Larry McReynolds preview Talladega (Robby Gordon mentioned)

Radio Show with Larry McReynolds

Larry McReynolds was on the radio as a guest previewing the Talladega race this weekend and was asked a few questions?

How crazy is it Jimmie Johnson could win his 4th straight title?
LM - It's hard to win a Cup championship, but to win 4 in a row just shows you how strong that 48 bunch is. Chad Knaus, Jimmie Johnson and the 48 team have set the bar and so far nobody else has been able to reach it. If you look at the NBA, NFL, MLB or college football even, I'm not sure I've heard of anybody winning 4 Championships ina row.

Kyle Busch is getting a new crew chief after winning 4 races, why?
LM - Nobody reads people better than Gibbs. They see something's not working latley and decided they need to go ahead and make a change. With the testing ban, you see teams making changes now instead of waiting til the season ends. RCR is making a change with the #31 crew chief. Robby Gordon made a change, which I think is a great addition for a team like Robby's. I talked to Doug and he's excited about this 7 team. RPM is running a Ford this weekend trying to prepare for next season. For teams not in The Chase, this is a live test session if you will for the upcoming Daytona race.

Talladega raised the fences. Is that going to change anything?
LM- The boys at Talladega Superspeedway have always been a step ahead in this sport. Their main goal is to keep the fans safe. They raised the fences 8 feet, even though the fences in place did it's job. When Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards were racing those last laps, they turned speeds around 208 or 209. Nascar likes to keep them at the 200 mark or below. They will have a new restrictor plate this weekend that should help slow the cars down. You will see the differnce in qualifying. That again will just bunch the pack up even more. (laughing) So the Big One will definitely be looming.

So who's your pick this weekend?
It's hard to go outside that Hendrick stable, any of those drivers will be the favorites to win. Tony always runs well at Talladega, but I'd say nobody needs a win more than Dale Earnhardt and I'm sure he will definitely be Amped up this weekend (no pun intended).

So who's your dark horse, the Brad Keselowski?
LM - Well, Brad's not much of a dark horse since he's the last winner at this track, he would be my pick, but the guy I think that could go unnoticed all day and then out of nowhere be challenging for the win would be Robby Gordon. After doing so well last year I just have to think he's going to run well at one of these plate tracks and this is the last one. He runs Dale Jarrett's old strategy of riding around the back, staying out of trouble and then making that banzai run at the end.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Ryan Plowman on October 28, 2009 at 12:58pm

Gotta make friends early, or you'll have no one to help you get to the front.

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Permalink Reply by Bryan Dudley on October 28, 2009 at 1:08pm

not that the finishes are showing it, but Robby has been running better, until at least he gets crashed or parts break, than last year. If he can run good at short tracks like last week, and be consistant on superspeedways, he has legitimate chances to win next year. Really liked the scanner with the CC, Robby did what Doug said, thats how it should be.

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Permalink Reply by Matt on October 28, 2009 at 2:29pm

Robby usually listens to the CC for their first few races.

I honestly am not getting the least bit excited about RGMs chances this weekend. Does anyone recall the plate cars performance from the three previous races this season? His plate cars may have been awesome last year, but this year is a different story.

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Permalink Reply by Bigzoom on October 28, 2009 at 4:19pm

Outcome hasn't been the same for last year, but looking back....

Daytona 500 - Robby lost the draft and the race was nearing the end. Caution came out. Robby pitted for 4 tires and needed to race for the "Lucky Dog" Robby charged by the lap down cars and was near the front when Brian Vickers & Dale Earnhardt Jr got together sending Junior into Robby. Robby spun and since he was among those involved he was uneligible for the Lucky Dog pass. Finished 34th 1 lap down

Talladega (#1) Again, Robby lost the draft and went a lap down. Late in the race he got the Lucky Dog. Robby was charging through the field inside the Top 10 when Bobby Labonte bounced off another car and hit Robby's quarter panel sending him spinning into the wall. Finishede 29th Out of the race

Daytona (July) Again, Robby lost the draft and went down a lap. Robby got the Lucky Dog. Robby started to charge but was boxed in and then coming to the checkered flag was caught up in a last lap wreck that resulted in a 22nd place finish.

All 3 didn't work out like they did last year. Same strategy, different results. It happens when you're plate racing. Nobody is safe. Wrecks happen everywhere, but at Talladega they usally happen up front.

I wish Robby would use the same strategy the first half of the race, then work his way up front and stay up front the 2nd half. The banzai run after the last pit stop is harder now with the COT and double file restarts. It's harder to charge through the field without somebody snow-plowing you from behind. When Keselowski & Carl went by the pack with just the 2 of them it raised alot of eyebrows. Newman even said he couldn't believe they passed the whole pack like that.

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Permalink Reply by wilks7 on October 29, 2009 at 8:16am

i noticed i see "lost the draft" alot...maybe they should try a different strategy and run with the pack this time...and stay with the draft

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Permalink Reply by Jayme on October 29, 2009 at 8:58am

AMEN!!!

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Permalink Reply by vak7 on October 28, 2009 at 2:40pm

This year is a different story for everyone. Still helps to have a friend, but even drafting is hampered with this COT. Even with a buddy on the track it's much harder to plow your way through the field. I was one that loved watching restrictor plate races simply because every car still running on the lead lap had a chance at the end, no matter their position. The guy up front could find himself P20 in a heartbeat. It wasn't the same old guy running away from the pack to the checkers. Not so with this new car. There isn't nearly as much passing.

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Permalink Reply by kevin dinsmore on October 28, 2009 at 4:34pm

agree....the strategy needs to be revised. laying back all race doesn't earn the drivers trust.....it's just hard to get a push that way from the guys that run up front all day when you make your move...but you never know funny things happen here.

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Permalink Reply by Beth on October 28, 2009 at 6:08pm

That's a good point. Hadn't thought of that before.

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Permalink Reply by Dave-O on October 28, 2009 at 4:15pm

I think your sentiment applies more at Daytona than 'Dega, where speed is all that matters. While the car is bigger and harder to run, the racing is still pretty good at 'Dega, as handling is not an important factor- it's all about speed. Daytona is much the opposite, and the racing at that track has suffered far more with the COT.

As Eleanor Roosevelt said "America is all about speed. Hot, nasty, bad-ass speed."

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Permalink Reply by Josh Northcutt on October 28, 2009 at 4:40pm

I'm thinking... Robby gets the pole and leads every lap.

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Permalink Reply by Dave-O on October 28, 2009 at 5:13pm

that'd be ideal....but the pit crew can't pull off fast enough stops to contend with the big boys. It's more enjoyable to watch Robby consistently outrun 5-10 cars and take the lead on every restart anyway.