Pit Road Week 16

Sonoma Raceway 2013

Martin Truex Jr has not won in 218 races, 218! So can anyone tell me they saw this coming at Sonoma this past Sunday? Truex not only won but he was leading by over 5 seconds when Juan Pablo Montoya ran out of gas while in 2nd place.

Not to take away from Truex but I also have to mention AJ Almendinger notched his first win in Nationwide after Penske gave him a second chance at Road America on Saturday. So Truex's win couldn't have come at a better time when two guys had things to get off there shoulders.

This weeks review will be short and sweet as I had to get updates through my phone for just about all the race. If you missed the action as much as I did here is a look at the final results at Sonoma.

Rising, Coasting, and Falling Drivers After Sonoma Raceway

Rising:

• Martin Truex Jr- As if breaking a 218 win less streak wasn't enough to land him on this part of the list, he now looks to be in better position to make the Chase back to back years.
• Jeff Gordon- After only being a part of what seemed like opening ceremonies at MIS last week Gordon rallied to a 2nd place finish. He still has work to do though and really needs a win.
• Kurt Busch- Well if this season wasn't already a roller coaster, just go back and look at Sonoma and it will sum it up. He was bad fast, but he was bad fast on pit road as well (two speeding penalties). Still had a great day but hasn't found the formula to win yet.

Coasting:

• Carl Edwards- Carl notched a top 5 with a 3rd place finish and made up a little bit more ground on JJ for the top spot.

Falling:

• Brad Keselowski- Well each week he doesn't get a win makes his road even more stressful this season. He did run up front some Sunday and even lead some laps but a poor finish in the 20's ruined what he had going.
• Juan Pablo Montoya- I can't say he didn't have a good day, and if the race was 2 laps shorter he would be on the rising list with a 2nd place finish, unfortunately for JPM he ran out of gas and fell way back. He needs road course wins to stay anywhere in talks this year.

Pit Road (Week 16 Power Rankings)

1. Jimmie Johnson (LW-1)- Come on guys, who else could be number one? I've seen Carl jumped to #1 on Power Rankings stating he has caught up in points and the 9th place finish after hitting the wall last week late. 9th is a good spot for JJ who isn't amazing at going right in Nascar and last week he could have won.
2. Kevin Harvick (LW-2)- Speaking of a good finish for someone who doesn't dominate at road courses Harvick will take his 10th and move on to next week.
3. Clint Bowyer (LW-6)- 2012 Sonoma winner Bowyer finished 5th during a very consistent year for the #15 team.
4. Greg Biffle (LW-7)- Quiet but got the job done, nice 8th place finish for the Biff.
5. Carl Edwards (LW-9)- Finally relevant again, Carl finished 3rd.
6. Tony Stewart (LW-5)- Rough day for Smoke that breaks his hot streak, no one saw it coming at Sonoma.
7. Dale Earnhardt Jr (LW-8)- A guy who hates seeing Sonoma on the schedule, Jr finished 12th and if you ask him he would take that every single time he turns right in a Sprint Cup Car.
8. Matt Kenseth (LW-3)- Feast or Famine, Sonoma was a good day to start but he really fell off in the end.
9. Kyle Busch (LW-4)- He has been a main stay in the rankings but he has been all over the place, including around and around on Sunday. Rough day for Rowdy.
10. Kurt Busch (LW-12)- Making his way up again, after falling back. Sound familiar? Seems like Kurt likes to go fast, on ever part of the track. He still finished 4th.
11. Loey Logano (LW-10)- Moves down a spot but overall had a good race. He finished 11th and has had a great 2013 campaign.
12. Kasey Kahne (LW-NR)- Kahne can thank BK for falling off during Sonoma. BK was up front but Kahne was the guy who finished up there (6th). He has another fast car and stayed out of trouble this time.

Dropped Out: Brad Keselowski
Just Missed: Jeff Gordon, Martin Truex Jr (Sorry Martin), Paul Menard.

Nascar Sprint Cup Standings