NASCAR Preview: Hendrick team looks strong again in 2010
Going into the 2010 NASCAR season, the main question may be which Hendrick Motorsports team member wins the championship title this year.
Jimmie Johnson, fresh off his fourth-straight Sprint Cup Championship, is obviously the odds on favorite. However, with teammates Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon finishing two and three in the championship last year, the Hendrick team has an enviable position. The focus this year will be to get Dale Earnhardt Jr. back on the winning track while the other three maintain their dominance. Earnhardt’s No.88 team will work closely with Martin’s No. 5 team to share information and resources
While the Hendrick team is on the top looking down, one of the newest teams will look to build on the success it had last year. Stewart-Haas racing, part-owned by driver Tony Stewart, saw both its drivers, Stewart and Ryan Newman, qualify for the Cup Chase. Newman will need to get off to a better start this season. Stewart was happy to be atop the points standing before the Chase, but won’t be satisfied until his team has won a championship.
Kurt Busch will carry the best hopes for Team Penske to win a championship. Busch finished fourth in the Chase points, including one win, despite learning part way through the season he would be losing crew chief Pat Tryson. The Penske team will also hope Sam Hornish Jr. can continue the improvements he made in 2009. Hornish had nine top 15 and two top 5 finishes last year after not finishing better than 16 his rookie season.
Joe Gibbs Racing will depend on Denny Hamlin to continue where he left off last season. Hamlin finished fifth in the Chase and was one of the hottest drivers at the end of the year with an average finish of ninth despite some bad luck and mechanical problems. Hamlin likely will challenge Johnson again this year for the title, while teammate Kyle Busch will look for some consistency.
The Hendrick team remains the favorite, but Stewart and Hamlin have shown they can challenge and may bring their teams the championship in 2010.
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