Race Weekend Central

4 Burning Questions: Will Clint Bowyer End Winless Drought at Home Track?

Clint Bowyer

(Photo: NASCAR via Getty Images)

Will Clint Bowyer End Winless Drought at Home? Bad news: Kansas Speedway lost one of its home track racers in Carl Edwards. Good news: Clint Bowyer isn’t going anywhere any time soon. They call him Kansas Clint because his hometown of Emporia, Kansas, is about 100 miles south of the speedway. The 37-year-old is known as …

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Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Picks Up Dover, Pocono Sponsorship

2017 Talladega I Cup Ricky Stenhouse Jr Woohoo John K Harrelson Nkp

(Photo: John Harrelson / NKP)

Fresh off his first-career win in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega Superspeedway, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has picked up some additional sponsorship for the 2017 season. Stenhouse and Roush Fenway Racing announced Thursday (May 11) sponsorship in the Cup Series from fruit drink brand Little HUG Fruit Barrels. The two-race sponsorship will kick …

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Daily Fantasy NASCAR Forecast: Go Bowling 400 Preview

2017 Las Vegas Cup Kevin Harvick Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade/NKP)

Next up for daily fantasy NASCAR players is Kansas Speedway. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to the 1.5-mile oval for the Go Bowling 400 this Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. Cars hit the track on Friday at 11:30 a.m. for first practice. Then, at 6:45 p.m. that same day they have Coors Light Pole …

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The 10: NASCAR Cup Series Power Rankings After Talladega

2017 Talladega I Cup Ricky Stenhouse Jr Pack Racing Matthew T Thacker Nkp

(Photo Matthew T. Thacker / NKP)

The high banks of Talladega Superspeedway were the site of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series event this past weekend. The GEICO 500 brought much of what we’ve come to expect from the 2.66 mile tri-oval in Alabama. Close action. Different faces at the front of the field. Airborne cars. Enough bent sheet metal to …

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2-Headed Monster: Is NASCAR Downsizing the Way to Go for Success?

2016 Texas I Cup Trevor Bayne Racing John Harrelson Nkp

This week’s Frontstretch debate question: a number of race teams have been downsizing their organizations in terms of teams in the past few years. Most recently, Roush Fenway Racing wound up in Victory Lane with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. this past weekend after downsizing from three full-time teams in 2016 to two full-time teams in 2017. Does NASCAR downsizing have …

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Did You Notice?: Penske Penalties Piling Up, Longest NASCAR Winless Droughts

2017 Talladega I Cup Brad Keselowski Ricky Stenhouse Jr Joey Logano Matthew T Thacker Nkp

(Photo: Matthew T. Thacker/NKP)

Did You Notice? … Team Penske’s final appeal was denied for Brad Keselowski? After finishing fifth at Phoenix in March, the car failed post-race inspection for having too much skew in the rear suspension. The violation, which NASCAR claimed could improve the car’s handling, led to a $65,000 fine, a three-race suspension for crew chief Paul Wolfe …

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5 Points to Ponder: Worth the Wait

2016 Kansas Ii Cup Matt Kenseth Kyle Busch Racing Russell Labounty Nkp

(Photo: Russell LaBounty / NKP)

ONE: Great Attendance That was quite the turnout at Talladega Superspeedway, wasn’t it? And for this reporter at least that was manna to the soul. Okay, it’s fair to say a good proportion of folks were in attendance for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s penultimate race on the treacherous high banks. But even with that boost it …

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Who’s Hot & Who’s Not: Feels Like The First Time Edition

2016 Las Vegas Cup Ricky Stenhouse Jr John Harrelson Nkp

(Photo: John Harrelson / NKP)

Every time the Cup Series goes to a restrictor plate track, we often hear it will be the typical kind of plate race: close packs, a big wreck or two or three and a down-to-the-wire finish. Well, all in all, that’s not the worst formula I’ve heard for exciting racing and you know, it’s probably no …

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Thinkin’ Out Loud: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Avoids the Big One, Makes Big Last-Lap Pass At Talladega

2017 Talladega I Cup Rricky Stenhouse Jr Checkered Flag Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade / NKP)

Who’s in the headline Restrictor plate racetracks are always the great equalizer. This weekend, Talladega Superspeedway’s parity roulette wheel landed on the name Ricky Stenhouse Jr. It wasn’t a shock Stenhouse was able to make it to Victory Lane Sunday, in large part because he had the fastest car in qualifying by a substantial amount. But …

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Pace Laps: Stenhouse Jr. Cashes In, Aric Almirola Surprises And Thomas Curley Passes On

2017 Talladega I Cup Ricky Stenhouse Jr Pole Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade / NKP)

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: Career Weekend for Ricky Stenhouse Jr.  It’s been a long time coming. There was a time it didn’t even look possible. But Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finally crossed the finish line first Sunday, capturing his first Cup victory in 158 career starts at Talladega Superspeedway. Stenhouse started the day out front, pacing …

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Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s Victory a Boost for Once Struggling Roush Organization

2017 Talladega I Cup Ricky Stenhouse Jr Pack Racing Matthew T Thacker Nkp

(Photo Matthew T. Thacker / NKP)

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. grabbed his first career victory in the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. It only came after years of struggling for Stenhouse and Roush Fenway Racing. Since his rookie season in 2013, there have been only 10 career top-five finishes and only 22 top 10s, or about 15 percent of his races. RFR as …

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Up to Speed: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Forges his own Path to Victory

2017 Talladega I Cup Ricky Stenhouse Jr Burnout Nigel Kinrade Nkp

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade / NKP)

In the opening stages of Sunday’s GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, it was evident that the memory of the 2016 Daytona 500 was fresh in everyone’s mind.  During that race, many of the Toyota drivers exhibited a highly-coordinated style of drafting that help Denny Hamlin secure the victory. On Sunday, as in this year’s Daytona …

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