra Johnson and spoke about NASCAR fans being McCain supporters. I also wanted to thank USNEWS.com for referencing my website in their article!

Thanks for the traffic. Alright Ron Ripplers… What were your thoughts for the race?

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I was glad to hear when Kyle Busch read my articles where I state he should stick to focusing on the Sprint Cup races and quit with the Nationwide and Truck series! He listens and wins a road race… That’s right people, Kyle Busch won the Infineon road race. It was lap 33 when Busch decided it was his time to take the lead and never look back. The battle was going on 2 to 4 seconds behind him as he cruised un challenged. He would go in for a pit stop and allow racers like Carl Edwards keep the leaders spot warm for him as he comes back on the track and retake the lead. You’ve got to give this kid credit, on Friday’s practice he was the 40th best car of 47. He qualified 30th and we all know it’s not easy to pass on a road course like Infineon.  Is there anything this kid can’t win?

I happen to be in the Winner Circle with Kyle Busch

The talk around the pits (and on this site) was all about last years Infineon champ Juan Pablo Montoya and his possible repeat. Montoya has had a rough season thus far with the last two races finishing in an incredible 38th place. As I’ve discussed in previous articles, team owner Chip Ganassi’s drivers have been struggling and his star Montoya was set to make an impression on all of the people doubting the teams capabilities. The start of the weekend wasn’t looking too great as team mate Dario Franchitti was unable to qualify for Sunday’s race. As anticipated, Montoya looked strong out there on Sunday. He was a solid top 10 throughout the entire race and working the turns towards the front of the pack. I personally believed he was going to challenge the dominating Kyle Bush if he kept up the incredible slicing and dicing through the field. His luck turned when “one race wonder” Marcos Ambrose decided to go too hot in a turn spinning the contender Montoya out. This would put Montoya 18th where he would have to fight his way back for a 6th finish. It was unfortunate but still a great finish for both Montoya and team owner Chip Ganassi.

It was unfortunate when Jamie McMurray who ran hard and strong all day went too hot into turn 4 taking out my boy Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick and a name I haven’t talked about on this site Ron Fellows… as all were contenders in the top 10. Stewart restarted down in 19th place where he was not happy. Unfortunately he took his anger out on poor ol Scott Pruett as he rammed Scott from behind bringing out yet another caution. Pruett would be out of the race bring out the green white checkered would come out and making it that much easier for Kyle Busch to secure the win and my picks (pansy wine drinker) Jeff Gordon took third and Montoya 6th.  The Toyota Save Mart 350 was a nice change of pace.

There are some serious rumors going on throught the pits on driver Casey Mears leaving the number five car. Chip Ganassi’s driver Reed Sorensen being a pre madonna and missing sponsor meetings. Rumors going around that Reed Sorensen is too full of himself and why? He’s a NON performer on the track. More gossip going around about Mark Martin being a pansy and has his substitute driver race the races he sucks at…

Look for an update on the Nascar’s Hot Wives Club…  I think you’ll all be impressed with the hottie I got comin! Stay Tuned Ron Ripplers…

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Dale Earnhardt Jr must be on cloud 88 right now after a HUGE win at Michigan International Speedway! It took 76 races for Jr to finally get back in the winner’s circle and who does he have to thank but gambling man Crew Chief, Tony Eury Jr (and himself of course). Like any other race this season, it came down to strategy.  I was on the edge of my seat when I heard the Amp #88 was going to be staying out on the track with not enough fuel to finish the race. I thought at that moment, gas prices are up… try to conserve as much as you can and save the Hendrick’s team a buck! It was going to come down to a yellow flag for Earnhardt to conserve as much fuel as possible to coast for a win. All and all it was a well deserved win and I couldn’t have been more proud. Just watching him turning the engine off and on while coasting through the caution laps I for a second there didn’t think it was going to happen. Did I mention they tacked on two more laps for the green white checkered?

The one thing I love about NASCAR is the fact that every team is out for the win! It’s decisions like Sunday that show the true champions and just a top 10 finish. It’s not often you’ll hear a post race interview with a HAPPY second place or third place driver. They seem to always be disappointed and why not? They had the chance to take home the victory and they fell short.

Not everyone had a good day, Greg Biffle decided on lap 186 to come into the pits to change two tires and to also clip his tire changer knocking him over. We know the tire changer had a bad day, he might be a little sore for a while! We can’t forget Sam Hornish Jr as he was leading towards the end of the race battling with Jimmie Johnson. Hornish finished in 22nd after spinning out on lap 198 but fortunately being able to fire it back up and stay on the lead lap. Whew, a guy with an even worse day was team owner Chip Ganassi. His three drivers finished with a DFL which stands for dead f… last (Dario Franchitti), 38th place (Juan Pablo Montoya), and 34th (Reed Sorenson)… Ouch.

