Race Weekend Central

Voice of Vito: Strong Chase Starts Not Always a Recipe for Championship Success

Following his fifth win of the season at Loudon this past Sunday, Mark Martin was sure he was dreaming. He had just won a race on one of the five tracks he had yet to score a victory on in the Sprint Cup Series, firing the first round in the 10-race Chase most never thought …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2009 Sylvania 300 at Loudon

The first Chase race is finally behind us, with Mark Martin earning his season-high fifth win of the season in Loudon, N.H.

Who’s Going to Win It All? Our 2009 NASCAR Chase Predictions

The sixth edition of NASCAR’s Chase is upon us, and with it comes the most talented 12-car field we’ve ever seen. Four former champions, 282 career race wins, and eight different teams represented make the 10-race run for the title a wide-open affair with no clear favorite as of yet. Or is there? Our experts …

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Matt McLaughlin Mouths Off: All Around NASCAR’s Chosen Ones

Like it or not (and I think I’ve made it pretty clear which side of the fence I stand on over the last five years) NASCAR’s all-singing, all-dancing, usually disappointing Chase for the Championship is now underway. 12 finalists have been anointed possible titlists and, barring the sudden addition of a swimsuit and talent competition, …

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Voices From the Heartland: What if NASCAR’s Emphasis Really WAS on Winning?

As we all know, the whole Chase was brought to us in 2004 as a result of a few key factors – chief among them the simplistic greed of Brian France. France wanted to go head-to-head with the NFL during the fall months of the season. This grand illusion, I’m sure, was hatched long before …

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Voice of Vito: Pugliese the Prognosticator – A Comprehensive Guide to the 2009 Chase for the Cup

Following weeks of speculation, rationalization and wild-assed guesses, the field for the 2009 Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship is now set. This week, the Dirty Dozen has been performing the requisite New York City media stops, making appearances on just about any talk show or television program you care to mention before the first …

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Mirror Driving: Matt Crafton’s Penalty, Kyle & Kurt’s Big Problems & Johnson Playing Dumb?

Matt Crafton was penalized at Gateway Saturday and sent to the back of the longest line for two incidents where he made contact with the truck in front of him.

Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2009 Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond

The final weekend in the race for the Chase saw plenty of playoff-worthy drivers put their best foot forward at Richmond. Brian Vickers slipped in, Kyle Busch fell just short… and there were a slew of others in between who made it clear they’ll spend this fall fighting for a season championship. The shuffling of …

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Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Sprint Cup: 2009 Chase Elimination Edition

Maybe Kyle Busch smashing that Sam Bass-crafted guitar earlier this year was bad luck after all. Saturday night’s Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway proved to play a different tune than Busch’s preference, though the racing Gods left enough light at the end of the tunnel for the No. 18 team to …

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Frontstretch Fantasy Insider: Rocking & Rolling to Richmond Fantasy Success

The Race to the Chase concludes this weekend, with a Saturday night short-track special under the lights at Richmond setting the field for NASCAR’s made-for-TV “playoffs.” And while ESPN will be up to their usual tricks, trying to create rivalries between Chase contenders or hyping a hypothetical “tie” scenario that could put 13 drivers in …

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Frontstretch NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 After the 2009 Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta

The aged surface of Atlanta Motor Speedway offered up multi-groove racing from the drop of the green flag that also yielded some bizarre events, with Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards both having freak problems that knocked them out of contention. Tony Stewart also had another off weekend, which cost him some of his first-place votes …

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