2009 Ride: No. 29 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
2009 Primary Sponsor: Shell / Pennzoil
2009 Owner: Richard Childress
2009 Crew Chief: Todd Berrier (Feb. – Apr.), Gil Martin (Apr....
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The late David Poole was a fan of NASCAR’s Chase for the Cup, making him the only motorsports writer that I can think of that held a favorable opinion of NASCAR’s playoff who didn’t work for...
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Hello again, race fans! As always, Kurt Smith has taken the time to analyze what’s going on in our database of photos from Phoenix, saying in just a few words what some think is worth a thousand....
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I don’t know how many people noticed it, but I did.
It took longer to find out whether Ryan Newman was still alive after his nightmarish crash than it did for ABC to run a graphic that tickets...
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Greetings, Race Fans! Welcome back to the Foto Funnies, where Kurt Smith tries to make some sense of the photos from that crazy show we saw at Talladega last weekend!
“Yeah, you’re number one...
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People who cover NASCAR, like our own Kenny Wallace, are fond of saying things like “missing the Chase does NOT make you a second class citizen”.
Try telling Kyle Busch that.
When history looks...
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Greetings, Race Fans! Well, we had a race at Martinsville and Jimmie Johnson didn’t win! And you thought this Chase was boring… but anyway, there’s nothing boring about the...
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Imagine a chess league with ten players. Player 1 excels at all facets of the game and wins many of the titles. Player 2 is very good, and is so good with his knights that he occasionally defeats...
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Greetings, Race Fans! Kurt Smith has taken a look at the photo collection from Lowe’s compiled by the Frontstretch, and he thinks he knows what’s going on in these special Kodak moments! Take a...
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Editor’s Note: Kurt Smith is STILL on vacation, acting like we overwork him or something. (We do but that’s moot.) Still, he spent some of that boundless energy offering up some suggestions for...
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Editor’s Note: Kurt Smith is once again vacationing and shirking his duties at the Frontstretch, thinking himself the big shot after a couple of brief radio appearances and whatnot. But as a public...
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Greetings Race Fans! Kurt Smith is on a much-needed vacation, but he managed to take the time to examine some of our backlog of photos, using his sense of perception to tell us what’s really going...
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Remember the good old days, when we didn’t care who was fighting for 12th place in the standings too much? Those days are gone, even for me.
Kyle Busch and Mark Martin, two great drivers on...
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Greetings, race fans! The Michigan event came down to fuel mileage as usual, and once again, the weakness of the No. 48 car is exposed! Now, the other teams know just how the toppling of the...
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Recently I stumbled on an article by Richard Allen on “Racing With Rich”, pointing out the recent abandonment of NASCAR by companies like DeWalt and AllState, and to a lesser extent, Lowe’s and...
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Watching Kyle Busch this season, it’s easy to wonder if some sort of hex has been placed on the 18 car, as race after race ends with the driver who tore through fields like a man possessed a year ago...
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Welcome back to the Funnies page, Frontstretch Readers! The Frontstretch would like to congratulate Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 team for stepping up and delivering an emotional victory on Monday, Ron...
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As everyone remembers, last year’s Indianapolis race was such an unmitigated debacle that for once, NASCAR dropped their guard and apologized for the show. The Internet was afire with...
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Greetings, Frontstretch Readers! Some race we saw in Indianapolis, eh? And the one on Sunday wasn’t too bad either! Seriously folks, congratulations on a completely asterisk-free win for Jimmie...
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It has been interesting to read the articles and comments devoted to the Mayfield mess. The surprise is the amount of fans in Mayfield’s corner. Some are lashing out at the institution of NASCAR as...
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Never in my years of being a follower of the sport have I witnessed the state of near-panic that NASCAR is in right now. They’re changing rules that had been in place for half a century, opening the...
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Editor’s Note: Kurt Smith is currently in Las Vegas losing both his proverbial and metaphorical behind. Since he won’t be able to recoup his losses without his salary of untold millions contracted in...
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Greetings, Frontstretch Readers, and welcome back to the Frontstretch Funnies! Kurt Smith is in Las Vegas this week trying out his new card-counting technique … and this time, he insists he’ll...
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Welcome back Frontstretch readers, and thanks for checking out this week’s edition of the Foto Funnies! The Frontstretch would like to congratulate Joey Logano on his historic first win, and we hope...
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While Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was being interviewed on 60 Minutes, he said that there’s a Dale Earnhardt, Jr. or a Jeff Gordon on short tracks around the country.
In sports—in the entertainment...
