Happy New Year: NASCAR Addition

Well the new year is upon us and in the NASCAR world a few drivers are thinking "about time!" NASCAR Behind the Wall is going to take a fast look at some drivers that want to forget about 2013 and move on in the new year and season.

Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin entered 2013 like any other season, ready to make the Chase and try to finally bring home a Championship. After Vegas, fans got to see an all out boxing match with Joey Logano and DH that festered into Fontana, and that is where Hamlin's season pretty much ended. DH never quite made it back to 100% all season, but he did happen to finish the season as the last winner in 2013, and for that reason he is looking forward to 2014 and getting back to the Chase.



Brad Keselowski

Coming into 2013 BK was NASCAR's defending Champion and showed why when he started the season hot. Then came some suspicious rear end housings and NASCAR penalties including losing Paul Wolfe for a few races. Once they were reunited the #2 team went through everything from in race penalties, to parts of there car ripping off, to just plain bad luck. BK never really bounced back but he did steal a Chase win away from contenders and for that reason he is looking forward to 2014 and getting back to Championship form.

Carl Edwards

Carl started 2013 by winning race number two at Phoenix and breaking his win less streak (he didn't win at all in 2012). Carl then won the last race before the Chase (Richmond) to get back into the Chase after missing it for the first time in his career. Everything sounds great right? Why would Carl want to forget 2013 and get the new year started? Well, the Chase happened. Carl started the season on a good note but after finishing the Chase in last place (our first ever 13th place finisher in the Chase) Carl wants to forget 2013 and for that reason move onto 2014 and try putting it together for a full season.

Tony Stewart

What didn't happen to Smoke in 2013? Stewart started the season off slow which has become a staple of his, and then it seemed he was starting to heat up. Everyone started talking about him and that maybe Smoke is ready to get into his "summer hot" stretch. After a few sprint car incidents came up Smoke finally ran out of luck in a crash and ended up with a broken leg that ended his season. Stewart had to sit out (and possibly stop eating so many soda cookies) and for the reason he is looking forward to 2014 and his new SHR teammates making a splash.

Honorary Mention: Martin Truex Jr, Kasey Kahne, and Paul Menard.

Happy New Year to the NASCAR World. We are that much closer to the 2014 season beginning. Let the count down to Daytona continue!

Driver Spotlight: Kevin Harvick (Preseason Addition)

Kevin Harvick 2014 Preview

By Richard Tix

Last season Matt Kenseth moved from one ride that he had been with for most of his career (Jack Roush) to another major team (Joe Gibbs). Many fans thought he might have a slow transition while building chemistry with his new team. After having a pretty good season in 2012 it was a big move for both Roush and Kenseth and it was one of the biggest headlines of the preseason. Well Kenseth made everyone forget what the big deal was by winning his third race with his new team and 3 races in his first 11.

Entering 2014 we have many new faces in new places but the biggest name seems to be Kevin Harvick. Harvick had an impressive 2013 campaign after winning two Chase races (four total wins in 2013) and finishing third in the Chase standings.

It's always great to see teams rally even when they know the team will be dismantled after the season is over, but times change and people move on. This season Harvick moves into the #4 ride at Stewart-Haas racing with his buddy Tony Stewart. So the big question is will it take some time for Harvick to settle in or will it be smooth riding from the beginning?

One more storyline to watch from the SHR camp will be if/how long it will take for personalities to take affect and create some in season drama? From still having Danica who always has story lines, to signing great friend Harvick, to also bringing in once outspoken Kurt Busch, how will Tony Stewart handle this four man (well, 3 man and Danica) team as a still somewhat new owner?

My Take:
I think that Harvick will step into SHR just fine to start 2014. The past two seasons he has got off to a good start within the first ten races. In 2013 Harvick wasn't great, but he was very consistent to start the season (other then Daytona) so I don't see any reason that with a good team behind him and good parts his team can start off smooth. I only wonder about the long run at SHR. Will someone feel that they are not getting the best equipment? With the possibility of Danica and Kurt being left on the back burner while Owner and best bud get the best equipment will someone get upset? Also, Kurt was brought in by Haas so it could cause some tension between them with Tony Stewart. The SHR camp will have a lot of pressure and included will be the fact that Stewart will want to come back strong and not wait until he gets hot in the summer (which has been a trend of his during his career), so will everything stay smooth?

A four car team is a lot to handle as a somewhat new owner/driver so it will be a fun ride to watch during 2014.

Take to Twitter and let me know what you think of the situation. Who will run well? Will there be drama? Can the four team work? Will Busch stay calm if he finds more bad luck?

