Carl Edwards is off to a great start to the 2016 Sprint Cup Series season. The NASCAR veteran has accomplished many things at the top level of his sport, but none would compare to his first NASCAR championship. In 2011 Edwards fell one race shy when he lost to eventual winner and newly crowned champion Tony Stewart. It’s been four years since that disappointing ending to a spectacular season and Edwards is hungrier than ever.
Many things have changed since that run to finish line in 2011. Carl Edwards has since left Roushe Fenway Racing and joined Joe Gibbs Racing in 2015. The transition was as seamless as one could expect from Edwards, who raced with Roush since the start of his 11 year career. Since joining his new team the spirited driver has claimed four wins. Two of them in 2015 came in the crown jewels of southern racing, the Coke 600 at Charlotte and the Southern 500 at Darlington.
Fast forward to 2016 and the mid-way point through the Sprint Cup season. Carl Edwards sits third in the NASCAR Series points standings. He has driven to glory on another two separate occasions in 2016. The first came at Bristol Motor Speedway and the next a week later at Richmond. The Joe Gibbs Racing phenom has three pole positions to his credit and an 8.1 starting average. That is second to only Penske’s Joey Logano.
The next races that are coming up in this years Chase races could favor Carl Edwards. Edwards has solidified a spot in the playoffs with his two victories. The Chase races will determine if he can find that same winning touch and move forward round by round.
The first of these events is in Chicago. Carl Edwards has performed well here even though he hasn’t raced to a victory. In his last two races here he has one top five and one top ten. The veteran is averaging a 8.1 finishing position. New Hampshire follows the next week after Chicago. Edwards has raced even better at this venue. Since joining his new racing team, he has taken both pole positions and has a 6.0 average finish. The third race is at Dover Speedway. Although he has qualified well here the past few races, the aggressive driver has wrecked once and finished 15th.
If Carl Edwards can capture just one win in one of these three tracks, he will move on to the next round still alive. Charlotte Motor Speedway is the first race in the next round. I’ve already discussed his ability to win here earlier in this article so that goes without repeating.
After that the field moves on to Kansas Speedway. Edwards is no slouch here averaging an 11th place run in his last four events. Talladega is the last race in the second round. Edwards has never won here and if he hasn’t moved on to the round by now he could find this difficult as his last hope.
Assuming Carl Edwards has moved on from round two of the Chase he would head to Martinsville speedway in Virginia. Even though he is an average qualifier at this track he did move from a 25th starting position to take the checkered flag in sixth.
Joe Gibbs Racing is fast at the “Paperclip” so he should have plenty of help from his fellow teammates. Texas has been a good track for Edwards since joining his new posse. He drove his #19 Arris Toyota to the pole position at the first race this year and finished in a respectable seventh place.
From Texas the series moves to Phoenix Raceway. Edwards has started inside the top five twice in the last four races here and finished in second in here in March. The same performance he gave then would probably be enough to advance him to the final in Homestead. From there it’s a winner take all scenario where it’s anybody’s championship to win.
Carl Edwards has the ability to qualify at the top of the field and keep his #19 Arris sponsored Toyota towards the front. He is a favorite to win any event at any time during the 2016 season. Carl Edwards’s performance on the short tracks are as good as on the 1.5 mile tracks, so he is as versatile of a driver as there is. With a little luck and some more of that same consistent driving, Edwards just could be the new Sprint Cup champion.
