Frontstretch 5

Sonoma, 1991 I’d nominate the 1991 Sonoma (then Sears Point) race. Ricky Rudd got to the finish first but was black-flagged for knocking Davey Allison out of the way. Rudd claims he never saw the black flag and the contact wasn’t that flagrant, certainly nothing that hadn’t been done in …

Trevor Bayne, Daytona 500, Wood Brothers Racing Blaney is the second driver in the last six years to get his first win driving one of the most iconic cars in the history of the sport. The other was Trevor Bayne, who had just turned 20 years old when he capitalized …

Chase Elliott It’s actually a bit surprising that Elliott hasn’t gotten a win yet.  He’s come close quite a few times, leading multiple laps at Phoenix and Martinsville as well as in the Daytona 500. May was difficult for the 21-year-old second-generation driver, with a best finish of 24th, but …

Whether or not you watched the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500, you probably still managed to see the video of Scott Dixon’s horrific wreck. It was one of the most violent wrecks in years, yet the spectacular part is that Dixon walked away unscathed. In fact, he acted like it …

A playoff shakeup was needed While it may not be enough, a shakeup at the end of the season was needed. The addition of a road course and a short track are absolutely sound moves. Las Vegas?  Meh. It replaces Chicagoland, so it’s pretty much an even trade. Charlotte might …

1. Kudos to the AMR medical team that extricated Almirola. First and foremost, I want to send well wishes to Aric Almirola for a speedy recovery. A T5 compression fracture is no joke, and he’ll need some time to get better, even if it’s revealed through follow-up doctor visits there …

I have just one question this week: how the heck is the 2017 NASCAR season almost a third over already?  2017 is flying by… maybe a little too fast! Complain though I might, I never want race season to end. 10 races in, there’s a lot to think about.  Some …

When newer fans hear people lament about the old days when there weren’t restrictor plates at Talladega and Daytona, this is what we’re talking about – the 1984 Talladega 500. Dale Earnhardt and Buddy Baker battling for a win, notchback Monte Carlo SS and Ford Thunderbirds, and Ken Squier calling …

1. He goes out on his own terms You’d expect nothing less, but Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the person who ultimately made the call about when to step aside.  He could have done it six months ago, and some will argue that maybe he should have, but that wouldn’t really …

In honor of this off week, Amy Henderson led our staff in collecting five classic NASCAR moments that left us laughing. It’s driver personalities on display with the type of fun that keeps fans coming back to watch every week. 1. Let’s start this off with some butt cheeks. Here, Tony Stewart walks …