Hello Angels,

Momentum is the word as the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup series drivers complete the second-to-last race of Segment One for the Charlie’s Angel’ Fantasy Racing League. Right now it is Jeff Gordon who won; not only last-week’s race, but he did it again this week by winning the Auto Club 500 at Fontana Speedway in California.  Bobby Labonte gave Gordon a run for his money today, but ultimately was one gallon of gasoline too short and ran out of gas on the last lap.  He went from second to fifth.

Tony Stewart is in hot water again for his post-race actions last week following the Aaron’s 499. I mentioned in last week’s commentary the fans weren’t too happy with race ending under a caution or the driver who won for that matter. The fans threw debris and other paraphernalia onto the track, and Stewart decided not to drive his car through it.  He cut hard left and drove through the infield to pit road.  In doing so, he cut in front of Terry Labonte and caused damage to Labonte’s car.  He also had a meeting with NASCAR officials Friday to discuss his rough driving during races as well.  Unfortunately for you Stewart fans, his aggressive driving techniques continue to land him in hot-water with his fellow drivers.  With less than three-laps completed today, Stewart had already damaged Rusty Wallace’s car and grinded with Gordon. Wallace later crashed when Kurt Busch got loose and cut in front.  Wallace was more vocal about Stewart and barely mentioned the crash with Busch.  Let’s wait and see where NASCAR takes a stand.  Something tells me NASCAR’s not going to sit too much longer on this.

Remember earlier I mentioned momentum.  Well, with only one-race left to the end of the Segment, Jill (Jennie), you had momentum, but have recently chosen drivers who are either field fillers or drivers who are not driving on the NEXTEL Cup circuit.  Today you picked Johnny Benson as your fifth driver.  Benson is riding full-time in the Busch series, but does not have a full-time ride in the Cup series.  I can understand why you picked him, he qualified for the race, but that was for another driver.  Benson never started.  Regardless, the car that Benson qualified, the No. 09 Dodge, didn’t complete two laps before that car died and was out of the race.  As for your other drivers, Dale Earnhardt Jr., had a horrible day and was never a contender to win.  He finished 19th, one-lap down. Kasey Kahne was riding third when he ran out of gas with one-lap left.  He finished 13th. Lucky for you, you have Gordon and Jimmie Johnson on your team.  They finished first and second today.  Johnson capitalized after both Kahne and Bobby Labonte ran out of gas. You’ll still finish ok in points this week, but lost your momentum going into the final race of the first segment.  Because of a bad choice of drivers, you are also this week’s GOLDEN CABOOSE winner. I can’t calculate your average finish with five drivers, but with your remaining four, your average finish would’ve been seven even.

Dylan (Jen W), you would’ve been the GOLDEN CABOOSE award winner had it not been for Jill’s bad choice in drivers.  For you, your worst driver is Kyle Petty who lost an engine.  He finished 39th. Elliott Sadler has been having a career year so far, but today he was less than stellar after his car had engine problems.  He finished 22nd.  Earnhardt wishes they wouldn’t have a race in Fontana and couldn’t do anything right with his car.  He finished 19th. Jamie McMurray finished 15th, while Kahne was your top driver with his 13th place finish.  Your average finish is 22 even.

Julie (Sally), Wallace was your worst finisher today after his accident with Busch. Wallace finished 35th.  Joe Nemachek was running 10th when his car ran out of gas.  He finished 28th. Dale Jarrett had a brush with the wall and another driver and finished 24th.  Kahne finished 13th, while your top driver, Matt Kenseth, finished fourth.  Your average finish is a not-so-great 20.8.

UnNamed One (Ray), you’ve had an unfortunate string of not-so-great average finishes. This week is no different. Your bottom three drivers, Jarrett, Busch and Sadler each had their own problems today and finished 24th, 23rd and 22nd respectively.  Ricky Craven had a decent day, but finished one-lap down in 18th place. Your top driver today is also Kenseth and his fourth place finish. Your average finish is 18.2. 

