Race Weekend Central

Up to Speed: Denny Hamlin Needs to Let it Go

Denny Hamlin scratches his head on pit road at Charlotte Motor Speedway. (Photo: NKP)

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Denny Hamlin doesn’t have to be happy.  He doesn’t have to like getting spun by Alex Bowman in the closing laps at Martinsville Speedway.  He doesn’t have to celebrate missing out on a potential win during a 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season where he has enjoyed plenty of strong runs, but few victories. No, Hamlin …

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Kyle Busch Narrowly Misses Out On Championship 4: ‘We Ran Like Dogs**t’

2021 Charlotte Road ROVAL Cup Kyle Busch NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

On another up-and-down day, Kyle Busch came up a few points short of advancing to another Championship 4 in the NASCAR Cup Series at Martinsville Speedway Oct. 31. Not surprised about failing to advance, Busch was candid with his thoughts post-race on how the No. 18 team ran in Sunday’s Xfinity 500 and overall recently. …

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Frontstretch 2-Minute Drill: Xfinity 500 at Martinsville

2019 Martinsville MENCS Racing NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The penultimate race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series at Martinsville Speedway is upon us, and pretty much everything is still up in the air. Kyle Larson has won three straight races, including sweeping both events in the Round of 8 thus far at Texas Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway. He’s led a combined 386 …

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Stock Car Scoop: Which Drivers Will Move On at Martinsville?

2021 Martinsville I Cup Denny Hamlin pack racing NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Martinsville Speedway for the penultimate race of the season. Kyle Larson has won the last three races and swept the Round of 8 so far, which sets up three available playoff spots for seven drivers. How chaotic will Sunday (Oct. 31)’s Halloween elimination race be? Which drivers will secure …

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Dropping the Hammer: NASCAR Still King on Sunday Despite F1 Gains

NASCAR at Kansas Speedway

(Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images via NASCAR Media)

“Absolutely unacceptable.” According to Denny Hamlin, that’s how NASCAR president Steve Phelps described the glaringly sparse grandstands at Texas Motor Speedway earlier this month. The grandstands, once packed to the rafters in the track’s first decade of existence, now had entire sections (including where I sat during the inaugural race in 1997) blocked off for …

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Couch Potato Tuesday: Kansas Provides Better Racing, New Issues for NBC Sports

Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 19, Chase Elliott’s No. 9, Alex Bowman’s No. 48 and Joey Logano’s No. 22 race four-wide at Kansas Speedway in the fall 2021 NASCAR Cup series race, NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

After a fairly unsatisfactory race at Texas Motor Speedway, viewers got a much more enjoyable race to watch Sunday (Oct. 24) at Kansas Speedway. However, there were problems early. Hollywood Casino 400 Knowing that the race started about 14 minutes after the Formula 1 race, then almost immediately got red-flagged due to lightning, I do …

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Up to Speed: A Good Bad Day for Kyle Busch at Kansas

Kyle Busch at 2021 NASCAR Cup Series race on Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Kyle Busch’s rocky path through the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs took another unexpected turn at Kansas Speedway. Entering Sunday’s (Oct. 24) race, Busch was on the playoff bubble, just eight points above the cut line. It was a slim margin, but not necessarily a reason to panic. Once among his worst tracks, Busch had finished …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2021 Kansas NASCAR Playoff Race

Kyle Larson and No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports crew points up in victory lane, Sean Gardner/Getty

(Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

What happened? Kyle Larson won the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday (Oct. 24) for his third consecutive victory. Chase Elliott, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top-five finishers. You earned it today, @KyleLarsonRacin! Retweet to congratulate the @TeamHendrick driver on an impressive win at @kansasspeedway! pic.twitter.com/stXuaHpqu7 — NASCAR …

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Kyle Larson Comes Out on Top at Kansas, Wins 9th Race of 2021

2021-Cup-Kansas-II-Kyle-Larson-NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

No matter what happens the rest of the season, Kyle Larson will have won at least a quarter of 2021’s races. The No. 5 took control at Kansas Speedway on Sunday (Oct. 24) and rarely relinquished the lead, capping a day in which three of Hendrick Motorsports’ cars finished inside the top 10. It was …

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Frontstretch 2-Minute Drill: Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas

#2: Brad Keselowski, Team Penske, Ford Mustang Verizon 5G and #24: William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Camaro Axalta pack racing Kansas spring 2021 Cup race NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Just three races remain in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. First among them is Sunday (Oct. 24) afternoon’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway, where 40 drivers settle in for 267 laps on the 1.5-mile yellow brick road. Even after last week’s likely-calm race at Texas Motor Speedway devolved into chaos in the final …

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4 Burning Questions: Will Formula 1 or NASCAR Win the Ratings Battle?

2020 Kansas playoff Cup race, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch lead the pack coming off a turn, Photo NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Who will come out on top between F1 and NASCAR? This Sunday will mark a big test for Formula 1 as it goes head-to-head with the NASCAR Cup Series race on cable, and the National Football League when it comes to television in general. Before the speculation, it should be obvious that NASCAR will outdraw …

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Fire on Fridays: Kyle Busch Leads the Monday Night Racing Charge

2021 Atlanta NXS Kyle Busch drinking rowdy energy NKP

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Kyle Busch is in the midst of a battle for his third NASCAR Cup Series title. But in a couple weeks, he’ll start his campaign for a championship in another racing discipline. Monday Night Racing announced on Wednesday (Oct. 20) that Busch’s company Rowdy Energy would be the title sponsor for the series’ fourth season, …

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