Driver Spotlight: Dale Earnhardt Jr (Preseason Addition)

Dale Earnhardt Jr's 2014 Preview

By Richard Tix

The first Driver Spotlight of the 2014 season will come early this year, yes in fact still in 2013. The way I see it, if you are going to start the season off, why not start it with Nascars most popular driver (again), Dale Earnhardt Jr? (Take a look here at last years Driver Spotlight on Jr)

Jr will turn 40 this Nascar season and time could be running out for him to win multiple Championships, but that doesn't mean he can make a run at finally getting his first.  In fact, he could be hitting the prime of his career right now. In 2013, Dale posted the most top 10's he has ever had in a single season (22) and he also had ten top 10's on the year. What seems most telling to me about the 2013 season is that he ended up finishing the season 5th in the points Chase.

Lets take a quick look at the final ten races of the 2012 season for a better understanding of how he finished the best he has in the standings since 2006. If you look at how the Chase started for Dale you would say it would have been easy for him to roll over and just coast through the rest of the 2013 season (35th place finish at Chicago). In the next 9 races he did manage to finish in the top ten 8 times, with 5 of those being top 5's. That's a hot ending to the 2013 season that could roll over into 2014.  He had half of his season top 5's in the last 10 races of the season, where they matter the most.

If Dale could have erased that first Chase race he may have been contending throughout the Chase. His worst finish (other then the 35th place when he had engine troubles) was 15th which was his only finish outside the top 10.

After the review of 2013, it is hard not to think that Jr has a shot to contend in 2014. In fact, these numbers probably make Jr Nation drool with the thought of him holding that Championship Trophy. It all starts at Daytona where Jr use to be dominate. In his last 5 starts at the Daytona 500 he has finished runner up 3 times, the other to he finished 24 (but won the Pole), and 27th.

Is this the season that he starts out with a win in the first race and goes on to contend for a Championship? Let's here your take! Get on Twitter and send me your opinion and thoughts on Jr this season.

Nascar World Top Stories: December

Nascar World is a section dedicated to keeping you up to date with Nascar Articles from around the web. So just incase you missed it, check out these articles from other sites.

• NASCAR Releases Rule Changes for 2014- Yahoo.com
• Dillon to Drive No. 3 car for RCR- Nascar.com
• Bobby Labonte to Compete in 2014 Daytona 500- Nascar.com
• NASCAR Reveals 2014 Rules Package- Nascar.com
• Dale Jr Dominates 2013 Best Selling Die-Casts- Nascar.com
• NASCAR Delivers 2014 Competition Package to Teams- MRN.com
• Roush's Hanger Tribute to the Military-MRN.com
• Drivers Looking to Bounce Back- MRN.com
• Drivers Share their Favorite Race-MRN.com
• NASCAR Does Final Testing for 2014 Rules Package- ESPN.com
• NASCAR Hires Jimmy Small to Run Iowa Speedway-SI
• Madison Martin Named New Miss Sprint Cup for 2014- Yahoo.com/NASCAR.com
• Billy Scott Hired as Crew Chief for Brian Vickers- Yahoo.com/NASCAR.com
• The Number 1 Key for the 2014 Rookies? Identify Their Competition- FOXSports.com
• Kenzie Ruston to Race for Ben Kennedy Racing- MRN.com
• Road to the Sprint Cup: Part 1- MRN.com
• Road to the Sprint Cup: Part 2- MRN.com
• 2014 Sprint Cup Series Team/Driver Chart (With Rookies)- Jayski.com
• Top 10 Drivers Without a Championship- NASCAR.com
• Road to the Sprint Cup: Part 3- MRN.com
• Road to the Sprint Cup: Part 4- MRN.com
• A Season Defined by One Night in Richmond- NASCAR.com
• Race of the Year-MRN.com
• DW: Everything Changes in NASCAR in 2014- FOXSports.com

Check back, this article will get updated throughout the month.

Also, check out Nascar Behind the Wall on Twitter to get even more updates from the Social Media World.

The Offseason Movement

Well 2013 came to an end and I ended up just having enough time to watch the Chase, but not to post about it. Hopefully everyone enjoyed the ride, but once again we have a season that ended with Jimmie Johnson as our Nascar Sprint Cup Champion.

This season seems to be shaping up to be a good one, and its only December. Can Jimmie Johnson get number seven? How will Earnhardt fans take seeing the #3 on the track? How will things work out with so many personalities at Stewart-Haas? Plus there are plenty more story lines with drivers in new rides and the Gen 6 car in it's second season.

Unlike last season, I will be starting off the season at Daytona and hopefully making it all the way through the last Chase Race. Each week I will for sure include an after race Power Rankings with some rising and falling drivers. Hopefully I can find time for most track previews and also some driver spotlights throughout the season.

If at all fails, check me out on Twitter where I will post, Retweet other Nascar Sources, and connect with any Nascar fan that is out there! Everyone get your calendars out and continue your countdown to Daytona (as I'm sure you all already have)!