2014 Season Preview ~ Part 2: From Stewart To Kligerman
Welcome Back! This is the second part of the multi-part series we like to call the 2014 Season Preview! This week, our staff will take a look at the next chunk of the 2014 lineup, from Tony Stewart to Parker Kligerman. It will be fun to come back at the end fo the year and revisit these, and see who was right, and who gets fired! Await no longer!!
Note: Credit for all car images goes to Jayski unless otherwise noted.No. 14 – Tony Stewart (PattyKay Lilley)
Tony is premiere driver and co-owner of the team that everyone is waiting to watch in 2014, Stewart-Haas Racing, with drivers Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch and Danica Patrick... an interesting and potentially explosive mix of talent. Just after the race in Pocono last August, Stewart went racing at a seemingly harmless little dirt track in Oskaloosa, Iowa, crashed his Sprint car and broke his right leg. Three surgeries later, it's now a race to see if Tony will be ready and able to race the Daytona 500 in February. The #14 team, deprived of Stewart's winning ways, finished a lackluster 18th in owner points for 2013, with drivers Max Papis, Mark Martin and rookie Austin Dillon contributing.
If... and I can't stress that word enough... Tony is ready and able to race the entire season, he will do so with a team "almost" intact from last year, with one glaring exception. SHR and this team in particular have become a revolving door for crew chiefs, and 2014 is no different, as the #14 ushers out Steve Addington, who will next be seen on the pit box of Harry Scott's #51, and welcomes in Chad Johnston, former crew chief for Martin Truex Jr. in the Michael Waltrip Racing #56. All SHR teams will continue to run Hendrick engines and sponsorship on Stewart's team remains a mix of Bass Pro Shops, Mobil 1 and Code 3 Associates.
It's almost impossible to predict the outcome for this team, as it is totally dependent on the availability and health of three-time Champion, Stewart. Again, I'll say, "If" Tony is ready and able to race from Daytona through to the end, then this team will be in the Chase. I'll not go as far as predicting a fourth Championship though. Tony is a notoriously slow starter for the season, and though I see him making top ten, I don't see him as 2014 Champ.
No. 15-Clint Bowyer (Kevin Abraham)
Bowyer finds himself as the senior driver at MWR after the whole Richmond incident that cost him his teammate Martin Truex, Jr, and the MWR organization the sponsor NAPA Auto Parts. In 2013 Bowyer suffered from the curse of finishing second in points in 2012, My case for this is due to Bowyer failing to win a race in 2013. He however had ten top-fives, and 19 top-tens, and finished a respectable seventh in final points in the final points standings, but was not a contender for the championship. The most dramatic race of the year for this driver was the fall Richmond race, where it was suspected that he spun intentionally with less than ten laps to go to cause a caution, and in part manipulated the Chase for the Championship. Bowyer has no fear of others on track, and is not afraid to mix it up with other drivers. With MWR losing a team, and only fielding two full time teams, this might affect Bowyer in 2014. This year, watch for Bowyer to contend for wins at Loudon, Talladega and Richmond, where he has collectively earned six of his eight wins in Sprint Cup. Also keep an eye on Bowyer as a sleeper to win the 2014 Chase, as the distractions of this past year are put behind the team.
No. 16- Greg Biffle (Alabama Fitz)
Greg will be back in the familiar No. 16 with the familiar 3M sponsorship, and no major changes. In fact, no changes this writer could find. Now 44 years old, one starts to wonder about abilities starting to wane. However, a little background shows that Greg has been consistently inconsistent. He runs well for a while, then falls back. He came close to the Championship once but it wasn't in 2013 and I don't think he will climb that hill all the way to the top. Nothing has been said about it that I know of, but his inconsistency could be the fact that Greg could have been the R&D driver for Roush Racing. He joined Roush 12 years ago when Benny Parsons suggested Jack Roush try Greg out. It was Greg that got the first win for that new engine (RF9 I think is what they called it.) they tested a few years back, and Greg also gave Jack his 400th win. With contract and sponsor secure through 2014, there will be a win or two, and he could even be a contender, although it will be from the bottom half of the Top 10.
