Race Weekend Central

Did You Notice? NASCAR’s Small Teams & Sonoma Longshots

2014 Sonoma Cup Jamie Mcmurray Car Cia

(Photo: CIA Stock Photo, Inc. Copyright 2014)

Did You Notice? … Sonoma is a track capable of producing a surprise winner? There have been 10 winners in the last 10 Sprint Cup races there, the perfect mix of David and Goliath. For every Jeff Gordon on that list, there’s a Juan Pablo Montoya. For every Kyle Busch, there’s a Martin Truex Jr. It …

Read more

NASCAR Driver Report Cards: Part III

2015 Dover I Cup Tony Stewart Car Cia

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

So you might remember a few weeks ago when I graded the Sprint Cup full-timers through Driver Report Cards… and promptly stopped at the letter K. No, I don’t have a weird idea of what the alphabet should be, nor am I protesting the use of the letters L through Z. The third part just …

Read more

Number Crunching: 2015 FedEx 400 NASCAR Fantasy Breakdown

2015 Dover I Cup Kevin Harvick Car Cia

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

It sure was an interesting finish to the race last week. The driver with the best car at the end, Martin Truex Jr., ended up fifth despite being the class of the field in the last 200 laps. Fuel mileage came into play, jumbling the final finishing order for the 600 and that made Fantasy …

Read more

Happy But Not Satisfied: Casey Mears & Germain Racing Writing a New Chapter

2015 Charlotte I Cup Casey Mears Cia

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

Racing is never easy. It’s especially not easy when you qualify 34th for one of the season’s biggest races when you know — when everyone knows — you should be better than that. When you are better than that. Which is why Casey Mears is a little frustrated before the Coca-Cola 600. His No. 13 …

Read more

The Frontstretch 5: Lessons Learned at Charlotte

2015 Charlotte I Cup Green Flag Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

Photo Credit: NASCAR via Getty Images

Welcome to the Frontstretch Five! Each week, Amy Henderson takes a look at the racing, drivers and storylines that drive NASCAR and produces a list of five people, places, things and ideas that define the current state of our sport. This week, Amy has some lessons learned at Charlotte Motor Speedway. 1. There are some …

Read more

The Big 6: Questions Answered After the 2015 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte

2015 Charlotte I Cup Brad Keselowski Kyle Busch Joey Logano Three Wide Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

Photo Credit: NASCAR via Getty Images

Looking for the Who, What, When, Where, Why and How behind Sunday’s race? Amy Henderson has you covered each week with the answers to six race-day questions, covering all five Ws and even the H… the Big Six. Who… gets my shoutout of the race?  Anyone would forgive a driver if it took him a …

Read more

Number Crunching: 2015 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Fantasy Forecast

2015 Charlotte I Cup Matt Kenseth Jamie Mcmurray Cia

Photo Credit: CIA Stock Photography

The All-Star weekend is over and it’s time for NASCAR’s longest race. The drivers are in for 600 miles this week at Charlotte Motor Speedway in one of NASCAR’s jewels of the season. Qualifying happened on Thursday with two more practices scheduled for Saturday. That means that there is still a bit of an information gap until those practices …

Read more

Did You Notice? Kyle Busch’s Chase Chances, All-Star Angst & Quick Hits

2014 Texas Ii Cup Kyle Busch Cia

(Photo: CIA Stock Photography © 2014)

Did You Notice? Kyle Busch could still easily make the Chase with a waiver? Let’s break down how and why following Tuesday’s announcement that he’ll return to the sport, driving the No. 18 Toyota in Saturday night’s All-Star Race along with the rest of the 2015 regular season. For Busch, he starts from scratch, missing …

Read more

Number Crunching: 2015 Food City 500 at Bristol NASCAR Fantasy Forecast

2015 Bristol I Cup Matt Kenseth Car Credit Amy Henderson

Photo Credit: Amy Henderson, Frontstretch

Back to Bristol this week, a place where the Joe Gibbs guys can flex some muscle. This could be the week that Carl Edwards becomes a big factor in the Chase. To get there Edwards is going to have to go through his teammate Matt Kenseth, who put it on the pole, and the Stewart-Haas …

Read more

4 Burning Questions at Bristol: Repetitive Rain and Shining Underdogs

2015 Martinsville I Cup Kyle Larson Jimmie Johnson Vertical Credit Amy Henderson

Photo Credit: Amy Henderson, Frontstretch

Bristol Motor Speedway. The very utterance of the name elicits countless images of watershed moments of the sport’s history that have taken place at the track over the years. It is a historic track, and the Food City 500 is a historic race. The best of the Sprint Cup Series will do battle on Bristol’s …

Read more

Number Crunching: 2015 Duck Commander 500 at Texas NASCAR Fantasy Forecast

2015 Martinsville I Cup Casey Mears Face Vertical Credit Amy Henderson

(Photo: Amy Henderson, Frontstretch)

The guys and gals of NASCAR took a week off but now, we’re back on track at Texas. The week off didn’t seem to change the status quo much as it appears the Hendrick, Stewart-Haas, and Penske boys are fast once again. Jimmie Johnson was fast in practice and has been one of the best …

Read more

Off the Wall With: Casey Mears

2015 Fontana Cup Casey Mears Credit Nascar Via Getty Images

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Welcome to Off the Wall With…, where we ask your favorite drivers the same five questions that are… well, off the wall! We’ll check in with a different driver each week to get a peek into life outside the racecar. This week, NASCAR veteran Casey Mears dishes the answers. What’s fun besides racing? Mears: Playing …

Read more