Hello Readers, The 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season is over and it ended mostly as it began, with Jimmie Johnson holding up a big trophy. Congratulations to Denny Hamlin for picking up the win in the season finale and putting a positive end on his miserable season and congratulations to Johnson for winning the championship. Johnson avoided major problems on Sunday to claim his sixth championship by 19 points over Matt Kenseth, which is closer than it appeared. The biggest scare for Johnson’s title hopes came on a lap 197-restart when Jeff Gordon spun his tires and stacked up the field behind him. Johnson got pushed into Kenseth and crinkled his left front fender a bit. A caution a few laps later allowed Johnson’s crew to examine and fix the fender and it was smooth sailing from there. Johnson finished the season with six wins, 16 top fives, and 24 top tens and an average finish of 5.1 in the Chase,
Kenseth gave a valiant effort but with a 28-point cushion to play with, Johnson could take it easy and not push the car too hard after getting repairs. Oddly enough, the car Johnson used was arguably the best option for this race and it was a true workhorse and yet it wasn’t as dominant as it had been in prior races. This car was used at Dover in the spring, was the backup for the August Michigan race and was put into use when Johnson wrecked the primary car in practice, and was the one used to dominate the field at Texas a few weeks ago.
Kenseth had statistically his best-ever season, with a career- and series-high seven wins on the season and 12 top-fives and 20 top tens. While he had more top fives and tens in his lone championship year, the fact that Kenseth was able to accomplish these feats with a brand new team, crew chief and crew, and manufacturer says a lot about how good this team is and a lot about Kenseth’s ability behind the wheel. He started off the Chase with two straight wins, but finishes in the 20s at Talladega and Phoenix doomed him at Homestead. Kenseth wound up with a 7.4 average finishing position in the Chase, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Johnson, whose worst finish in the Chase was 13th, which came at Talladega.
Fun Fact: Three drivers completed all 36 races this season: Greg Biffle, Jamie McMurray, and Rookie of the Year winner Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. all completed all the races this season. Not every lap, but they were running at the finish of all 36 races. That’s quite an accomplishment and one that all three drivers should be proud of.
As of this writing, there are 98 days until the 2014 Daytona 500 and as far as I’m concerned, that’s 98 days too many. I can’t wait to get the 2014 season under way and see what the new season has in store for NASCAR fans. Can Jimmie Johnson get title number seven and tie Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt for most ever titles? How will Tony Stewart rebound from his broken leg? Can Dale Earnhardt, Jr. capitalize on his strong 2013 season? Can Denny Hamlin rebound from his awful 2013 season? How will Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch get along at Stewart-Haas Racing? These are just some of the questions that will be asked at the beginning of the season in February.
David Barr is an intern at Berks-Mont Newspapers.
