Race Weekend Central

The Yellow Stripe: Who’s No. 1? Listing the 10 Best NASCAR Tracks in the Cup Series Today

After a momentary pause for breath this past weekend, NASCAR plows right into some of the best venues listed on their schedule. In the next two months, the Sprint Cup Series visits eight terrific tracks: Bristol, Martinsville, Texas, Phoenix, Talladega, Richmond, Darlington and Lowe’s Motor Speedway – places that hope to get a fan’s mind …

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The Yellow Stripe: Catch 21 – NASCAR Thoughts, Questions & Observations 3 Races Into 2009

21, as many of you will know, is a lucky number in Las Vegas. So, here are exactly that many questions, observations and thoughts – in no particular order – on the season so far as the series leaves Sin City to head back east: Nothing changes for Casey Mears New team, new number, new …

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The Yellow Stripe: The Track Too Tough to Watch – How to Change the Boredom at California with 1 Simple Fix

As you’ve likely read plenty of places over the past 48 hours, the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. is a much-maligned venue – arguably the least popular of the 22 tracks on the Sprint Cup circuit. Interest is sparse, attendance is – to put it politely – “not the best,” and in general fans …

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The Yellow Stripe: Oh, So Close – Tough Luck for Elliott Sadler, Joe Gibbs Racing & Fans at the Daytona 500

Luck can be a fickle mistress, and at the premature end of the 51st running of the Great American Race, there were plenty of drivers – from the veterans to the rookies – who could attest all too easily to that sentiment. Chief among those bemoaning their poor fortune was Elliott Sadler. The Emporia, Va. …

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The Yellow Stripe: After NASCAR’s Worst Winter Ever, Hope Springs Eternal in 2009

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it …

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The Yellow Stripe: Top 15 Commercials of the 2008 NASCAR Season

Making a great 30-second ad is next to impossible. For those who’ve not sat for hours on a set drinking coffee, eating junk food and waiting interminably for something to happen, you would be absolutely shocked at the length of time it takes to make something seemingly so simple. Throughout the creative process (which typically …

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The Yellow Stripe: Looking Ahead – 10 Things to Watch with NASCAR in 2009

In the past couple of weeks, I’ve had numerous conversations about the metronomic success of Jimmie Kenneth Johnson, and for the most part, the conclusion is that the back-to-back champ makes NASCAR racing utterly boring for the rest of us. To a certain extent that’s very true, certainly in terms of the competition, but the …

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The Yellow Stripe: Lewis Hamilton, 50 Up for the CoT, Banquet Seats, 35th Place & It’s All About the Trophy

In the last couple of years, Formula 1 races have acquired a not necessarily undeserved reputation for being little more than two hour-plus processionals; a battle between the haves and the have-nots – the technological and financial titans who win with monotonous regularity and the smaller, upstart manufacturers with no hopes of winning whatsoever. But …

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