Race Weekend Central

Did You Notice? Consistency, Hello Underdogs & Quick Hits

2015 Talladega I Cup Fans Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Did You Notice? That Richard Petty Motorsports had both drivers – Sam Hornish Jr. and Aric Almirola – finish in the top 15 in Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega? For Almirola, the consistent top-20 finish is nothing new. Through 10 races in 2015, the No. 43 Ford has only one finish worse than 20th (26th at …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 after the 2015 GEICO 500 at Talladega

2015 Talladega I Cup Pack Racing Iii Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Man, Talladega is a doozy, huh? Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s first victory of the season – and first at Talladega in 11 years – was great for the sport and meant, for a moment, that all was right in the racing world. However, the monster that is ‘Dega was also very unkind to several other drivers …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2015 GEICO 500 at Talladega

2015 Talladega Nscs Dale Earnhardt Jr. Checkered Flag Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Who’s in the headline – It took 11 years but Dale Earnhardt Jr. finally won another Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega. After some spirited racing for much of the first part of the race, the last third turned into a mind-numbing parade with little to no action at all. Earnhardt pitted with a few …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2015 Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond

2015 Richmond I Cup Kurt Busch Jamie Mcmurray Racing Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Ask anyone and they would tell you that a win was inevitable once Kurt Busch returned behind the wheel of the No. 41. He came close a few times but finally closed the deal, leading 291 laps and winning his first race of the season at Richmond. Oh, and by the way, he’s now all …

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6 Key Tracks in Paul Menard’s Race to the Chase

2015 Bristol I Cup Paul Menard Car Credit Amy Henderson

(Photo: Amy Henderson, Frontstretch)

Looking at the Chase Grid following last week’s race at Richmond, you might be surprised to find Paul Menard sitting at 13th in points. After all, this is a driver with one career win and a best career finish in the points of 16th. But he’s been in this position before, each of the last …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2015 Duck Commander 500 at Texas

2015 Texas I Cup Jimmie Johnson Six Guns Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Saturday night at Texas Motor Speedway might have foreshadowed the battle for the 2015 Sprint Cup championship between Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick. It was a riveting battle for the win in the final 15 laps. And if Harvick didn’t push his car a bit too far and scrape the wall, it might have been an …

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Did You Notice? A Quick Look Inside the NASCAR Numbers

Stp 500

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Did You Notice? Six races into 2014, the difference between sixth and 20th in the Cup standings is just 35 points? However, the difference between first and sixth is 90 points, with Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr., Brad Keselowski and Kasey Kahne creating some distance between themselves and the rest of the field. It’s an …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2015 STP 500 at Martinsville

2015 Martinsville I Cup Denny Hamlin Woohoo Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

It seems, for the time being, that Joe Gibbs Racing is back. JGR cars took three of the top-five finishing positions at Martinsville including David Ragan (fifth), Matt Kenseth (fourth) and winner Denny Hamlin. Carl Edwards finished in 17th position. Hamlin did not lead the most laps, but he led the one that mattered most, …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2015 Auto Club 400 at Fontana

2015 Fontana Cup Brad Keselowski Burnout Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Kevin Harvick came awfully close to sweeping the west coast swing but had to battle his Stewart-Haas teammate Kurt Busch to do so. What they didn’t see was Brad Keselowski and his four fresh tires (Harvick and Busch only took two) who passed them both on the second green-white-checkered finish to score his first win …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2015 Auto Club 400 at Fontana

2015 Fontana Cup Brad Keselowski Woohoo Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Who’s in the headline – Brad Keselowski may get credit for the win, but Kurt Busch is in the spotlight for how close he came to taking the checkered flag in his second race back from suspension. Busch was leading when a caution flag flew with less than two laps to go, one that resulted in a …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2015 CampingWorld.com 500 at Phoenix

2015 Phoenix I Cup Kevin Harvick Checkered Flag Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

The Sprint Cup Series hasn’t seen this kind of domination in decades. Including 2014, Kevin Harvick collected his seventh straight top-two finish and second-straight victory of the season. Sunday’s win was also Harvick’s fourth straight at Phoenix. The top 10 in the Power Rankings after Las Vegas kept the momentum going for the second round of …

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Power Rankings: Top 15 After Las Vegas

2015 Las Vegas Cup Kevin Harvick Woohoo Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

After two weeks, Kevin Harvick was tired of being the bridesmaid. For the second week in a row he led the most laps, but this time that number included the most important lap winning the race at Las Vegas. With his third top-2 finish of the season, Harvick further solidified his lead in the points but …

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