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Hey race fans! Quite a show we saw at Infineon Raceway this past weekend, and if you enjoyed reading about it half as much as we’ve enjoyed writing about it, then we enjoyed it twice as much! In the...
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As is often said, there are lies, damned lies, and statistics.
But in the past two weeks, I couldn’t rely simply on my own judgment in deciding who should be ranked as the 15th through 11th and...
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Well, how about that Michigan show! After Jimmie Johnson dominates the race as only he can, a battle with Greg Biffle ends up doing them both in — allowing Mark Martin to cruise to an unlikely...
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I unwittingly picked a bad time to discuss who the best drivers in the sport are today. Between Kyle’s guitar smashing, double-file restarts and the Mayfield situation, there is plenty to discuss in...
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Greetings, Race Fans! Well, Tony Stewart finally cemented his status as a legitimate owner/driver, keeping the egg under the gas pedal for another win at Pocono Raceway! Meanwhile, the Frontstretch...
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10) Someday when career is declining, have a giant inflatable pig fly over audience with explosions and lasers to help distract from his glaring inability to race like he used to. (Pink Floyd)
9)...
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Being the Official Columnist of NASCAR is not an easy job. It’s not a matter of simply handing over a few million to NASCAR, as with most “official” entities. It takes effort. Column topics must be...
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Well we at the Frontstretch hope you enjoyed this last weekend’s events at Dover Downs. As part of our newest weekly feature, the Foto Funnies section gives you a behind the scenes look at the...
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10. Give Junior more responsibility, like washing his own firesuit post-race.
9. Boost morale with AMP-drinking contests, as team members match their caffeine limits in traditional party game.
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No matter how good athletes are in a sport’s lesser series, you never know how they will perform against the best of the best.
Joey Logano was surrounded by more than considerable hype before...
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Well, another Coca-Cola 600 has come and gone, with David Reutimann’s surprise victory one of the feel-good stories of the year. But before we move on to Dover, we at the Frontstretch thought...
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10. Wait for autographs after the race.
9. Get a track pass and lay down backwards on the high banking to induce vomiting.
8. Really, there is other stuff, just give me a minute…
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After an almost inexplicable collapse in the Chase last year, one that was largely due to mechanical failures rather than driver errors, Kyle Busch in 2009 has reverted to being the dominating force...
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10. A new, and this time housebroken, monkey.
9. FINALLY pay off in full the group of psychologists for his anger management sessions — including the medical bills for the black eye given to...
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Our own Kurt Smith may have a little too much time on his hands, but at least he’s willing to give some of his boundless energy to the Frontstretch! Here he clues you, the readers, in on...
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At Darlington this past weekend, three of the top five finishing cars were from Hendrick Motorsports. The other two got their engines from Hendrick. A part time Hendrick team finished seventh, making...
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Throughout the Richmond race I was watching Ryan Newman run toward the front, lead, and contend for the win in a Stewart-Haas Chevrolet.
You know, those same Haas Chevrolets that consistently ran...
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Sprint Cup Series Director John Darby announced this week that there won’t be any changes in the plate racing, espousing the excitement of Daytona and Talladega just days after two drivers had...
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Long ago as a young lad, I worked for a department store you may have heard of called Caldor. I wasn’t the best employee…I goofed off and hit on girls a lot…but for the most part, I showed up for...
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Some NASCAR fans say they want to see more emotion from drivers, complaining that so many of them are corporate robots these days. Even Fox Sports’ Larry McReynolds has joined the chorus. This in an...
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In case you missed it, some weeks ago Happy Hour discussed how NASCAR can learn from baseball and build new venues designed to create better racing experiences for fans and teams. I presented a rough...
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Last week, the bubbling cauldron that is the motorsports media began to boil over once again, reaching a point where Dale Earnhardt, Jr. publicly asserted that his crew chief Tony Eury, Jr. is a...
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It’s a bummer to watch Travis Kvapil be out of a ride because of the harsh realities of motorsports. As I write this, and as Tom Bowles explained so lucidly on Monday, a freak combination of owner...
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In last week’s Happy Hour, I discussed baseball’s ballpark boom and how the place responsible for it all, Oriole Park at Camden Yards, changed the formula for modern ballparks—from antiseptic...
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Following Kurt Busch’s dominating Atlanta win, he celebrated by driving his car in reverse around the track in a new kind of Victory Lap. Later, he said that the idea came from a Miller Lite drinking...
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One of the bigger beefs longtime fans of NASCAR have today is the unimaginative size, shape, and location of too many of the current venues. Like the cookie-cutters that once dominated baseball,...
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“I just hope Dale’s okay.”
