The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series action from Texas Motor Speedway was delayed a day, but our points analysis afterwards isn’t. Here’s the latest rundown on where things stand as now seven of 26 regular season races are in the books.
THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN
There’s any number of seven-related puns we could have used here, but the winners thus far get the magnificent tag. Team Penske’s Joey Logano has gotten off to a fast start thus far, particularly at Phoenix and Las Vegas, and his Texas run was one of his best performances yet in Sprint Cup. It took a G-W-C and a last lap pass of Jeff Gordon to it, but the right guy won Sunday at TMS to make it seven winners in seven races.
Logano joins a list that also includes Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Carl Edwards, Kyle and Kurt Busch. Assuming there are more winners, it might not necessarily be a guarantee that one win gets you in to this year’s Chase.
There were 13 winners in the first 26 races last year, and that number seems likely to get hit again, if not exceeded, in 2014.
THE NEXT LIKELY ROUND OF WINNERS
Gordon and Matt Kenseth are 1-2 in the points – for Gordon, it’s something he hasn’t experienced much of the last few years. But a win would be sweet, even though the points and results have been flowing ever so nicely to get the year going.
It’s the same story for Jimmie Johnson, who fell two spots to seventh in points after a 25th-place result Monday but one that could have been worse after getting caught up in teammate Dale Jr.’s crash.
RUNNING NEARLY WELL ENOUGH TO WIN
P9-15 – Brian Vickers, Paul Menard, Ryan Newman, rookie Austin Dillon, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart and rookie Kyle Larson – have posted some impressive drives over the last couple weeks and it continued in Texas. Vickers and Larson, in particular, were the standouts on Monday.
NEXT LEVEL CHALLENGERS
Those from P16 on back needing a slight performance boost or a bit of luck to enter possible win contention include Greg Biffle and Clint Bowyer in P16 and 17, although “the Biff” had one of his strongest runs of 2014 Monday in Texas, Kasey Kahne in P19, Jamie McMurray in P21 and the luckless Martin Truex Jr. in P27. These are all quality drivers who haven’t yet had that one big race in 2014 to challenge for a win.
POINTS: Through 7 of 26 regular season races.
PAST WEEKS: Martinsville (Race 6), Fontana (5), Bristol (4), Las Vegas (3)