Race Weekend Central

2021 NASCAR Preseason Power Rankings No. 24: Chris Buescher

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Roush Fenway Racing will enter the 2021 season with the same driver lineup for the first time since 2018. That comes after a 2020 season that saw Chris Buescher return to RFR for the first time since his 2015 NASCAR Xfinity Series title. Buescher replaced what many thought to be the foundation of the organization’s …

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2021 NASCAR Preseason Power Rankings No. 25: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

2020 Daytona NCS RIcky Stenhouse, Jr. Face NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

In his ninth season of full-time NASCAR Cup Series action, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will return to the seat of the No. 47 JTG Daugherty Chevrolet for the second straight season. While the team has not made many announcements this offseason, the general understanding is that Stenhouse’s contract he signed prior to last year was a …

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2021 NASCAR Preseason Power Rankings No. 26: Michael McDowell

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

After completing his best NASCAR Cup Series season to date, Michael McDowell looks to build on his success in 2021. He’ll do so with 21-year-old Anthony Alfredo, McDowell’s third Front Row Motorsports teammate in as many years. Alfredo replaces John Hunter Nemechek in the No. 38 Ford, after Nemechek signed with Kyle Busch Motorsports in …

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2021 NASCAR Preseason Power Rankings No. 27: Ryan Preece

Ryan Preece at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, March 2019. Photo: NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Things get pretty real for Ryan Preece as 2021 rolls off the grid. Preece, 30 years old, will return to the seat of the No. 37 Chevrolet for JTG Daugherty Racing. which wasn’t always a sure thing. He’s not going to have an easy time of it to start the season, and it won’t get …

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2021 NASCAR Preseason Power Rankings No. 28: Daniel Suarez

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Daniel Suarez is getting a fresh start – again.  For the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, Suarez will compete with Trackhouse Racing Team, a brand-new operation created by former driver Justin Marks.  Having secured a charter and established a technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing, Trackhouse will race full time in 2021 with Suarez as …

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2021 NASCAR Preseason Power Rankings No. 29: Corey LaJoie

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The driver with a ‘stacking pennies” mentality will now look to pile them up in a new stable in 2021. It’s a new era for both Corey LaJoie and Spire Motorsports in 2021, with the third-generation racer having moved on from Go Fas Racing after competing in the No. 32 car the past two years …

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2021 NASCAR Preseason Power Rankings No. 30: Anthony Alfredo

NASCAR Xfinity Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

One of only two rookies set for full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition, Anthony Alfredo enters 2021 in the seat of Front Row Motorsports’ No. 38 Ford. Racing alongside 13-year veteran teammate Michael McDowell, Alfredo replaces John Hunter Nemechek, who dropped down to the Camping World Truck Series for the upcoming season. “Fast Pasta” has part-time …

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Power Rankings: Chase Went to Chase Edition

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Oftentimes, NASCAR gets the short end of the deal — faces a lot of criticism, but they deserve a tip of the old Frontstretch hat for managing to get a full season in during trying times. No other major American sport was able to accomplish this feat. There is no hiding the fact that I’m …

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