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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
BYRNES: Year In Review
The 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season was an interesting one that suffered no shortage of attention-grabbing headlines...
Steve Byrnes  |  Posted December 30, 2009   Charlotte, NC
Steve Byrnes on SPEED. (Photo: SPEED)
Love it or hate it, lament it or laud it, the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season was an interesting one that suffered no shortage of attention-grabbing headlines. From Jeremy Mayfield’s challenge of NASCAR’s drug testing policy and Kyle Busch’s failure to make The Chase to Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s winless streak and Jimmie Johnson’s championship-clinching roll, the nine-month stretch offered something for everyone.

In mere hours, 2009 will be another chapter in the history books and we’ll be counting down the days until everything begins anew at Daytona. But for now, a look back at the season that was:

Biggest Story of the Year: Props to Tony Stewart for coming out of the gate strong in 2009 in his first year as a Cup team owner/driver, as well as to Mark Martin for his remarkable but failed run for his first championship, but without question, Jimmie Johnson’s fourth consecutive title was the most important story of the season. Johnson is in exclusive company with sports greats like Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning and Roger Federer but doesn’t get a fraction of the credit due him. He is as unpretentious, humble and gracious a champion as the sport has ever seen. As much as many fans don’t want to hear that, it’s the truth – what you see is what you get with Johnson and he is an exceptional talent and an even better person. Sorry to all the JJ haters out there but I can’t side with you on this one.

Biggest Surprise: Hands down, Juan Pablo Montoya was the biggest shock of the year. Not only did his Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing team hit on something and start knocking down top-10 and top-five finishes, they nearly won the Brickyard 400 and made the Chase for the first time. To my pleasant surprise, Montoya appeared a legitimate threat for the championship for a few weeks there, all the while staying true to himself and his personality. I love to see an unapologetic hard charger and the sport has found one in this Columbian. And we in the media love him because the guy is a hell of a soundbite.

Best Rivalry: Ten or so years ago, picking the best rivalry of the year would have been a tall order. Unfortunately, there aren’t as many to choose from the past couple of seasons but the best spat we’ve got going is Brad Keselowski versus the rest of the field. This is a fairly new situation, so just wait a couple of months and Denny Hamlin won’t be the only driver standing in the anti-Keselowski line. However, I love Keselowski’s unbridled enthusiasm. He reminds me of a young Ernie Irvan but he just needs to learn how to harness some of that passion before someone harnesses it for him. I don’t think we’ve seen the last of some other drivers voicing their opinion about this Cup newcomer either verbally, with their car or with their fists.

Biggest Disappointment: Despite a horrible season by their standards, the Richard Childress Racing teams showed improvement at the end of the year. However, I still can't believe that between Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, Kevin Harvick and Casey Mears, not a single RCR driver made The Chase.

Secondly, did anyone NOT think Carl Edwards would battle Johnson for the title? Winless? It would have seemed impossible but it happened to the No. 99 team. They were good but nowhere near their 2008 level. Greg Biffle made some late noise but Matt Kenseth's season was a disappointment after winning the first two races of the year, including the Daytona 500. David Ragan narrowly missed making The Chase in 2008, but aside from winning a couple of Nationwide races, seemed to take a step backwards. The past year was puzzling in many respects for the Roush Fenway camp.

And a New Year’s Resolution for NASCAR: I’m not NASCAR and wouldn’t want to be, so I can’t make this pledge as we approach January 1. However, if I could change one thing about the sport in 2010, I would love to see the sanctioning body provide a bigger incentive for winning races. I don’t care if it’s five points or 50. Anything would help. We need more emphasis on winning races and not just trying to finish them. Imagine the finishes we might have if 25 or 50 additional points were on the line starting with February’s Daytona 500.

It wasn’t always perfect but the 2009 Cup season was a memorable one for a myriad of reasons and I’m hoping the upcoming one will prove to be even more so.

Unfortunately, the tragic passing of RCR tire changer D.J. Richardson put these on-track disappointments and triumphs in perspective. As we celebrate the New Year, let’s all take a moment to be thankful for our health and remember D.J.
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Steve Byrnes

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