DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- Clint Bowyer's first victory of the season gave Richard Childress Racing a much-needed boost.
I first caught Scott Speed's act last January, when I was in Charlotte for NASCAR's annual preseason media tour. It was an evening Red Bull event, and Speed addressed the press from a comfy couch, wearing shades and a button-down shirt open to about mid-torso. The California native, who was coming off of a two-year stint on the F1 circuit (where he went winless in 28 starts), seemed very conscious of projecting a laid-back vibe, greeting the media with, "What up, dog?"
In reading over the decision yesterday to grant a temporary injunction allowing Jeremy Mayfield to race, the song that came to mind was REM's "Everybody Hurts."
LOUDON, N.H. (AP) -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. had one of the most satisfying 13th-place finishes in his NASCAR career Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
LOUDON, N.H. (AP) -- An eight-car crash on a midrace restart has roused tempers and taken out a couple of contenders at the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Kyle Busch figured out a way to win again in NASCAR's Nationwide Series.
There was little celebrating at Red Bull Racing after Brian Vickers won his second consecutive pole.
BROOKLYN, Michigan (AP) -- Brian Vickers won his third pole of the season for the LifeLock 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Friday.
In the end, Rick Hendrick was left with only one option: He had to fire Tony Eury Jr. on Thursday to try to salvage not only Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s season, but also his career.
Five things we learned after the running of the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, won in an upset by David Reutimann after a rain-shortened race ended on Lap 227:
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- Clint Bowyer's first victory of the season gave Richard Childress Racing a much-needed boost.
I first caught Scott Speed's act last January, when I was in Charlotte for NASCAR's annual preseason media tour. It was an evening Red Bull event, and Speed addressed the press from a comfy couch, wearing shades and a button-down shirt open to about mid-torso. The California native, who was coming off of a two-year stint on the F1 circuit (where he went winless in 28 starts), seemed very conscious of projecting a laid-back vibe, greeting the media with, "What up, dog?"
In reading over the decision yesterday to grant a temporary injunction allowing Jeremy Mayfield to race, the song that came to mind was REM's "Everybody Hurts."
LOUDON, N.H. (AP) -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. had one of the most satisfying 13th-place finishes in his NASCAR career Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
LOUDON, N.H. (AP) -- An eight-car crash on a midrace restart has roused tempers and taken out a couple of contenders at the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Kyle Busch figured out a way to win again in NASCAR's Nationwide Series.
There was little celebrating at Red Bull Racing after Brian Vickers won his second consecutive pole.
BROOKLYN, Michigan (AP) -- Brian Vickers won his third pole of the season for the LifeLock 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Friday.
In the end, Rick Hendrick was left with only one option: He had to fire Tony Eury Jr. on Thursday to try to salvage not only Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s season, but also his career.
Five things we learned after the running of the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, won in an upset by David Reutimann after a rain-shortened race ended on Lap 227:
Four races provide only a snapshot into Sprint Cup's regular season, but they could also be a indicator of the changing face of the Chase. Four drivers -- Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne, Brian Vickers and David Reutimann -- who didn't make it last year are in the top-12 in points, pushing four -- Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 2008 Chasers out.
Observations from a mild, blue-sky spring day at Atlanta Motor Speedway:
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.
Five things we learned in race No. 1 of the 2009 NASCAR season at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday.
DAYTONA BEACH, Florida -- Leave it to Dale Earnhardt Jr. to overshadow the winner of Sunday's rain-shortened 51st Daytona 500.
DAYTONA, Fla. -- As the red flag waved over Sunday's Daytona 500, two of the best stock car racers of our time avoided the rain by huddling under the same umbrella. In one of those rare moments when legends bond in public, TV cameras caught seven-time winner Richard Petty having a long conversation with Jeff Gordon about fate -- how simple racing luck is all it takes to make or break your day. And as the checkered flag flew 48 laps early while the rain poured down around them, it was fate indeed that played a part in leaving only one of them with something to smile about.
DAYTONA BEACH, Florida --- Matt Kenseth's surprising, rain-shortened victory in Sunday's 51st Daytona 500 came in a race that desperately needed an ending.
Five things we learned under the lights on Saturday night in Daytona at the Budweiser Shootout, the preseason warm-up act for the Daytona 500.
As the coverage of Super Bowl Sunday reaches fever pitch this week, the big story continues to be Arizona's sudden surge. After winning just one postseason game between 1975 and 2007, the Cardinals swept through the playoffs and are suddenly on the verge of their first NFL title since 1947 -- the year NASCAR was formed in a smoky room down at Daytona Beach.
David Ragan has been widely regarded as the Sprint Cup's most improved driver during the 2008 season, a status justified by his leap from 23rd in the points to Chase contender and 13th in the championship.
Three races into the Chase, Toyota's optimism toward winning a Sprint Cup championship in its second season has been crushed. It must be a devastating feeling to the manufacturer, which must wonder how it could have gone so wrong so quickly. There are still races to be run and won and that would ease the pain, but the big prize has been painfully lost.
