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Brooklyn, Mich. — Between the two teams, Roush Fenway Racing and the Wood Brothers have won 22 of the 80 Cup races at Michigan International Speedway. That’s better’n one in every four races.
That’s pretty good.
Both teams will be at MIS this weekend. And, you can bet, both teams are very hungry to add to that record.
It’s a very important race for Roush Fenway drivers Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth as there are only four races before the cutoff to the Chase. Kenseth has never missed a Chase before, and Biffle has missed just one.
To show you how Ol’ Steady Matty has gotten to be Ol’ Steady Matty, since winnin’ the first two races of the year, he has only two other top-fives—but yet, he still has an opportunity to win a second championship.
The Biff—whose previous finishes at the site of last weekend’s road race, Watkins Glen, were 21st, 10th, 38th, 38th, 35th and 30th—turned in a top-five when he needed it most, improvin’ from 12th to 10th in the standings.
And, of Roush Fenway Racing’s 11 career victories at Michigan, Kenseth has two and Biffle has two.
Carl Edwards, the third Ford Racing driver contendin’ for a championship, is in better shape—he’s sixth—also has a pair of Cup wins at MIS, which, incidentally was the site of his Cup debut five years ago this month.
The Wood Brothers, of course, don’t have a driver in contention for a championship because the Woods are runnin’ a limited schedule with Bill Elliott this year. Elliott, of course, is a former series champion, and has seven wins at Michigan.
Back in the ’80s, nobody was better at the big race tracks the Awesome Bill. In ’85, he swept both races. In ’86, he swept both races. Then he won another in ’87.
This limited schedule is how the Woods did it in the old days. In fact, they were one of the last teams to run every race every year, waiting until the 1980s. Before, they’d pick and choose—and then win.
Like in ’73. That year with driver David Pearson, they showed up to just 18 of the series’ 28 races. But, they won 11 of ’em. Eleven of 18. More’n six times out of 10, the Woods ended up in victory lane.
That year there was only one race at MIS. Pearson and Woods won. Just as they won the two there in ’72. And again in ’74. And ’75. And two more in ’76. And another one in ’78.
And, before that, the Woods ran less than half the schedule, won the ’63 owner’s championship, one of only two times in series history that the winning driver and winning owner weren’t the same team. But, the Woods that year had six drivers.
Yep, there are some Ford team owners and drivers at Michigan this weekend who certainly know their way around that two-mile track.
ANOTHER TRACK, ANOTHER ERA
One of the things that Ol’ Sparky will do on a Saturday, and sometimes a Friday, when leavin’ the track, is take a different route back to the hotel—a back road, or two, or three dozen—just in case one is needed after a race.
Now, for whatever reason, the Sparkster had never really needed a different route at The Glen, maybe because for a number of years, where the Sparkster stayed kinda was a different route.
This year, though, the Sparkster was stayin’ in the same direction as many of the fans, and, well, with a little extra time available, decided to take a different route on Saturday afternoon.
Now, if you’ve never been to the Finger Lakes region of New York state, you’re missin’ out on some of the most beautiful countryside around. Watkins Glen, not the track, but the village, sits at the southern tip. It’s really postcard stuff.
So, on Saturday, after the day’s activities were done at the track, the Sparkster left, made a turn here, another one there, and was quickly on a narrow path of a road, windin’ through trees and meadows.
And, then, there was a marker on a bridge. And, then, later, one other marker at the side of the road.
Uh, this little bit of a road where the Sparkster was takin’ his time, was part of the original road course when Watkins Glen first started hostin’ racin’ back in 1948. There are some historical paintings at the track, and that stretch of road looked very much like it did in the paintings.
Now, havin’ driven it at under the very reasonable speed limit, the Sparkster can only imagine the skill needed to go through there at speed.
FAST MUSTANGS
The NHRA returns to action this weekend in Brainerd, Minnesota, where John Force Racing qualified 1, 2, 3 and 5 last year.
This year, the Funny Car drivers head north with Ashley Force Hood leadin’ the way; with nine races remainin’ in the season, she is in third place, less than three rounds behind the leader.
Tim Wilkerson, in his first year in a Mustang after competin’ for the championship last year, has two wins and is in fourth place. Other Ford drivers in the top 10: Bob Tasca III (sixth), John Force (eighth) and Mike Neff (ninth).
Sparky:
Why has Ford always seem to run so good at Michigan, and what can they do to make that transfer to some of the other tracks?
Norman,
Oklahoma
Norman: long time, no hear. Michigan, indeed, has been a good Ford track for some reason, and it always has, wether it be the Woods early, or Roush-Fenway of late. Some call it extra motivation, because of the closeness to Dearborn, and some of it is just the right kind of track for the way engines run. At this point, Ol’ Spark doesn’t care what the reason as long as the Blue Oval ends up in victory lane this weekend. But, each track has its own characteristics, so what works in one place doesn’t necessarily relate to another track. The common factor, however, is good set-ups and good horsepower. That seems to work everywhere.
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