Race Weekend Central

Voices From the Heartland: Is Brian France Stupid or Does He Not Understand the Word Contract?

con•tract – kuh n-trakt – verb to become drawn together or reduced in compass; become smaller; shrink In February, NASCAR CEO Brian France, on the subject of lower television ratings, said: “My view on television ratings, I mean, we look at them a little bit longer cycle or window than maybe you would think we …

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Voices From the Heartland: Time to Put the * in the NASCAR Record Books

One thing that really, really irks me – as well as many NASCAR fans – is the use of the term “Nextel Cup champion.” It is commonly said that Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt are each seven-time Nextel Cup champions. Jeff Gordon is also known to be a four-time Nextel Cup champion, singled …

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Voices from the Heartland: Sunoco Misses Yet Another Advertising Bonanza

Remember way back in February when Kevin Harvick was firmly ranked first in the Chase after winning the Daytona 500? Remember all the hoopla by racing pundits everywhere about how Kevin had the Chase all but sewn up? Me neither! What I do remember, though, is all the whining by Sunoco, The Official Fuel Supplier …

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Voices from the Heartland: Time Will Tell if Cousin Carl Lets Me Down

A couple of weeks ago, after my personal favorite Dale Jarrett announced he would be retiring from Cup competition following the spring Bristol race in 2008, I transitioned into fan mode and penned a column explaining just why DJ was my favorite all these years – thanking him for being an all-around classy guy. Also …

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Voices from the Heartland: Hey NASCAR, Where Did The Extra $100 Million Come From?

Barely a week after I wrote about how Anheuser-Busch is severing almost all ties with the sanctioning body of NASCAR after the season – opting instead to focus on its Budweiser sponsorship of Kasey Kahne – a viable replacement has been found for the support series it’s leaving behind. NASCAR CEO Brian France announced Wednesday …

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Voices From the Heartland: King of Beers Removes NASCAR Jewel From Its Crown

Earlier this year, Brian France stepped up to a microphone and gave a positively glowing report on the overall “state of the sport.” Of course, part of that report reflected on the supposed multitude of corporations just dying to invest in stock car racing. “There’s more than 100 Fortune 500 businesses investing in NASCAR,” France …

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Voices from the Heartland: Kudos to Yates for Giving Up the 8s

Today I would like to use this weekly column to send a personal and public “Thank You” to Mr. Robert Yates. You see, his selfless giving of the number 88 to the Hendrick organization for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to use has actually helped solve many of my own personal problems. Granted, it’s probably not the …

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Voices From the Heartland: In This Age of “Perception,” DEI is in Intensive Care

In this ever increasingly mixed up world, a world where perception seems to be valued over truth, the entity known as Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) is in dire need of serious medical attention. Pronto. The biggest wound that DEI has suffered in 2007 is, of course, the well-documented divorce and subsequent family tiff that ultimately …

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Voices from the Heartland: Could “Stick & Ball” Owners Save NASCAR’s Integrity?

Ever since Brian France took over at the helm of NASCAR, it is well documented that it has been his dream for it to become as popular as your traditional “stick and ball” sports, most notably, professional football. In the first few years of his reign, his unabashed comparisons and ramblings about racing’s ratings vs. …

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Voices from the Heartland: When It Comes to Bristol, “Professional” Poole Doesn’t Have a Clue

As most folks who actually know me can attest, I am a pretty easygoing guy. It takes a lot (whether it’s your actions or “beverages,” on my part) to get me riled up. Despite that laid-back nature, though, I can also be very blunt. Inevitably, people to whom I have been very blunt to often …

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