Race Weekend Central

Daniel Hemric Battles Through Tough Day at Charlotte, Posts 13th-Place Finish

Daniel Hemric XFINITY Charlotte Mike Neff

Photo Credit : Mike Neff

Daniel Hemric continued a season of strong starts with a fourth-place qualifying effort on Saturday for the XFINITY Series event at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Unfortunately that quickly went out the window when the XFINITY Series rookie was involved in an incident on the third lap of the race. Hemric made contact with the outside wall …

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Tech Talk: Trent Owens & VHT, Durable Bump Stops & Driver Comfort

2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Camping World 500 Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, AZ USA Friday 17 March 2017 Chris Buescher and Trent Owens World Copyright: (Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Trent Owens, crew chief for Chris Buescher, had the opportunity to take a second driver to the All-Star Race last weekend. Similar to his last experience, running a JTG Daugherty Racing entry limited his opportunities since the small organization does not have a fleet of cars and therefore risks destroying one while going for the …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Kyle Busch Snares Huge Victory to Shed Charlotte Monkey

2017 Charlotte All Star CUP Kyle Busch celebrates John K Harrelson NKP

(Photo: John Harrelson / NKP)

Who’s in the headline: Kyle Busch had won 15 races at Charlotte Motor Speedway in national touring series but never once visited Victory Lane in a Cup car. That changed Saturday night when Busch made an aggressive move on the restart to begin the final segment and took the lead, holding on for the final 10 laps …

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Tech Talk: Laser Inspection Failure & Alternate Tire Compounds with Tony Gibson

Tony Gibson Indianapolis Cup 2015 Mike Neff

Photo Credit: Mike Neff, Frontstretch

Tony Gibson and the No. 41 crew of Kurt Busch have been trying to find speed in their non-restrictor plate cars since their season-opening victory in the Daytona 500. This past weekend at Kansas Speedway, it appeared as though they, along with the No. 4 car of Kevin Harvick and the No. 10 team of …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Martin Truex Jr. Shakes Kansas Monkey As Aric Almirola Sustains Serious Injury

2017 Kansas I CUP Aric Almirola Russell LaBounty NKP

(Photo: Russell LaBounty / NKP)

Who’s in the headline – Handicapping Cup Series races is very difficult. With 40 cars in a full field, and 20 capable of winning on the right day, it can be like throwing darts to figure out a favorite. The odds at the drop of the green flag Saturday night had Ryan Blaney and Martin …

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Tech Talk: Slugger Labbe Talks Tire Testing And Sitting In NASCAR Timeout

Slugger-Cover

(Photo: RCR Team Relase)

Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Cup Series crew chief Slugger Labbe, our Tech Talk guest this week is back on the pit box for Austin Dillon. He spent the week preparing for Kansas after a tough end to their day at Talladega was watched from the couch after a one-week break from leading the program. Labbe didn’t spend …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Avoids the Big One, Makes Big Last-Lap Pass At Talladega

2017 Talladega I CUP rRicky Stenhouse Jr checkered flag Nigel Kinrade NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade / NKP)

Who’s in the headline Restrictor plate racetracks are always the great equalizer. This weekend, Talladega Superspeedway’s parity roulette wheel landed on the name Ricky Stenhouse Jr. It wasn’t a shock Stenhouse was able to make it to Victory Lane Sunday, in large part because he had the fastest car in qualifying by a substantial amount. But …

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Tech Talk: Aero, Crash Damage & Experience Heading to Talladega with Jason Ratcliff

jason-ratcliff-cup-martinsville-2016-mike-neff

Coming off a disappointing result at Richmond International Raceway, finishing 23rd after winning the pole and leading the most laps, Jason Ratcliff and his No. 20 team driven by Matt Kenseth head to Talladega Superspeedway with a renewed confidence that they’ll have a shot at a victory. Ratcliff believes his team was competitive at Daytona …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Logano Pulls Richmond Robbery From Keselowski, Kenseth

2017 Richmond I CUP Joey Logano confetti Rusty JArrett NKP

(Photo: Rusty Jarrett / NKP)

Who’s In The Headline It took pit strategy to get Joey Logano up front at Richmond International Raceway, but no one on the No. 22 team is complaining this Monday morning. Not when you have a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series trophy on your mantle. After a late caution, while restarting behind cars that stayed on …

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Tech Talk: Trent Owens on Truck Arms, Tire Circumference & Compounds

2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Camping World 500 Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, AZ USA Friday 17 March 2017 Chris Buescher and Trent Owens World Copyright: (Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Spending an extra day at Bristol Motor Speedway was a forgone conclusion based on the weather forecast before last weekend. Unfortunately for Trent Owens and his No. 37 team driven by Chris Buescher, the race on Monday ended prematurely thanks to a racing deal near lap 50. Owens still had the opportunity to experience VHT …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Bristol Pit Road Penalties Played Into Jimmie Johnson’s Hands

2017 Bristol I CUP Jimmie Johnson woohoo Rusty Jarrett NKP

(Photo: Rusty Jarrett/NKP)

Who’s in the headline – Slow and steady may win some races but it was hammer down at Bristol on this special Monday of racing. Jimmie Johnson started the race in the 11th spot and didn’t sneak out front until lap 394. From there until lap 500, he was at the point for 81 circuits, saving …

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Tech Talk: Aerodynamics & Vertical Loads with Tony Gibson

2017 fontana auto club tony gibson cup  Rusty Jarrett/NKP

(Photo: Rusty Jarrett/NKP)

Teams do a lot of different things during an off-week. Tony Gibson, crew chief for Kurt Busch in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, went to the mountains of Tennessee and ran around for most of the week in side-by-sides. He was able to do that peacefully because his team is prepared for the next …

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