Taking the Raines at HOF

If you were to ask me who the least publicized full-time driver in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series is today, one of the first names that would pop up in my mind would have to be Tony Raines. I mean, and why not, right? Coming into 2007, Raines has made exactly 83 starts at the Cup level that resulted in a whopping two top ten finishes (Rockingham in 2003 & Lowes in 2006). Nevermind that he’s produced a career total of 46 top tens and 14 top fives in the Busch Series, cause that’s not important. We’re talking about a guy that’s not only not proven himself in the big leagues, but a guy that’s proven he can hack it at the premier level. Right? We’re talking about a guy that’s always been viewed as one of those “track hazards” week in and week out, and a spot starter at best. Right? 

Eh, hold the phones, gents, cause this just in … Tony Raines has qualified for 32 races this season in 32 attempts (did not enter in the Road Course races at Infineon & Watkins Glen). That’s a better pull-through ratio than Michael Waltrip, Kyle Petty, Brian Vickers, Jeremy Mayfield, Joe Nemecheck, Johnny Sauter, Scott Riggs, Scott Wimmer, Sterling Marlin … oh, and former Cup Series Champion Dale Jarrett. Okay, so qualifying’s one thing, but keeping your car off the outside retaining wall’s a whole different story, right? Well, what if I told you that in those 32 starts, Tony Raines has exactly two DNF’s on the season. That’s right, TWO DNF’s (accredited to engine failure at Darlington in May & an accident at Indianapolis in July). I don’t think I need to tell you that the most popular driver in motorsports – Dale Earnhardt Jr – has that many DNF’s in just the last five races. Okay, so he’s not wrecking, so he must just be lollygagging his way around the track to log laps every week, right? (Yes, I know your questions before you even think of them … scary, I know!) I’m not going to go through the entire season on this, because the point in this article is to demonstrate the positive path Raines is headed down, not the gutter that he’s been living in. So, with that said, In the past six races, Tony has logged his first top ten finish of the season (ninth at Talladega) and has finished four of those six races in the Top 20.

 Now, I’m not stupid … I know that a Top 20’s nothing to brag about for most folks, but for others it is. See, Hall of Fame Racing is a startup organization (debuted in 2006) … it’s under-funded and inexperienced, and Tony Raines is a driver that’s never had the luxury of driving top-notch equipment in the Cup Series. So, for him to bring the consistency to the table that he has this year in my eyes is simply remarkable. Is he going to compete for a spot in the 2008 Chase field? No. Not even if every race ended in “Talladega Nights” fashion, the guy still wouldn’t have a chance … well, not next year at least. But, that’s okay, because while some guys are fortunate enough to fall into that overnight success sector, Raines is not one of those people. He’ll keep plugging away at this, and who knows – eventually he might actually get a decent ride, or maybe HOF Racing will turn the corner themselves – and, then this guy will be able to compete. That’s a lot of “if’s, and’s, and but’s”, and I don’t know the final outcome. What I do know is that Tony Raines may not be the bottom of the barrel driver that we all thought he was, and if I had the option of putting either Tony Raines or Kyle Petty behind the wheel of my car this day and age, I’d open the door for Raines each and every time.