A big congrats to Joey Logano and his first victory after only 3 races in the Nationwide Series. He is officially the youngest driver to ever win a Nationwide Series Race. Eighteen years and 21 days old! We’ll be seeing a lot of this kid. What are your thoughts and what are the major events that stuck in your mind this weekend? Is anyone surprised I didn’t mention Kyle Busch? Oh wait I had too!

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Who would have thunk it? Not to sound cocky and obnoxious, but when I pick the winner of Sunday’s race you can guarantee that I put a little hop in my skip the next day! My pick last weekend for the Coca-Cola 600 was Kasey Kahne… and yes… he owned it. The young star was very consistant this past weekend and consistency was the key to winning. The Coca-Cola 600 was the longest race of the season and as the saying goes it was “survival of the fittest.” Kasey Kahne may not have had the quickest car or the fastest laps, but he definitely had the “fittest” car and survived the 600 laps.

I think the fastest car of the weekend had to be Tony Stewart, Brian Vickers or Dale Earnhardt Jr. Brian Vickers stole the lead from Kyle Busch early on in the race and continued to lead the race for 61 laps. If Vickers wouldn’t have crashed his car, he would have been a force to be reckoned with instead of being the force that “wrecked”. (?)Tony Stewart on the other hand has had some poor luck this season and this race was just proof as to what he’s been dealing with. He also had a strong car and didn’t make it to the front till late in the race, and just when you thought Tony was going to get his big win for the year with only three laps remaining, he blows a tire and ends up in the wall. You all know Tony is my boy, I was on the edge of my seat for all 61 laps he led. I guess the only negative that goes into Tony Stewart leading is the fact my beer gets piss warm because I hadn’t moved an inch.

Dale Earnahrdt Jr. was yet another guy with a fast car. When he shot out to the front the crowd was going absolutely crazy. Even I was excited when I saw him dominate the race for a solid amount of laps… I thought he had the race in the bag until the damn wall jumped out and tapped him on the side. He fell back and still finished with an impressive fifth, it just goes to show that the car was strong even with all the damage. These COT cars slip and slide all over the place! (in my opinion)

So the talk of the past few weeks has been Kasey Kahne and the lucky streak he’s been on. I have to admit, he didn’t have “THE” car of the race this weekend, but yet again he stayed consistant and strong throughout the entire race. I thought he was a contender throughout the whole race, but in reality he was probably a second or third place car at that. But Luck plays a big role in this sport we call NASCAR, just look at Tony Stewart. If the guy had even a 1/4 as much luck as Kasey Kahne, he would have won this race.

I had an incredible day watching this race, and probably had more beers than I should have. A case of beer… it could’ve been worse considering how long the race was, but when you’re on the inside of the wall and you have thousands of screaming fans with you… the beers just flow. What do you think about the race? Who do you think should have won? Tony? Earnhardt Jr? Biffle? I will say if Biffle had more laps he might be the one I’m writing this article about… but then again he didn’t! The man DID accept my beer after the race though…I also plan on getting into the big drama/fight that took place on Saturday… stay tuned Ron Ripplers! I have to make a few calls to some of the pit crew and make sure my story is straight. (photos compliments of Nascar.com)

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 This past Saturday’s race was an interesting race to say the least.  In my previous post I stated it was going to be one hell-uv-a showdown with some aggressive driving and some crazy personalities.  Unfortunately it was none of this… It was a fun race to watch because it was unknown as to who was going to be the victor, but it definitely wasn’t a showdown like I was expecting. From the very beginning, Kyle Busch shot out and dominated the race by almost a quarter of a lap, until the second segment when his motor blew up.  (Obviously the Gibbs team tested the Toyota package they had from the beginning of the year because almost everyone on the team blew a motor.)  But Kyle Busch did some serious domination with Carl Edwards not far behind him.  The first two segments weren’t all that exciting with most of the battling taking place in the 12th and 13th positions.  Once Kyle Busch’s motor blew up at the end of the second segment, it looked like it was going to be a Carl Edwards race since he had the fastest car on the track.

 I was comletely taken back when the third segment started and Carl Edwards lost four positions in the first couple laps.  It looked as if making no changes to his car in between segments was not such a good idea.  The third segment was dominated by Biffle, with a number of different drivers working their way up to the front.  Ryan Newman, Matt Kenseth, and Dale Earnahrdt Jr. were a number of racers that were working their asses off to get to the front.  All were running strong but it seemed as though none of them had enough because in each segment there was only ONE car that led most of the laps.

