FanHouse Chicagoland Speedway

Where: Chicagoland Speedway
Time: Saturday 8:00pm/EDT
TV/Radio: TNT, MRN Radio
Twitter: Updates @ FanHouseRacing
Forecast: 58 degrees, Partly Cloudy
Distance: 267 laps (400.5 miles)
Pole Winner: Brian Vickers
2008 Winner: Kyle Busch

Just in case you hadn't heard, NASCAR has felt a little bit of impact from this whole downturn thing in the economy -- and this weekend's race at Chicagoland Speedway certainly won't be any different.

In fact, the track is likely going to miss out on a sellout of the grandstand tickets for just the second time since the Sprint Cup Series started coming to the 1.5-miler in a suburb of Chicago some 45 miles away from downtown in 2001.

Fortunately, the track made a smart move a year ago by installing lights for nighttime racing and this week acknowledged an even better change might be made for 2010 concerning the currently idiotic way to buy tickets from the track.

If Kyle Busch was hoping to avoid sounding sour about the finish of last Saturday's Coke Zero 400 at Daytona by not talking to the media after the event, he failed in his mission with his comments Thursday at Chicagoland Speedway.

In his weekly media visit, Busch revealed that he felt "dumped" by Tony Stewart, that he doesn't have feelings and that drivers that cause last-lap wrecks for the win should be penalized.

Of course, the comments about his incident with Stewart rang the loudest -- especially after Stewart said Wednesday that the two had talked about the last-lap crash that took the win from Busch and gave it to Stewart.

Dario Franchitti won a pretty thrilling race Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway to wrap up not only the season points title, but potentially his IndyCar career.

Passing Scott Dixon in the final corner after Dixon ran out of gas to take title is a pretty nice way to end up a season for all involved -- including the sanctioning body.

Except for the fact that yet another face from the series is taking off for bigger and better things. Someone turn the lights out over there.

Franchitti, a native of Scotland, has been under the microscope though since Friday when rumors blew up about his potential migration to the ranks of NASCAR. He apparently is headed to the seat soon to be vacated by David Stremme at Chip Ganassi Racing -- making two international NASCAR drivers (Juan Pablo Montoya being the other) from open-wheel ranks racing from the same stable.

Ganassi never has been one to go with the flow in anything he's done, so seeing his desire to convert another open-wheel standout into a stock car driver isn't that surprising.

What is surprising, though, is his choice of driver. (Even though he does bring a sponsor.)

20 races and an idiotic feud with a teammate later, Tony Stewart is back in NASCAR Nextel Cup victory lane.

Stewart held off Matt Kenseth to cruise to his first victory of 2007 at Chicagoland Speedway in Sunday's USG Sheetrock 400.

Joe Gibbs made an unexpected visit to Chicagoland on Saturday and forced Denny Hamlin and Stewart to hash out their differences from the "one-car" crash at Daytona a week before.

"I'm glad this is over," said Stewart. "I'm going on vacation."

It's funny how Stewart always seems to offset something stupid he said or did with a good run the next week. See: Watkins Glen win in 2002 after punching a photographer in Indianapolis.

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. What can I say? I just have a feeling he can Dew it. (That's gonna get old quick, huh?)
2. Kevin Harvick. Hearing that Kyle Busch might be joining RCR just might be the boost Harvick needs to get past him in the standings. He does not want to be third man when Shrub arrives.
3. Tony Stewart. Just remember, if he gets the win, it will be somebody else's fault. Or is that only when he doesn't win?
4. Matt Kenseth. Chicagoland Speedway owes him.