No. 17- Ricky Stenhouse (Alabama Fitz)
A recap of 2013 for Ricky is two items, both worth mentioning: Rookie of the Year, and Danica Patrick. Looking forward there are three things that might affect this year. New crew chief, Mike Kelly; some questions about all three of his primary sponsors; and several new people tuned in to car operation. Actually, Mike Kelly was his crew chief before and they got along well, but when Ricky moved up to Sprint, Graves was named as crew chief. Things didn't go as well as expected, even for a rookie year, so they brought back Mike Kelly. Ricky likes this. They have also brought in several new people around the operation of the cars. Ricky likes this also. He has commented that it seems like the personnel they now have WANT to be in the garage working. Ricky likes their attitudes and their upbeat tempo. This could be HUGE! If he had people that didn't want to work and he made Rookie of the Year, he could make a lot of waves in 2014 if the new team jells!! The next factor is Danica. He has commented that she is a finesse driver, even keeled where he is a bit aggressive. He has also commented that he feels he may be able to learn from her. He admits to maybe being able to learn from a woman? That's something some men would not do. Is this kid (25 yrs old) actually a big man mentally and more mature than his age? This is all positive information. The ONLY drawback to his 2013 season was the publicity surrounding him and Danica which Ricky said was not a distraction for him. However, I'm not sure Jack appreciated it. The sponsorship of the races could hold up some needed improvements if the money doesn't come through. None of the three primary sponsors (Zest, Fifth Third Bank, and Nationwide Insurance) have come forward with the number of races they will sponsor. Taking all of this into consideration, if it all comes together for Ricky, look for an exciting year with three, possibly four wins and a fairly decent shot at capturing the Championship in only his second year. That would be his "sophomore year" and we’ve all heard about the "sophomore jinx". Jack sees something in him, however, and the cat in the hat has a pretty solid history.
No. 18- Kyle Busch (PattyKay Lilley)
This Joe Gibbs Racing team had a good solid year in 2013, finishing a strong 5th in overall points, with 4 wins to its credit. Without two engine failures, at Daytona and Charlotte, this might well have been your Championship team at season's end. Driver Kyle Busch has come to terms with his demons and has a much more mature grip on racing and life itself. Thank you Samantha, for showing what a good woman can make of a man.
Crew chief Dave Rogers returns for the 2014 season with rapport with his driver intact. Sponsors once again include M&Ms (Snickers, Doublemint) and Interstate Batteries, with engines coming from Toyota Racing Development. (The only possible weak link I can foresee)
Busch and JGR have inked a long-term contract, good through 2016 with options to renew. I don't usually even attempt to predict an overall winner this far out, but with all things remaining equal, this could very well be your 2014 Championship team, scoring at least 6 wins and maybe more, with Kyle Busch accepting the gleaming silver "whatever" at next year's banquet.
No. 20- Matt Kenseth (Jim Fitzgerald)
Sure, they didn’t win the Championship, falling short to Jimmie Johnson, but if you called the 2013 season a disappointment for Matt Kenseth and the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team, you’d have to have your head examined. You know Kenseth was looking for improvement when he left the Roush-Fenway No. 17 at the close of the 2012 season, but I don’t think he would have thought that seven wins and legitimate title run was in the cards. But now, looking forward, is the Championship the only marker for a successful season in 2014? Dollar General will be a much more prominent player this season, picking up ten more races, while Home Depot reportedly will remain for the balance of them. Jason Ratcliff is returning as the crew chief and everything else appears to be the same. Does the Post-Championship-Run swoon that plagued Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, and Clint Bowyer have any play with Kenseth this year? I don’t see it. I think the Gibbs team is too well rounded to put all their eggs in one basket. I think they’ll recover fine, and in 2014, I see Kenseth winning at least four races and will make the Chase again.
No. 22- Joey Logano (Jim Fitzgerald)
Penske Racing is no more. Team Penske, as they will be known going forward, will run Joey Logano in the No. 22 Pennzoil car for the second consecutive year. Finally, there is a bit of consistency. Can Joey be consistent as well? He’s going to have to be if he wants to make the Chase again. There is nothing new for this team a far as sponsorship or major team changes. Logano has a year under his belt with the car and Todd Gordon as his crew chief. I’d expect to see Logano in Victory Lane at least twice this season, maybe three times, and he will make the Chase, but finish in the lower half of the top twelve at the end of it all.
No. 24- Jeff Gordon (Jim Fitzgerald))
Jeff Gordon fans, pay attention. There is not much difference in your favorite driver’s situation in 2014 from 2013. Alan Gustafson is still the crew chief and is signed for a few more years. AARP/Drive To End Hunger(22 races) and Axalta(12 races) will be the main and most familiar sponsors, and Pepsi will be on the car for the remaining two events. According to Jayski, it appears as if Gordon plans to continue driving for at least a few more years. The only difference you will see is at the end of the year, when Gordon uses the momentum he gained in the 2013 Chase for 2014, and assures his and his team’s presence in the post season by knocking out three wins and making the Chase. Could this be No. 5?
