Race Weekend Central

Couch Potato Tuesday: What Did Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Return to Racing Do For NBCSN?

Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Federated Auto Parts 400

(Photo: Robert Laberge/Getty Images)

Richmond Raceway is quite different these days as compared to 15 years ago.  The cars don’t seem quite as fast as they once did there and passing is more difficult.  Races tend to have long green-flag runs.  But, that doesn’t mean you can’t have good racing. Federated Auto Parts 400 Saturday night brought the Monster …

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Up to Speed: Aric Almirola Exceeding Playoff Expectations

Aric Almirola 2018 Mencs Cup Series, Sonoma

(Photo: Danny Peters)

Two races into the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Aric Almirola’s performance is the biggest positive surprise.  After getting through a chaotic race in Las Vegas unscathed, Almirola earned a fifth-place finish Saturday night at Richmond Raceway.  That finish, coupled with a sixth-place run last week, has lifted Almirola to sixth 0n the …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2018 Federated Auto Parts 400

2018 Kyle Busch Richmond Cup Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who… gets my shoutout of the race? If you filled out a playoff bracket, raise your hand if you had Austin Dillon clearing the Round of 16. Yeah, you’re making that up, put your hand down. While he’s a long way from being a title contender, Dillon did everything he needed to do Saturday night.  …

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Up to Speed: Pressure to Win on Denny Hamlin

2018 Cup Pocono Zach Catanzareti Denny Hamlin

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

Denny Hamlin has rarely suffered from a lack of wins in his NASCAR career.  Since 2006, his rookie year in the Cup Series, he has never had a winless season.  Some of those years certainly were not big-win seasons, but Hamlin always found a way to get to Victory Lane at least once. Even in …

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NASCAR 101: Who’s Most Likely to Progress Out of the Cup Playoffs’ First Round?

2018 Cup New Hampshire Zach Catanzareti Kyle Busch

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

This year’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, which begin this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, marks the fifth time in which the series has employed an elimination-based format to help decide its champion at the end of the season. Starting in 2014, the series cooked up different rounds throughout the playoffs that eliminated …

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5 Points To Ponder: In The 2018 NASCAR Playoffs

2018 Cup Pocono Zach Catanzareti Kyle Busch

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

ONE: Should We Fast-Track The Big Three Straight To Homestead? Never in the five-year history of NASCAR’s 16-driver playoff format have we seen three wheelmen so far ahead of the pack. Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. start the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff as overwhelming favorites. They won 17 of …

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The 10: NASCAR Cup Series Power Rankings after Indianapolis

2018 Cup Pocono Zach Catanzareti Kyle Busch

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

It had been a long 26-race regular season with multiple teams falling behind while others went above and beyond in the performance department. The wait for the end of the regular season, however, was nothing like the three-day wait NASCAR faced this weekend in Indianapolis. Heavy rain throughout the weekend pushed both XFINITY and Cup …

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Who’s Hot & Who’s Not in NASCAR: Where the Past Meets the Present

2018 Cup Pocono Zach Catanzareti Kyle Larson

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

NASCAR’s annual throwback weekend at Darlington Raceway for the Bojangles Southern 500 featured great racing throughout, late-race drama and a ton of great-looking paint schemes from yesteryear. Brad Keselowski picked up his first win of the year for Team Penske, holding off teammate Joey Logano on a short sprint to the finish. Kyle Larson crushed …

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Brad Keselowski Finally Wins The Southern 500

Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Prior to Sunday night’s (Sept. 2) Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway, Brad Keselowski had won just about everything except for NASCAR’s crown jewel races. Keselowski won the Bojangles’ Southern 500 on Sunday to finally check one of the sport’s most prestigious races off the list. Keselowski swept the weekend, winning the …

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Up to Speed: Will Team Penske Catch Stewart-Haas Racing in the Playoffs?

#2: Brad Keselowski, Team Penske, Ford Fusion Stars, Stripes, And Lites #22: Joey Logano, Team Penske, Ford Fusion Shell Pennzoil Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

There is a battle brewing among the Ford teams in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.  With the postseason just weeks away, all four Stewart-Haas Racing cars are poised to make the playoff field.  Team Penske has all three of its drivers heading for the playoffs as well.  With at least seven drives ready to …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Kevin Harvick & Kyle Busch Best So Far in 2018

#4: Kevin Harvick, Stewart Haas Racing, Ford Fusion Busch Light / Mobil 1 Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who’s in the headline The 2018 season has been the story of the haves and have-nots. Stewart-Haas Racing has been the strongest organization all season long and its number one driver has been Kevin Harvick. Harvick is the series leader in victories, stage wins and has accumulated the most playoff points. The other driver who …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Just Like Old Times, Kurt Busch Wins Bristol

Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who’s in the headline Kurt Busch owned Bristol at one point in time. He won five races there from 2002 through 2006, including three straight in 2003 and 2004. Since his fifth win in 2006, he didn’t have a single runner-up finish. Busch ran in the top 10 the majority of the night and made …

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