The Five Biggest Surprises Of The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Season

Each NASCAR season is full of surprises, and the first half of 2011 has been no exception. Here are a few that caught our eye.

Trevor Bayne Wins Daytona 500

Right out of the gate, rookie sensation Trevor Bayne shocked the world by winning the Daytona 500 for the famed Wood Brothers.

Working in a two-car tandem with veteran Jeff Gordon for much of Speedweeks, Bayne caught the eye of some and gained a great deal of respect from his competitors. That would come in handy at the end of the Daytona 500. After losing his drafting partner, David Ragan, Bayne had no trouble finding Bobby Labonte to work with.

Despite a hard charge by Carl Edwards and David Gilliland at the end, Bayne was able to hold off Edwards and score the win in dramatic fashion.

Turning 20 years old the day before the race, Bayne became the youngest driver in NASCAR history to win the Daytona 500, along with becoming only the second driver to win the 500 in his first start - the other being Lee Petty in the inaugural running.

Kentucky Speedway Traffic Fiasco

Perhaps some saw it coming, but few could have predicted the disastrous traffic situation fans faced for Kentucky Speedway’s inaugural NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event. Touting a 107,000 sell-out crowd, the speedway anticipated a large crowd in the grandstands, but was completely unprepared for the amount of cars headed to the track.

Many fans who bought tickets were stuck in long lines of traffic for upwards of eight hours, only to be turned away once they arrived at the facility because there was no parking left.

The incident sparked outrage on social media web sites and even led Michigan International Speedway president Roger Curtis to write a letter to the fans apologizing on behalf of track owners for the situation. Speedway Motorsports, Inc. eventually offered a ticket exchange policy for those fans that were left out

Bruton Smith, owner of Kentucky Speedway, did little to help the situation the following week by shifting the blame and refusing refunds for unused tickets.

Joe Gibbs Racing Engine Woes

Heading into the 2011 season, many looked to Joe Gibbs Racing as perhaps the biggest challenger to topple the dominance of Jimmie Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports. Yet before the season even got underway, JGR suffered a major setback that may or may not have sent ripple effects through the team that are still being felt.

Prior to the Daytona 500, a dynamometer in the engine department exploded while testing some of the team’s motors. Although the severity of the explosion and resulting fire and smoke damage were downplayed, all three Gibbs cars have been plagued by a variety of engine issues throughout the season. In fact, the Gibbs cars have been forced to start at the rear of the field due to an engine change eight times this year, the last coming at Kentucky Speedway.

Kyle Busch-Richard Childress Racing Feud

It is pretty safe to say Kyle Busch will not be behind the wheel of a Richard Childress owned car any time soon.

In perhaps one of the most interesting rivalries in recent memory, Kyle Busch, Richard Childress and Kevin Harvick have heated up the first half of the season on the track, on pit road and in the garage area.

While this rivalry may have been brewing for quite some time, it all seemed to come to a head at Darlington Raceway. Late in the race Busch and Harvick got together racing off the corner, going three wide with RCR’s Clint Bowyer. With no room for three cars, Bowyer was sent hard into the inside wall. As Bowyer wrecked behind them, Busch appeared to turn down the track and hook the right rear of Harvick’s car, sending the No. 29 hard into the outside wall after the caution had already been displayed.

Following the race, Harvick pulled alongside Busch as the two drove onto the straightaway on the cool-down lap. Harvick eventually led the pair back onto pit road, but slowed so the No. 18 was tucked under his bumper. Getting out of the car, Harvick walked over to Busch’s car and reached into the window net as Busch drove away, pushing the unmanned No. 29 into the pit wall.

The incident drew a great deal of attention and both drivers were placed on probation by NASCAR, but it did not end there.

A few weeks later at Kansas Speedway, the feud escalated when team owner Richard Childress got involved. In the closing laps of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race, Busch raced RCR’s Joey Coulter hard for position, with Coulter getting the advantage at the flag. Before heading to the garage, Busch made contact with Coulter’s truck and lit a fire under Childress.

Walking up to Busch in the garage, Childress removed his watch and proceeded to get in a physical altercation with the 26-year-old. NASCAR fined Childress $150,000 and placed him on probation for the remainder of the year.

Both Harvick and Busch are now off probation following the Darlington incident, but just this weekend Harvick indicated he was forced to race Busch with his hands tied, saying NASCAR told him not to touch Busch on the track.

13 Different Winners In 19 Races

One of the biggest surprised of this season has been the parity seen week-in and week-out at the track. Thus far, no one has emerged as the team to beat as things have been relatively competitive each week in the series.

At this point last season, there were only eight different winners and no first-time winners. Already 19 races into the 2011 season and 13 different drivers have been to Victory Lane, including three first-time winners (Trevor Bayne, Regan Smith and David Ragan).

Perhaps the added emphasis on winning a wild card spot in the Chase has led to more drivers finding Victory Lane, or perhaps it is the ever-increasing number of fuel mileage and pit strategy races that are taking place. Either way, the first half of the season has seen a wide variety of faces take the checkered flag, and that is never a bad thing.