K. Lee Davis

  (2:14 PM)

Ryan is experiencing technical difficulties, but hopes to join us soon.

Ryan McGee

  (2:26 PM)

Hey everybody, sorry I'm late, I'm sitting in a dark house with no electricity, so we're doing this old school over the phone until the top of hour.

stump (MO)

It took a while, but now the sleeping giant is awake (Hendrick Motorsports). Is the garage worried?

Ryan McGee

  (2:27 PM)

No doubt about it. In fact, that's what I talked about on NASCAR Now on Sunday morning.

Ryan McGee

  (2:28 PM)

A lot of teams felt like they had a window of opportunity while Hendrick was a little lost in the spring, but now that window is closed. Matt Kenseth in particular seems pretty frustrated after the race with the gap between himself and the Hendrick cars.

Matthew (Columbia, NJ)

Ryan: What type of discipline can we expect NASCAR to give to Kurt Busch for his actions following Saturday's race?

Ryan McGee

  (2:30 PM)

Honestly, I do not know and I don't think they do either. I know that they are, as I talk, reviewing the situation. To me, it was totally unacceptable but I give him credit because he was smart enough to come up with this whole "I can't do this because I'm on probation" approach to everything. And he also does a nice job of picking super professional reporters to say things like that to. One day, he'll say that to someone he doesn't know very well and end up getting knocked on his butt.

Ryan McGee

  (2:30 PM)

Not by me! But I can think of a handful of folks that will line up to do that right now.

Chris Fiegler (Latham,NY)

Did I Hear Right that Danica Patrick wants to race in both the Indianapolis 500 & the Coca-Cola 600 in 2013?

Ryan McGee

  (2:32 PM)

You did hear right. She is definitley looking into it. I say that would be crazy, but I also can't blame her for trying. I talked to Robby Gordon about this and he wasn't surprised at all. He says "once you get the Indy 500 in your blood, it's impossible to get it out."

Ryan McGee

  (2:32 PM)

That's from a guy who has attempted the Indy-Charlotte double six times.

Rich (NYC) [via mobile]

Hey Ryan. There was a ton of empty seats at Dover yesterday. What is the likelihood that Nascar will try to take away 1 race from them? Also, I think a night race would help in filling some seats there. Your thoughts? Thanks!

Ryan McGee

  (2:34 PM)

I think that Dover is the classic example of a place that over booked during the big boom days of the 1990s and 2000s. I also think that there are some tracks, actually a lot of tracks, that would benefit from hosting one race instead of two. Just look at what happened at Darlington and Atlanta. Because of the economy, I don't believe that fans can afford to make two trips a year to their favorite track, even at a place like Bristol or Delaware.

Ryan McGee

  (2:35 PM)

This is just another reason why I agree with Rusty Wallace that contracting the schedule is not a bad idea. But I will say this, those who chose not to go to Dover missed a very entertaining race even though Jimmie Johnson crushed the field.

aroznowski (USA)

Hendrick Motorsports has now won the last five events on the NSCS schedule. How much longer will this run of dominance continue?

Ryan McGee

  (2:38 PM)

I will go further than that and say it is six wins, because the 48 team won the pit crew challenge and that's a big deal to any team. If there is a place where other teams might be able to make up some quick ground, it might be at Pocono this weekend, simply based on the fact that the track has been repaved and it will be a total wild card for everyone.

Chris (Crestview, FL)

Do you think most of Aric Amirolas success can be atributed to Mike Ford getting hired? I still cant believe nobody else scooped him up before. How is Mike Ford able to get stuff out of the RPM cars that no other CCs have yet?

Ryan McGee

  (2:40 PM)

I do think that Mike Ford has been the difference. And Aric said as much when I talked with him for a little while on Saturday. Mike has been crew chief for four races and they finished in the top 20 in all four, including yesterday's top 10 at Dover and winning the pole at Charlotte. Mike has been able to do this simply based on a couple of decades of experience, a lot of which was with young drivers, particularly Denny Hamlin. He knows how to create confidence in a young guy.

Ryan McGee

  (2:41 PM)

After a month, he's been able to get some of the processes that he learned at Joe Gibbs Racing in place.

Jeff (RI)

Jimmie showed some personality with that wig?? How about that?

