Race Weekend Central

Beside the Rising Tide: The Best of Everything

Nascar Cup Series

#48: Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro Ally

Welcome loyal readers to the last regularly scheduled 2020 function for Club 61; to whit, my last weekly column for 2020. In honor of the momentousness of the occasion, I have decided not to submit this week’s effort in crayon. Club 61 isn’t a place. It’s a statistical anomaly that a bunch of my longest …

Read more

5 Points to Ponder: A Champions Edition

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

A Worthy Champion Huge congratulations to Chase Elliott on his first Cup championship, matching a feat his father Bill achieved all the way back in 1988. Chase’s dominant, nerveless, winning performances at both Martinsville Speedway and Phoenix Raceway these past two weeks, all with the incessant pressure of the playoff format, showed he is a …

Read more

Couch Potato Tuesday: There Is No Way the Championship 4 Doesn’t Hurt the Sport As a Whole

Nascar Cup Series

#9: Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro NAPA Auto Parts, celebrates after winning the 2020 Nascar Cup Series Championship

It seems so weird to actually be home for the final race weekend of the NASCAR season. For me, this was the first time since 2014 that I’d actually been home for it. The last five season finales were spent in Homestead, dodging rain showers, hiding under souvenir trailers and sweating. We also got interesting …

Read more

Up to Speed: The Future Is Bright For Hendrick Motorsports

Nascar Cup Series Season Finale 500

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

It wasn’t long ago that Hendrick Motorsports had one of the oldest driver lineups in NASCAR.  Five years ago, at the time of Jeff Gordon’s final race in his famed No. 24 car, the organization’s youngest driver was Kasey Kahne at 35 years old.  With Gordon’s career wrapping up amid a bourgeoning youth movement in …

Read more

Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2020 Season Finale 500 at Phoenix

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

What happened? Chase Elliott won the 2020 Season Finale 500 at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday (Nov. 8) after leading a race-high 153 laps. More importantly, he won his first NASCAR Cup Series title in his first Championship 4 appearance. Other title contenders Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin finished second through fourth. Jimmie Johnson …

Read more

The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2020 Season Finale 500

Chase Elliott holds 2020 Bill France trophy Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who… should you be talking about after the 2020 Season Finale 500? At age 24, Chase Elliott joins an elite group as the 34th driver to take the title of NASCAR Cup Series champion. He had to start from the rear of the field at Phoenix Raceway after the No. 9 Chevrolet failed pre-race inspection …

Read more

NASCAR Stat Sheet: A Look Back At Jimmie Johnson’s NASCAR Career

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

We made it! The 2020 NASCAR season is complete. Sure, there was a 10-week stoppage after the first month of the season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus limited fans in attendance for most racetracks and created a dent in NASCAR revenue. The playoff itself also had a weird twist; a nine-race winner and …

Read more

Stock Car Scoop: Chase Elliott Wins 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Championship

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Chase Elliott won his first NASCAR Cup Series Championship on Sunday afternoon (Nov. 8) in Phoenix by winning the 2020 Season Finale 500. He beat Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, and Denny Hamlin to take charge in his first Championship 4. What did Elliott have to say after the race? Hear from him in the latest …

Read more

Jimmie Johnson Finishes 5th in Final Cup Start: ‘My Heart’s Full’

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

In his final start in full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition, Jimmie Johnson secured a top-five finish to close out his 19-year career in the sport’s top division. The seven-time champion hasn’t won a points-paying race since 2017 but secured five top-five finishes, 10 top 10s and 107 laps led in his farewell season. “My heart’s …

Read more

4 Burning Questions: The Greatest of All Time

2017 Talladega Ii Cup Jimmie Johnson Chad Knaus Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

How will Jimmie Johnson be remembered? After 19 full-time seasons, the greatest NASCAR driver of all time will call it a career on Sunday. Jimmie Johnson, one of only three drivers to win seven NASCAR Cup Series championships, has stayed true to his word that 2020 would be his final year in the No. 48 …

Read more

The Frontstretch 5: Best NASCAR Cup Seasons By Drivers Who Didn’t Win Championship

2008 Nascar Sprint Cup Series Texas

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

1. 1985 Bill Elliott won plenty of races and money and even earned a couple really cool nicknames in 1985. But the big prize eluded the red-headed Georgia leadfoot that year. Elliott came into 1985 having won a total of four NASCAR Cup Series races during the previous two seasons, but proved to be almost …

Read more

5 Points to Ponder: Chase Elliott Comes of Age

Nascar Cup Series

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

ONE: Chase Elliott Comes Of Age So much happened at Martinsville Speedway Sunday (Nov. 1) it’s easy to forget just how important Chase Elliott‘s win was for his NASCAR Cup Series career. For the first time in five years, Elliott came into the Round of 8 finale needing to cash in on a must-win situation …

Read more