Race Weekend Central

Holding a Pretty Wheel: NASCAR’s P-Word

2019 pack racing Cup NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Parity. Is it a dirty word, or isn’t it? You certainly hear it a lot, tossed around in conversation, sometimes like a shining example of what racing should strive for, but sometimes more like a bug to be squashed before it gets too big. The truth is probably, as it so often really is, somewhere …

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The Frontstretch 5: Drivers Poised to Grab Their First Wins in 2020

2019 Atlanta CUP William Byron NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

1. William Byron Byron has shown speed since he came into the NASCAR Cup Series, but what he has yet to do is put it all together for a win. Look for that to change this year, as Byron has a few factors in his corner for 2020. The new Camaro body has already given …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2020 Auto Club 400

NASCAR Xfinity Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who… should you be talking about after the race? After losing a major sponsor prior to the season, Alex Bowman could be racing for his ride this year.  The 26-year-old Arizona native is a free agent after the season, and he may need to convince Hendrick Motorsports that keeping him is in the team’s best …

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The Frontstretch 5: Closest NASCAR Cup Series Finishes at Auto Club Speedway

2019 auto club cup race start

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Auto Club Speedway hasn’t exactly gained the reputation of a fan-favorite track during its tenure on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit. And it’s certainly produced some clunkers, with margins of victory sometimes in double-digit seconds. But the finishes have not been all bad. Several races have had a margin of victory under half a second, …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2020 Pennzoil 400

Matt DiBenedetto

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who… should you be talking about after the race? Joey Logano successfully defended his 2019 victory in the spring race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, winning the Pennzoil 400 in a Pennzoil-sponsored Ford. Logano was a factor all day, running in the top five for most of the race, but he also got a little …

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Holding A Pretty Wheel: Nothing but Gratitude and Hope for Brighter Days… and Racing

2019 Atlanta CUP Ryan Newman NKP

(Photo:Nigel Kinrade Photography)

We’ve come a long, long way in NASCAR in terms of safety. But on the last lap of the Daytona 500 (and those words already have a loaded meaning, don’t they?) on Monday night (Feb. 17), the racing world witnessed a horrific reminder of both how far we’ve come and how not a day can …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2020 Daytona 500

2020 Daytona NCS Denny Hamlin Draft NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who … should you be talking about after the race? Denny Hamlin cemented his place as NASCAR’s top dog on superspeedways with his third career.Daytona 500 win and second in a row. He edged Ryan Blaney by just .014 seconds to take the checkered flag. But there was little time for Hamlin to celebrate. By …

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The Frontstretch 5: Storylines to Watch in NASCAR 2020

2020 Daytona NCS Jimmie Johnson Car NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

1. What will we see from the seventh generation race car? That’s going to be the question hanging over the season, no matter what kind of racing we see, because it has the potential to change everything. We’ve had a couple of brief glimpses so far, and each was a bit different than the others …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2020 Busch Clash

2019 Michigan I CUP Clint Bowyer helmet NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who… should you be talking about after the race? With just six cars still running at the end of the 2020 Busch Crash — er, Clash — at Daytona International Speedway, it was Erik Jones getting by Ryan Newman with a little help from his friend Denny Hamlin to take the win and the bragging rights …

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2019 NASCAR Top Storylines: One Last Time Around for Jimmie Johnson

2017 Kansas I CUP Jimmie Johnson helmet Barry Cantrell NKP

(Photo: Barry Cantrell/NKP)

Time slides by as silently as winter and as quickly as a moment, and only after it has passed do we really take notice. As NASCAR enters 2020, just one full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver once raced against Dale Earnhardt. Those who have come onto the scene in the last couple of years never raced …

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2019 NASCAR Top Storylines: The Pay-to-Play Trend

2019 Atlanta CUP Landon Cassill car NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Money buys a lot of things in NASCAR. It buys speed, or at least the parts and pieces to make speed happen. It buys alliances between teams that can also lead to more speed. It buys advertising time that gets sponsors and drivers exposure. Money also buys rides. It’s a trend that has been on …

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