Ryan McGee

  (2:43 PM)

That was great. But the funny part was watching all of the people who don't have kids and haven't been subjected to the Madagascar 3 trailer 10,000 times because they had no idea why he was wearing the circus afro wig. For those of us who know Jimmie, honestly, the guy who you saw yesterday is who we all know. It frustrates me that people have such a white bread impression of him, because the truth is he's a wild man.

kimrodgers (mobil)

What do you think it would do to the status of the championship if anyone wins it without winning a race and is that even possible?

Ryan McGee

  (2:45 PM)

I don't think it would cheapen the Cup for the guy who won it. But from the outside, it just wouldn't make any sense, especially to the fans of the other sports.

Ryan McGee

  (2:45 PM)

But honestly, the way that the points system is now, I think it's nearly impossible to do that. Even with the old system, we had guys win championships with only 1 or 2 wins but never zero.

KK (FL)

Those whom have had past success at Pocono (Gordon, Hamlin etc.) is that advantage gone with the repave?

Ryan McGee

  (2:47 PM)

Yes, and they think so too. Hamlin was downright depressed when he talked about it with the media on Friday. I chatted with Carl Edwards about it in the garage on Sunday morning and he said that as badly as he needs momentum right now, he kind of wishes the repave was next year instead of this year.

Ryan McGee

  (2:47 PM)

But it is also hard to find anyone who truly believes that the place didn't need a lot of work.

Boss Hogg (Hazzard County)

After Jeff Gordon called out NASCAR for the phantom caution for imaginary debris at yesterday's race, will NASCAR impose a fine on him for questioning the integrity of the sport?

Ryan McGee

  (2:49 PM)

No. But I do believe that when he arrives at Pocono on Wednesday, for the big open test session, that he will get a visit from the NASCAR brass, but it will be no more than a discussion. The good thing about being Jeff Gordon right now is that he is now in that elder statesman role, guys like Rusty Wallace, Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty were in in the latter years of their careers.

Ryan McGee

  (2:49 PM)

In other words, when Gordon says it, it's constructive criticism. If a 25-year-old says it, then he's being a jerk.

jason (cupertino)

What was the biggest turn around joey this weekened in the cup series he is showing what he can do with a good car

Ryan McGee

  (2:52 PM)

I think you hit the nail on the head with the good car comment. If you really look at what Joey has done this year, compared to years past, it's night and day. A lot of that has to do with confidence and I believe that the root of that confidence lies in a much better relationship with his current crew chief versus Greg Zippadelli. Zippy and Joey just never clicked and both seem happier in their new situations this year.

Chris (Crestview, FL)

Junior got his 100th top 5 of his career yesterday, pretty good for a guy who supposedly has no talent. This 88 team is making getting up front as staying there look easy this season. What do you think is keeping them from getting that elusive win though?

Ryan McGee

  (2:54 PM)

You are right. They look and feel like a totally different team than even one year ago, but certainly 2 and 3 and 4 years ago. The kind of day they had at Dover, they simply weren't capable of in years past. As far as when the win will come, now it feels like a question of when as opposed to if.

Ryan McGee

  (2:54 PM)

Every single week they are spending every single lap in the top 10 and 95% of winning races is being in a position to win races. Now they are.

Ryan McGee

  (2:55 PM)

Unfortunately, that last 5 percent usually isn't something they can control. It has to come along and one weekend, it probably will.

Mark (Iowa)

How are Kurt Busch's chances for a top ride next year looking after another incident with the media this weekend?

Ryan McGee

  (2:57 PM)

His chances for a top ride are gone. His chances for a medium ride are fading. I truly believe that his best chance for a decent future at this point will be is if his brother can figure out a way to field a Cup team. If that doesn't happen, I can't see Kurt landing anything better than that, because the list of people, particularly team owners that he has rubbed the wrong way is becoming too long.

Matthew (Columbia, NJ)

Ryan: Do you see a driver change coming for the 42 car if he does not start winning races and getting top 10 finishes?

Ryan McGee

  (3:01 PM)

I think that EGR is at a very difficult crossroads because they have basically changed everything within the organization, except for the drivers. Montoya himself does not seem to be too concerned for his future. I base that on an interview I did for him for NASCAR Now at Charlotte two weekends ago. But it is not like Chip Ganassi to sit still for very long when his cars are slow. That typically does not turn out well for the drivers. But we will see. Don't forget that just three weeks ago we had all declared his IndyCar teams DOA for 2012 and now they've finished 1-2 the last two weekends.

Ryan McGee

  (3:02 PM)

Thanks to everyone who stuck around while my power was out. And by the way, it is still out. See you back here next Monday. I will go and get a generator chip from Radio Shack to make sure this never happens again.