Race Weekend Central

5 Points to Ponder: Las Vegas a Quiet Start to Round of 12

2021 Cup Las Vegas Denny Hamlin Trophy (Credit: NKP)

Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography

1. Las Vegas lackluster in the wake of Bristol’s chaos In fairness, we can’t expect the level of intensity we saw last week at Bristol every single race. But it was striking at just how calm the NASCAR Cup Series’ South Point 400 on Sunday (Sept. 26) night was, with just one caution for incident — and one …

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Stock Car Scoop: How Big a Statement did Joe Gibbs Racing Make at Las Vegas?

Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing talks on pit road at Homestead-Miami Speedway in March 2021. (Photo: NKP)

#11: Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry FedEx Small Business Grant Contest

The NASCAR Cup Series’ visit to Las Vegas was helmed by Denny Hamlin, who scored his second win of 2021 in Sin City and locked himself into the Round of 8. Did Joe Gibbs Racing assert their dominance in the championship race after posting a 1-3-4 finish and the win? How do the woes of …

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Denny Hamlin Dominates Las Vegas, Wins 1st Race in Sin City

2021 Cup Las Vegas Denny Hamlin, No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Burnout (Credit: NKP)

Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography

The mayhem of Bristol in mid-September was followed by a very calm, near-serene race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where Denny Hamlin won stage two and cruised to the race win ahead of Chase Elliott, securing the No. 11 a spot in the Round of 8. With his second win of the season, Hamlin can …

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Frontstretch 2-Minute Drill: South Point 400 at Las Vegas

Las Vegas Cup 2020 race

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

After cut tires, fights and eliminations highlighted the Cup Series’ race last Saturday (Sept. 18) at Bristol Motor Speedway, the field heads west to a (possibly) calmer venue in Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday (Sept. 26) as the playoffs’ Round of 12 begins. Kyle Larson won the spring race in Sin City and won …

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Issues Plague Playoff Drivers, Mar Truck Series Race in Las Vegas

2021 Trucks Las Vegas Zane Smith, No. 21 GMS Racing Chevrolet, Pit Road (Credit: Steph Chambers/Getty Images via NASCAR Media)

Photo: Steph Chambers/Getty Images via NASCAR Media

It took some time for chaos to strike the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series’ Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but once one playoff driver was involved in a crash, the dominoes kept falling. A whopping five of the eight championship competitors had issues, ended up sideways or wound up crashed on …

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Bristol Scuffle Headlines New Round of NASCAR Playoff Unpredictability

Kevin Harvick fights with Chase Elliott at Bristol Motor Speedway. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

It’s been a while since the NASCAR Cup Series has had the makings of a big feud, hasn’t it? Let alone the playoffs, it’s been a quiet past couple years as a whole for the Cup Series. In fairness, drivers couldn’t exactly get near one another in 2020 (Noah Gragson and Harrison Burton would beg …

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Bristol Elimination Race Sends 4 Playoff Drivers Packing

2021 Bristol Ii Cup Aric Almirola Crash Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Kyle Larson’s Saturday (Sept. 18) night consisted of burning his tires down on the frontstretch at Bristol Motor Speedway. For 11 of his fellow competitors, it was time to move on to the next round of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. For Aric Almirola, Kurt Busch, Michael McDowell and Tyler Reddick, it was time to …

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Frontstretch 2-Minute Drill: Bass Pro Shops Night Race

ARCA cars race in a blur at Bristol Motor Speedway

(Photo: ARCA Racing)

It’s Bristol, baby! And it’s elimination time for four drivers heading into the half-mile “Last Great Colosseum” near the state border between Virginia and Tennessee. A quartet of playoff competitors will be sent home once the checkered flag flies late Saturday (Sept. 18) night, with 500 laps standing between the 16 playoff drivers and either …

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Truckin’ Thursdays: Elimination Looms Large at Bristol

Tyler Ankrum racing in a pack at Bristol Motor Speedway, 2020 NASCAR Truck race, NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Sheldon Creed and John Hunter Nemechek are safe with one race left in the first round of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series playoffs as the series takes to the (paved) Bristol Motor Speedway on Thursday (Sept. 16) night. Anyone who’s been paying attention to the tour at all this year would probably figure that, …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2021 Federated Auto Parts 400

#19: Martin Truex Jr., Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry Bass Pro Shops Red White Blue celebrates winning the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond. NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who … should you be talking about after the Federated Auto Parts 400? Joe Gibbs Racing as a whole demolished its competition on Saturday (Sept. 11), leading 326 laps as a team and running 1-2-3 at the finish. Martin Truex Jr. claimed the victory, his third in the last five Richmond Raceway events, and the …

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Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton Crash at Monza; Verstappen Penalized

Max Verstappen climbs over the car of Lewis Hamilton in a 2021 accident at Monza. (Photo: Mercedes/AMG/Formula 1))

Max Verstappen wound up atop Lewis Hamilton in this crash at the Italian Grand Prix, Monza, 2021 (Photo: LAT Images via Mercedes AMG F1)

The Italian Grand Prix at Monza waxed poetic Sunday (Sept. 12) as Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, currently first and second in the Formula 1 standings, respectively, have been duking it out in points (and on the track) all year. As they battled hard for position, another climactic crash between the pair occurred, this time …

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Joe Gibbs Racing Makes the Old Dominion Its Own Dominion

2021 Richmond Ii Cup Martin Truex Jr. Christopher Bell Racing Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

After nearly doing so at the same track a couple of seasons ago, Joe Gibbs Racing’s NASCAR Cup Series stable looked to be on track for a possible 1-2-3-4 finish on Saturday (Sept. 11) night at Richmond Raceway. In 2019, it was a post-race inspection disqualification of Erik Jones‘ No. 20 that derailed the historic …

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