Who’s Hot / Who’s Not

Burnouts (Hot) Yes, it’s true, Denny Hamlin did win the All-Star Race Saturday night, and sure, his car was good enough to stay out front, but the real heroes for Hamlin and his Joe Gibbs Racing car were the members of the pit crew. First, the crew’s role in the …

Burnouts (Hot) You know how to tell when a NASCAR team is suddenly hot? Here’s the formula: Drop to the back of the pack due to an early-race incident. Then gradually work your way toward the front. Then, when what turns out to be the final caution comes out, instead …

Burnouts (Hot) It’s no surprise that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is leading this column this week. Yes, he won the race, but it was about so much more than winning for Junior. First, there was a question of whether crew chief Greg Ives might have to go home when finding out …

Burnouts (Hot) It should have happened a week earlier at Bristol and it seemed to be a just a matter of time before it would happen this season. But it didn’t take too long for Kurt Busch to grab his first win of the season at Richmond Sunday afternoon. It’s …

Burnouts (Hot) The short tracks are one place where the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas have excelled this season. First, there was Denny Hamlin getting the win at Martinsville a couple of weeks ago. Then, in what turned out to be a Sunday night race,  Matt Kenseth scored his first win of …

Burnouts (Hot) Just when you begin to wonder if the No. 48 team might just slightly be losing its edge, it bounces back to remind us that it can be better than ever. Jimmie Johnson’s second win of the Sprint Cup season Saturday night at Texas sent a not so …

Burnouts (Hot) Since the Sprint Cup series was off this past weekend due to the holidays, it’s just a little more difficult to tell who is hot and who is not. Maybe it should be who hasn’t cooled off after Martinsville. One driver that will continue to be on the …

This version of the column is a little different this week, as I was fortunate enough to attend Sunday’s Sprint Cup race at Martinsville as a fan. So here goes. Burnouts (On Fire) Yes, for once, let’s give the winner of Sunday’s race, Denny Hamlin, some kudos for his post-race …

Burnouts (Hot) Timing can be everything in life, so when Brad Keselowski charged to the front on the final lap Sunday afternoon at Fontana, he put himself on the hot list. Keselowski has been pretty good this year, but not quite good enough to make it to victory lane. It …

Burnouts (Hot) Burnouts, yes, Kevin Harvick knows all about burnouts lately. He’s had plenty of practice, winning the last two races, and looking back to last year, he’s won four of the last six. If you go back a little more, he’s been first or second in each of the last …