Angie
The “Lady in Black” welcomed back fans on Saturday for round two at Darlington Raceway. In preparation for the Showtime Southern 500, a team had been up throughout the night re-painting the historic red and white walls.
A busy day of practice and qualifying on Friday had left its mark on the track walls and sent six Sprint Cup teams to backup cars.
Dale Earnhardt Jr was the first casualty, hitting the wall on just his second lap of practice. He was followed by Clint Bowyer, Scott Speed, Greg Biffle, Marcos Ambrose and Kyle Busch.
Jamie McMurray stayed out of the wall and made his way into the record books. He set a track qualifying record with a 180.370 mph lap.
In what has fast become a tradition on Mother’s Day weekend at Darlington, the Sprint Cup mothers in attendance gave the command, “Gentleman, start your engines.” Continue reading →
Angie
Saturday’s NASCAR Banking 500 at Lowes Motor Speedway marks the halfway point in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. It may also be the make or break event for the lower echelon Chase contenders looking to get back into the thick of the playoffs.
For those sitting in positions seven through 10, it might be the last chance to make up some lost ground and give them a fighting chance.
Ryan Newman is currently 10th in the points standings after dropping one position at Fontana. With no top five finishes to date, Newman looks to duplicate his second place run at last May’s Coca-Cola 600. Continue reading →
Angie
Image by jenniferrt66 via Flickr
Will Indy star Danica Patrick begin making the transition to stock cars in 2010? We know for certain that the interest is there from her reported talks with numerous NASCAR race teams but no concrete plans have been announced.
One of the teams considered to be a frontrunner in these discussions is JR Motorsports. Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, president of JRM, acknowledged that she has been in conversations with Danica Patrick concerning her interest in NASCAR. Continue reading →
Angie
This past Sunday during the Sprint Cup Series Pricechopper 400 at the Kansas Speedway, NASCAR officials reportedly cautioned Brad Keselowski about racing Chase contenders, namely Juan Pablo Montoya, too aggressively.
Since then, there has been a heated debate about whether NASCAR was out of line for issuing such a warning. Continue reading →
Lee
Image via Wikipedia
Wherever NASCAR is discussed, or opinions are solicited, there is a strong likelihood that the topic of the Chase for the Sprint Cup will be debated, denounced or roundly criticized. It is very easy to see that there is very little middle ground on this topic. Fans either love the Chase, or they hate it. And for the past five years, at this point in the season, the media tends to try to stir the pot with the questions they pose to drivers both in and out of contention for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Most recently, Tony Stewart was asked about his feelings around going from first in the standings to third at the start of the Chase. Continue reading →
Angie
Juan Pablo Montoya made a formidable start in his quest for the 2009 Sprint Cup Championship, finishing 3rd at New Hampshire this past weekend. He jumped from 11th to 4th in the standings and carries that momentum going into the race at Dover.
Leading up to the Chase, we’ve seen a different side of Montoya. He’s learned to keep his aggression in check and make smart decisions on the racetrack.
“For us, our goal this year was making the Chase and we did so. Anything that happens from now to the end of the year, it’s a bonus.”
Now that Montoya had made it into the Chase, his focus is on getting the most he can out of his car each week. Continue reading →
Joshua
Guest Blog
The 2009 season marks the Sixth Chase in the history of NASCAR. Here is quick look at some relevant numbers:
Jimmie Johnson is the only driver to qualify for all six Chases. However Denny Hamlin has made the chase all four years he has been a full-time Sprint Cup driver.
A [...]
