We’ve seen five races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for 2015, and there’ve been storylines galore, some positive and some negative. Here are my winners from the early races of the season as the teams head back from the three-week road swing and get set for a return to the sport’s traditional roots: short track racing in Martinsville, Virginia this weekend.
Kevin Harvick: It’s very early to name a favourite for the 2015 championship, but even so, the form of Harvick in the #4 Chevrolet for Stewart-Haas Racing is ominous. He won twice out west – Phoenix and Las Vegas – and finished second yesterday in Fontana, a race he could easily have won, were it not for late-race restart drama. Harvick stretched his record of eight races finishing either first or second, dating back to last year. The Closer, as he’s known, has great chemistry with crew chief Rodney Childers and is seeking back-to-back championships. He’s looking good, but, of course, it’s early days.
Martin Truex Jr: Truex and his entire #78 Furniture Row Racing team endured a horrible 2014 season, but have bounced back incredibly well early in 2015 to be safely ensconced within the top five in points. Truex is a good driver, and Furniture Row Racing, albeit a one-car operation, certainly know how to fight with the big dogs in Sprint Cup Series racing. They put Kurt Busch into the Chase two years ago, and with what we’ve seen so far from Truex and his Denver-based team, they might do it again this year.
Carl Edwards: Saw the writing on the wall at Roush Fenway Racing and switched to Joe Gibbs Racing, where he’s driving Toyota alongside former long-time Roush teammate, Matt Kenneth. Yes, Edwards hasn’t scored a Top-5 or Top-10 finish this year, but he’s shown speed at times and will likely win a race – barring a crazy plate race-type finish – before anyone from his former squad does.
Richard Childress Racing: Shocking year for a once-powerful squad in 2014 seems to be on the mend, at least over the first five weeks. Quietly, Ryan Newman sits sixth in points and even more quietly, Paul Menard is in ninth. You rarely hear about those two over the course of the race. They’re just doing a quiet, consistent job.
Kurt Busch: Part of the biggest and most contentious scandal NASCAR has seen in many a year. No longer known as the Outlaw after a suspension that was lifted after a court ruled that Busch had not, in fact, assaulted his ex-girlfriend, Patricia Driscoll, the older Busch brother got into the car in Phoenix after missing three races, and immediately went to the top of the sheet. He’s scarcely been outside of the top five in any session over the last two weekends, and was unlucky not to win in Fontana yesterday. Like his teammate Harvick, Busch’s form.
Penske Racing: Joe Logano won the season-opening Daytona 500 and Brad Keselowski “stole one” (his own admission in victory lane) at Fontana to put both of Roger Penske’s cars into the Chase. The Logano-Keselowski tandem might not be the most popular amongst the fans, but they’re getting giant results where it counts: on the racetrack. The Captain will doubtless be happy with Logano in second and Keselowski in fifth in the pointsn race.
Hendrick Motorsports: Only one win for the powerhouse Chevrolet squad – Jimmie Johnson in Atlanta – but as far as team’s go, Hendrick are headed in the right direction. They’ve got three drivers in the top ten in points: Dale Earnhardt Jr. in fourth, Johnson in seventh and Kasey Kahne in eighth.
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