Fool’s Gold? Foolish Decision? Gambles Of NASCAR Superstar 2nd Chances

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In the 1996 NBA draft, the Portland Trail Blazers took a chance on a 6-foot-11 center straight out of high school named Jermaine O’Neal. Although young and raw, O’Neal showed enormous potential, enough so that Portland rewarded the bench player with an absurd four-year, $24 million contract.

It was the finest money ever thrown towards a trash can, O’Neal acting like a first-class bust from the start instead of a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Heavily criticized for gameplay that at times wouldn’t hold up in your gym, once the contract expired, the Trail Blazers gladly waved the white flag. Determined to cut their losses, they landed a deal with Indiana for former All-Star (and aging) center Dale Davis.

Sonya Stat, 2013 Edition: Will It Be A Lucky Year For Kyle Larson?

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_Editor’s Note: Have you not signed up “for your FREE Frontstretch Newsletter”:https://frontstretch.com/notice/9557/ in 2013? If you haven’t heard, it’s a daily edition we put out Monday through Friday with NASCAR news, commentary, interviews, and information you can’t find anywhere else on the site. Every Tuesday, S.D. Grady gives her opinions and commentary on everything racing exclusive to the Newsletter; like what you read? Then be sure to sign up with the link at the bottom of this column…_

Are there really only 12 days left until the drop of the green flag for the Daytona 500? Where did the winter go? Our Twitter feeds and favorite racing news sources are already abuzz with the anticipation that arrives with every new NASCAR season. We are about to go racing; it’s coming. Time to get the die-cast lined up on the shelves and our notebooks sorted!

Couch Potato Tuesday: A Brief 2013 NASCAR TV Season Preview

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Hello, race fans. Hope you had a great holiday season. Mine was decent. I got a new camera, then took it to the Rolex 24 at Daytona. I’ll post some of my best pictures from there on my “Facebook fan page”:http://www.facebook.com/WritingOfPhilAllaway/ later this week for you. Let’s just say that I really like my new Nikon 1 J1.

However, pictures of Audi R8’s and Porsche 911’s are not what this column is about. TV telecasts are what we’re discussing here. I don’t have anything to critique this week, but within a few days there will be V8 engines growling and exciting action on television. It is my goal to give you a little preview of what you’re likely to see this year as the NASCAR 2013 campaign revs up.

Who’s Hot / Who’s Not In NASCAR: 2013 Offseason Edition

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This year’s rendition of the NASCAR offseason was action-packed, to say the least. A new car model has been vigorously tested since the checkered flag last waved at Homestead-Miami, all while several of stock car racing’s biggest names hopped onto the Silly Season carousel, landing with new organizations. Some drivers were left out in the cold, while others look to flourish aboard their newfound rides with high-profile car owners. All of them, inside the garage will be dealing with changes, from one less manufacturer afoot, to new qualifying procedures and the addition of a historic dirt track to the Camping World Truck Series circuit. All of these combine to make the 2013 schedule one of the more highly anticipated we’ve seen since NASCAR’s peak in the mid-2000s.

Pace Laps: Winning Races Pays Off! (Duh) Plus NASCAR’s Diversity Dreams

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*Cup Series: Four Hall Of Fame Classes Showcase An Easy Trend – Winning Races Counts* The fourth Hall of Fame induction, held in Charlotte over the weekend was a smooth transition through every one of NASCAR’s eras, from its humble beginnings racing “stock cars” to the modern, corporate version of growth that led to this building’s construction. You had one of the sport’s earliest champions, Herb Thomas, who earned his spot by taking home the trophy in 1951 and ’53. Then, there was Buck Baker, the sport’s first back-to-back titlist in 1956-’57 who was competitive all the way into the early 1960s.

Five Classy Competitors: One Last Look Back At 2013’s NASCAR Hall of Famers

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The NASCAR Hall of Fame is now 20 members strong with the induction of the class of 2013. The five members of the class all made significant contributions to the sport albeit in different ways. A mechanic, a driver owner, and three drivers make up this year’s group of honorees. Leonard Wood never drove a race car but his knowledge of making pit stops faster probably resulted in the passing of more cars than any driver ever did. Herb Thomas was the most successful driver in history in terms of winning races compared to how many he entered. Buck Baker not only had a great career but shaped thousands of others with his driving school. Rusty Wallace was the foil to Dale Earnhardt and is responsible for keeping Roger Penske in the sport, which led to Brad Keselowski’s 2012 championship. Finally, Cotton Owens, taught people in the sport that safety was more important than anyone at the time thought and yet still built race cars that could win races and titles including the first for David Pearson. The stories and accomplishments of these men would fill volumes, but here is a brief synopsis of each.

The Big 6: Questions Answered After NASCAR Acceleration 2013

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Leave it to Bristol Motor Speedway to capitalize on its rough-and-tumble reputation in what was perhaps the most creative game of the day in terms of the actual racing at that track. Everyone has seen the carnival games where someone has to launch a beanbag or a ball through a deceptively small hole to win a prize. But for Bristol, could there be a more appropriate version of this one than a helmet toss, paying homage to, among other incidents, Tony Stewart’s display of anger toward Matt Kenseth last summer? Apparently not, because in order to win Bristol’s prizes, fans had to fire a miniature helmet smack through the driver’s side windshield of a cardboard racecar. Sometimes things are simply right, and this game was one of those times.

25 NASCAR Questions For 2013: Biffle, Kahne, Johnson, Bowyer, Keselowski

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*Kasey Kahne*
*2013 Ride:* No. 5 Farmer’s Insurance Chevrolet (Hendrick Motorsports)
*Season With Team:* 2nd
*Crew Chief:* Kenny Francis
*Burning Question:* Can Kahne win a championship where he’s at?

In his first year at Hendrick Motorsports, Kahne finally found what he’d been lacking in his previous eight seasons in Sprint Cup — consistency. Would you believe that Kahne, considered one of the most talented young drivers in the sport, had only two points finishes in the top 10 before last season? And they were eighth and 10th.

2013 Season Preview, Part VI: NASCAR’s Rising Stars

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Today’s Season Preview Topic: The Nationwide and Truck Series have become rich with young talent once again. Give us the one driver from within those two series you’re watching in 2013, and why.

P. Huston Ladner, Senior Writer: Nelson Piquet Jr., in Trucks, and Travis Pastrana in Nationwide. Piquet has started to show that he is a worthwhile talent in oval racing, after spending the past few years converting his abilities from F1. His win last year shows this maturation and the possibility for more. This year, he’ll again be driving the same equipment as the Truck’s reigning champions, James Buescher, and he should be a contender for the title. A foreign-born driver taking the title would be a big splash for the series and might be the kind of factor to help it maintain its existence and grow.