Race Weekend Central

Voice of Vito: You Were Always On My Mind – Johnny Benson Ponders His Future in NASCAR

A lot of things must have been going through Johnny Benson’s mind Friday night at Phoenix. Chief among them was probably, “…why did I just do that…” midway through a race while preparing to absorb the impact of a blast into the wall between turns 1 and 2 – with innocent bystander TJ Bell in …

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Fan’s View: “3”

“3” Face it, the number makes you smile. You’re driving down the road and the truck you’re passing has it plastered on his rear doors in a shameless homage to a past hero. Maybe you honk. Even if you don’t, just seeing it puts a grin on your face. NASCAR Nation lives! Thusly, I have …

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10 Points to Ponder… After the 2008 Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix

1. Monkey See… Monkey Do – The nip and tuck championship battle between Ron Hornaday and Johnny Benson Jr. continues after the two squared off at Phoenix Friday night in the Lucas Oil 150. The fact the two Craftsman Truck Series drivers continued their points fight was made more remarkable after Hornaday incurred significant damage …

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Tracking the Trucks: 2008 Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix

In a Nutshell: Kevin Harvick took the checkered flag 0.940 seconds ahead of Kyle Busch to win the Lucas Oil 150 Friday night at Phoenix International Raceway. Harvick led the field to the green flag with eight laps remaining, and despite the hard charge Busch made, the driver and owner of the No. 2 Chevrolet …

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Tracking the Trucks: 2008 Chevy Silverado 350K at Texas

In a Nutshell: Ron Hornaday Jr. took the checkered flag 0.958 seconds ahead of Kyle Busch to win the Chevy Silverado 350K Friday night at Texas Motor Speedway. Hornaday earned his way back onto the lead lap, took the top spot on lap 108 and never looked back. Johnny Benson, Todd Bodine and rookie Colin …

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Tearing Apart the Trucks: Camping World Joins the Truck Series

The Camping World Truck Series kinda has a nice ring to it doesn’t it? After a nearly season-long search, the wait is finally over. There’s no more need to wonder who might sponsor the truck series and what might have happened if NASCAR hadn’t been able to find a sponsor. Last week, NASCAR announced that …

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Did You Notice? 2 Juniors Speak Out, We’re Chasing the Old System & Max Papis?

Did You Notice? That under the old points system, the championship battle would be far from over? With three races left, Jimmie Johnson would lead Carl Edwards by just 98, with Kyle Busch hanging on by a thread at 203 points out. Jeff Burton and Greg Biffle would round out the top five, but neither …

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10 Points to Ponder… After the 2008 Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta

1. Eating Sushi – Expectations of a takeover of Chrysler by General Motors are gaining credibility, as both company’s fortunes continue to spiral downward as the world economy continues to slump. However, the buzz in the NASCAR garage is that it is doubtful that Chevy, Ford and Toyota will be willing, as a result of …

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Tracking the Trucks: 2008 E-Z-GO 200 at Atlanta

In a Nutshell: Ryan Newman took the checkered flag 0.377 seconds ahead of Ron Hornaday Jr. to win the E-Z-GO 200 Saturday afternoon at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Newman made a last-lap pass on teammate Hornaday to score a win in his first ever Truck Series start. Denny Hamlin, Todd Bodine and Scott Speed rounded out the …

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Mirror Driving: A NASCAR Spending Cap? Fixing Qualifying & Saving the Truck Series

Welcome to Mirror Driving. Every week, your favorite columnists sit down and give their opinion about the latest NASCAR news and rumors. Love us or hate us, make a comment below and tell us how you feel about what we’ve said! This Week’s Participants: Doug Turnbull (Tuesdays/Talking NASCAR TV) Vito Pugliese (Tuesdays/Voice of Vito) Matt Taliaferro (Thursdays/Fanning The …

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10 Points to Ponder… After the 2008 TUMS QuikPak 500 at Martinsville

1. Talking About Times Getting Hard! – Johnny Benson took command of the Craftsman Truck Series championship points battle, at least temporarily, by winning the Kroger 200 at Martinsville Saturday afternoon. Benson, driver of the Bill Davis Racing No. 23 Toyota Tundra, left the track with a 65-point lead in the CTS drivers’ championship. He …

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