No. 26- Cole Whitt (PattyKay Lilley)
This team is Swan Racing, owned by Branson Davis, and though running with the #26 this year and not the #30, this is the car we saw David Stremme drive last year, for 25 of the 36 races. Cole Whitt did drive 7 races with the team toward the end of last year, but scored no wins or top-10s, with a best finish of 27th at Dover. The team returns with a new crew chief this year in the person of Randy Cox, who replaces Steve Lane... sort of... Lane remains crew chief of what it now the #30, also racing under the Swan Racing banner. Remember, this is Swan Energy, and has nothing whatsoever to do with Schwan's Foods. Whitt, you may recall as having driven a full year in the Nationwide series for JR Motorsports, as a teammate to Danica Patrick.
Swan Racing is running two teams this year, the #26 piloted by 22-year old Cole Whitt and the #30 with 23-year old Parker Kligerman behind the wheel. Being brutally honest, Swan Racing is at best a brand new team, though having run a full season last year with a variety of drivers, and though not completely labeled as a start and park team, has managed to score only 3 top-20 finishes in its short 44-race history. Both Cole Whitt and stable-mate Kligerman will be in the running for 2014 Rookie of the Year, but they'll find some pretty stiff competition in fellow rookies such as Kyle Larson, driving the Target-sponsored #41 for Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing and Austin Dillon piloting the #3 for Richard Childress Racing. Prediction? Can a low-budget start-up team such as Swan Racing hope to compete with the likes of Ganassi and Childress? Not on your life. I'm sorry to have to say it, but if Swan makes it to the end of the year with both cars still on track, it will be nothing short of amazing. No top-anything finishes for the #26 in 2014. Just helping to fill the field at best. Still, the season has not yet begun, so all slates are clean and waiting to be written upon. Come on, surprise me Cole.
No. 27- Paul Menard (Kevin Abraham)
Menard finds himself as the longest tenured driver at Richard Childress Racing after Kevin Harvick left for Stewart-Haas Racing, and Jeff Burton left to drive part time for Michael Waltrip Racing. In 2013, Menard finished with no wins, three top-fives and nine top-tens. Menard was in the talk of drivers to make the Chase due to the fact he showed that he can win back in 2011, by winning the Brickyard 400. Menard also had two incidents that made highlight reels. The first was when his engine blew up in the middle of the pack early in the summer race at Daytona. The second was when he had his right rear tire explode while it was still on the car at the season ending race in Homestead. In 2014, look for Menard to contend for wins at Bristol, and on the restrictor plate tracks. Menard is a sleeper to contend at tracks like Michigan, and Fontana as well. Menard has shown consistency in points in the three years at RCR with top twenty finishes in the points. Look for Menard to contend for a spot in the Chase, and earn one if he can turn a couple of good days into wins. Otherwise look for him to continue in his role of supporting his RCR teammates.
No. 30- Parker Kligerman (PattyKay Lilley)
This is the second team from Swan Racing, owned by Brandon
Davis with an assist from Bill Romanowski. (Yes, that
Bill Romanowski) Kligerman
makes his full-time Cup debut this year, having a grand total of 2 races under
his belt to date, running the No. 30 as teammate to Cole Whitt in the No. 26.
They say Cole is in the car piloted by David Stremme
last year as the No. 30, so technically, this is not
the same car, though it bears the same number and crew chief Steve Lane is
still with the team. I'm sure there is a reason for that; I'm equally sure it
has to do with owner points and is no doubt nefarious in nature. Both Swan
teams run Toyota Camrys with engines prepared by
Triad Racing Technologies.
As for predictions for the 2014 season, please refer to comments on the No. 26. Neither of these cars promises to be particularly competitive in the world's top series for stock car racing. Don't look for Parker Kligerman to light any track on fire, and though he will be a candidate for Rookie of the Year along with teammate Whitt, neither figures to be a factor in that competition at this point. We have a fledgling team running two cars, each piloted by a rookie driver, sporting engines from an unproven supplier, and asking each to do the impossible against stiff and well-funded competition. Sorry Parker and Cole, but I just don't see that happening. Let's look back at progress here from perhaps the vantage point of the second Daytona race. Prove me wrong guys. I'd like nothing better.
That’s all we have for this week, but be sure to check back next week for the third part of our 2014 Season Preview, when we go after Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch, Kyle Larson, Jimmie Johnson and more!