Race Weekend Central

Mirror Driving: Coming Clean at Roush Fenway, Cleaning Up NASCAR’s Ratings Decline & More

Continuing a recent trend, the NASCAR race at Phoenix saw an 18% drop in ratings from over a year ago despite a popular Mark Martin victory. Why?

Talking NASCAR TV: Jump the Shark

Race fans, the title says it all for me. However, for those of you who may not be familiar with the term… let me explain. The term “Jump the Shark” was created by Jon Hein and a group of his buddies at the University of Michigan in 1987. Apparently, they spent a Saturday night watching …

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Beyond the Cockpit: Scott Lagasse Jr. on 2009 at CJM Racing

Talk about rags to riches. The son of a racer, Scott Lagasse Jr. has seen his fortunes both come and go in the NASCAR world. After landing a seemingly promising Truck Series ride a couple of years ago with Bobby Hamilton Racing, Lagasse was replaced after just 10 starts in favor of veteran experience. Refusing …

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5 Points to Ponder: 2009 Subway Fresh 500 at Phoenix Edition

Good finish For all the talk of anti-climactic races this season, NASCAR was fortunate to have an exciting finish this weekend at Phoenix. Sure, there were long green-flag runs throughout the race, and clean air provided such an advantage that Dale Earnhardt Jr. couldn’t compete without it – but there were several moments that made …

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Nationwide Series Breakdown: 2009 Bashas’ Supermarkets 200 at Phoenix

Friday night’s broadcast from Phoenix was the Kyle and Carl show on TV… and it was literally called that. The first eight minutes of the pre-race show were uninterrupted Kyle vs. Carl, as was the majority of the on-track coverage from flag to flag. Yet, while both drivers led a number of laps, neither driver …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2009 Subway Fresh 500 at Phoenix

Who… gets my shoutout of the race? It might have been the most unnoticed top-10 finish of the night, but Sam Hornish Jr. grabbed his career-best finish at Phoenix with his unheralded ninth-place result. It was Hornish’s first top-10 finish in Sprint Cup competition and the second top 10 in this race for owner Roger …

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Nuts for Nationwide: TV Coverage Strangling the NASCAR Nationwide Series

Back when the deal was first announced that ESPN would be returning to NASCAR broadcasting, and would also be giving the Nationwide Series a steady, permanent home, I was absolutely thrilled. What could go wrong here: a network whose Wide World of Sports coverage was largely responsible for NASCAR’s ascension from a niche to a …

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Kenny Wallace Driver Diary: The Mysterious Nationwide Schedule, Nashville & Why I Love Baseball

Mexico City was taken off the schedule this year. We’re making up Mexico City with the Iowa date. I’m thrilled to death to be going to Iowa. I’ve tested there a couple of times and it seems like a really nice racetrack. We ran at Mexico City for five years, and it seemed like it …

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Fanning the Flames: NASCAR Fans Throwing More TLC at TRG

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 …

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Did You Notice? Lesa Takes The Helm, NASCAR’s Expensive Engines & No Guts, No Glory

Did You Notice? That not only are the number of car owners shrinking in the NASCAR Cup Series today, but so are the number of engine suppliers? Through seven races, the top-38 teams in the Cup Series standings get their motors from just seven shops. Here’s a quick breakdown of how it all works out: …

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Mirror Driving: NASCAR Safety Gone Overboard, Catching Hendrick & Steve Wallace… Cup Driver?

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: Tom Bowles (Editor-In-Chief; Mondays/Bowles-Eye View & Wednesdays/Did You Notice?) Beth Lunkenheimer (Tuesdays/Running Your …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 NASCAR Drivers NOT in Sprint Cup

With NASCAR’s off week in full swing, it presented an opportunity for the Frontstretch experts to do something a little different. Instead of grading the Cup guys, we took a look at those drivers who often get shunned from the spotlight these days, the drivers exclusive to the Nationwide and Camping World Truck series desperate …

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