Matt McLaughlin

Last week, someone (Bill B) asked in the comments section below my column if that particular column about Pocono had run a week late. Uh, no Bill, that one was fresh off the grille. (And yes, the crash at Pocono that ended Bobby Allison’s career was in 1988, not ’89 …

Say what you will about Pocono Raceway and the “unique” challenges it offers both racers and meteorologists, but I’ve never heard it called a “cookie cutter” layout like all those 1.5-mile tri-ovals modeled after Charlotte that now dominate the Cup schedule the way dandelions take over a spring time lawn. …

Editor’s Note: Yes, the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend is one of the highlights on my schedule annually. Even the most gluttonous race fan can batten down on three major races, all shown practically back-to-back-to-back in one day. But amidst all the noise, speed, drama and danger the racing serves …

Editor’s Note: Matt McLaughlin’s off this week. Enjoy one of his classic columns with NASCAR racing at the track he speaks of, Pocono Raceway, just a week-and-a-half away. While I enjoy stock car racing at Pocono, race weekends at the track are also tinged with a bit of melancholy. For …

While it was a short week in the NASCAR world with Dover moved to Monday and Kansas run on Saturday night, there was a lot of chatter among the ranks of fans. Unfortunately, little of it had to do with racing, and a lot of what was eventually said about …

Over the weeks and months, stories worthy of comment pass over my desk, and many if not most of them are not significant enough to warrant a column of their own. Thus, occasionally, I feel the need to do a little light housekeeping and gather all these Post-It notes I’ve …

NASCAR has now been staging large professional level automobile races for over seven decades. Still some weekends a careful observer can’t help but feel the sanctioning body is just winging it while hoping for the best. Coming into this weekend, there was much discussion that for the first time since …

Remembering Tim Richmond, Part I Tim Richmond was back with the Blue Max team for 1985, though there had been some friction within the team. A lot of people in the know were saying Richmond was a better driver than the equipment he had allowed him to show, while others …

It’s been over two decades now since Tim Richmond last competed in a Winston Cup race. There’s little mention of him in NASCAR’s official literature, and if you’re a new race fan, sadly, you may never even have heard of his name aside from ESPN‘s 30 for 30 documentary a …

Sadly there are just three short tracks left on the contemporary NASCAR Cup schedule; Martinsville, Bristol and Richmond. I cherish all three of these racetracks and am blessed to have attended races at all of them, some of the finest races I’ve ever gone to. While all are short tracks …