Race Weekend Central

Thinkin’ Out Loud: The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The Headlines: It was the first All-Star race since 1986 that was run outside of Charlotte Motor Speedway. Bill Elliott won at Atlanta that afternoon, and on Wednesday (July 15) it was his son Chase Elliott taking home the checkered flag at Bristol and winning $1 million in the 2020 event. Elliott won the final …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2020 All-Star Race

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who…should you be talking about after the race? Chase Elliott said after the race he and his team had to hit the reset button after a couple of difficult weeks. If that’s the case, they need to hit it before every race, because it worked. Elliott did everything right, his team did everything right and …

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Aric Almirola, William Byron, Matt DiBenedetto, Clint Bowyer Move on to All-Star Main Event

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Though the sun was still shining, tempers were still hot during the All-Star Open at Bristol Motor Speedway Wednesday evening (July 15). By the end of the night, four drivers moved on to the main event: Aric Almirola, William Byron, Matt DiBenedetto and Fan Vote winner Clint Bowyer. Instead of matching his successful run in …

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Did You Notice?: That Summertime NASCAR Spark At Stewart-Haas Racing?

2017 Kansas I CUP Tony Stewart Barry Cantrell NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … How quickly Stewart-Haas Racing has gotten its act together this summer? While Kevin Harvick has been a title contender all season long in the NASCAR Cup Series, his trio of teammates spent the first half of 2020 mired in midpack. Here’s where all four drivers stood through the Martinsville Speedway race June …

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Power Rankings: 4-Wide for the Win Edition

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The folks at NASCAR got very lucky this weekend with an epic finish that was great enough to get the fans to forget that the first 390 miles were a snoozefest of clean air being king after restarts at Kentucky Speedway. The late, great Dan Gurney used to preach about the best racing coming with …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2020 Quaker State 400 at Kentucky

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The Headline(s): A relatively tame race ended in a chaotic final two laps, a four-wide battle for the lead and a Cup Series triumph for rookie Cole Custer, as NASCAR concluded its four-race stretch (five, including the ARCA Menards Series) over four days in the Bluegrass State. One of the wildest late-lap battles for the …

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Did You Notice?: NASCAR PPP Loans a Reminder of Potential COVID-19 Catastrophe

2019 Phoenix I CUP Ty Dillon Richard Childress NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Did You Notice? … The number of NASCAR teams approved for a loan under the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program? The NASCAR PPP loans numbered in the millions and involved one-third of the teams on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit. For now, let’s focus on the Cup programs alone. Richard Childress Racing: $5-$10 million (2 teams) Chip …

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Power Rankings: Back Home Again in Rain Delay Mode Edition

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The folks at NASCAR are really quick to point out that their television partners get to pick the window that the race gets broadcast in. But maybe it’s time for the “experts” on holding a race to have a little talk with the television people. Through most of its history, NASCAR never got a race …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2020 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The Headline(s): Kevin Harvick notched his fourth win of the season and third Brickyard 400 victory on Sunday (July 5) at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, continuing to keep pace with Denny Hamlin as the two dominate the 2020 season. Harvick also successfully defended his status as the winner at the Brickyard after taking the checkered flag …

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4 Burning Questions: NASCAR, Stop Paying Barstool

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

What now? Over the weekend of June 26-28, 2020, clips began to resurface online of Dave Portnoy, Barstool Sports’ founder and president, straight-up using racial slurs on old Barstool videos. In response to this, Portnoy released a three-minute video response where he essentially doubled down on his behavior, outright refusing to apologize to people he …

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Power Rankings: Twice as Much What Edition

2020MartinsvilleNCSKevinHarvickFaceNASCARMedia

(Photo: NASCAR Media/Getty Images)

The old joke about Pocono Raceway was easy to make, “Why are the races just six weeks apart? So once you clear traffic and make it onto the interstate, you can turn around and head back for the second race!” Thankfully due to great management improvements and coordination between the track and local police over …

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Power Rankings: Dega Worth the Wait Edition

NASCAR Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

It was yet another long week for NASCAR, but this time it was not only weather that was the culprit. A case of mistaken identity when a knot wasn’t just a knot and was thought to be a noose led to an emotional Sunday (June 21) which was quickly doused by rain. The next day …

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