Race Weekend Central

Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in the Chase: 2007 Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta Edition

Nothing too surprising happened during Sunday’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Granted, there were the out of the blue late-race wrecks and tires mysteriously flying off cars; but, after the past few years of hair-raising last-lap finishes, you come to expect wild things at Atlanta when it comes time for the checkered flag. No matter …

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Matt McLaughlin’s Driver Handicaps: 2007 Atlanta Fall Race Edition

Jeff Gordon – In 30 Cup starts at Atlanta, the points leader has posted four victories and 18 top-10 finishes. However, he finished 12th in the race this spring. Jimmie Johnson – Johnson won here in March to post his second Atlanta Cup victory. After 12 starts here, Johnson has eight top-10 results and an …

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Voice of Vito: NASCAR Drivers Getting Their Just Desserts, Earnings Finally Matching Those of Other Major Athletes

Ernest Hemingway once said that, “Auto racing, bull fighting and mountain climbing are the only real sports… all others are games.” All decade long, we’ve heard such age-old discussion of how NASCAR drivers stack up to the athletic performances of the stick ‘n’ ball sports: Major League Baseball, the NFL, the NHL and the NBA. …

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Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in the Chase: 2007 Subway 500 at Martinsville Edition

The Hendrick stronghold on the Chase for the Championship tightened Sunday in the Subway 500 at Martinsville, as Jimmie Johnson scored his series-high seventh win of the season. Not to be totally outdone, teammate Jeff Gordon finished third, maintaining a 53-point lead over Johnson in what has quickly become a two-man race for the championship. …

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10 Points to Ponder… After the 2007 Subway 500 at Martinsville

1. Safety, Schmafety – The next time anyone from NASCAR tries to say that safety is their first priority, I want to have a tape of today’s Subway 500 finish on hand, showing David Ragan‘s car sitting sideways in the middle of the track coming off turn 1 and the leaders heading towards him full …

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Fanning the Flames: Talkin’ Smoke, NASCAR Specs & Wrecks

Count me as being of the opinion that Tony Stewart‘s NASCAR Chase hopes are officially dashed. Yes, I know Stewart is arguably the most talented driver on tour (case in point: wheeling that aero-deficient car with Band Aids on the nose to a seventh at LMS) and that Jimmie Johnson overcame a 146-point deficit after …

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Matt McLaughlin’s Driver Handicaps: 2007 Martinsville Fall Race Edition

Jeff Gordon – In the last nine Cup races at Martinsville, Gordon has won four times, finished second twice and never finished outside the top 10. In 29 Martinsville career starts, Gordon has won seven times, and is averaging a seventh-place finish. Jimmie Johnson – This spring, Johnson outraced teammate Gordon off the fourth corner …

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Fantasy Picks ‘N’ Pans: 2007 Subway 500 at Martinsville Edition

With the Chase halfway complete, it’s time for the playoff teams to enter the home stretch, as 12 special teams join your fantasy juggernaut in battling for a year-ending trophy. Too bad the hardware they’re chasing is probably a little nicer than the one you might win in your local league; but hey, a guy …

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Mirror Driving: Tired of Tires, Who’s Haas Gonna Hire & Whose Chase Has Caught Fire?

All weekend at Lowe’s, complaints and concern centered around the tires Goodyear brought to the event. After seeing the race unfold, is the tire still too hard?

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in the Chase: 2007 Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Edition

The halfway point of the Chase at Lowe’s brought with it a reality check to several men no longer in the hunt for a championship. For drivers like Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth, and Kevin Harvick, their one-time title dreams turned into nightmares filled with enough broken parts and pieces to start a junkyard. On the contrary, for others it was a case of too little, too late, as strong runs by Jeff Burton and Kyle Busch didn’t even make a dent in deficiencies that seem far too steep to overcome.