Race Weekend Central

The Underdog House: Getting a Foothold in 21st Century NASCAR

2016 Phoenix I Cup Aj Allmendinger Pack Racing Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Think Small One of the chief worries about NASCAR’s charter system when it was instituted this year was how new teams would be able to get a foothold in the sport, and while that is a concern on paper, in practice, the charter system changes very little, because teams entering the spot already have the …

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The Underdog House: What Small Teams Want You to Know

2016 Kentucky Cup Casey Mears Car Reflection Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Think Small I had a conversation this past weekend with Germain Racing driver Casey Mears, and I asked him the one thing he wished that NASCAR fans understood about his job. Mears offered the following assessment. “The thing I wish more fans knew is just how difficult it is to get one of these cars …

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The Underdog House: Which Small Sprint Cup Team Blew Us Away At Chicago?

2016 Chicago Cup Landon Cassill Joey Gase Racing Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell LaBounty/NKP)

Think Small. That’s the motto for this column as I take a larger look at the teams still trying to make a name for themselves in the Cup Series despite fewer resources and a far more difficult mountain to climb. Writer’s Note: What follows is another fresh look for this column, one I expect to stick with.  There are …

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The Underdog House: Would-Be Winners and Hangers-On

(We’re changing things up a little this week; instead of focusing on races past, we’ll take a look ahead at our small teams and the outlook down the stretch.  Hate it and want to see more on how they fared in the races? Let me know.  Want to see more like this? Let me know!  …

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The Underdog House: Tracking NASCAR’s Small Teams From Darlington to Richmond

2016 Darlington Cup Chris Buescher Zach Catanzareti

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

Tommy Baldwin Racing Regan Smith, No. 7 Nikko RC Road Rippers Chevrolet Looking back: Smith is a former Darlington winner, and he raced the track very well on Sunday night and netted a top-20 finish to show for it.  It was exactly the kind of race TBR needs to have: smart, clean, and driver getting …

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The Underdog House: Tracking NASCAR’s Small Teams from Michigan to Darlington

2016 Pocono I Cup Ryan Blaney John Harrelson Nkp

(Photo: John Harrelson/NKP)

Tommy Baldwin Racing Regan Smith, No. 7 APC Chevrolet Looking back: Michigan International Speedway was one of Smith’s better runs on a 1.5-to-2-mile speedway this year, with a 26th-place finish and a lap led on his tally. Smith said afterward that he feels like his team is learning some things that will help them in …

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The Underdog House: Tracking NASCAR’s Small Teams From Bristol to Michigan

2016 Pocono I Cup Landon Cassill Anthony Lumbis Sr.

(Photo: Anthony Lumbis, Sr.)

Tommy Baldwin Racing Regan Smith, No. 7 APC Chevrolet Looking back: Smith had a brush with the wall just past the quarter mark of the race, bringing out the first caution of the day after the restart Sunday following the earlier competition yellow.  Even so, he managed to avoid further trouble while others couldn’t do the …

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The Underdog House: Why NASCAR’s Small Teams Matter

2016 Pocono Ii Cup Chris Buescher Bob Osborne Trophy Logan Whitton Nkp

(Photo: Logan Whitton/NKP)

The teams covered in this article each week aren’t likely race winners (though many of them certainly can—and on occasion have—win if circumstances dictate). However, NASCAR is about more than winning.  Consider the amount of preparation that one of the sport’s elite teams has to put into bringing a racecar to the track, race ready, each week—it’s …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud – Last Off Week of the Season Preparing for the 14-Race Run to the Championship

2016 Kentucky Cup Brad Keselowski Woohoo Leslie Miller Nkp

Credit : Nigel Kinrade Photography

Who’s in the headline – While there are multiple drivers who have run well this season, the brightest spotlight of the year has been on one organization. At this point in the season, Joe Gibbs Racing has been the class of the field for a majority of the races. Between its four teams, it has 10 wins. …

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Friday Faceoff: Should the Chase Get a Road Course?

2015 Watkins Glen Cup Watkins Glen Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

1. Watkins Glen International sold out for a second-straight year. Does that prove that good racing will bring fans out to the track, or is this a unique circumstance? Mark Howell, Senior Writer: These two factors are directly connected; Watkins Glen is inherently good racing. Being from that part of the country, I can say that …

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Who’s Hot and Who’s Not: NASCAR’s Right-Turn, Left-Turn Edition

2016 Loudon I Cup Tony Stewart Nigelkinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

There was a time when the two road races on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule were like sideshows, separate from the main event and not exactly fan favorites.  Drivers who had limited road course experience simply struggled to survive. But after the last few seasons of weaker competition on ovals, better driver preparation and a …

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It’s Time to Admit It: The Chase Deserves a Road Course

2016 Watkins Glen Cup Jeff Gordon Zach Catanzareti

(Photo: Zach Catanzareti)

After another set of thrilling road course races at Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen International, it’s time to admit it. The Chase for the Sprint Cup needs a road course. Once surrounded by a general feeling of awkwardness as the majority of the field attempted merely to survive and advance, the two road courses have …

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