Race Weekend Central

Fantasy Insider: The Short and Long of It All at Bristol

2014 Michigan Ii Cup Matt Kenseth Travos Kvapil Racing Cia

(Credit: CIA Stock Photography)

I had the pleasure of being in the Charlotte area this week and spent one of those days doing something that I had wanted to do for quite some time. That was take a tour (of sorts) of several NASCAR team buildings and shops. These weren’t scheduled, it was just sort of a random thing …

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Power Rankings: Top 15 After Michigan

2014 Michigan Ii Cup Jeff Gordon Trophy Cia

Give Jeff Gordon enough chances and he’ll eventually beat you. That’s what happened to Joey Logano as Jeff Gordon pulled off a flawless restart with 17 laps to go, taking the lead and claiming his third win of the season. It’s the most wins Gordon has had in a single season since 2011. It was …

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Voices from the Cheap Seats: NASCAR Only Goes Halfway with New Rule

2014 Daytona Ii Cup Landon Cassill Crash Damage Cia

(Credit: CIA Stock Photography)

Last week, I put out there that, while tragic, the death of Kevin Ward, Jr. was totally avoidable on two separate fronts. First, don’t do insanely stupid things like Ward did; and second, a sanctioning body could have had a rule that makes enraged drivers think twice about doing insanely stupid things when it is …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Pure Michigan 400

2014 Michigan Ii Cup Jeff Gordon Burnout Cia

Key Moment – On the penultimate restart of the day, Kurt Busch was alongside Joey Logano when the green flag flew. Busch laid it all on the line trying to get past the car of his former employer but broke loose and bounced his car off of the wall. His rear tire ultimately failed, bringing out …

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Fantasy Insider: Making Michigan Work For You

2014 Watkins Glen Cup Dale Earnhardt Jr Cia

(Photo Credit: CIA)

To be perfectly honest this week, who to pick or not pick on my NASCAR fantasy team hasn’t been at the forefront of my mind. In fact, it’s been pretty far back there, following the aftermath of the accident between Tony Stewart and Kevin Ward, Jr. Saturday. It’s expected that the investigation will take another …

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Who’s Hot & Who’s Not In NASCAR: Watkins Glen – Michigan Edition

Marcos Ambrose 2014 Brickyard 400 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Mike Neff

(Credit: Mike Neff)

A win from an underdog is the worst possible outcome for the slew of drivers floating around the playoff wildcard bubble, and that’s exactly what happened at Watkins Glen International Raceway. Carl Edwards was able to fend off the road course specialist in Sonoma earlier this year, and while close to doing so again at …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2014 Cheez-It 355 At The Glen

2014 Watkins Glen Cup Ryan Newman Crash Damage Cia

Credit - CIA Stock Photography

Looking for the Who, What, When, Where, Why and How behind Sunday’s race? Amy Henderson has you covered each week with the answers to six race-day questions, covering all five Ws and even the H… the Big Six. Who… gets my shoutout of the race? Watkins Glen isn’t known for being easy to drive. Four-time …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Watkins Glen A Mix Of Tony’s Tragedy, AJ’s Triumph

2014 Watkins Glen Cup Aj Allmendinger No 1 Cia

Key Moment – On lap 78, Josh Wise stopped in the grass on the inside of the exit of the Bus Stop. Rather than throw a local caution to give Wise an opportunity to refire the car and continue on, NASCAR threw a full-course caution. As a result, AJ Allmendinger and Marcos Ambrose drew immensely closer …

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Fantasy Insider: Road Course Ringer Equals Marcos or ‘Dinger

2014 Sonoma Cup Marcos Ambrose Car Cia

When it came to making fantasy auto racing picks for road courses, for years it seemed like a safe bet to look at the so-called road ringers and try to pick up a top 10 finish with a cheap or rarely used driver. But taking a look back at the last three road course races, …

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Did You Notice? … NASCAR Talent: Then And Now

2014 Pocono Ii Cup Ricky Stenhouse Jr Helmet Cia

Credit: CIA Editorial Photography

Did You Notice? … How hard it is to gain a foothold in this sport? More than ever, talented drivers find themselves inside a shrinking window of opportunity. The number of available rides has shrunk, combined with the funding now necessary to pair them within a top-tier organization. Having cash on hand and helping bridge …

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The Frontstretch Five: Memorable Modern-Era Rookie Campaigns

2014 Michigan I Cup Ryan Newman Face Cia

Welcome to the Frontstretch Five, a brand-new column for 2014! Each week, Amy Henderson takes a look at the racing, the drivers, and the storylines that drive NASCAR and produces a list of five people, places, things, and ideas that define the current state of our sport. This week, Amy has five rookie campaigns that …

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Power Rankings: Top 15 After Pocono

2014 Pocono Ii Cup Dale Earnhardt Jr Woohoo Cia

Credit: CIA Editorial Photography

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. made another statement as to why he’s a top contender to win the 2014 Sprint Cup Championship Sunday, sweeping both races at Pocono and scoring his third win of the season. To put this year’s performance into perspective, Junior won only one race in the past five seasons. It was an up …

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