Race Weekend Central

Gray Gaulding, BK Racing Deal Up in Smoke: How Their Futures Impact NASCAR

Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Go Bowling 400 Kansas Speedway, Kansas City, Ks Usa Saturday 13 May 2017 Gray Gaulding, Bk Racing, Dr Pepper Toyota Camry World Copyright: Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade NKP)

On paper, BK Racing is a small, underfunded Toyota team, and Gray Gaulding is a teenager many NASCAR fans had never heard of before this season. But in their quest for survival, a closer look at their deal turned sour opens a Pandora’s Box of financial questions for modern-day stock car racing. It’s a different type of …

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The Underdog House: Sponsorship Changes on the Horizon?

2017 Richmond I Cup Michael Mcdowell Pack Racing Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell LaBounty/NKP)

Think Small With Target pulling out of motorsports after this year, it leaves just two NASCAR teams on the circuit using a single primary sponsor for all 36 races. Jimmie Johnson‘s No. 48 has backing from Lowe’s (and Kobalt Tools, manufactured and sold by the store) while the No. 11 run by Denny Hamlin has FedEx.  That leaves …

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Did You Notice?: NASCAR Silly Season Turns Toward The Sophisticated Business Of NASCAR Charters

2017 Phoenix I Cup Ryan Blaney Pack Racing Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell Labounty/NKP)

Did You Notice? …. That Brad Keselowski’s signing narrows down the list of Silly Season question marks? Keselowski’s extension, announced Tuesday, keeps him in the Team Penske No. 2 Ford with sponsorship from Miller Lite. The move came paired with a new contract for crew chief Paul Wolfe as well; the duo will continue their successful …

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5 Points to Ponder: Great NASCAR Finishes Abound After Indy

2017 Indianapolis Cup Kasey Kahne Rick Hendrick Celebrate Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell LaBounty/NKP)

ONE: Massive Win for Kahne I have a good friend who is a huge Kasey Kahne fan. He’s from the same home town –Enumclaw, WA — as the 14-year, 488-race Hendrick Motorsports veteran, and he’s followed Kahne’s career from the very start. He is, if you will, the definition of a die-hard fan. This past …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Kasey Kahne Uses Beneficial Pit Call and Strong Restart to Capture Brickyard Victory

2017 Indianapolis Cup Kasey Kahne Team Kissing Bricks Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell LaBounty / NKP)

Who’s in the headline – Kasey Kahne has been rumored to be out of his ride for two or three years. While the talk seems to be more intense of late, Kahne and his No. 5 team have kept their nose to the grindstone. A fortunate pit call on lap 148 in the Brickyard 400 …

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Kasey Kahne Wins Shocking Brickyard 400

Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Brickyard 400 Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis, In Usa Sunday 23 July 2017 Kasey Kahne, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet Ss World Copyright: Rusty Jarrett Nkp

(Photo: Rusty Jarrett/NKP)

He didn’t lift. On the final restart of Sunday’s beyond-chaotic Brickyard 400 from Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Kasey Kahne stole the race lead from Brad Keselowski. And when Denny Hamlin crashed down the backstretch, the caution came out past the overtime line, ending the race under yellow. Kahne scored his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series …

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Did You Notice?: NASCAR Daytona Races Can Be Deceiving

Kurt Busch And Wife

(Photo: Rusty Jarrett/NKP)

Did You Notice? … NASCAR races at Daytona can be deceiving? The sport’s Super Bowl, February’s Daytona 500 is known as a race whose winner rarely competes for the series title. Only Jimmie Johnson (2006 & 2013) has accomplished the feat since 1998. There’s a lot of reasons Daytona winds up so different than the rest …

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The Underdog House: NASCAR About to Get Silly?

2017 Kansas I Cup Michael Mcdowell Car Barry Cantrell Nkp

(Photo: Barry Cantrell/NKP)

Think Small Track surfaces aren’t the inly thing heating up as summertime hits full swing.  NASCAR’s Silly Season is coming, and while so far, it’s been confined to rumblings and rumors, there’s potential for things to blow up.  While most of the speculation concerns the bigger teams in the sport, including who will fill the …

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The Underdog House: NASCAR’s Vicious Cycle

2017 Dover I Cup Aj Allmendinger Pack Racing Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Think Small It’s hard for small teams to get noticed.  This is something that’s been discussed over and over  and continues to create a vicious cycle for these teams: Lack of money leads to lack of performance, and lack of performance makes sponsors shy away, leading to a lack of money…you see the problem here? …

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The Underdog House: Matt DiBenedetto’s Fan-Friendly Dedication

Think Small A few weeks back, this column touched on the small team drivers and how, in general, they’re fairly accessible to their fans.  They show it often; a few weeks ago, Landon Cassill engaged in a lengthy scheme with his Twitter followers where he’d give them various items if they got a certain number …

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Did You Notice?: A Look Into Aric Almirola Sub Possibilities

Almirola Kansas

(Photo: Russell LaBounty / NKP)

Did You Notice? … Two big-name drivers have already turned down the No. 43 ride to replace an injured Aric Almirola? Carl Edwards, once highly coveted by Richard Petty Motorsports many years ago has said no, he can’t go back and run the car through Sonoma on June 25. It’s not the first time Edwards has said …

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Entry List: 2017 Go Bowling 400

2016 Kansas I Cup Kevin Harvick Racing Brett Moist Nkp

(Photo: Brett Moist/NKP)

On Tuesday morning, NASCAR released the entry list for Saturday night’s Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway.  40 cars are entered this week, so no one will go home. There are a couple of changes to note.  Reed Sorenson moves back into the No. 15 for Premium Motorsports, replacing Joey Gase.  Gase finished a season-best …

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