Race Weekend Central

Fanning the Flames: 1 NASCAR Team’s Folly is Another’s Fortune

What a typical NASCAR vacation: The circuit takes a one-week hiatus from on-track action only to turn up the volume away from it. The Ginn/DEI merger not only shuffled the driver deck and taught prospective owners a thing or two about life in the bigs, it opened a spot in the owner points standings for …

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Voices from the Heartland: Surprise! NASCAR’s Version of Reality Slightly Skewered

In case you didn’t know it, the competitiveness in NASCAR’s highest ranks has never been better. Don’t take my word for it, though; just ask NASCAR. On second thought, you don’t have to. This sport is more than willing to tell you what to believe. Here is an excerpt from a July 16 NASCAR press …

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Matt McLaughlin’s Driver Handicaps: 2007 Brickyard 400 Edition

Jeff Gordon – Gordon has won a track record four Brickyard 400s, including the inaugural event in 1994. He’s also managed 10 top-10 finishes here in 13 starts. The Indiana transplant is hugely popular with the fans in Indy, as well. Denny Hamlin – Hamlin finished 10th here last year in his only Brickyard start …

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Mirror Driving: Chasing the Chase, Truckers Ruining the Race? & Does ESPN Know Their Place?

This week marks ESPN’s return to covering Cup racing after a seven-year absence. What are your expectations for this season?

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Nextel Cup: 2007 Race to the Chase Special Edition

It’s time to turn our focus to the upcoming seven-race slugfest that will determine the field for the 2007 Chase for the Championship.

Full Throttle: Could Cracks Be Forming in the Foundation of Junior Nation?

When it comes to who’s a fan favorite in Nextel Cup, there’s no question Dale Earnhardt Jr. has always carried the biggest legion of followers to each track the series visits. The winner of the Most Popular Driver contest for four years running, Junior dominates every vote about the sport that ever seems to take …

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