Race Weekend Central

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Sprint Cup: 2008 LifeLock 400 at Michigan Edition

The long-awaited first Hendrick-Earnhardt victory finally came this week at Michigan, but it didn’t come without controversy. Winning on fuel mileage, the No. 88 team worked some pit strategy to make it to victory lane; however, Matt Kenseth and Brian Vickers have criticized Dale Earnhardt Jr. and NASCAR for allowing the eventual winner to pass …

Read more

Bubble Breakdown: Michael Waltrip Wrecks, But It’s Haas CNC Crashing Out of Top 35

Rain on Friday afternoon washed out NASCAR qualifying at Michigan International Raceway, meaning the starting grid was set by owner points – leaving the No. 70 Haas Automation Chevrolet and the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Chevy as the odd teams out. But while the teams on the bubble breathed a sigh of relief, their …

Read more

Bubble Breakdown: Scott Riggs Races His Way in While Michael Waltrip Wrecks His Way Out

The competition to stay in the Top 35 in owner points has dissolved into a dogfight, with many more teams falling back towards the bubble as opposed to moving away from it. While a few select cars – such as Bill Davis’s No. 22 Caterpillar entry and Michael Waltrip Racing’s No. 44 UPS Toyota – …

Read more

The Yellow Stripe: Will the Real Gillett Evernham Motorsports Please Stand Up, Please Stand Up…

If you were starting a new three-car team in NASCAR next season – and let’s just set aside the financial burden and inevitable sponsorship woes that come with a startup outfit for a minute – you could do a lot worse than to assemble your own trio of wheelmen from the sort of stable of …

Read more

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Sprint Cup: 2008 Best Buy 400 at Dover Edition

The notorious Monster Mile jumped out and attacked the competition Sunday when Elliott Sadler came down on the No. 38 of David Gilliland on lap 18, triggering a massive pileup that ended the days for a number of Chase contenders before they could even get into a rhythm. Aside from Sadler’s blunder, though, it was …

Read more

Bubble Breakdown: Penalties Have Crippled Haas CNC… While Saving Michael Waltrip Racing

The big story from the bubble this week has been the heavy penalties handed down by NASCAR to the Haas CNC Racing teams. Both cars were hit with 150-point owner and driver standings deductions, as well as various team fines and six-week suspensions of the car chief and crew chief for each vehicle. As a …

Read more

Fantasy Picks ‘N’ Pans: Can Dale Earnhardt Jr. Give the National Guard Back-to-Back Memorial Day Wins?

The Sprint Cup Series went from the gritty Darlington Raceway to the glitzy All-Star Race in the last two weeks; but now, it’s time to get down to business in the longest race of the year, the Coca-Cola 600. Sunday’s event will be a test of endurance for the drivers and crews, as they fight …

Read more

Voices From the Heartland: Where to Hide or Find Your NASCAR-Themed Easter Eggs

Well folks, it’s that time of year again! It’s time to get creative and dye those Easter eggs! For all you hardcore NASCAR fans, I hope this week’s column will give you a few ideas on where to hide all those eggs that you actually put racecar numbers on. (Don’t be ashamed, everyone does it. …

Read more

Bubble Breakdown: Brian Vickers Shines While Digging Out of Top-35 Hole… Wood Brothers Dig Themselves in Deeper

All week, it looked like a battle between Joe Gibbs’s Toyotas and Rick Hendrick’s Chevrolets at this year’s Daytona 500; but with a last-lap surprise, Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch and Roger Penske came out of nowhere to score a major 1-2 upset in the Great American Race for Dodge. There were a lot of surprises when …

Read more

Bubble Breakdown: Previewing NASCAR’s 2008 Battle for the Top 35, Part II

Being in the Top 35 for the first five NASCAR races this season is a great luxury for those lucky enough to secure a spot at the conclusion of 2007. But after that, each team has to perform well enough to stay there in order to keep enjoying those benefits. Last week in this column, …

Read more