NASCAR on TV this week

Tracking the Trucks: Kentucky 201

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*In a Nutshell:* James Buescher took the checkered flag 1.292 seconds ahead of Parker Kligerman in Friday night’s Kentucky 201 at Kentucky Speedway. Buescher led three times for a race high 64 laps en route to his fourth victory of the year. Ty Dillon, Joey Coulter and Brian Scott rounded out the top 5.

*Who Should Have Won:* James Buescher. Turner Motorsports and Buescher in particular have excelled all year on the intermediate tracks, and Kentucky was no different. After qualifying eighth, the driver of the No. 30 Chevrolet spent just 33 laps working his way toward the front. He took the lead for the final time on pit road under the sixth caution and never looked back, pulling out to a more than two-second lead at times.

What’s Missing in NASCAR Isn’t a Villain; It’s the American Dream

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=NASCAR needs a villain. Those are words that have echoed around the sport over the last few years. Really, we’ve heard them since the death of Dale Earnhardt, but it seems like they’ve gotten louder in recent years. NASCAR needs a bad boy, one who will be unabashedly aggressive on the track and proud of it off the track. One who knows how to use the ol’ chrome horn once in a while, one who will knock you into next week and then blame you for it. Yes, people say, that is just what we need. Except it isn’t.

What NASCAR really needs, even more than a villain to play the spoiler, is a real, honest-to-goodness blue-collar hero.

Four Burning Questions: An Unexpected Hendrick Driver Loving Loudon

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Once the Chase’s first race, NASCAR’s September trip to New Hampshire was bumped to number two in the order just prior to the 2011 season. The powers that be had their reasons why; major market versus small-town Northeast, one-date track that now was provided with some type of unique postseason twist. But the second trip to the Magic Mile will also be second for a reason you won’t expect; we’re still searching for the second on-track pass for the lead, under green this Chase. So for those looking for a gravy train of momentum from the move, leading to increased attendance and excitement surrounding what was a “ho-hum” Chase debut track to begin with – you’re in for a long wait. It’s still at the station.

The End of the Eury Era at JR Motorsports

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For a team that is the de facto Hendrick Motorsports entrant in the Nationwide Series, JR Motorsports’ results of late can’t be described as anything other than underwhelming. No wins since 2010, with only two poles in that same span. In 59 starts for the operation in 2012, only 20 top 10 finishes have been scored. And with the team’s leading full-timer Cole Whitt a distant seventh in points, JRM is poised to have its worst finish in team history in terms of fielding a regular driver.

Considering this is one of the rare teams in the Nationwide garage with full sponsorship on its race cars, that their driver stable includes the most hyped open-wheel convert since Juan Pablo Montoya and the hottest prospect the Truck Series had at the end of the 2011 campaign, that they carry the name Earnhardt, the status quo does not meet any expectations. The status quo is not acceptable.

Voices from the Cheapseats: Allmendinger Sets Record Pace!

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Is it just me, or does anyone else get the feeling that something still just ain’t right with all this? I speak of none other the latest chapter in the NASCAR vs Allmendrugger…I mean, Allmendinger saga.

NASCAR Reinstates Driver AJ Allmendinger: NASCAR has reinstated driver AJ Allmendinger upon his successful completion of NASCAR’s Substance Abuse Policy Road to Recovery Program. Allmendinger had been indefinitely suspended from NASCAR on July 24 for violating the sanctioning body’s substance abuse policy (NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)

Kenny Wallace Driver Diary: A Big Trophy and Playoff Time!

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In the first race at Chicago, we finished fourth, so I was excited to go back, knowing that we could run competitively. Everything was on total schedule. We qualified eleventh in the first race, came back and qualified eleventh for the second race. We were really consistent and the car was fast. They dropped the green flag, we took off with the lead pack, and I was happy. Then we came in for our first pit stop and when the race went back to green, the motor quit on me. I would fire it up, it would keep going and then quit again. So anyway, what had happened was one of the coil wires broke. So there was nothing we could do; we didn’t know what it was at the time. It was a little bit of a bummer, but we just had a wiring problem. It was a new car. So, that’s the bottom line.

Focused On Renewed Devotion?

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The beginning of this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup championship has some fans in NASCAR Nation already pondering the promise and potential of 2013.

As Brad Keselowski wheeled his Miller Lite Dodge into Victory Lane at Joliet last weekend to celebrate his fourth win of the year, it’s very likely that several car owners, crew chiefs, drivers, and fans already looking forward to next season. Such is the plight of the underdog/also-ran – the team (and its fan base) whose mantra is, “Wait until next year!” This kind of hopeful thinking goes for Brian France, too.

Truckin’ Thursdays: Could Kentucky Determine the Champion?

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With just seven races remaining to determine the 2012 Camping World Truck Series champion, the series heads off to Kentucky Speedway for a Nationwide Series companion race this weekend. While a visit to Kentucky may not be all that spectacular on its own, six champions have also won in the Bluegrass state during their respective championship seasons.

It all began back in 2000, the inaugural season for the Truck Series at Kentucky when Greg Biffle snagged his third of five wins that year, in a season where he finished outside the top 14 just once; a 25th-place result at Texas in November. Just two years later, it was Mike Bliss who scored his third of five victories in 2002, winning the championship after leading the standings for the final ten races of the year.