Race Weekend Central

The 10: It’s A Bird, It’s A Plane!

2016 Fontana Cup Jimmie Johnson Racing Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell LaBounty / NKP)

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s…. Six-Time! Jimmie Johnson added another chapter to his legendary career on Sunday, passing Dale Earnhardt on the all-time wins list with his 77th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory at Auto Club Speedway. With the triumph, Johnson has officially scored multiple victories in each of his 15 Cup seasons. …

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Five Points to Ponder: Dissecting Cole’s Terrific Tweet & Busch’s Recovery

2016 Fontana Cup Pack Racing Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell LaBounty/NKP)

ONE: Tweet of the Year I have to start out this week with a comment on what might already be the tweet of the 2016 season and given the likely volume of 140-character missives to come over the next nine months from the NASCAR community that’s quite the statement at this early stage. “I guess @joeylogano …

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Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in NASCAR: Martinsville Edition

2016 Fontana Cup Jimmie Johnson Superman Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade /NKP)

There’s that old Jim Croce song, covered by many several times over the years, where it talks about not tugging on superman’s cape and where you don’t mess around with Jim. A late restart at California Sunday afternoon allowed for both of those things to happen, in a sense. It pulled the cape of the …

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Up To Speed: Tempers Flare and Insults Fly Following Action-Packed Auto Club 400

2016 Phoenix I Cup Joey Logano Matthew T Thacker Nkp

(Photo: Matthew T. Thacker/NKP)

I’ve said before that it’s rare that fans and competitors alike agree on anything, let alone nearly unanimous on the quality of a product. However, this is becoming more the case week in and week out. With few exceptions, the drivers are happy with the new package, the fans enjoy the racing it produces, and …

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Jimmie Johnson Soars to 6th Fontana Victory

2016 Las Vegas Cup Jimmie Johnson Chad Knaus Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade NKP)

Jimmie Johnson flew to victory in the Auto Club 400 after passing Kevin Harvick with two laps to go at Auto Club Speedway. Draped in Superman red, Johnson brought the Man of Steel to Victory Lane for the sixth time at Fontana and second time in the 2016 Sprint Cup Series season. “I knew we …

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The 10: The Great Tie of Arizona

2016 Phoenix I Cup Denny Hamlin Pack Racing Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Well, this is a first. Sunday’s Good Sam 500(k) marked the second photo finish in four races to start 2016, with Kevin Harvick just edging out Carl Edwards to stay atop the throne as the king of Phoenix International Raceway. Not one to be outdone, our list of Power Rankings voters somehow managed an even …

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Couch Potato Tuesday: FOX Shows Slight Improvement, While ESPN Tries to De-emphasize St. Pete

2016 Phoenix I Cup Denny Hamlin Pack Racing Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Greetings, everyone.  Did you like Sunday’s finish in Phoenix?  It was a good one.  I thought Kevin Harvick was a sitting duck, but he managed to pull it out just in time. Last weekend saw two races in Phoenix, plus the season opener in St. Petersburg for the Verizon IndyCar Series. Good Sam 500k On …

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Who’s Hot and Who’s Not: California Edition

2016 Phoenix I Nxs Kyle Busch Bow Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

We were minus the sandstorms and other weird weather phenomenons in Phoenix on Sunday, but NASCAR and its fans got something much better – a thrilling, down to the line, door-banging finish. HOT So now that’s two of the four races so far with extra-close finishes, and that’s a pretty good percentage. I wouldn’t expect …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud – Kevin Harvick Beats His Way to Eighth Career Phoenix Victory

2016 Phoenix I Cup Kevin Harvick Team Celebration Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade / NKP)

Who’s in the headline – There are two things in life that are certain: death and taxes. Closely behind that is Kevin Harvick winning at Phoenix International Raceway. For the eighth time in his career and the sixth time in the last eight races, Harvick was the first car under the checkered flag. What happened – …

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The 10: Power Rankings Leaders Find Luck, Dust in Vegas

2016 Las Vegas Cup Kurt Busch Pack Racing Matthew T Thacker Nkp

(Photo: Matthew T. Thacker / NKP)

Typically, the phrase “eat my dust” is a joke when it comes to racing. However, on a wild Sunday in Las Vegas, the phrase was all too real. After 400 miles of rainy, dusty, windy madness at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Brad Keselowski and the Blue Deuce rolled back in to Victory Lane for the first …

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Who’s Hot & Who’s Not: Phoenix Edition

2016 Las Vegas Cup Austin Dillon Car John Harrelson Nkp

(Photo: John Harrelson / NKP)

NASCAR blew through Las Vegas this past weekend, and we mean that in a literal just as much as a figurative sense. If you correctly predicted that Brad Keselowski was going to be the winner, you might have said the answer was blowin’ in the wind. Before and during the race, with flag poles bending …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud – Brad Keselowski Cashes in With Late-Race Pass to Win at Las Vegas

2016 Las Vegas Cup Brad Keselowski Burnout Matthew T Thacker Nkp

(Photo: Matthew T Thacker / NKP)

Who’s in the headline – It had been 33 races since Brad Keselowski visited Victory Lane. Keselowski took the checkered flag first in Fontana last year in the fifth race of the season. On Sunday, he led the race three times but only led a total of 24 laps. The win put a third different manufacturer in …

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