Race Weekend Central

5 Points to Ponder: 2009 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Edition

A NASCAR induced near-disaster? Like every single person watching the FOX telecast or sitting in the stands at the 2.66-mile superspeedway that has produced some of the scariest incidents in NASCAR history, I too held my breath waiting for the window net to drop on the No. 99 car after Carl Edwards went sailing into …

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Bowles-Eye View: NASCAR’s Dream Turned Nightmare Wrapped Into 1

One of the biggest struggles we have in life is to try and figure out whether our glass is half-empty or half-full. While contemplating Talladega, I think it’s appropriate to look at both. I’m an optimist at heart, so it’s impossible for me to not appreciate the positive of what transpired Sunday afternoon. Before we …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Rookies Find Checkers, Not Wreckers at ‘Dega with Keselowski, Speed, Logano Mastering Draft

Brad Keselowski Start: Ninth; Finish: First Summary: Brad Keselowski raced the Aaron’s 499 in the same manner as one would want to play a game of poker. After starting in the top 10, Keselowski spent much of the afternoon darting to the front of the pack, only to fall off the pace soon thereafter – …

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Bubble Breakdown: Part-Timer Wins at Talladega While Top-30 Teams Turn in Top 15s

Talladega Superspeedway was the setting this week for the running of the Aaron’s 499. Bubble teams kicked up a little pre-race news as Sam Hornish Jr. posted a career-best qualifying run, starting fourth before suddenly getting sick with the flu – forcing the team to fly in Travis Kvapil as a standby driver in case …

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Nationwide Series Breakdown: 2009 Aaron’s 312 at Talladega

It’s often been said that on a late restart, the last place a driver wants to be is leading a restrictor-plate race. Ryan Newman found that out the hard way on Saturday. Despite playing the ride in the back strategy to perfection all day long after winning the pole Friday and leading at the white-flag …

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Brad Keselowski Wins 2009 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega

Talladega had an unlikely hero on Sunday. Brad Keselowski braved a block from Carl Edwards, whose car went airborne and across Ryan Newman‘s car, to win his first Sprint Cup race at Talladega in only his fifth career start. Edwards’s car, meanwhile, went flying into the catchfence, ripping into it and sending parts into the …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2009 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega

Who… gets my shoutout of the race? Most readers know I never give this one to the race winner, because he gets enough shoutouts, but this week I’m going to make an exception. To win a race as a rookie is tough enough, but Brad Keselowski won’t even be a full-time rookie until next year …

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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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Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in NASCAR’s Other Top Series

The NASCAR Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck series each took a breather this Easter Weekend while the Nationwide Series fired its engines (and Gibson guitar amps) in Nashville. Since this column already detailed the HOTNESS and NOTNESS of the Cup Series following last week’s events in Texas, we find it only fair to take …

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Did You Notice? Keselowski Kicking Logano’s Butt, Harvick Unhappy at Intermediates & Nationwide’s No-No?

Did You Notice? What keeps Kevin Harvick from being labeled a serious championship contender? It’s his lifetime performance on 1.5-mile ovals. Those tracks used to be easy pickins’ for Harvick – his first two Cup victories came at Atlanta and Chicagoland in 2001 – but over the last few seasons, his fortitude has faded at …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Doomsday Looms Large Leaving Texas as Rookies Face Uncertain Futures

Joey Logano Start: 10th; Finish: 30th Summary: The weekend started out strong for the Joe Gibbs Racing newcomer when he recorded his second best Sprint Cup qualifying effort and his best under “normal” procedures (Logano’s career-high is a ninth-place start earned through the Gatorade Duels for the 2009 Daytona 500.) But 10th would be as …

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