Winning at Texas may be sweet, but also short
Texans like to brag about how things are bigger and better in the Lone Star state, even when it comes to NASCAR. While Texas Motor Speedway came late to the game, just a decade ago, the track does have a significant streak going.
Twelve Nextel Cup races have been held at TMS since it opened in 1997, and 12 different drivers have celebrated in TMS' victory lane. Not one driver has repeated. Zilch.
As coincidence would have it, Texas has played host to some of the more remarkable celebrations in recent years. In the inaugural Cup race at TMS, Jeff Burton claimed the first victory of his career. Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared Budweisers with everyone in 2000, when he captured he first Cup win of his career at TMS. Texas native Terry Labonte calls his homecoming victory in '99 the biggest win of his career.
Of late, Texas has seen Tony Stewart climb the fence ('06) and Carl Edwards do his back flip ('05). Matt Kenseth has put his Mr. Consistency show on at TMS, posting a finish in the top-six each year since his '02 victory. Kasey Kahne made TMS part of his victory parade in '06, claiming one of his six wins at Texas.
The lack of a repeat winner is even more striking when you consider TMS, which had run only a spring race since opening, added a second race in the fall of '05.
The trend could easily add '07 to its list as several strong candidates arrive in Fort Worth having yet to win at TMS.
Kevin Harvick would be a great bet to keep the streak alive, especially because he loves how fast the cars go around TMS. He's won three Busch races at the track, plus he finished third and fifth in last year's two Texas races.
Denny Hamlin is running well in '06 and is currently sixth in the points. Denny Hamlin also ran well at TMS last season, finishing fourth and 10th. He's also got a teammate in Stewart to steal ideas from, if he needs them. Clint Bowyer finished fifth in a Cup race and won a Craftsman Truck event at TMS last year, and Martin Truex Jr. has three top-15 finishes in three Cup career starts at Texas.
Hendrick Motorsports also poses a threat to crown yet another new Texas champ. Each of Hendrick's four drivers is a threat to claim his first TMS victory. Casey Mears has two fourth-place and two seventh-place finishes in his last five races at TMS. Kurt Busch is coming off a win at Bristol and also won the TMS Busch race a year ago. And that still leaves perhaps the two best drivers on the circuit, points leader Jeff Gordon and '06 Nextel Cup champ Jimmie Johnson.
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