Tums Fast Relief 500 Pick to Win

Race: Tums Fast Relief 500
Date: Sunday October 30, 2011
Track: Martinsville Speedway
Time: 1:30 pm ET
Channel: ESPN
by Virginia Vroom, NASCAR Handicapper, Predictem.com

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Well, it seems like manufacture loyalty has sealed the fate of some of the drivers in the Chase, namely Jeff Gordon. With his drafting partner essentially instructed not to draft with Jeff because Baine drives a Ford and Gordon a Chevy, Jeff was hung out to dry. There's really no other way to put it. The sad reality is that company loyalty has again interfered with good racing. That's the nature of the beast I suppose as NASCAR continues to grow in size.

This weekend, we are headed to my favorite track. Now, maybe it's because Martinsville is in my home state, but I absolutely love this track. Along with Bristol, Martinsville is the epitome of short track racing. No car leaves untouched and few drivers leave without a grudge. I dare to say that this weekend will be no different.

At just over ½ mile, Martinsville Speedway is very flat. There is negligible 12 degree banking in the turns but no banking on the straights. Each stretch is a short run of just 800 feet. You can probably see how this track can be challenging on both the cars and the patience of the drivers. One of the most challenging aspects of this track other than maintaining composure is the equipment. Equipment failure has a tendency to run high at this track, namely in the brake department. These drivers nail the throttles coming out of the turns and slam on those brakes coming back into them. Because of that, you often see that glowing effect because of the heat of the brakes due to the stress put on them. If you lose brake power here, you are in trouble. Now, another issue I've seen here is power steering going out. That's a pretty rare thing to happen, but I believe that it's happened to Jimmie Johnson here. This is a hard track to deal with no power steering on because of the constant speeding up and slowing down and getting into those turns, but it has been done.

Drivers who tend to have a lot of success here include Denny Hamlin (as this is his home track), Jimmie Johnson, and Kevin Harvick. In fact, Johnson and Hamlin make up 9 of the last 10 wins over the last 10 races here with Kevin Harvick only breaking their streak this spring. That being said, I think that it would be best to put some big money on one of those two guys. In my opinion, I think that we are going to see Johnson back in victory lane. Now, Johnson is 50 points back in the Chase. That is getting into desperate territory is he has any chance of getting that championship this year. That being said, Johnson's best track may just be this one. This is where he needs to pull off a win. Denny Hamlin has nothing to lose simply because he will more than likely not become a factor in the championship run, so he may be willing to gamble a little more, but I think that Johnson may just have a little more under his belt. Look for Carl Edwards to be strong in order to keep and extend his lead. Kevin Harvick is also another driver to watch. He has faltered a bit in the Chase, but this is a good track for him to redeem himself on. The same goes for Jeff Gordon. While his chances this year are essentially gone, Martinsville is a very strong track for him. Look for him to try and make up some ground this weekend.

Here's a rundown of your current top 12 in the points at Talladega:

1. Carl Edwards
2. Matt Kenseth
3. Brad Keselowski
4. Tony Stewart
5. Kevin Harvick
6. Kyle Busch
7. Jimmie Johnson
8. Kurt Busch
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
10. Jeff Gordon
11. Denny Hamlin
12. Ryan Newman

There are a mere 26 points between 5th and Edwards. The problem is that Carl Edwards is slowly inching away from the field. Another interesting note is that some of these Chasers haven't had horrible finishes. In fact, they've had top 10s, but they can't manage to catch the frontrunners who consistently run in the top 5 positions. Look for some rough racing this weekend as we head to one of the best tracks on the circuit here in good 'ole Virginny!

Virginia's Pick to Win: Jimmie Johnson.

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