Race Weekend Central

Happiness Is… Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth and Finales

2015 Cwts Texas Erik Jones Burnout Beth Lunkenheimer

(Photo Credit: Beth Lunkenheimer, Frontstretch)

This weekend is the culmination of what sometimes feels like the endless NASCAR season. The Truck, Xfinity and Cup series all take their championship titles to Homestead undecided. The Truck and Xfinity series have done it the traditional way, with a season-long championship, and ones that have the second-place driver only about half a race …

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Happiness Is… Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Phoenix

2015 Darlington Cup Kyle Busch Clint Bowyer Cia

(Photo: CIA Stock Photo, Inc. ©2015)

We’re getting to the end of another long season in NASCAR, and it seems that one of the key ingredients is the question of rules and regulations. This ongoing mix of how the sport is policed continues to bring about elements of confusion – for fans, drivers and teams. The adjudication of driver penalties is …

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Happiness Is… Martinsville, Wonderboy & the Left Coast

Lewis Hamilton

(Photo: Getty Images)

This week in NASCAR has been a non-stop focus on the Matt Kenseth–Joey Logano happenings. What happened at Martinsville could be considered a fascinating case study in both driver etiquette and NASCAR management.   Let’s start with one of the big aspects of this whole brouhaha: the driver’s code. Apparently there is one, which means …

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Slipstream Saturday: Viva Mexico as F1 Returns

Lewis Hamilton celebrating his 2015 championship (Getty Images)

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Just three races remain on the 2016 schedule, but this week is a surprising challenge as the Mexican Grand Prix returns after a 23-year absence. It is the second time that the Mexican version of the race has rejoined the calendar after a long absence, and it seems like one that is long overdue. The …

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Happiness Is… Paperclip, Scheduling, Surprises

2015 Martinsville I Cup Sam Hornish Jr Car Ii Credit Amy Henderson

(Photo Credit: Amy Henderson, Frontstretch)

The Chase has been a flawed concept from the get go. That’s not to say that some kind of encouraged late-season drama isn’t welcomed. (Whether it was really needed is still a point for debate.) Any sort of postseason that still has the regular season participants is at best a curious one and at worst …

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Slipstream Saturday: Formula 1 Racing Stateside

Kvyat Bahrain Sutton Images

(Photo Credit: Sutton Images)

The weather looks to be one of the big stories surrounding the United States Grand Prix this weekend, which really isn’t surprising with Hurricane Patricia bringing a belting of rain to the area. More on Patricia to come, but it’s time to return to the continued soap opera that is the relationship between Red Bull, …

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Happiness Is… Racing, America, and Business

Nascar Sprint Cup Series Hollywood Casino 400

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

It’s time to do the Talladega Tango once again. You know, that dance when a driver hangs around with a bunch of friends and then gets shuffled out of the order only to end up staring at everyone’s backsides. Or maybe it’s the dance when a driver tries to get close to someone they like …

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Slipstream Saturday: F1 Returns to Russia

Lewis Hamilton celebrating his 2014 Russian GP win (credit: AP)

(Photo Credit: AP)

Five races remain in the  Formula 1 season as the series races in Russia this weekend. Mercedes can lock up the constructors’ title at the Russian Grand Prix, something that merely feels like a done deal at this point, because if they don’t take care of it at Sochi, surely they will In Austin, Texas …

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Happiness Is… R.A.S, Regulars, and Sochi

2015 Cup Dover Pack Racing Cia

(Photo: CIA Stock Photo, Inc. ©2015)

Another week, another sense that the sky is falling on NASCAR. The stands this past weekend showed a less than stellar crowd in attendance. Whether that can be credited to the threat of rain and overall gloomy weather, the popularity of football, or the fact that Dover is not what it once was, it doesn’t …

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Happiness Is… Sayonara, Hurricane Joaquin, and Money

2015 Chicago Cup Tony Stewart Helmet Ii Cia

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

The changing of the calendar comes across as an appropriate thematic concept for what is currently happening in NASCAR. With October letting its presence be known again, it marks the beginning of the sunset of the season as just eight races remain on the Cup schedule. So for all of our collective griping, enjoyment, haranguing, …

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Slipstream Saturday: Returning to Tragedy and the Japanese GP

Jules Bianchi

(Photo: Getty Images)

Formula 1 is on the second half of rare back-to-back race weekends, following the Singapore GP with another in the Pacific region as the series heads to Japan. A bit of a pall hovers over the event, as the track, Suzuka, is where Jules Bianchi suffered the accident that put him in a coma and …

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Happiness Is… Handling, Wussiness, and NASCAR’s B-Series

2015 Chicago Cup Matt Kenseth Racing Cia

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

Anyone else underwhelmed by the first round of the Chase, er, playoffs?   The race drew just a 1.8 rating, which means somewhere in the neighborhood of three million fans tuning in to enjoy the action. On a positive note, that number also put the race as the most-watched sporting event that wasn’t football (Reminder …

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