Sprint Cup 2012: Race 20 - The Road to Championship - Brick by Brick

The 2012 Sprint Cup season begins the frantic dash to the Chase and then ten races later, the crowing of this year’s champion at Homestead, Florida. There will be no more weekends off, no byes, no mulligan’s. It’s time to put up or shut up for respectability in 2012. Jeff Gordon is gone – nothing short than incredible performance and at least two victories in the next seven races can save his season. Carl Edwards has a new crew chief demanding results now. Hovering near the top ten in points will not amount to anything without some wins and more consistent running. These are just two drivers in the hot seat in the hottest part of the season. Meanwhile, A.J. Allmendinger failed his second drug test and must complete a required rehab program to be reinstated. Sam Hornish will most likely continue in the #22 Shell/Penzoil Ford, but it will be interesting to see how Roger Penske resolves scheduling issues when the Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series are not racing at the same venue. Hornish is a candidate for the Nationwide Championship.

Three drivers did not qualify, Reed Sorensen, Joe Nemechek, and Michael McDowell. Since these are fraudulent qualify and quit, start and park, or take the money and run entries, we can only say good riddance.  It would be refreshing to see a reduction in the number of teams cheating the sport out of purse money for occupying pace in the field. The day cannot come soon enough when NASCAR addresses this embarrassing insult to competitive sports.

Starting Lineup:

<><>

POS		CAR		DRIVER		MAKE		SPONSOR		SPEED
1		11		Denny Hamlin		Toyota		FedEx Express		182.763
2		99		Carl Edwards		Ford		Fastenal		181.984
3		20		Joey Logano		Toyota		Dollar General		181.756
4		43		Aric Almirola		Ford		Eckrich		181.679
5		16		Greg Biffle		Ford		3M		181.532
6		48		Jimmie Johnson		Chevrolet		Lowe's / Kobalt Tools		181.357
7		18		Kyle Busch		Toyota		M&M's		181.046
8		27		Paul Menard		Chevrolet		Menards / Nibco		181.014
9		24		Jeff Gordon		Chevrolet		Drive to End Hunger		180.952
10		17		Matt Kenseth		Ford		Fifth Third Bank		180.654
11		39		Ryan Newman		Chevrolet		Quicken Loans		180.611
12		42		Juan Montoya		Chevrolet		Target		180.516
13		51		Kurt Busch		Chevrolet		HendrickCars.com		180.487
14		78		Regan Smith		Chevrolet		Furniture Row / Farm American		180.473
15		5		Kasey Kahne		Chevrolet		Farmers Insurance		180.447
16		1		Jamie McMurray		Chevrolet		Bass Pro Shops / Tracker		180.437
17		56		Martin Truex Jr.		Toyota		NAPA Auto Parts		180.433
18		21		Trevor Bayne		Ford		Motorcraft / Quick Lane		180.390
19		55		Mark Martin		Toyota		Aaron's Dream Machine		180.386
20		88		Dale Earnhardt Jr.		Chevrolet		AMP Energy / National Guard		180.245
21		31		Jeff Burton		Chevrolet		Rain-X		180.177
22		2		Brad Keselowski		Dodge		Miller Lite		180.148
23		9		Marcos Ambrose		Ford		DEWALT		180.072
24		22		Sam Hornish Jr.		Dodge		Shell / Pennzoil		179.928
25		13		Casey Mears		Ford		GEICO		179.519
26		30		David Stremme		Toyota		Inception Motorsports		179.212
27		29		Kevin Harvick		Chevrolet		Jimmy Johns		178.894
28		14		Tony Stewart		Chevrolet		Mobil 1 / Office Depot		178.862
29		47		Bobby Labonte		Toyota		Scott Products		178.816
30		93		Travis Kvapil		Toyota		Burger King		178.543
31		38		David Gilliland		Ford		Big Machine Records		178.508
32		36		Dave Blaney		Chevrolet		SealWrap		178.486
33		15		Clint Bowyer		Toyota		5-hour Energy		178.419
34		195		Scott Speed		Ford		Leavine Family Racing		177.855
35		26		Josh Wise*		Chevrolet		Taco Bell		177.743
36		34		David Ragan		Ford		Scorpion Coatings / Al's Liners		177.630
37		33		Stephen Leicht*		Chevrolet		Little Joes Auto		177.347
38		83		Landon Cassill		Toyota		Burger King		177.340
39		179		Mike Skinner		Ford		Koma Unwind		176.894
40		23		Scott Riggs		Chevrolet		North Texas Pipe		176.859
41		10		J.J. Yeley		Chevrolet		Tommy Baldwin Racing		176.523
42		32		Ken Schrader+		Ford		Special Operations For America.org		174.768
43		119		Mike Bliss		Toyota		Humphrey Smith Racing		176.180
Did Not Qualify
44		191		Reed Sorenson		Ford		Humphrey Smith Racing		175.610
45		87		Joe Nemechek		Toyota		AM / FM Energy Wood & Pellet Stoves		175.142
46		98		Michael McDowell		Ford		K-Love / Curb Records		177.901