BROOKLYN, Mich.— It was a dreary day Sunday at Michigan International Speedway, and the fans who showed up held out hope of getting the race in, but it was not to be. Despite the track’s best efforts not to lose the track, and drivers Bubba Wallace and Corey Lajoie cheering up the fans with some football toss fun, Mother Nature would not cooperate and let us get a race in.

So here we are, on a Monday, awaiting a 5 p.m. start in Brooklyn, the start time delayed both by ongoing weather on Monday and FS1’s commitment to air Women’s World Cup matches.

Leading the field to green this afternoon/early evening will be Joey Logano of Team Penske, who led a strong qualifying effort by the Ford camp.

Logano said he anticipates teams will use different approaches throughout the race, but he’s happy to have the first pit stall.

“I am sure strategy will change things up. There will be two-tires, four-tires, no-tires and everything will get mixed up at some point, but I think being in that first pit stall is going to lessen that risk of getting back there and getting stuck. If you can kind of keep yourself up there I think it will be important for tomorrow's race,” he said.  

Michigan International Speedway is partnering with Henry Ford Health System to bring kids even closer to the drivers and all the action leading up to the start of the race with a FREE Pit and Driver Introduction Pass. Fans will also have the opportunity to utilize the new state-of-the-art Henry Ford Health System Infield Care Center.

With the new free Pit and Driver Introduction Pass, any guest who purchases a kids 12 and under ticket to the FireKeepers Casino 400 on June 9 or the Consumers Energy 400 on Aug. 11 will automatically receive a Pit and Driver Introduction Pass added to their order courtesy of our branding sponsor Henry Ford Health System.

Henry Ford Health System will also be providing urgent care in the new infield care center. The care center, located in turn 4, will be open 24 hours a day on race weekend. Any fan can use the care center for a medical condition during their stay at the track on race week. 

The 2018 ARCA Menards Series season started with Salt Lake City, Utah native Michael Self (No. 25 Sinclair Lubricants Toyota) celebrating in victory lane. Self, driving for Venturini Motorsports, cemented his reputation as one of the series best superspeedway racers with a dominant performance on Daytona’s legendary high banks and he only furthered that reputation with a second win later in the year at Chicagoland Speedway.

Self ran a partial schedule last year, and thanks to an increased commitment from his sponsor he’s running the full schedule for the first time in his career. With the championship now in play, Self has to maximize his bad days while still chasing wins.

He took the momentum of the sponsorship announcement into the 2019 season opener at Daytona looking to repeat last season’s success. His day was cut short on lap three, however, when contact with another competitor send him sliding – and literally flying – out of control down the backstretch. While the Venturini team affected repairs and Self returned to the track he finished a disappointing 31st. Not the start he wanted for his first run at the ARCA championship.

Let’s flash back to 2008, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. joined Hendrick Motorsports as Kyle Busch exited.

Dale Jr. was coming in on a hot streak from DEI; all indications were he would contend for titles at Hendrick, NASCAR’s hottest team at the time.

Kyle Busch was a couple years into his time at Hendrick, and was young, brash, had promise, but was a handful to deal with.

Hendrick Motorsports chose Dale Jr. They let Kyle go off and sign with Joe Gibbs Racing.

Let me get this out of the way early: Kyle Busch is one of NASCAR’s greatest drivers, both now and in the overall history of the sport. As the King himself said, Kyle could have competed for wins in any era of the sport. He’s a wheelman to the core, with great natural instincts on how to handle a racecar. He’s a first-ballot lock for the Hall of Fame once he retires and becomes eligible.

His 200 wins are an impressive accomplishment and show he is a true talent, regardless of how you view him personally or what you think of his off-track antics.

But that’s where I stop. The endless adoration parade that’s likely to come this week is something I’ll sit out. And here’s why. Numbers do not lie.