 The Fourth Segment was where all the hard work and strategy paid off.  In between the third and fourth segment, the teams had a decision to make.  “Take two tires, take four tires, or don’t take any tires at all.”  There were a few drivers that took “No tires’ and these driver’s ended up on top.  Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne were two of those drivers that decided to take no tires and these guys came out of the pits the fastest.  Greg Biffle, who was the fastest car for a majority of the race decided to take two tires and I can guarantee he’s regretting it now.  Kasey Kahne who was the “Fan Vote” jumped up to the front position and was tough to get around.  Greg Biffle who took the two tires was on his tail the whole segment and admitted he only had once chance to pass and couldn’t take advantage of it.

I think it’s huge a driver who wasn’t even supposed to be in the race took home $1,000,000.  The fans wanted to see him race and boy did he give them a show.  He passed a ton of cars to make it to the top 10 and when it came down to making a decision about tires, he made the right one and that’s all that counts.  He didn’t crawl his way up to the front and techinically “EARN” the #1 position, but his team made the right decision and they took advantage of it.  Kasey Kahne won the race and took home the money.  Congratulations to him!

Even though I’m a huge Tony Stewart fan, I was really hoping for a Dale Earnhardt Jr win.  He was in the top 5 throughout the whole race and looked like he was going to be a player at the end.   I guess the Hendrick Motorsports team just had nothing for them at this race.  I was extremely disappointed with Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson… two racers that were supposed to OWN this track.  The only reason why Jimmie Johnson was in the top 5 was because he took no tires. 

 Overall I have to admit it wasn’t the most aggressive driving or exciting race I’ve ever seen.  There were no wrecks, no bumping, no fighting, and no drama.  This was supposed to be a race where the driver’s would let their hair down and do things out of character.  It was almost as if they were all being gentlemen!  I was shocked!

 What do you think about the race?  Obviously nobody won the contest from my previous post because Kasey Kahne was voted in last minute.  But look for a new contest maybe for the 600.  I like to see who people vote for.

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Anyone sick of hearing me talk about 23 year old NASCAR super star Kyle Busch? I’m guessing yes… so I’ll keep it short. Kyle Busch is dominating NASCAR! Every fan in those stands are on their feet when Kyle Busch crossed the finish line. Whether they’re booing or cheering, Kyle is being HEARD! Through all the boos from the crowd in the stands, Kyle was able to hear a jeer from one of Earnhardt Jr’s crew and in return Kyle flipped him the bird. Now that is funny!

I feel bad for one guy, Greg Biffle in the number 16 car. Wow! The man would have a couple more wins under his belt if it weren’t for the bad luck he’s been experiencing this season. Biffle lead 95 laps Saturday Night at Darlington until he had to pit a few times for loose tires and then coming into the pits for the last time with his first DNF this season. A blown engine would ripple through his mind as he went through the last few race frustrations. He wouldn’t take the ice cold beer I offered him after Saturday’s race… at this point I knew he was hurtin on the inside. Trust when I say that Biffle never refuses a beer after a great night of racing.

On a side note… My pick for Saturday night’s fastest race in history at Darlington didn’t do too bad. Carl Edwards didn’t get the win, but a second place allowed him to move 3 spots up in overall Sprint Cup Points sitting in 7th. Now let’s get ready for the BIG race, NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Lowes Motor Speedway. I’ll have my picks later in the week… Tony Stewart has been quiet lately, I’m expecting something from him very soon. Should be one helluva race!

(kick ass photo from nascar.com, I can’t believe they caught me in the back.)

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What a race! It was the story of bad luck for many that lead Clint Boyer to a HUGE win in Richmond Virginia on Saturday night under the lights. It was the Crown Royal 400 and all about Denny Hamlin who not only won Friday night’s Nationwide Cup Race also lead 381 of the first 382 laps on Saturday night’s Sprint Cup race. He was simply dominating, the battle for second place kept Dale Earnhardt Jr and Kyle Busch occupied so that Denny would not be challenged. This is where the story of bad luck snuck into the right front tire of Hamlin causing it to go down costing him the lead and the Win. It was unfortunate, he drove flawless and the team made incredible decisions on and off the track.

Last week I put my money on Earnhardt Jr as he hasn’t had a win in 71 races and the man had been driving strong all season. After Hamlin slowly drifted back the race for first became a battle between Kyle Busch and the current leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. For the first time in the race I was jacked up to see Jr in the lead and won’t lie when I say I had the “I told the reader’s this would happen!” mentality. The attitude I had was quickly taken away when not even a lap and a half after leading the race Kyle Busch and Jr got together forcing Earnhardt into the wall and all his hopes and dreams stolen. Bad luck and Kyle Busch hit Jr soo hard he finished 15th. Oh and that’s where Clint Boyer was able to slide into first and hold position to take the win. (not much to say about the win)

This brings us to the questionable wreck on who is at fault… before I give my two cents I would like to hear from ya’ll. It was quite obvious how the #88 fans felt… serious boo’ing and one of Jr’s crew ended up running over to Kyle Busch after the race giving them some sh!t.

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