Race Weekend Central

Matt McLaughlin’s Driver Handicaps: 2007 Homestead Race

Jimmie Johnson – Johnson has top-10 finishes in four of his six starts at Homestead, including a second-place result scored here in 2004. For those looking for a little drama, Johnson did crash out here in 2005 en route to 40th place. Jeff Gordon – Gordon has top-10 finishes in six of eight Cup races …

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Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in the Chase: 2007 Checker Auto Parts 500k at Phoenix Edition

Jimmie Johnson continued to make the Chase a bore by scoring his fourth straight win in Sunday’s Checker Auto Parts 500K at Phoenix.

Fanning the Flames: Another “Official Explanation,” the Scoop on Bogus Rumors & a Visit From Hee-Haw’s Roy Clark

Thanks for the fresh batch of questions this week, race fans! The inquiries continue to trickle in – go ahead, insert 1989 Winston Cup Rookie of the Year joke here – but seriously, folks, we need a flood of questions and opinions to keep your one and only interactive column running. I know the season …

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Matt McLaughlin’s Driver Handicaps: 2007 Phoenix Fall Race Edition

Jimmie Johnson – Johnson came home second in this race last year, and has four straight top-10 finishes at Phoenix. He also finished second here in 2003. Jeff Gordon – Gordon won this spring’s Phoenix race from the pole to finally score his first Cup victory here. He’s run very well at the track, collecting …

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Mirror Driving: Kenseth’s Special Comment, Hendrick = Dominant, & Gauging Edwards’s Busch Accomplishment

With two races remaining, Hendrick Motorsports cars sit first, second and fourth in Cup points. Is this the most dominant season by one team in recent memory?

Full Throttle: Penske Preparing for Past Champion’s Provisional Sham with Sam Hornish Jr., Kurt Busch

Kurt Busch has proved his stock car talent, winning the 2004 Nextel Cup championship. On the flip side, teammate Sam Hornish Jr. has yet to prove he can make a race as a Nextel Cup rookie. But both may have the same comfy exemption to make starting fields for 2008; and that has left many …

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Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in the Chase: 2007 Dickies 500 at Texas Edition

They say everything is bigger and better in Texas, and that adage certainly proved true for Jimmie Johnson, as he continued his quest for back-to-back Nextel Cup championships. Once again, Johnson and the No. 48 team found themselves at the front of the field when it came down to money time, as he ran down …

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Matt McLaughlin’s Driver Handicaps: 2007 Texas Fall Race Edition

Jeff Gordon – Quick; Gordon hasn’t won at which two tracks currently on the Cup schedule? That’s right… Homestead and Texas. Gordon did finish second at TMS in 2002 and has top-10 finishes in six of his 13 Cup starts here; however, his average finish in Fort Worth remains a paltry 16th. Jimmie Johnson – …

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