Race Weekend Central

The Big 6: Questions Answered After NASCAR Playoffs in Las Vegas

2021 Cup Las Vegas Denny Hamlin, No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Wins NASCAR Playoffs race (Credit: Meg Oliphant/Getty Images via NASCAR Media)

Photo: Meg Oliphant/Getty Images via NASCAR Media

Who … should you be talking about after the NASCAR Playoffs Race in Las Vegas? Denny Hamlin once again showed Sunday night (Sept. 26) why he was a championship contender one year ago. For only the second time this season, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver earned a NASCAR Cup Series win. It was a fairly …

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Dropping The Hammer: NASCAR Cup Drivers React to Largest Next Gen Car Test Yet

NASCAR Next Gen Car at Daytona

(Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

Five months before its official debut, the club of NASCAR Cup Series drivers who have gotten a crack at the Next Gen car grew last week. For two days at Daytona International Speedway, eight drivers took part in what was primarily a Goodyear Tire test at the 2.5-mile superspeedway. The group was a combination of …

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Did You Notice?: Have NASCAR Playoffs Changed Perception 17 Years In?

Alex Bowman pack racing at Phoenix

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice?… The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs have flipped the script on two of its biggest teams? Stewart-Haas Racing has struggled through the worst year of its existence. SHR has just one win, a darkness-shortened New Hampshire Motor Speedway upset by Aric Almirola. Marquee driver Kevin Harvick sits winless a year after setting a …

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5 Points to Ponder: Does Momentum Make Ryan Blaney a Championship Contender?

2021 Cup Daytona Ii Ryan Blaney Wins Nkp

Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography

1. How much does momentum matter going into the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs? Asking for a friend named Ryan Blaney. (Note: Blaney and I are not actually friends, having spoken exactly once, but he is a likable gent.) The 27-year-old Team Penske wheelman entered the 2021 season never having won more than one race in …

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Fire on Fridays: Who’s Actually Got a Shot at the Cup Playoffs?

Matt DiBenedetto Tyler Reddick talk Watkins Glen

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

It’s somewhat fitting that this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway has an elimination factor. After all, that’s usually the case at the season-opening Daytona 500, when the pre-race Duels set the lineup and a certain number of cars (four in 2021) are left on the sidelines come the big race on …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2021 Ally 400 at Nashville

Kyle Larson holds up the Ally 400 trophy at Nashville Superspeedway. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

What happened? Kyle Larson won the Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday (June 20) after another incredible performance for his third consecutive points-race win (fourth counting the All-Star Race).  Ross Chastain, William Byron, Aric Almirola and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top-five finishers. Charlotte: Kyle LarsonSonoma: Kyle Larson All-Star Race: Kyle Larson@NashvilleSuperS: Kyle Larson@KyleLarsonRacin …

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Cole Custer Adds Autodesk Sponsorship for 6 Cup Races

Cole Custer car in 2021 cup Daytona 500 Photo NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Autodesk is coming aboard Cole Custer’s No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford for six NASCAR Cup Series events this season, the team announced Wednesday (June 2). The company is on its fourth year of partnership with SHR and joins Custer for this weekend’s event at Sonoma Raceway. It will also be on board at the Indianapolis …

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5 Points to Ponder: Do You Need to See Where You’re Going to Race in NASCAR?

Kurt Busch races in the rain during the NASCAR Cup Series race at Circuit of the Americas (May 2021). (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

1. COTA was pretty fun … except when no NASCAR driver could see anything It’s not clear how anyone at NASCAR can make a solid determination about whether the national series should return to Circuit of the Americas in 2021. On paper, COTA seemed like it would make for an amazing addition to the NASCAR …

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Zach’s Turn: Why Did NASCAR Allow Such Dangerous Conditions at COTA?

NASCAR Wet

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

By now, everyone knows how miserably wet the NASCAR Cup Series’ inaugural event at Circuit of the Americas was. The looming question, though, is why NASCAR allowed Sunday’s (May 23) EchoPark Texas Grand Prix to be marred by such treacherous conditions. Before we delve into the calamity that took place around the 20-turn course, a …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2021 Echopark Texas Grand Prix at COTA

Chase Elliott races in the rain at Circuit of the Americas (COTA). May 2021 Cup (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

What happened? Chase Elliott won the Echopark Texas Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas on Sunday (May 23) after heavy rain and poor track conditions halted the COTA race early with 14 laps remaining.   Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Ross Chastain and AJ Allmendinger rounded out the top-five finishers. Let the celebration begin! @chaseelliott and …

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Multi-Car Pileups Mar Rainy Stage 2 at COTA

Martin Truex Jr. races in the inaugural NASCAR COTA event before his big wreck. (May 2021) (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The NASCAR Cup Series’ EchoPark Texas Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas had gone smoothly for the most part, with an opening stage featuring just one caution and a couple of single-car spins here and there.  However, chaos struck four laps into stage two and again after the green flag waved. With little-to-no visibility …

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Cole Custer Running COTA Xfinity Race

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Cole Custer will make his first start in the NASCAR Xfinity Series since 2019 at the Circuit of the Americas. The 23-year-old NASCAR Cup Series regular will make his return to the second-tier series driving the No. 17 Production Alliance Group Ford Mustang for Rick Ware Racing, the team announced May 11. “I am excited …

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