Race Weekend Central

NASCAR 101: Xfinity Series Getting Into Throwback Spirit, Too

2014 Darlington NNS Chase Elliott wins CIA

(Photo: CIA Stock Photography)

Much of the hullabaloo over this weekend’s racing at Darlington Raceway revolves around the sheer girth of throwback events and paint schemes that will populate the Southern 500 for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series come Sunday night. As the race re-assumes its historic Labor Day weekend date, the sanctioning body and its teams are celebrating …

Read more

Thinkin’ Out Loud: Looking Back at the First 24 Races of 2015 for Off-Week No. 3

Joey Logano leads a pack of cars at Bristol Motor Speedway

(Photo: CIA Stock Photo, Inc. ©2015)­­

Who’s in the headline – There are drivers with more wins but no one has more points than Kevin Harvick. While points don’t really matter they are a telling factor for Harvick. The driver of the No. 4 is having one of the best seasons in the history of the sport. Harvick has 17 top-five …

Read more

Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth Among Drivers and Teams Penalized After Bristol

Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin compare notes before the Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway

(Photo: CIA Stock Photo, Inc. ©2015)­­

NASCAR issued warnings to 11 teams following the 2015 Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth will lose 15 minutes of practice time for next Sunday’s race due to multiple infractions during inspection. Busch’s team failed pre-race inspection four times and Kenseth’s team failed pre-race inspection …

Read more

Happiness Is… Busch (Beer, That Is), Tires, and the Championship

Pirelli tyres, tires, in the studio (credit: Pirelli)

(Credit: Pirelli)

One of the things that continues to perplex in the wonderful world of NASCAR isn’t the consistent use of lame debris cautions, the myriad of car configurations for this season or that there aren’t more road courses on the schedule.   For a change, the wonderment is pointed in another direction. With Joey Logano’s win …

Read more

Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2015 Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol

2015 Bristol II CUP Joey Logano burnout CIA

(Photo: CIA Stock Photo, Inc. ©2015)

The list is short of drivers that can win at Bristol and successfully defend that victory the following year, but you can add Joey Logano to that list. After winning the night race last season, Logano led 176 laps Saturday night and held off Kevin Harvick to pick up his third win of the season. …

Read more

NASCAR Mailbox: Restart Controversy & Busch Beer’s Return to NASCAR

2015 Bristol II CUP Joey Logano Kevin Harvick racing CIA

Credit: CIA Stock Photography

Is Joey Logano now considered a part of NASCAR’s elite? It sure is looking that way after another victory on Sunday at Bristol. Logano looked just as strong as any team in the sport. Now sitting with three victories under his belt and a third-place spot in the Chase Grid, Logano and crew chief Todd Gordon …

Read more

5 Points to Ponder: Richmond Drama Again For Michael Waltrip Racing?

2015 Bristol II CUP David Ragan crash damage CIA

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

ONE: Prayers for Justin Wilson’s family, friends, and team The penultimate race of the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series at Pocono Raceway was shaping up to be a real classic of a 500-mile encounter with plenty of passing and riveting action. Then, on lap 179 of the scheduled 200, disaster struck. Sage Karam spun out whilst …

Read more

Who’s Hot & Who’s Not in NASCAR: 2015 Southern 500 Edition

2015 Bristol II CUP Joey Logano sword CIA

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

NASCAR gets a rare weekend off this coming week and when the Sprint Cup cars do resume competition on Sunday night, Sept. 6, Darlington, also known as the Lady in Black, it’s place that can bring about different results than we are typically accustomed to seeing on most tracks. So just who does well at …

Read more

Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2015 Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol

Joey Logano Trophy Victory Lane Bristol 2015 Cup Mike Neff

Photo Credit: Mike Neff, Frontstretch

Who’s in the headline – The half mile Bristol Motor Speedway has hardly been a highlight for Joey Logano over the early years of his career. Prior to the night race in 2013, Logano had a single top-10 run in nine career starts. In the last three night races Logano has run fifth, first and first. …

Read more

The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2015 Irwin Tool Night Race at Bristol

2015 Bristol II CUP Joey Logano burnout II CIA

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

Who… gets my shoutout of the race? NASCAR is a high-pressure business, and that goes double when a driver is looking for a ride. This week, Clint Bowyer performed admirably under that pressure. Making it clear from the beginning he had a fast car, Bowyer showed he was a top-five threat. When he spun with teammate …

Read more

Joey Logano Goes Back-to-Back in the Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol

2015 Bristol II CUP Joey Logano woohoo CIA

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

It’s fair to say that Joey Logano is a fan of Bristol. In the night race one year ago, Logano held off a hard changing teammate, Brad Keselowski, to win his first race at the high-banked half-mile. Saturday night was very similar. The 500-lap, 250-mile race came down to a 50-lap shootout between Logano and …

Read more

Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2015 Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan

2015 Michigan II CUP Matt Kenseth burnout CIA

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

Another week of fuel mileage paid off again for Matt Kenseth. He dominated the race Sunday afternoon, leading a race-high 146 laps, and had enough fuel to cross the line first. This win is Kenseth’s third of the season and second in the past three weeks. He now sits solely in the third seed behind …

Read more