All Jacked Up

Chicagoland Speedway thoughts

Posted by: Jason Randall

Friday, July 11, 2008 2:29 PM

NASCAR invades Chicagoland speedway this weekend starting tonight with the Nationwide Series race. Then, Saturday night, we will be treated to the first Sprint Cup race under the lights at the Joliet oval.

I have to believe we'll see the usual suspects strong again this weekend. Of course points leader Kyle Busch will be around the front (after all, qualifying was based on points due to rain), but I also believe that we'll see some good things from the Roush cars.

Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle all should be fast. There's something about Roush cars and intermediate tracks. It certainly wouldn't surprise me to see one of those guys in Victory Lane on Saturday night.

Other guys to look out for will be RCR drivers Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick, and of course never count out HMS guys like Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon. I know, I know, I didn't really give a solid pick here, but I'll narrow one down for tomorrow morning's print edition of The News-Gazette.

Off the track, we heard the official announcement that Tony Stewart is leaving Joe Gibbs Racing next season to co-own Stewart-Haas Racing. I like this move by Stewart. He's done all he can with JGR and he's ready to take on a new challenge. Besides, Busch and Denny Hamlin have JGR moving in the right direction as it is.

Stewart-Haas will field a two-car team next year, with Stewart in one ride and a driver to be announced in the other. There are rumors it could be Ryan Newman, but nothing's moved on that front. I don't think it will be Casey Mears (as some have speculated) and I don't think Stewart will bring in an older guy, but then again, does he really want to start off with a newbie? We all know Stewart doesn't have a lot of patience, so he'll want results early and often. We'll see.

I'm not sure Newman is the right choice for Stewart, but you never know. Maybe a change of scenery for the Purdue grad is what he needs. Things at Penske haven't been that great for a while now.

On the other side, this move opens the door for 18-year-old Joey Logano to step up to Sprint Cup racing. I'm telling you, Logano is a future champ and he's going to be under the microscope next season, but I think he'll handle it well, especially with the equipment he'll be given.

Anyway, that's all for now. I guess if put on the spot, I would say I'm leaning toward the 99 or 17 for Saturday night's race. Until next time, keep hittin' your marks!

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