Stock car racing giants ranging from Bill France Sr. and Junior Johnson to Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt are among the 25 nominees for NASCAR's first Hall of Fame class.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- So, Danica Patrick thinks she can leave the IndyCar Series, switch to NASCAR and become an instant sensation, racking up millions in sponsorship and endorsement opportunities and race off into the sunset.
MIAMI -- It was getting late on an October Saturday in 2007 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Jeff Gordon had just won the Bank of America 500 and appeared on his way to winning his fifth NASCAR Sprint Cup title.
Deep down inside, Mark Martin understands it's unlikely he can win the Sprint Cup championship next year. He'll be 50 years old, admittedly past his prime, and two years removed from the rigors of a full season.
This was the golden age, an era graced by some of the most memorable stars and cars in NASCAR history and defined by some of the fiercest rivalries the sport has known. The King's reign continued -- Richard Petty won 89 races and five series titles during the decade -- but it wasn't easy. He tradedpaint weekly with such legends as Bobby Allison, Benny Parsons, David Pearson and Cale Yarborough, men who were stars in their own right and who beat him with remarkable regularity, especially Pearson. The second-winningest driver in NASCAR history, the Silver Fox is remembered fondly by fans for besting his nemesis at the wire of the 1976 Daytona 500, when a final-lap accident between the two drivers left Petty stuck in the infield while Pearson literally coasted to the win. Racing had never been more exciting.
For three decades, since the first Daytona 500 in 1959, NASCAR'S top series had been obsessed with speed. But after Bobby Allison flipped his car into Talladega's grandstand fence in 1987, a wreck that injured several spectators, the sport decided enough was enough. Racing at the superspeedways, with cars lapping at more than 200 mph, had gotten too dangerous. Thus the '88 Daytona 500 was the first race of a new era, when superspeedway events would be run with carburetor restrictor plates. With his power limited, Bobby Allison's average winning speed of 137.531 mph that year was nearly 40 mph slower than that of the previous year's winner, Bill Elliott.
Last year, two former Nextel Cup champions were writing off Jeff Gordon but this season's he's proved them wrong, with the No. 24 team likely headed toward picking up a fifth Cup at the year-end banquet at the Waldorf-Astoria.
Latter day NASCAR fans may not immediately recognize the name Mario Rossi or be familiar with his numerous contributions to the sport. But if you've heard of Darrell Waltrip, Donnie and Bobby Allison, Bud Moore, or Joe Weatherly, you already know something of Mario Rossi.
Stock car racing giants ranging from Bill France Sr. and Junior Johnson to Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt are among the 25 nominees for NASCAR's first Hall of Fame class.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- So, Danica Patrick thinks she can leave the IndyCar Series, switch to NASCAR and become an instant sensation, racking up millions in sponsorship and endorsement opportunities and race off into the sunset.
MIAMI -- It was getting late on an October Saturday in 2007 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Jeff Gordon had just won the Bank of America 500 and appeared on his way to winning his fifth NASCAR Sprint Cup title.
Deep down inside, Mark Martin understands it's unlikely he can win the Sprint Cup championship next year. He'll be 50 years old, admittedly past his prime, and two years removed from the rigors of a full season.
This was the golden age, an era graced by some of the most memorable stars and cars in NASCAR history and defined by some of the fiercest rivalries the sport has known. The King's reign continued -- Richard Petty won 89 races and five series titles during the decade -- but it wasn't easy. He tradedpaint weekly with such legends as Bobby Allison, Benny Parsons, David Pearson and Cale Yarborough, men who were stars in their own right and who beat him with remarkable regularity, especially Pearson. The second-winningest driver in NASCAR history, the Silver Fox is remembered fondly by fans for besting his nemesis at the wire of the 1976 Daytona 500, when a final-lap accident between the two drivers left Petty stuck in the infield while Pearson literally coasted to the win. Racing had never been more exciting.
For three decades, since the first Daytona 500 in 1959, NASCAR'S top series had been obsessed with speed. But after Bobby Allison flipped his car into Talladega's grandstand fence in 1987, a wreck that injured several spectators, the sport decided enough was enough. Racing at the superspeedways, with cars lapping at more than 200 mph, had gotten too dangerous. Thus the '88 Daytona 500 was the first race of a new era, when superspeedway events would be run with carburetor restrictor plates. With his power limited, Bobby Allison's average winning speed of 137.531 mph that year was nearly 40 mph slower than that of the previous year's winner, Bill Elliott.
Last year, two former Nextel Cup champions were writing off Jeff Gordon but this season's he's proved them wrong, with the No. 24 team likely headed toward picking up a fifth Cup at the year-end banquet at the Waldorf-Astoria.
Latter day NASCAR fans may not immediately recognize the name Mario Rossi or be familiar with his numerous contributions to the sport. But if you've heard of Darrell Waltrip, Donnie and Bobby Allison, Bud Moore, or Joe Weatherly, you already know something of Mario Rossi.
The saying is as old as the sport itself: If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'. The culture of cheating has been ingrained in NASCAR ever since the engines first fired in 1949 on a dirt track in Charlotte. That afternoon the first car that roared across the finish line was piloted by Glenn Dunnaway, but when it was discovered that he had illegal rear springs in his Ford, the victory was handed to Jim Roper. The NASCAR boys have been searching for creative ways around the rules ever since.
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