Did you have Brad Keselowski winning at Talladega on Sunday? Of course you didn't, he wasn't even an option in any of the five tiers.
The Aaron's 499 was certainly the most controversial race of the season so far, with Carl Edwards getting some air time on the final lap of the race when Keselowski was trying to get past him. He got past him alright, sending Edwards and his No. 99 car airborne and into the safety fence, injuring at least seven fans in the process. It's a good thing the fence held and the injuries to the fans were only minor.
"I'm glad the car didn't go up in the grandstands," he said. "I saw some fencing at one point and that made me a little bit nervous. I don't know if I could live with myself if I ended up in the grandstands."
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| Kyle Busch was the center of attention at Richmond last year. (Getty Images) | |
That wasn't the only big crash in the race. The first "Big One" occurred only six laps in involving 14 drivers, many of them Cup contenders, including Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne, Mark Martin and Clint Bowyer.
Edwards did end up finishing the race, jogging across the finish line after he safely returned to the racing surface. Keselowski went on to take his first win in just three Sprint Cup races, jumping up to 41st in the point standings. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. came in second and was the top points earner for the week.
The Sprint Cup series heads to Richmond International for the Russ Friedman 400 presented by Crown Royal. Friedman is a big-time NASCAR fan and more importantly served in Iraq and has received two purple hearts. He was chosen from more than 5,000 entries in a 50-word essay contest for his entry that described his receiving two purple hearts.
Richmond, a 0.75-mile tri-oval, is a far easier track to predict than Talladega as it is a short track race with bumpers occasionally meeting and minor accidents occurring. There won't be any "Big Ones" like we saw this past weekend. This race was highlighted last year by Kyle Busch, who was showered with boos and beer cans when he sent Earnhardt, Jr. spinning after a late caution. The accident allowed Clint Bowyer to take the win, sneaking ahead of both Busch and Earnhardt.
Jimmie Johnson has had plenty of success at Richmond the last two years, winning three of the four races he has run there. However, Johnson has also had some of his worst performances of his career there, finishing 19th or worse in seven of his 24 career races at RIR.
I'd certainly suggest taking a flier on Keselowski if he was available, but he is not one of the drivers available to choose from. Don't rack your brain trying to find him.
Tier One Start -- Kyle Busch
If Busch ends up winning at Richmond this weekend, I can't imagine what the fans will do to him. Hopefully there will be some extra security at the track for this race because I like Busch to take this race. He has never won at Richmond, but has three second-place finishes and has finished in the top 5 in six of his eight races there.
Others to consider: Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick
Tier One Sit -- Carl Edwards
This will be the second week in a row that I suggest sitting Edwards. I almost looked like an idiot last week when he was a lap away from getting the win after I suggested keeping him out of lineups at Talladega. Edwards has only three top-10 finishes at Richmond in his career and has never improved upon his sixth place finish in his first-ever Sprint Cup race there.
Others to avoid: Greg Biffle, Jeff Burton
Tier Two Start -- Clint Bowyer
Bowyer lucked his way into a win last season, but has a solid record at Richmond, never finishing worse that 12th. He may not get a win this weekend, but he should be able to crack the top 10. He's the safest pick for Richmond but might not have the best result in Tier Two.
Others to consider: Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart
Tier Two Sit -- David Ragan
Ragan has one really good finish at Richmond and three finishes that leave much to be desired. He took a third place result in 2008 but took 17th and 32nd place finishes in two races at RIR last year. There aren't any terrible choices in Tier Two, but Ragan is probably your worst bet.
Others to avoid: Jeff Gordon, Martin Truex, Jr.
Tier Three Start -- Ryan Newman
Newman was incredibly successful at Richmond to start his career, finishing second in his first two races at the track and winning his first and only race there on his fourth try. He has finished in the top 10 in every other race at Richmond for the past 10 years and finished 33rd in the second race at Richmond in 2008. Hopefully the trend will continue this weekend and he can get back into the top 10.
Others to consider: Bobby Labonte, David Reutimann
Tier Three Sit -- Jamie McMurray
McMurray is not having a very good 2009 campaign, currently sitting at 29th in the standings. He has only two top-10 finishes at Richmond in his career, never finishing better than ninth. In his last four races at RIR, he has an average finish of 35.75.
Others to avoid: Robby Gordon, Brian Vickers
Tier Four Start -- Scott Riggs
The pickings are becoming increasingly slim in Tier Four, with two of the drivers without rides (Aric Almirola and Travis Kvapil). I am going with Riggs this week mostly because I haven't chosen him twice yet and he has a somewhat respectable average finish of 27.3. At this point, any option that you have left is probably a good one.
Others to consider: Elliot Sadler, Paul Menard
Tier Four Sit -- Juan Pablo Montoya
Montoya is off to a nice start to the 2009 season, currently sitting at 16th in the standings after winning the pole and finishing 20th last week at Talladega. However, he has a poor track history at Richmond, with a top finish of 26th in his first-ever race there.
Others to avoid: Aric Almirola, Travis Kvapil
Tier Five Start -- Regan Smith
Smith has only run twice at Richmond, but has respectable finishes of 21st and 23rd in the two races last season. He had moderate success there in the Nationwide Series as well, taking a 15th place result back in 2007.
Others to consider: Dave Blaney, Reed Sorenson
Tier Five Sit -- Michael Waltrip
Waltrip has not seen the increase in performance he wanted to have in the 2009 campaign and is now looking more and more like a candidate for retirement at the end of the 2009 season. Waltrip has only one top-10 finish at Richmond in his entire Sprint Cup career, coming back in 2005.
Others to avoid: Kenny Wallace, David Stremme
Ian's Starting Five
Tier One -- Kyle Busch
Tier Two -- Clint Bowyer
Tier Three -- Ryan Newman
Tier Four -- Scott Riggs
Tier Five -- Regan Smith
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