SpeedwayMedia.com, The GOOD, The BAD, & The UGLY - A Konsistent Kasey Kahne Kritical For Richmond

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The GOOD, The BAD, & The UGLY - A Konsistent Kasey Kahne Kritical For Richmond

Posted on September 7, 2006

By Ron Thornton

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Kasey Kahne is an absolute dream to more than just a trio of mind wandering gals in a commercial. He has done darn GOOD, winning his fifth of the season in California last week. He is a potent mix of charisma, talent, and boyish good looks that actually lends some credence to those insurance commercials. Some have it, like Kahne and Carl Edwards, to just name two, and some don't. I don't think I need to mention of whom I speak.

The California race was GOOD to watch, though not exactly in a Daytona, Bristol, Talladega sort of way. This one was more like watching a chess match, with some drama provided as pit strategy with 30 laps to go jumbled up the running order for a period of time. Unfortunately, that proved to be a lot like kicking the board over. It caused lots of excitement, but nothing much changed once the pieces were put back where they belonged.

Jeff Burton has been very GOOD this season. If only the races were about half as long as they are. After being one of the top dogs last week, he once again cooled off at a time he needed to get hot. Burton finished 16th in California, dropped to 10th in the standings, just ahead of you know who.

You can't get a much more UGLY result than to drop out of the race first. In fact, eight Chase drivers can be caught or tied by Kahne this Saturday if such a fate should befall them. If so bitten, a top thirty finish would move Kahne past Burton or Mark Martin, while 28th by Kahne could mean the end for a last place finishing Tony Stewart. A sure fire insurance policy for these guys in avoiding disappointment would be a Top Five finish this weekend.

Finishing in the Top 15 Sunday would do GOOD things for Denny Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt, Jr, while a Top Twenty would be more than enough to lock in the likes of Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, and Kevin Harvick. In fact, Happy needs only to finish in the top 40. I like his chances.

My open letter last week to Kurt Busch was thought GOOD by some, providing a few intentioned laughs, while a few who weren't even fans of the boy thought me rather BAD. One reader opined that I could have been more constructive, so allow me to be just that. "Dear Kurt, read my letter and ponder my advice." That should do it. Constructive? Yes. Subtle? No.

Reports have Mark Martin moving over to take over the #88 ride being abandoned at the end of the year by Dale Jarrett. If true, I'm not sure if this comes as GOOD news or BAD. Maybe we should just stop waving good bye to the guy. While Mark no longer looks like a spring chicken, I notice from the points that he still drives like young plucker. That is enough.

How GOOD is Mark Martin? Well, you can find him among the Top Twenty in the Cup standings, where he has been for each of the past 19 years. Sixteen of those saw him finish in the Top Ten, 12 times in the Top Five. The number 9 might be coming on hard, but I wouldn't count out the ole boy in the #6 just yet.

Coming up this Saturday night, the boys decide who is in and who is out as they fire up the engines at Richmond. Kahne has five wins this season, but 10 times he has finished outside the Top Thirty. It all depends on what version shows up this weekend. Will it be the guy who finished 36th in May, or eighth here a year ago? We'll find out soon enough. Enjoy the racing!

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