The NASCAR Xfinity Series should introduce a new slogan: “The Xfinity Series: Where 30 is the new 20.” After Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway, this slogan would apply almost exclusively to one driver: Josh Berry. The newest driver to claim a win in NASCAR’s second-tier national series wasn’t a baby-faced twentysomething who’d have trouble getting …
Read moreDropping the Hammer: Josh Berry’s Big Chance Pays Off
You don’t need me to remind you how long, hot and weird the summer of 2020 was. A lot of it’s a blur, for better or worse. But one moment that’s stuck with me in the ensuing year came on June 1. That night, the Xfinity Series competed at Bristol Motor Speedway in its third …
OK, let’s get this out of the way up top. I’m not a fan of dirt racing. There, I said it. In my 30 years on this planet, aside from a couple events as a child I have no memory of, I have yet to attend a race that involved dirt. That’s due more to …
Read moreDropping the Hammer: Embracing Pandora’s Box of Bristol Dirt Race
OK, class, it’s time for a pop quiz! We’re through five races in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. After Sunday’s (March 14) race at Phoenix Raceway, who’s the points leader? If you guessed any of the five drivers who have visited victory lane, you’d be wrong. In fact, the race winner highest in the …
Read moreDropping the Hammer: Winless Denny Hamlin Leads Points As Experience Takes Over in Phoenix
Near the end of a roughly 15-minute monologue posted Monday on social media, Ty Dillon reminded his audience of an important fact. “I’m not a philosopher, I’m not a perfect speaker.” He’s just a NASCAR driver with a platform. The 29-year-old driver decided to use it to let us all know that for a brief, …
Putting labels on something — especially ahead of time — can be dangerous. Sometimes, it comes back to haunt you. Other times? It’s unintentionally brilliant. In NASCAR, the most successful example of giving an event a label, or an awesome name, in advance was 1992’s Cup Series All-Star Race. You may also know it as …
Read moreDropping the Hammer: If 2021 Isn’t NASCAR’s ‘Best Season Ever,’ It Could Be Weirdest
