Race Weekend Central

Matt McLaughlin’s Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2008 Watkins Glen Race Recap

The Key Moment: Dale Earnhardt Jr. pitted under caution on lap 66, handing the lead to Kyle Busch – who would never come close to relinquishing it at Watkins Glen. In a Nutshell: Busch once again spanks the field handily, offering fans a chance for a nice late-summer nap. Dramatic Moment: Unfortunately, the only high drama …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2008 Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono

After the second weekend of testing out the Pythagorean theory at Pocono, the shape of the Chase came a little more into focus. The top drivers in points (“A” students) are solidifying their positions for September and beyond while aggressively going for the win – and the 10-point bonus that goes with it. Meanwhile, positions …

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Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Sprint Cup: 2008 Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Edition

After a bout with Mother Nature forced a bizarre finish in the Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono – the second straight week of strange results for NASCAR – there was plenty of heating up and cooling off throughout the sport’s top levels. So, without further ado let’s get right to the list of Who’s Hot and …

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Holding a Pretty Wheel: Is There a 48 in Kyle Busch’s Mirror?

Kyle Busch has dominated the Sprint Cup landscape for much of the season. It’s a championship caliber year for Busch, with seven wins, 12 top-five finishes and 13 top 10s in 20 races. He’s on par with great seasons like Jeff Gordon’s 1997 campaign. Busch is certainly on top of the Sprint Cup world. However, …

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Fanning the Flames: Strong Fan Reaction Makes This a Brickyard Backlash

Another strong batch of questions from the Frontstretch faithful this week. You’re building steam on the front end of the 17-week stretch to end what is turning into a real Dog & Pony show as we saw on Sunday afternoon. Let’s go ahead and get a couple of the Indy responses out of the way. …

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Fantasy Picks ‘N’ Pans: How to Pick Your Team to Perform at Pocono

Pocono Raceway is the most uniquely shaped track on the Sprint Cup schedule, giving teams quite the challenge when it comes to getting their car to race well. Boasting the longest straightaway in Sprint Cup and a triangular shape with three distinct turns, the Pennsylvania facility is truly a 500-mile test of man and machine. …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2008 Brickyard 400

And the winner of the first annual Indianapolis Heat Race is… Jimmie Johnson! OK, so maybe it was the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, but the way in which the race was controlled by NASCAR – with competition cautions held every 10 laps – they might as well have renamed it the Allstate 25. With …

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Running Their Mouth: 2008 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard

This week, here’s a sneak peek at what a select few were thinking following the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Sprint Cup: 2008 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard Edition

Tire problems provided an interesting twist to this week’s Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, allowing a number of teams to utilize pit strategy to capture unexpectedly strong finishes. One of those teams, the No. 84 of AJ Allmendinger, came home 10th, giving him his first top 10 and the best two-race stretch of his career. …

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