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Professor Of Speed: Good Finishes Make A Good Start

Aug 16, 2012
So there I was … pretty much finished with NASCAR, when …. Wham! There’s Kyle Busch slipping and sliding, and there’s Brad Keselowski running through the grass, and there’s Marcos Ambrose beating and banging his way to a .571 second margin of victory in the Finger Lakes 355 at Watkins Glen. It took just a moment for the final lap of that race to become etched in NASCAR folklore; all the radio announcers said so, as did the television commentators. The newspaper/internet writers who covered the event echoed the same fact when their stories were posted. What a difference an exciting finish makes.
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Potts’ Shots: Bobbling Busch, Last Lap Push, and Hello — Where’s The Yellow?!

Aug 16, 2012
Lots of questions this week, most of them in personal questions and phone calls from long-time acquaintances, regarding NASCAR’s handling of the final laps at Watkins Glen. First, the question of whether it’s safe to continue racing on a road course has to be left up to race control, and they have to depend on their observers and course marshals. In my own experience, on a short track, and even up to a 1.5-mile if you’re in a good enough position in the flagstand to see the whole course, the flagman can make that call.
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Truckin’ Thursdays: A Myriad of Changes Just in Time For Michigan

Aug 16, 2012
As the Camping World Truck Series heads to Michigan International Speedway, a couple of drivers won’t be in the rides you’ve become accustomed to seeing them in. Parker Kligerman, who was released from Brad Keselowski Racing following a solid seventh-place finish at Pocono, announced last week that he had joined Red Horse Racing to pilot the No. 7 Toyota vacated when Daytona winner John King was released just five races into the year.
Start Times, Consistent Schedule Keys to INDYCAR Success

Start Times, Consistent Schedule Keys to INDYCAR Success

Aug 15, 2012
Prior to the Mid-Ohio IZOD IndyCar Series race on August 5, Randy Bernard, the CEO of the series, stated that more races are needed for the series to be successful. He intimated that 15, the number on the schedule this year, is not enough and that he’d feel better if the number of races totaled about 20. Fair enough. That seems like a smart, if not obvious, comment. To keep fan interest up, there must be enough of a product to, in essence, keep them reminded that it’s still out there. That only 15 races grace the schedule this year is problematic, and the swift reaction to reconsider fast oval tracks due to Dan Wheldon’s on-track death last year is a large factor. But it also seems that INDYCAR was caught without contingency plans, and that’s when an organization gives a sense, whether it’s true or not, that it is floundering.
Top Ten Ways NASCAR CEO Brian France (et al) Plan to Add ‘NASCAR Flavor’ at Mitt Romney’s Fundraiser

Top Ten Ways NASCAR CEO Brian France (et al) Plan to Add ‘NASCAR Flavor’ at Mitt Romney’s Fundraiser

Aug 15, 2012
*10.* Rick Hendrick will donate a small percentage of Dale, Jr’s winnings…in exchange for possible future Presidential Pardons *9.* Jamie McMurray will appear on stage and pull a rabbit out of Mitt Romney’s as….er, hat. *8.* Felix Sabates will allow all future campaign slogans to use his name, i.e. ‘Romney and Ryan (with Felix Sabates)
Soundtracking the Season: Seven New(er) NASCAR Anthems

Soundtracking the Season: Seven New(er) NASCAR Anthems

Aug 15, 2012
Growing up, I can recall a number of songs that first came to me via NASCAR. Whether it was from watching one of the race broadcasts (Metallica’s “Fuel”) or playing one of the sport’s licensed video games (“Flirtin’ With Disaster,” Molly Hatchet), there were many songs that I associated with NASCAR early on, even though most weren’t specifically NASCAR-themed (of course, there’s all that Creed that was played at Michigan International Speedway’s Skoal tent when I was younger, but that’s another story entirely). But pause for a moment and try to think of any such songs that have surfaced in the last few years. Tough, isn’t it? I’m not saying that none of the more recent tunes are memorable, but that’s the case for the majority. I can think of “T.N.T.” by AC/DC, for instance, but that’s really more of a play on the TV station on which the given race was broadcast — and anyway, the video that accompanies it is kind of pointless. I think an argument could be made for Rascal Flatts’s cover of “Life is a Highway,” but that’s about it.
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NASCAR Sprint Cup Power Rankings: Top 15 After Watkins Glen

Aug 15, 2012
The caution never flew, but the oil did, and it made for one hell of a race. Whether or not Kyle Busch “deserved” that race doesn’t matter, because Marcos Ambrose was able to last through the chaos and make it to Victory Lane for the second time in his career. Meanwhile, the rest of us were left blue in the face after having held our breath the entire last lap. Oh, but it was so worth it! So what about our Power Rankings? Did Ambrose’s victory move him up our rankings or did the voters have another driver in mind? Continue reading to find out…
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Mirror Driving: Oh, Canada?, The Use Of A Wild Card And Throwing Caution To The Oil

Aug 14, 2012
*The race at Watkins Glen produced a thrilling finish, but it was not without controversy, as several drivers complained of oil on the track in the final laps. Should NASCAR have thrown the caution, or did they make the right decision to keep the race under green?* Mike N.: They made the right decision. While the treading was treacherous, there wasn’t anyone who went off-track until the last corner because of it. Phil: Treacherous at the least. But Ambrose and Keselowski were fine with NASCAR not throwing the yellow, and I’d argue that not throwing made for a much better conclusion.
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NASCAR Wildcard Hopefuls a Mixed Bag at 4 Tracks That Will Decide Chase Berths

Aug 14, 2012
This weekend, as many as five drivers – Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski – could mathematically clinch their spots inside the top 10, assuming they leave Michigan with at least a 145-point gap over 11th place. But perhaps the more appealing race to keep an eye on is …

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Fan’s View: Watkins Glen’s Near Perfect Finish Makes Memories & Ratings

Aug 13, 2012
We got that in spades at Watkins Glen this past Sunday. During the final lap, racing fans were treated to the best example of “have at it, boys,” we’ve seen in years.
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Five Points to Ponder: Keselowski, Road Courses and “Real Racing”

Aug 13, 2012
*ONE: Brad Keselowski Speaks the Truth on “Real Racing”* Anyone that wasn’t thrilled with Sunday’s finish likely doesn’t have a pulse. Whether a fan had a dog in the Busch/Keselowski/Ambrose finale or not, the beating, banging, and sheer unpredictability of the last lap was easily the most compelling end to any race NASCAR has seen in 2012, and the best finish the Glen has seen since Kurt Busch and Robby Gordon off-roaded their way to the checkered flag in the 2006 Nationwide race.
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Steve Letarte on Repeating at Michigan with Earnhardt, New Tire

Aug 13, 2012
_The Cup Series was in the Irish Hills of Michigan eight weeks ago and, in case you missed it, Dale Earnhardt Jr. broke his millennium long losing streak. As the series heads back to the two-mile oval with its fresh pavement, Steve Letarte is tasked with preparing the car for NASCAR’s most popular driver to try and make it two-for-two at Michigan International Speedway._ _Unlike the old surface, where drivers could move from the apron to the wall to make their car work, the track is now practically a one groove race track. If the car isn’t working in the preferred groove, it probably is going to struggle to keep up with the cars that have hit on the setup._
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