Race Weekend Central

Happy Hour: Travis Kvapil’s Situation is Sad – But It’s Reality

It’s a bummer to watch Travis Kvapil be out of a ride because of the harsh realities of motorsports. As I write this, and as Tom Bowles explained so lucidly on Monday, a freak combination of owner points transfers and bad luck has resulted in Yates suspending operations of its famed No. 28 shop indefinitely. …

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Thompson in Turn 5: Clint Bowyer Still Flying Under the Radar

Clint Bowyer, the pride of Emporia, Kan., was on virtually nobody’s preseason list of “drivers most likely to win the 2009 Sprint Cup championship.” But five weeks into the season, the top-performing driver with RCR – on its newest team, no less – finds himself as one of the top contenders in this year’s points …

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Voices From the Heartland: Pushing Through NASCAR’s Press Conference Daze About Nothing

Last week I reported, in part, about the press conference held at Lowe’s Motor Speedway that announced another press conference would be forthcoming in a couple of weeks. Oh, that’s right! They also named Ric Flair as the Honorary All-Star Race Director for 2009, but that was just a sideshow. Instead, at the time LMS …

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Fanning the Flames: Yeah, I’ll Admit It; I Miss the Old Bristol Stomp

Ah, Bristol; you gotta love it. Even when we have a race that isn’t considered to be one of the all-time classics (Sunday’s was at best a 5.0 on the excitement scale) the fervor generated amongst the fanbase reaches a fever pitch. Old Bristol or new? Bump ‘n’ Run or hit the high groove? Frustration, …

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Frontstretch Fantasy Insider: No Need for Headache Powder at Martinsville

As NASCAR’s first short-track leg of the season continues, the Cup circuit heads from a drastically altered Bristol Motor Speedway to a track that, well, hasn’t changed much at all since the 1950s. Martinsville Speedway is still a flat-banked, claustrophobic paperclip that provides the most old-school racing still seen today in big-time stock car competition. …

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Mirror Driving: Final Thoughts on the New Bristol & Digesting the New Top 35

It’s clear 18 months after repaving this isn’t the same old Bristol. That’s led to mixed reviews from fans – but is the new Bristol a classic or a total flop?

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Sprint Cup: 2009 Food City 500 at Bristol Edition

A weekend in noisy Thunder Valley following a quiet week of rest provides a jarring wakeup call to drivers, crews and fans alike. But while Sunday’s Bristol race itself did not spark the normal beating and banging fest people are used to seeing, it did help bring to light what this season’s short-track races may …

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Fan’s View: The Joys of Watching NASCAR’s Wayback Machine

Ah, the good old days. You know, when things were better. I’m not even talking about the wayback machine. Sometimes the good old days are as recent as last year, before we handed billions of dollars to greedy bank executives. More importantly, I’m speaking of those thoughts that bring a smile to our faces and …

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