NASCAR on TV this week

Eyes On the Prize: NASCAR’s Coolest Trophies

by

There’s just something about Martinsville. NASCAR’s oldest track, on the schedule since 1949, has a certain ambiance that is missing at the high-banked, high-dollar speedways that take up the lion’s share of the schedule. The little track, nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge, seems to have been passed over by the sands of time.

But there is another reason why the drivers want to win at the little paperclip-shaped oval in the hills, and it’s not just bragging rights. It’s the trophy.

Since 1964, the speedway has handed out what is perhaps the most unique prize in motorsports, a grandfather clock, manufactured locally by Ridgeway Clocks. It’s worth a cool ten grand, but that’s not why the drivers want it. It’s different, a symbol of conquering what is still one of the hardest tracks in all NASCAR to master.

Kenny Wallace Driver Diary: Repaving, Regrouping, and Looking Ahead

by

Kansas went really well. We practiced in second spot, but we were tied with Paul Menard, so they listed us third. We backed it up by qualifying fourth. It’s a pretty special car, you know? People will ask, “well, how come you qualify twelfth to fifteenth then all of a sudden, you qualify so good?” My best qualifying run of the year was third at Phoenix. When I’m in the car, we usually qualify in the top 11, let’s say; I’ve got a couple of eleventh-place qualifying runs. So it was a really solid qualifying effort.

Four Burning Questions: Junior’s Return and Allmendinger’s Second Chance

by

It’s surprising to me to think back to last year’s race at Homestead and realize we are already coming up on one year since that race between Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards. This year has flown by and already so much has happened, including last weekend at Kansas. Now, we head into Martinsville for yet another chapter in what is turning out to be the same exciting battle – albeit it between two different drivers.

Truckin’ Thursdays: Debuting Drivers, A Winless Hornaday And Paludo’s Martinsville Breakdown

by

*Truex, Merrell Set to Debut*

If all goes well in qualifying on Saturday morning, the Kroger 200 will feature two drivers making their Truck Series debuts. Ryan Truex has partnered with Hillman Racing, who fielded the No. 27 for a Jeb Burton 13th-place result at the paperclip in the spring event earlier this year. Though it’ll be his first Truck Series start at the 0.533-mile oval, Truex does have a 2010 K&N East Series start where he brought home a runner-up finish for Michael Waltrip Racing.

Beyond the Cockpit: Ricky Taylor on his 2012 Season, Surfer’s Paradise, and the Future

by

_For 23-year old Ricky Taylor, things are looking pretty decent. Entering Lime Rock, he had won two races (the rain-shortened event at Homestead, and at New Jersey Motorsports Park) and two poles (New Jersey and the short course at Watkins Glen). Recently, Taylor took a break from his busy schedule to sit down with our own Phil Allaway._

Phil Allaway, Frontstretch.com: Can you give our fans an idea of what it’s like to drive around [Lime Rock] in the wet?

Ricky Taylor, driver, No. 10 SunTrust Racing Chevrolet Corvette DP: It’s a handful. It’s a lot of work. There’s not a lot of runoff here, and when you do go off, it’s all grass, which gets super slippery. So, the margin for error is really small. The track isn’t very wide, so there isn’t a lot of room to explore different lines. [As a result], you’re stuck on one line. If that line is super slippery, then you’ll have to deal with it. You have to be very sensitive with the throttle and the brake. You have to be very precise with all of your movements with the car.

Frontstretch Fan Q&A: Sorting Out NASCAR Fact From Fiction

by

Last weekend at Kansas Speedway, the new black surface was indicative of the black cloud that hung over most drivers’ heads as they loaded their beaten and battered racecars back into their haulers—including race winner Matt Kenseth. At least _someone_ was happy after that race, because no one else was.

I can’t say I was altogether surprised at first. I figured we’d have a few crazy things happen throughout the race—it was a Chase race after all and we have three or four guys who are either in it or who are trying desperately to get within range of the leaders. But a wreckfest? That sort of thing is more expected at places like Bristol or Martinsville. Kansas is considered one of the most boring tracks on the schedule—two dates or not—so there weren’t really high expectations going in.

Categories Uncategorized

Once Upon A Time In NASCAR

by

Change is all around. Summer has given way to autumn, which will shortly give way to yet another winter. As November approaches, so, too, does a presidential election driven by the campaign rhetoric of change and better days ahead. Many of us embrace changes because they shake us out of the doldrums of what has become our everyday life. Others worry about the uncertainties that come with a change in routine, a change in the status quo.

NASCAR Nation is rolling through similar changes. Over recent weeks, we’ve been told about revisions to next year’s guidelines for testing and qualifying, and even more recently we were notified that the Top-35 rule had been dropped to make way for a new-and-improved approach to setting the starting grid. Other recent changes involved new rules for the Nationwide Series, as well, where only 40 cars will be allowed to compete in races, down from the current number of 43.

Vexing Vito: Smith Signs With JR Motorsports & NASCAR Odds ‘N’ Ends

by

With just four races remaining in the 2012 Chase for the Sprint Cup, signs are starting to point to the No. 48 team resurrecting their horseshoe-up-their-backside luck that manifested itself during five-consecutive tiles earned from 2006-2010. After shortening the Lowe’s Impala by about a foot at Kansas, Johnson and company rebounded to a ninth place finish. While the No. 48 kept pace with the Blue Deuce of Brad Keselowski at seven points, there is one glaring omission that many have seemed to overlook: Chevrolet hasn’t won a race in almost three months.

Did You Notice?… Earnhardt’s Financial Flaw, NASCAR Tire Testing For Two And Quick Hits

by

*Did You Notice?…* Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is coming back with no real incentive to do so? Yes, you can tell me all you want about how Earnhardt loves to race, there’s still four chances to win and an outside shot to sneak back inside the top 10 in points, an improvement that would give the driver a little extra TV time at the Las Vegas Championship banquet. At heart, these men are racers, the passion for their craft pushing them to get back in the driver’s seat as quickly as possible. But outside of Martinsville, the No. 88 hasn’t exactly had the history as of late to suggest wins will come at Texas, Phoenix, or Homestead. Momentum for 2013 is a moot point, both in setup notes and at-track finishes as a new car will wipe the slate clean come Daytona. And while Earnhardt could assist teammate Jimmie Johnson with setup information, their relationship being better than Johnson and Regan Smith’s, it’s arguable that Smith was producing better results, driving quickly into the top 10 at Charlotte before blowing the engine and slotting in seventh at Kansas, the team’s best all-around performance since Michigan in August.

Next in Line: Six ARCA Drivers Who Deserve A NASCAR Debut

by

The 2012 ARCA Racing Series season went out with a bang, rather than a whimper, last Friday at Kansas Speedway with three separate cars getting airborne during the 99-lap event. Alex Bowman won the battle — his fourth victory of the year — but Chris Buescher won the war, edging out nine-time series champion Frank Kimmel by 75 points en route to his first ARCA championship.

Parity, a running theme in NASCAR had to be a hallmark of this stock car series in 2012. Throughout the 19-race season (a 20th, DuQuoin, was cancelled due to inclement weather and the inability of series officials to reschedule a second time before season’s end) 11 different drivers found Victory Lane, three winning for the first time in the series. Officially, 147 different racers made an event, 10 of whom started every date on the schedule in 2012.