Race Weekend Central

The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2012 Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas

What a mess. That’s what several teams were left thinking after the wreckfest that was the Hollywood Casino 400. A track-record and season-high 14 cautions marred the racing over the course of the 400-mile event, caused by everything from a rash of blown tires, a couple of driver errors at the wrong time, a move made in anger, and a very slick repaved racetrack. “If people are wondering where all the cautions went, they moved to Kansas,” Brad Keselowski said at one point during the day, referencing complaints about a lack of yellow flags during several events this season.

Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2012 Bank of America 500 at Charlotte

Brad Keselowski ran out of gas, down the backstretch with 58 laps left, allowing Clint Bowyer to breeze by. That left the No. 15 team virtually unencumbered as they turned on the fuel mileage jets, put a Rip Van Winkle spell over the stands, and advanced to a shocking intermediate oval victory at Charlotte.

What’s Vexing Vito: Why is Penske Racing Switching to Ford?

When Danica Patrick rolls into Daytona next year, it likely will not be with her Greg Zipadelli-led crew, but rather that of Tony Gibson and Ryan Newman’s No. 39 team. It has been rumored that in part, the No. 39 crew doesn’t exactly feel appreciated by Newman, and the driver’s comments did little to dispel …

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The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2012 AAA 400 at Dover

Sometimes those who have nothing to lose are the most dangerous of all. For most of the day on Sunday, it looked as though Kyle Busch, who failed to make the Chase this year, had the field covered at Dover. If the race hadn’t come down to fuel mileage, Busch would most likely have been the driver in Victory Lane. True to his take-no-prisoners style, Busch took the race lead from teammate Denny Hamlin and from there, cut nobody a break — not even Hamlin, who is very much in the title hunt. Leading 302 of 400 circuits, the only thing stopping Busch was that extra stop for gas, slipping him to a seventh-place finish when winner Brad Keselowski and others could go the distance.

The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2012 GEICO 400 at Chicagoland

The Chase is on… and for 12 drivers that means the chance at standing at the pinnacle of NASCAR in November. For everyone else, unfortunately, it means toiling in relative anonymity for the next two months, especially when seven of the top-10 finishers in the race are in the Chase as was the case in Chicago. Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was not among them; but both of his teammates were. Kyle Busch and Joey Logano finished fourth and seventh, respectively, though neither received much recognition during a television broadcast that was clearly more concerned with the Chase contenders.

Fan’s View: A Refresher Course for NASCAR’s Race to the Chase

It’s time for the Chase! Aren’t you thrilled? Oh. Well, actually neither am I. The fact is the haze of summer has given way to September blue skies and the children have returned to class. Life takes on a calmer pace and I look forward to quiet afternoons devoid of screaming children and angry parents. …

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What’s Vexing Vito: Harvick’s Hard Bargain, Busch’s Bad Moment & Tricks of the Trade

The team and crew chief merry-go-round at RCR continues, with Shane Wilson out as Kevin Harvick’s head wrench starting this Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway. Gil Martin will return to the role he held last year as Harvick’s signal caller, before being reassigned as the Competition Director for their Nationwide programs. Harvick currently sits …

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What’s Vexing Vito?: NASCAR Consistently Inconsistent at Indianapolis

It’s been said that the only thing consistent about NASCAR are their inconsistencies. That rang true this past Saturday at Indianapolis, when Elliott Sadler was black flagged for beating the leader to the line in the late stages of the Indiana 250. By now we’ve all seen the video. The No. 3 was into the …

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