Crew chief Alan Gustafson and driver Mark Martin celebrate the No. 5 team's win in Victory Lane on Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. (Courtesy Hendrick Motorsports)ESPN on ABC’s Countdown pre-race show could have been oh, I dunno, about 45 minutes shorter than its scheduled full hour. I am an ESPN fan, truly, but I can’t take the pre-show anymore. The only useful things are the 5 second driver interviews and that’s about it.

There are no features, no special interviews, nothing. Why does it need to be an hour? I don’t wanna see a recap of the last race I saw it already. And if I didn’t see it on TV I caught up on it online. So there’s no need to rehash the whole thing. And please, for the love of God, stop asking Rusty Wallace his opinion on who can win the Championship. I’m sure he’s a very nice man, and obviously he has a lot of NASCAR knowledge but sometimes I don’t know where he’s coming from.

As far as I’m concerned everyone in the Chase has a chance to win it, ok. Technically and logically they all have a chance. So I really don’t want to hear how Juan Pablo Montoya has a chance but Kasey Kahne doesn’t because there’s drama going down at Richard Petty Motorsports. That makes no sense. Kasey was dealing with all of that drama and still managed to win two races this year.

Although, after the race at New Hampshire Kasey fell to 12th place so his chances are up in the air. Now Rusty can talk about how Kasey is a goner.

So, since Mark Martin said it was really all Alan Gustafson and the No. 5 team who got him into Victory Lane I would like to congratulate them on winning the Sylvania 300. Seriously, they’re doing an excellent job. I wouldn’t mind seeing them win the Championship.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. crashed out late in the race due to some contact with David Reutimann. In his post-crash interview Dale was obviously pissed (which I think is cute, hehe, but whatever) and he expressed his displeasure with David. In the interview he said that they’d had a “fabulous car.” My ears instantly perked up, it’s not everyday you hear a driver say their car is “fabulous.” It was freaking awesome. Maybe all those late nights reading The Fast and the Fabulous has finally sunk into his vocab??

This video (below) is proof! 🙂


(Left to right) Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Old Spice/Office Depot Chevrolet, poses with country music singer Josh Turner, prior to the start of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sylvania 300 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday in Loudon, N.H. (Photo Credit: Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR)

(Left to right) Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Old Spice/Office Depot Chevrolet, poses with country music singer Josh Turner, prior to the start of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sylvania 300 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday in Loudon, N.H. (Photo Credit: Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Team owner Joe Gibbs (top, black shirt) talks with the No. 18 M&M's crew before the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sylvania 300 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday in Loudon, N.H. (Photo Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Team owner Joe Gibbs (top, black shirt) talks with the No. 18 M&M’s crew before the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sylvania 300 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday in Loudon, N.H. (Photo Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR)