Q: Why did NASCAR penalize Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Casey Mears for their actions at Phoenix? I thought NASCAR wanted emotion… isn’t that what Brian said last year? I could maybe understand a penalty if Junior spun Mears during green and caused a big wreck, but on the cool-down lap?
Phoenix’s Saturday night showdown may have been Mark Martin‘s time to shine, but it didn’t mean much for the rest of the Sprint Cup competition. Most of the racing behind him was tame at best, with few top drivers encountering problems that left them dropping off our Power Rankings list. However, Jeff Gordon‘s loose lug …
Did you enjoy your off week? I hope so, because by my math we’ve got 13 straight weekends on tap starting with Phoenix Saturday night. Again, I sometimes wonder if a monkey and some ping pong balls are the driving force behind this jacked up schedule. However… I’m not here to bring you all down …
Did you catch it? Did you see the irony there? You know, victory lane. Last weekend. Jeff Gordon emerges victorious to a shower of Pepsi, Powerade and confetti in victory lane at Texas Motor Speedway, and as the post-race interview works its way through the first round of sponsor acknowledgments, a cell phone is thrust …
Things at Texas happen fast these days, leaving the margin of error slim to none on what’s become the sport’s speediest track. From Kyle Busch cutting a tire to Carl Edwards having trouble on pit road, too many of the sport’s biggest superstars discovered that answer too little, too late. The end result was a …
If every race were as good as the one we saw last weekend, ratings would be up 15% right now, not down. Watching Martinsville made me long for the muggy summer nights of my youth spent at the track, breathing in exhaust fumes and picking rubber out of my hair. Good show, boys. While I …
With their bumping and banging for the lead on Sunday, Denny Hamlin and Jimmie Johnson were able to make big gains up the Power Rankings ladder. But were they enough to push Jeff Gordon off the top spot? Meanwhile, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Burton were among those who took it on the chin at this …
Ah, Bristol; you gotta love it. Even when we have a race that isn’t considered to be one of the all-time classics (Sunday’s was at best a 5.0 on the excitement scale) the fervor generated amongst the fanbase reaches a fever pitch. Old Bristol or new? Bump ‘n’ Run or hit the high groove? Frustration, …
The fastest half-mile in the world at Bristol battered many of Cup’s top contenders and spit them out. Bad luck struck more than one competitor, most notably Greg Biffle, causing mechanical problems which dropped him out of the top 15 in our Power Rankings. But every driver’s pain is someone else’s gain, and when the …
The off weeks on the NASCAR circuit are always a natural time for me to clear out the non-time specific questions that float into my inbox. Even though we’re only four weeks in (could someone please explain that to me again?) this week is no exception. Shoot me your questions, comments, frustrations, irritations, aggravations, insinuations, …
Four weeks into the season, the top of the Sprint Cup standings are still a long way from getting sorted out. But after everyone got a chance to take a deep breath this past weekend after Atlanta, it’s easy to notice a few trends starting to take shape. Once again, the multi-car giants of Roush, …
After a momentary pause for breath this past weekend, NASCAR plows right into some of the best venues listed on their schedule. In the next two months, the Sprint Cup Series visits eight terrific tracks: Bristol, Martinsville, Texas, Phoenix, Talladega, Richmond, Darlington and Lowe’s Motor Speedway – places that hope to get a fan’s mind …
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