By Michael Finley & Tom Bowles 1. What will Happen to the Wood Brothers Going Forward? If you’re a NASCAR fan, you have to be a fan of Wood Brothers Racing. The oldest team still in operation has won in six different decades in NASCAR competition, amassing 99 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wins over …
Chase Elliott It’s actually a bit surprising that Elliott hasn’t gotten a win yet. He’s come close quite a few times, leading multiple laps at Phoenix and Martinsville as well as in the Daytona 500. May was difficult for the 21-year-old second-generation driver, with a best finish of 24th, but June kicked off with a …
Who’s in the headline – Handicapping Cup Series races is very difficult. With 40 cars in a full field, and 20 capable of winning on the right day, it can be like throwing darts to figure out a favorite. The odds at the drop of the green flag Saturday night had Ryan Blaney and Martin …
Think Small This past weekend’s action at Talladega illustrated again what can happen when the racing is more in the hands of the drivers. There were several different names at the top eager to display their talent. Aric Almirola nearly pulled off the weekend double, and David Ragan overcame crash damage to finish in the …
Think Small The 2017 season is at the quarter mark after nine races, and some trends are taking shape. Wood Brothers Racing has established itself at the top of the class, which was to be expected after the team increased its alliance with Team Penske this year. Even within the group, the haves and have …
Think Small Short tracks are popular with race fans because there is almost always some action somewhere in the field. Cars are close together, tempers flare and drivers are aggressive. Another reason to enjoy this type of racing is that short tracks (Bristol and Martinsville more so than Richmond) usually level out the playing field …
Think Small It feels like NASCAR’s small teams get a bad rap right from the start from some fans and even media. Too often, they’re lumped into a “backmarkers” category, often mocked for their poor performance compared to rivals. To hear some people talk, you’d think they went out every week and ran in the 20’s …
Sweeping all three rounds, it was a perfect qualifying day for Kevin Harvick. Especially the final session, where Harvick ripped around the 1.5-mile Texas track in 27.217 seconds [198.405 mph] to win the pole for Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500. It is the 19th pole of his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup career, first at Texas …
No Margin For Error Last week, we looked at the importance of improvement for small teams. For those that realistically just can’t compete with their powerhouse rivals on a weekly basis, it’s a better measure than finishes alone. It’s also an important step for those teams a step ahead of the game, ones in position to one …
Think Small It can be said that the real NASCAR season starts at Atlanta. The Intermediate track season kicked off last weekend and the results were fairly predictable of the small teams this week. In general at a 1.5 to 2-mile track, these teams struggle to keep up. You might see a couple of teams …
The season-opening Daytona 500 gave NASCAR fans a little bit everything. There was that last-lap pass for the lead, which is beginning to become a trademark for the Great American Race. There were plenty of battles for the lead and for positions throughout and a lot less riding around waiting for the end of the …
Think Small Well, Daytona is in the rearview mirror. Depending on who you ask, that’s either a real bummer or can’t come too soon, depending on how the race went. The thing about plate tracks is that they’re such an opportunity for teams to compete—if they’re lucky and avoid trouble. They can also become exercises …
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