Bosley (Jude), Scott Wimmer was your worst driver today.  He had engine problems, but still finished the race, two-laps down in 30th. Busch finished 23rd after his crash with Wallace at the beginning of the race.  Stewart finished 16th, while McMurray finished 15th. Your top driver today is Ryan Newman and his third place finish. Your average finish is 17.4.

Kelly (Sarah) your switch to Brian Vickers hurt you this week because he fell two laps down after he hit the wall, late in the race.  He finished 29th.  Earnhardt, Craven and Stewart finished 19th, 18th and 16th respectively. Your top driver today is Bobby Labonte and his fifth place finish. You tied with Bosley at 17.4.

Kris (Peggy), Vickers was your worst driver last week, and, like Kelly today, is your worst driver again this week.  Today he finished 29th. Sadler had engine problems and finished 22nd, while Earnhardt finished 19th. Kahne finished 13th, while your top driver today is Johnson and his second place finish. Your average finish is 17 even.

Tiffany (Jen Y), Nemachek running out of gas really hurt you because he was running in 10th position at the time, while your remaining drivers were all doing well themselves (for the most part).  But because he had to coast for more than a mile, he was lapped and was not able finish the race any better than 28th. Even though Earnhardt didn’t have a good day, he did still manage a 19th place finish. McMurray finished 14th, while Kahne finished 13th.  Your top driver today is Kevin Harvick who finished ninth after almost getting lapped earlier in the race. Your average finish is 16.6.

The Thin Man (Rob), Jarrett and Busch are your two worst drivers today with their 24th and 23rd finishes respectively.  Craven didn’t do so bad with his 18th place finish, while Kahne finished 13th.  Your top finisher today is race winner, Gordon.  Your average finish is 16 even.

Sabrina (Susan) all of your drivers finished in the top-20, but none of them finished in the top-10.  In the 20th position is Ken Schrader.  He was preceded by Earnhardt in 19th.  Stewart finished 16th, while Kahne finished 13th.  Your top finisher today is Mark Martin who finished 11th.  Your average finish is 15.8.

For me, Wimmer was my worst driver with his 30th place finish.  Busch didn’t help me with his accident, but what he did afterwards definitely helped.  He was able to repair his damage and stay on the lead lap, until the end where he finished 23rd.  Kahne was the last car to finish on the lead lap after he ran out of gas with less than one-lap to go.  My top two drivers today are the dynamic duo, Johnson and Gordon, who finished second and first respectively.  My average finish is 14 even.

Natalie (Donna), Jarrett and Sadler teamed up to be your worst drivers today with their 24th and 22nd place finishes respectively.  Kahne didn’t help you too much with his 13th place finish, but Labonte and Johnson definitely helped with their fifth and second place finishes.  Your average finish today is 13.2.

Well, Mr. X (Dave), that leaves you with the momentum to contend with Jill for the Segment One championship race.  Your drivers all finished 19th or better with three in the top-10. Earnhardt was your worst driver, with Kahne as your second worst. Brendan Gaughn had some great help from his crew and owner today and finished sixth overall. I believe that is his best NEXTEL Cup finish.  Kenseth and Newman round our your team this week with their fourth and third place finishes respectively. Your TOP ANGEL AWARD winning average finish is a very nice, 9 even.  Congratulations.

Our teams’ combined average finish is a not-so-bad 15.84.

The next NEXTEL Cup race is on Saturday, May 15th at 7 p.m., in Richmond, Va., for the Chevy American Revolution 400.

Jill and Mr. X, good luck in that race, and we’ll see who has the momentum going into our second segment of the season.

To all of the Angels, enjoy your almost two-week break, but don’t forget to check out where you stack up after today’s Auto Club 500 on the RPM.ESPN Stockcar Challenge Web site.

Good luck Angels,