Race Weekend Central

Did You Notice?: 2020 NASCAR Prospects Need Patience… & Potential Rides

Nascar 2020: Xfinity Series Pocono Green 225 Recycled By J.p. Mascaro & Sons June 28

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … Brandon Jones won his third race of the NASCAR Xfinity Series season at Darlington Raceway? Jones capitalized on a wreck in front of him, when the top two cars driven by Denny Hamlin and Ross Chastain hit the wall heading to the white-flag lap. But Jones put himself in position to win …

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Did You Notice?: 3 NASCAR Legends Forever Stuck at 7 Titles

Jimmie Johnson & Richard Petty

(Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … Jimmie Johnson’s 2020 playoff miss means he’ll officially end his NASCAR Cup Series career without an eighth championship. The 44-year-old Johnson, retiring at the end of the season, will remain tied with Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Richard Petty at seven. This trio of NASCAR Hall of Famers had one thing in common: …

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Did You Notice?: Remaining NASCAR Silly Season Questions for 2021

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … NASCAR Silly Season is heating up as the 2020 Cup Series regular season winds down? Corey LaJoie announced last week he won’t be returning to the No. 32 Go FAS Racing Ford, opening up another ride in a rapidly evolving NASCAR garage area. Let’s take a look at where each Cup team …

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Did You Notice?: Monster Moment For Jimmie Johnson in Final NASCAR Season

Jimmie Johnson & Richard Petty

(Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … This coming weekend feels like Jimmie Johnson’s last stand? Three races remain in the NASCAR Cup Series regular season, and Johnson still sits on the outside of the postseason looking in. The future Hall of Famer, who once had 15 straight postseason appearances, sits 25 points below the cutline in his last …

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Did You Notice: Old Dog, New Tricks? Kevin Harvick Rewriting NASCAR History at 44

Kevin Harvick Daytona 500 Media Day 2020

Photo/Davey Segal)

Did You Notice? … Kevin Harvick is on pace for a historic year? Harvick, who turned 44 years old in December, is rewriting the NASCAR history books for a driver his age. Consider how rare it is to begin with for an athlete to peak at this point in their career. Only one golfer older than …

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Did You Notice?: No. 95 Sale Clear Warning About NASCAR Financial Trouble From COVID-19

Nascar Cup Series

#95: Christopher Bell, Leavine Family Racing, Toyota Camry Procore

Did You Notice?… Bob Leavine has sold his No. 95, family-owned NASCAR Cup Series team less than two years after switching to Toyota and partnering with Joe Gibbs Racing? Christopher Bell will be running elsewhere in 2021 as financial conditions created by COVID-19 made it impossible for this team to continue. What’s notable is the new …

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Did You Notice?: 2020 NASCAR Midseason Awards

2020bristolncsryanblaneyfacenascarmedia

(Photo: NASCAR Media/Getty Images)

When I was a NASCAR reporter for SI.com, I used to do a midseason segment called “The Bowlesy Awards” that evaluated the NASCAR Cup Series from time to time. We’re bringing them back here in 2020, with a little refresh, as NASCAR midseason awards while taking a closer look at where the sport stands five …

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Did You Notice?: That Summertime NASCAR Spark At Stewart-Haas Racing?

2017 Kansas I Cup Tony Stewart Barry Cantrell Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … How quickly Stewart-Haas Racing has gotten its act together this summer? While Kevin Harvick has been a title contender all season long in the NASCAR Cup Series, his trio of teammates spent the first half of 2020 mired in midpack. Here’s where all four drivers stood through the Martinsville Speedway race June …

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Did You Notice?: NASCAR PPP Loans a Reminder of Potential COVID-19 Catastrophe

2019 Phoenix I Cup Ty Dillon Richard Childress Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … The number of NASCAR teams approved for a loan under the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program? The NASCAR PPP loans numbered in the millions and involved one-third of the teams on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit. For now, let’s focus on the Cup programs alone. Richard Childress Racing: $5-$10 million (2 teams) Chip …

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Did You Notice?: Jimmie Johnson, NASCAR Brickyard 400 Can’t Run From COVID-19… Or Politics

2019 Daytona I Cup Jimmie Johnson Nkp

Is Jimmie Johnson concerned yet? (credit: NKP)

Did You Notice?… Jimmie Johnson became the first NASCAR Cup Series driver to test positive for COVID-19? Johnson self-reported the news after getting a test shortly after his wife, Chandra, was suffering from allergy-like symptoms (she’s also tested positive). It’s still unclear how Johnson got the virus even though he’s been taking precautions. “My first priority …

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Did You Notice?: NASCAR Bumbles Bubba Wallace, #BlackLivesMatter Moment

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … The noose supposedly put in Bubba Wallace’s No. 43 garage stall at Talladega Superspeedway this past weekend wasn’t placed there by someone after all? It had been sitting in the garage area the whole time. Since sometime in 2019, in fact. “The FBI report concludes, and photographic evidence confirms, that the garage …

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Did You Notice?: 2020 NASCAR Drivers On The Hot Seat

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … Each of the sport’s superteams this season has a driver who’s running behind the curve? 12 races into the year, 2020 has been a year of parity across the sport. Four drivers have already won twice (and Denny Hamlin has won three times). A total of five drivers are tied for the series lead …

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