Season of surprises continues.

Season of surprises continues.

Trevor Bayne opened up the tale, winning the season-opening Daytona 500 a day after his 20th birthday. Regan Smith wrote chapter two, improbably taking home his first career victory in the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. On Sunday, it was Paul Menard’s turn. With an 84-time winner and a four-time champion reeling him in lap-after-lap, Menard held off Jeff Gordon to win the Brickyard 400 at historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Menard became the fourth first-time winner this season, joining Bayne, Smith and David Ragan (Daytona). Who’s next? AJ Allmendinger, maybe? Marcos Ambrose has shown promise.

The next chance for a first-timer is this Sunday at Pocono Raceway, in the Good Sam RV Insurance 500.

A second trip to Iowa Speedway awaits the NASCAR Nationwide Series – the U.S. Cellular 250 Presented by The Enlist Weed Control System. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won at Iowa earlier this season.

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series joins the NASCAR Sprint Cup at Pocono Raceway, running the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 on Saturday afternoon.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

Menard Breaks Through On Big Stage

Not many picked Paul Menard to cross the finish line first in Sunday’s Brickyard 400, but maybe they should have.

This was no fluke. Though Menard need 167 races to nab his first win – matching Bobby Hamilton for the 10th-longest stretch before a first NASCAR Sprint Cup points win – he seemed on the verge of a victory all season long.

Heading to Indianapolis and sat 19th in the points, meaning a win would put him in Wild Card contention.

Paul’s father, John, lugged a long history of sponsoring teams at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in both NASCAR and at the Indianapolis 500. Still, he remained winless at the big track – until yesterday.

Menard now sits 14th in points, and if the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field were set today, he’d earn one of the two Wild Card spots – a battle that has grown exponentially in intensity.

Wild Card Fight Intensifies

Paul Menard became the 14th different winner this season, the most through 20 races since 2003.

So, of course, a few of those are going to be outside the top 10. In fact, five of them are – Denny Hamlin, Paul Menard, David Ragan, Brad Keselowski and Regan Smith. And that’s where the white hot Wild Card fight lies.

After race No. 26 in Richmond, the top-10 drivers will be locked into the 12-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field. Spots 11 and 12 will go to those drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, provided they are in the top 20.

Currently, Hamlin in 11th and Menard in 14th hold those two spots. Ragan, in 16th, is the odd-man out.

Both Keselowski and Smith are outside the top 20 – but Keselowski’s top-10 at Indy put him within striking distance. He currently sits 21st, 16 points outside the top 20.

Gordon Aims For Milestone Wins

Looking for the hottest driver in the series? Try Jeff Gordon, and stop right there. A runner-up finish at Indy made it three top 10s in the last four races (and six in the last eight).

He won June’s Pocono race, tying Bill Elliott on the all-time Pocono wins list. A Pocono sweep would topple two milestones: He would be alone atop the all-time Pocono list, and alone in third on the all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins list at 85.

Earnhardt Jr.’s Slide Continues

Just six races ago, Dale Earnhardt Jr. enjoyed a third-place points position, and seemed almost assured of his first Chase berth since 2008. Now, not so much.

With six consecutive finishes outside the top 10, Earnhardt has plummeted from third to 10th, and he is now just 19 points from losing an all-important top-10 position needed to guarantee a Chase spot after Richmond.

Sprint Summer Showdown – Pocono Edition

Looking for the next driver to add his name to the list of eligibles for the $3 million prize at Atlanta? The Pocono pre-race Driver Rating should help.

Here’s the top five: Denny Hamlin (118.6), Jimmie Johnson (106.4), Kurt Busch (104.1), Jeff Gordon (101.3) and Tony Stewart (100.7). Hamlin has four career Pocono victories.