Race Weekend Central

The Underdog House: Erik Jones’ Tricks Lead to Treat of Martinsville Top 10

Erik Jones racing at Martinsville Speedway, October, 2021. Photo: NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Top Dog: Erik Jones Do you want a scary combination? Try mixing Halloween with a 500-lap race at Martinsville Speedway. Oh, and did I mention that the race was an elimination event for playoff drivers? Yikes! The Xfinity 500 Sunday (Oct. 31) featured the grit and gruel of NASCAR’s shortest track. Battles throughout the field …

Read more

The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2021 Xfinity 500

Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin talk on pit road before the 2021 Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway. (Photo: Getty Images)

(Photo: Logan Riely/Getty Images)

Who … should you be talking about after the Xfinity 500? 2021 has been a breakout year for Alex Bowman. The 28-year-old posted three early wins and advanced to the Round of 12 in this year’s playoffs before stumbling a bit. At Martinsville Speedway, he put an exclamation point on the deal after a late-race …

Read more

The Underdog House: Daniel Suarez Goes Big in Texas

Daniel Suarez battles the competition during the fall 2021 race at Texas Motor Speedway. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Top Dog: Daniel Suarez Despite being a first-year NASCAR Cup Series organization, Trackhouse Racing Team has a history of going big or going home this season. Innovative team co-owner Justin Marks has proven to take risks and use unorthodox strategies as he hits the ground running in this sport. Such an aggressive mentality worked again …

Read more

The Underdog House: Daniel Suarez’s Top 15 Paces Underdogs at Charlotte ROVAL

Daniel Suarez walks down pit road at Richmond Raceway. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Top Dog: Daniel Suarez Daniel Suarez got his start in karts in his home country of Mexico, running several races on the road course layouts, so it’s easy to expect he’d excel on road courses in NASCAR too. Karting is a different animal compared to stock cars, but it teaches drivers a lot about handling, …

Read more

The Underdog House: Bubba Wallace Leads Talladega Sweep for First-Time Winners

Erik Jones races in the 2021 TellaWood 500 at Talladega. Photo: NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Top Dog: Bubba Wallace They say anything can happen at Talladega Superspeedway. And by anything, they mean ANYTHING. Be it red flags for crashes and rain, a lack of daylight, big crashes, or a spin to win, Talladega contained it all in chaotic ways this weekend. Starting with the NASCAR Cup Series’ YellaWood 500 (Oct. …

Read more

The Big 6: Questions Answered After the Bristol Night Race

Kyle Larson leads the pack in the 2021 Bristol Bass Pro Shops Night Race. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Kyle Larson took the lead away from Kevin Harvick in the closing laps and held on to win at Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday (Sept. 18). Lapped traffic was a factor all night, allowing cars in second place to close in on the leader. Such was the case near the end of the race; Larson went to the bottom and then back up the track, squeezing Harvick a bit. The No. 5 of Hendrick Motorsports then slid up in front of Harvick, preventing the No. 4 from getting another run on Larson.

The Underdog House: NASCAR Gladiator Erik Jones Scores Bristol Top 10

2021 Texas Cup All-Star Race Erik Jones NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race Sept. 18 displayed various storylines throughout the night. Heavyweight drivers battled all night, desperate playoff drivers wrung out every last drop of effort to make the Round of 12, and a confrontation between Chase Elliott and Kevin Harvick took center stage on a captivating evening at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Zach’s Turn: NASCAR’s Points Battles You Should Know Exist

NASCAR Cody Ware Ryan Preece 2021 Coca-Cola 600

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

With the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs in full swing, you’re forgiven if you have limited your attention to the 16 eligible drivers. But there are other points battles happening behind them you ought to know about — a point hammered home by Reddit user u/1-800-DADJOKE. That person has been keeping a watchful eye on the …

Read more

The Underdog House: Daniel Suarez Endures at Richmond on 9/11

Daniel Suarez stands on pit road at Charlotte Motor Speedway. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Top Dog: Daniel Suarez Daniel Suarez had a consistent night at Richmond Raceway, posting a 17th-place finish in the Sept. 11 Federated Auto Parts 400. It was his third straight NASCAR Cup Series top 20, finding his footing again with the No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Team after a dismal summer. But on a rough Saturday, …

Read more

Couch Potato Tuesday: Darlington Brings a Somewhat Normal Cup Broadcast With Extras

Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson battle in the closing laps of the 2021 Southern 500. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Darlington Raceway is always an interesting place to watch a NASCAR Cup Series race. Yes, the 2021 Cook Out Southern 500 took over four hours to run, but that’s OK. Sit down and grab some popcorn for the Cup broadcast; the racing here takes a while. It also didn’t seem like there were 11 cautions …

Read more

Podcast: Erik Jones on Re-Signing With Richard Petty Motorsports, Launching Foundation & More

Erikjonespodcast

Graphic: Jared Haas

Erik Jones has a new contract for 2022, a new foundation he just launched … and a new bunny! The Richard Petty Motorsports driver joins Davey Segal this week to discuss his new addition to the family and how his dog Oscar is adjusting, re-signing with RPM and why he wants to remain with the …

Read more

Fire on Fridays: Who’s Actually Got a Shot at the Cup Playoffs?

Matt DiBenedetto Tyler Reddick talk Watkins Glen

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

It’s somewhat fitting that this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway has an elimination factor. After all, that’s usually the case at the season-opening Daytona 500, when the pre-race Duels set the lineup and a certain number of cars (four in 2021) are left on the sidelines come the big race on …

Read more