You’ve already heard plenty of people run down the extensive list of nicknames Darlington Raceway has made for itself over the years, so I’ll spare you. I will not, however, hold off on talking about how goddamn tough of a track this place can be. When one points at the …

Hey, did you hear? Just one win effectively grants you a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup in 2014! I think that scenario has been mentioned most — if not all — weeks this column has been afloat this season, not to mention in just about every other …

Hold up. Is Brian France’s master plan for The Chase actually working? Five races into the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, five different winners have tasted victory — filling out, most likely, five of the 16 allotted spaces in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. The motivation this year has …

The 2010s haven’t been a subject of derision for Jeff Gordon and his fans, but the decade hasn’t exactly been kind to the four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, either. Look: 17, 18, 18, 17. Those are the amounts of top-10 finishes Jeff Gordon has accrued each of the past four seasons. …

This week, in Going By The Numbers we thought a special win deserved a special column. After his first victory in 55 races, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. finds himself virtually “locked in” to the Chase. But does a win in the sport’s biggest race, here in February ensure NASCAR’s Most Popular …

In 2006, eight different drivers declared for Rookie of the Year honors in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, providing the sport with an exceedingly deep field of new drivers that could conceivably create a sort-of new guard within the circuit — an “out with the old, in with the new” …

When David Ragan crossed the finish line first during last weekend's Aaron's 499 at Talladega in the Sprint Cup Series, I immediately thought of another race. The date was June 17, 2006; the place, Kentucky Speedway. Most of the players are different, save for one. On that day, another David slayed the Goliaths of NASCAR, this time in the then-Busch Series. Piloting a low-budget, all-black No. 84 Chevrolet, David Gilliland defeated J.J. Yeley en route to his first win, shocking a sport that had become so used to the big guns on top.

Darlington Raceway is known for many things. It's the supposed "Track Too Tough to Tame" and "The Lady in Black." Its egg-shaped configuration is unique among Sprint Cup Series circuits, creating a driving experience tough to master for even the most talented competitors. It's also one of 10 racetracks on the Sprint Cup circuit that are visited just once during the season.

Daytona and Talladega have been considered major equalizers in NASCAR's national series for many years. Sure, the guys who you'd expect to win tend to do so, but that's not before a couple of underdogs who challenge for the victory in some capacity, either eventually scoring solid finishes or wrecking out trying to do it. Sunday night didn't change that trend forever, but it did throw a real wrench into the equation. Front Row Motorsports _won_ a NASCAR race.

It's not often NASCAR races threaten to be called by sunset, especially with many tracks having installed lights. But when an afternoon event is delayed three hours due to rainy weather, these things tend to happen. Not that Regan Smith probably minds. After NASCAR cut the race by ten laps Saturday, with looming darkness while a late crash by Joey Coulter dragged the event further into black skies, Smith made a daredevil move coming into the tri-oval on the final lap. As he dove to the inside, several cars wrecked behind him, but Smith pulled ahead right at the point of caution, winning the Aaron's 312(ish).