Race Weekend Central

2016 NASCAR Rewind: Carl Edwards

2016 cup homestead-miami speedway zach catanzareti carl edwards

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

Carl Edwards should take away a lot of good memories from his 2016 season.  From dominant victories to comeback performances, from thrilling finishes to his first appearance in the Championship Round of the Chase, Edwards’s second season with Joe Gibbs Racing was a step forward from his up-and-down 2015 campaign.  Yet amid all those positive …

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2016 NASCAR Rewind: Kyle Busch

Kyle Busch Bow Indianapolis Cup 2016 Yvonne Leonard

(Photo: Yvonne Leonard)

When Kyle Busch exited his car after finishing sixth in the finale at Homestead, he came across as a bitter, disappointed driver.  With Jimmie Johnson taking the race, and the championship title that Busch had, held, there was little solace to be found for Busch. Perhaps no driver overtly exemplifies the mantra of “if you …

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2016 NASCAR Rewind: Jimmie Johnson

2016 NASCAR Charlotte

(Photo: Matthew T. Thacker/NKP)

Jimmie Johnson entered 2016 chasing NASCAR immortality.  A six-time Cup champion, Johnson had spent the previous two seasons attempting to tie Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt at seven, the series record. After winning twice in the first five races (Atlanta and Fontana), Johnson looked to be among the title favorites, but the rest of the …

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2016 NASCAR Rewind: Joey Logano

2016 cup homestead-miami speedway joey logano zach catanzareti

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

There is an old adage in racing (and elsewhere), that in order to win a championship, you must first lose a championship. If that’s the case, Joey Logano should be nearly unstoppable next year. Since the inception of NASCAR’s elimination-style Chase format in 2014, Logano has made appearances in the Championship 4 in two of those seasons …

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2016 NASCAR Rewind: Matt Kenseth

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(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

The 2016 season for Matt Kenseth was serviceable, if a slight step back from his five-win 2015 campaign. But despite that solid effort, Kenseth’s lasting memories will be his collapses on the sport’s biggest stages. Entering his fourth season with Joe Gibbs Racing, Kenseth appeared poised to deliver Coach Joe Gibbs one of racing’s ultimate …

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2016 NASCAR Rewind: Kurt Busch

2016 Daytona II CUP Kurt Busch John Harrelson NKP

(Photo: John Harrelson/NKP)

Kurt Busch came into the 2016 season with some momentum and the potential to put himself squarely into the championship conversation.  In 2015, he won two races, three poles and tied a career-best with 21 top 10 finishes. 2016 was actually a slight improvement as far as the points go.  Busch moved up to a seventh-place …

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2016 NASCAR Rewind: Chase Elliott

2016 Cup Talladega alan gustafson chase elliott Zach Catanzareti

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

Poor Chase Elliott. It’s difficult enough to be the son of a legendary Cup Series champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer, but to begin your Cup career behind the wheel of a legendary car that was built and maintained by a legendary team and formerly driven by a legendary driver who redefined the entire sport, definitely …

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2016 NASCAR Rewind: Martin Truex Jr.

2016-chicago-cup-martin-truex-jr-woohoo-nigel-kinrade-nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Martin Truex, Jr. and Furniture Row Racing entered 2016 with a new look.  The Denver, Colorado-based operation entered into a technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing, prompting a manufacturer switch from Chevrolet to Toyota.  Truex and FRR were coming off a successful 2015 campaign in which both the driver and team looked reborn.  The partnership …

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