Will Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler and Reed Sorenson be driving Toyotas in the Sprint Cup Series next season?
In its fifth year of competition, the Chase for the Championship is a baby compared to the playoff systems of other major sports. With such a limited time under its belt -- and several tweaks to the format already -- the whole concept is deemed a work in progress. However, we've already seen some basic patterns develop which give us an indication of what a driver needs to do to win this year. Here's what we know heading into this year's version of NASCAR's playoffs:
Five things we learned on Sunday at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, the last stop of the season the Cup circuit will make at a road course.
It's that time again! The Bowlesys are back to recognize the best and worst of the 2008 NASCAR season to date. Now in their third year, these semi-annual awards pop up each July and December and keep the sport on its toes with an honest assessment of who's really made their mark or missed it.
Start-ups in any industry are an arduous undertaking. They stumble, they fall, they inevitably make changes. They look for any light at the end of the tunnel to help them find their way out of the darkness.
Five things we learned on a long, hot afternoon of racing at Pocono (Pa.) Speedway:
Six things we learned at the Coca-Cola 600 Sunday night:
Brian Vickers couldn't believe it. The laps were winding down in February's Gatorade Duel, and he was experiencing the wrong type of déjà vu at 180 miles an hour.
It's only the fifth race of the Sprint Cup season, but this weekend's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway could be the most critical out of the 36 on the schedule for those teams close to the line of demarcation for the top-35 in points.
Five things we learned on Sunday at the fastest track on the NASCAR circuit: Atlanta Motor Speedway:
They showed up as favorites, endured their share of failures and found a way to stay at the front of the Daytona 500.
Petty Enterprises hasn't won a race since 1999, and owner Richard Petty had to do something dramatic to turn things around. So in the off-season he moved the operation from his tiny family shop in Level Cross, N.C., to a sprawling complex in Mooresville, N.C., the hub of the sport. Petty hopes the new digs will help him recruit top talent, and it's already working out that way: He lured Jeff Meendering, the former car chief for Jeff Gordon, to be crew chief for Bobby Labonte.... Another underfunded team that will struggle to finish in the top 20 in points this season is Robby Gordon Motorsports. Gordon is the only full-time independent owner-driver in the series, and while he had two top 10 runs last season, he also finished 30th or worse 13 times.... Red Bull Racing Team, on the other hand, is flush with cash and has the man, Brian Vickers, who led more laps (106) than any other Toyota driver in 2007. Still, because their outfits are inexperienced, Vickers and teammate AJ
FONTANA, Calif. (AP) -- After going four months without a victory, Jimmie Johnson picked a great time to get back to Victory Circle.
FONTANA, Calif. (AP) -- While Joe Gibbs Racing officials remained mum Friday on the anticipated switch from Chevrolet to Toyota, Kyle Busch was more than happy to talk about it.
BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) -- Kasey Kahne won the pole at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday, edging rival Dodge driver Juan Pablo Montoya for the top starting spot.
BROOKLYN, Mich. (AP) -- Kurt Busch won for the second time in three races, prevailing in a rare Tuesday NASCAR event after two days of rain postponements at Michigan International Speedway.
Denny Hamlin fought off a mid-race challenge from Matt Kenseth, then drove away for a dominating victory Saturday in the Carfax 250 NASCAR Busch Series race at Michigan International Speedway.
It seems so easy to make a move as a free agent in sports, but it never is. When an athlete leaves a strong team to take an unknown risk somewhere else, the move is especially difficult. For someone to make that type of life-changing choice, you have to possess enough confidence in both your ability and your future to believe every decision you make will wind up the right call.
Here are five things we learned last weekend at Pocono, the second-straight race where rain played a major factor.
Despite the dominance of drivers like Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart, NASCAR's underdogs are still capable of occasionally having their day in the sun. What's rare is when all of them decide to shine at exactly the same time.
The old saying is that only the strong survive the long, grueling test known as NASCAR's 600-mile marathon.
Setting expectations can be a fragile thing. Left unfulfilled, the sheer weight of their failure can lead to a pack of monkeys landing on the backs of everyone involved.
After a week of observations in Daytona, here's my final set of observations heading into the Daytona 500:
Despite going winless for the past 3 1/2 years on the Nextel Cup tour, Michael Waltrip has remained one of the sport's most popular and recognizable drivers. A marketing machine, he's known for bending over backwards for his sponsors, hawking everything from furniture to auto parts on TV.
What are the significant areas of change for the Nextel Cup Series in 2007, and equally important, will they make any difference?
On Sunday, Japanese automaker Toyota will become the first foreign manufacturer to back a team on NASCAR's premier circuit. So how is the world's most successful automaker being greeted? "We're going to go to war with them," says Roush Racing owner Jack Roush, whose Ford-backed team is the largest in NASCAR. "They should give us their best shot, because we'll be giving as good as we take."
It's about time.
All 10 people aboard a twin-engine plane owned by stock car racing team Hendrick Motorsports were killed Sunday when the plane crashed outside Martinsville, Virginia, according to a nearby funeral home.
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