Race Weekend Central

Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Pocono Shocker – Chad McCumbee Bests Freshmen Field in Pennsylvania

Rookies in the Starting Lineup: Sam Hornish Jr. (26th), Chad McCumbee (34th), Michael McDowell (35th), Regan Smith (36th) Unofficial Finishing Positions: McCumbee (17th), McDowell (24th), Smith (25th), Hornish (26th) Rookie of the Race: McCumbee. The 23-year-old Craftsman Truck series veteran managed to qualify for his first Sprint Cup race in 2008 this past weekend, after failing …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Patrick Carpentier’s Momentum Continues at Brickyard

Rookies in the Starting Lineup: Patrick Carpentier (15th), Marcos Ambrose (24th), Michael McDowell (30th), Sam Hornish Jr. (38th), Regan Smith (42nd) Unofficial Finishing Positions: Carpentier (18th), Hornish (21st), Ambrose (22nd), Smith (31st), McDowell (34th) Rookie of the Race: Carpentier. Despite graduating from the open-wheel ranks, this year’s running of the Brickyard 400 represents only the second …

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Holding a Pretty Wheel: Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Patrick Carpentier, Marketability Matters

Last week I started my very own hypothetical race team and picked my short list of the most talented drivers racing in Sprint Cup today. Any of the five would make a strong start for a new team for sure, and talent like that should attract sponsorship to the team as well. But I said …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Rough Ride for NASCAR Freshmen at Chicagoland

Rookies in the Starting Lineup: Regan Smith (33rd), Michael McDowell (34th), Sam Hornish Jr. (35th), Patrick Carpentier (42nd). Note: Qualifying was rained out, so the field was set by owner points. Unofficial Finishing Positions: Carpentier (30th), Smith (34th), Hornish Jr. (37th), McDowell (43rd). Rookie of the Race: Carpentier. As the title of the article says, …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Patrick Carpentier Captures Top Honors at Daytona

Editor’s Note: Remember that all finishing positions were based on the unofficial results from Saturday night’s race. NASCAR will release the official results sometime around noon ET on Monday, which could cause adjustments based on how they review the final running order of this restrictor-plate event. Rookies in the Starting Lineup: Regan Smith (eighth), Patrick …

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10 Points to Ponder… After the 2008 LENOX Industrial Tools 301 at Loudon

1. What Could Possibly Go Wrong? – Hendrick Motorsports made it official last Friday that Casey Mears – who joined HMS in 2007 to replace Brian Vickers – would be released from his No. 5 Chevy ride at season’s end. Said team owner Rick Hendrick at the time of Mears’s signing, “Casey is a talented …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Aric Almirola Ascends to the Top at New Hampshire

Rookies in the Starting Lineup: Patrick Carpentier (first), Dario Franchitti (seventh), Sam Hornish Jr. (20th), Regan Smith (25th), Michael McDowell (38th), Aric Almirola (39th) Unofficial Finishing Positions: Almirola (23rd), Smith (27th), Carpentier (31st), Franchitti (38th), Hornish (39th), McDowell (42nd) Rookie of the Race: Almirola. It was a dismal start to the weekend for Almirola – …

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Did You Notice? Kevin Harvick’s Drought, Dario Franchitti on the Outs & DEI Losing Its Clout?

Did You Notice? That in expanding my short and sweet column from Monday, Kevin Harvick’s winless streak in Cup racing – as Danny Peters so dutifully pointed out is up to 51 races, with his last points-paying win occurring at the 2007 Daytona 500? Wait a minute… isn’t that the disputed Daytona 500 for the ages, …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Sam Hornish Jr. Spins, But Wins Rookie Honors at Home Track

It didn’t take long for the Defiance, Ohio native to make his presence known at the venue he considers his home track on the NASCAR circuit. By the race’s one-quarter mark, Sam Hornish Jr. was running consistently in the top 20 after starting well back in the pack. But as it turns out, the Mobil One team would be the strongest performer out of the Roger Penske stable, running in or near the top 15 for Michigan’s middle segment while his teammates floundered with poor handling cars and engine issues. However, things would get even more interesting for Hornish as the race entered its final stages.

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in Sprint Cup: 2008 Pocono 500 at Pocono Edition

Pit strategy, pit strategy and more pit strategy; in what became a 500-mile parade with little passing, Pocono’s race became won or lost by the men behind the wall. For those who made the right calls at the right times, a final restart on lap 181 put them in perfect position to succeed; for others, …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Sam Hornish Jr. Continues Momentum at the Monster Mile

Rookies in the Starting Lineup: Sam Hornish Jr. (16th), Regan Smith (29th), Michael McDowell (32nd), Patrick Carpentier (36th) Unofficial Finishing Positions: Hornish (18th), Smith (21st), Carpentier (29th), McDowell (30th) Rookie of the Race: Hornish. The Rookie of the Year race remained tight coming out of Dover, as Hornish overcame a lap 68 pit-road speeding penalty to …

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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Sam Hornish Jr. Hopeful Coming Out of Lowe’s

Rookies in the Starting Lineup: Sam Hornish Jr.(20th), Regan Smith (27th), Patrick Carpentier (34th), Michael McDowell (41st) Unofficial Finishing Positions: Hornish (13th), Smith (20th), McDowell (32nd), Carpentier (37th) Rookie of the Race: Hornish. Was this the All-Star Race or the Coca-Cola 600? Chances are that it was hard for Hornish to tell, as Sunday night was …

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