Three weeks earlier, Darrell Waltrip’s words in FOX’s first broadcast of the Daytona 500 had become unintentionally immortalized, spoken in concern after the Goodwrench...
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10. Instruct Jeff to imagine a hard-boiled egg under the gas pedal.
9. Attach transponders to middle fingers of Gordon-haters, giving the No. 24 another completed lap every time an anti-fan...
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Sometimes I feel for the Fox Sports people, even if it’s difficult to muster sympathy for them while sitting through infuriatingly bad broadcasts of racing. The artists and animators who created...
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As is all in a week’s work for the Official Columnist of NASCAR, I watched, I listened, and I read what people had to say about the Daytona 380. Here, then, is what is left and needs to be said…or...
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To read and listen to diatribes from many of us—and yours truly pleads as guilty as anyone—most every disgruntled fan can put a finger on what currently ails NASCAR. Check Jayski every day and you...
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OK, now relax. I’m confident that the pseudonym “Man In Black” won’t stick to the four-time Winston Cup champion.
When people hear “The Man In Black”, of course, they think of one or both of two...
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There are two reasons that the Indianapolis backlash was so ravenous in the couple of days after the race, aside from the actual race itself. The first reason was NASCAR’s initial reaction—that good...
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A lot of folks have a beef about the Top 35 rule. They believe — and I have a hard time arguing against it — that since the word “qualify” means “to demonstrate the...
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When a few of the Frontstretch gang get together for Mirror Driving on Monday nights, what happens in that room gets chopped and mangled and edited before its airing on Wednesday. Conversations are...
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In 35 races so far this season, we’ve seen the sport’s matinee idol perform well, but not spectacularly in his first season with a top team. We’ve seen an amazing stretch of races where a champion...
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The Chase for the Sprint Cup has been called “controversial” and “unpopular with some fans”, which are PC phrases for “a lot of people hate it”. In its fifth year, with ratings declining yet again as...
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In the press conference announcing the coming Camping World sponsorship of the truck series, every NASCAR fan’s favorite CEO commented on the future with a shaky economy dominating the headlines....
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In the wake of a seemingly inevitable third straight title for Jimmie Johnson and crew, John Close at CloseFinishes.com recently compared Johnson to the only other driver in the history of the sport...
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Martinsville Speedway isn’t for candy-ass drivers or spectators. And that’s the best thing about the joint.
Like Fenway Park, one doesn’t go to Martinsville Speedway expecting the comforts and...
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After the tire explosions at Talladega and with the Cup Series coming to Charlotte, a track that has had its own share of tire problems, it’s an opportunity to expound on what has become an all too...
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In Kansas this last weekend, the top five finishing cars drove for Roush Fenway Racing and Hendrick Motorsports. Those two teams also produced three more drivers in the Top 15, for a total of eight...
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Some people question why some of us continue to cover a sport that we seem to hate. It’s a fair question. I’ve asked it plenty myself. I don’t utterly hate NASCAR these days…it still has its moments...
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Twenty laps into the 27th race this season, an enigmatic driver, who had been wiping up the floor with most of the competition for 26 races, had his season more or less destroyed. Eight wins in 26...
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Greetings race fans and welcome once again to NASCAR’s Fifth Annual Big Points Giveaway, where we find eleven NASCAR drivers without the points lead and furnish them with a brand new point total and...
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When the Chase for the Cup was initially conceived (although “conceived” probably isn’t a good word for it… maybe “implemented over a cosmopolitan” works better), the only advantage for a...
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A lot of folks have a beef about the Top 35 rule. They believe — and I have a hard time arguing against it — that since the word “qualify” means “to demonstrate the...
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A two car team with established veteran drivers behind the wheel, quite a few wins between them, one a former Cup champion. Sharing engines and chassis with one of the top outfits in the business....
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Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson recently failed miserably in an attempt to get into Kyle Busch’s head before Watkins Glen, suggesting that Busch was in a slump. Busch responded to that by dominating...
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There is something about a 40th birthday, despite the day being 24 hours just like any other, that inspires thoughts of impending mortality in people, especially males. After all, at 40, we’re not...
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NASCAR announced last week that they will not be running Nationwide Series races at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez road course in Mexico City next year. Finally, a change in the schedule we can...
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There are two reasons that the Indianapolis backlash was so ravenous in the couple of days after the race, aside from the actual race itself. The first reason was NASCAR’s initial reaction—that good...
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10. Diamond-grooving actually done with cubic zirconia.
9, Trying to negate Kyle Busch’s “great driver” advantage, since the “no more great engines” rule didn’t work so well.
8. Giving all of...
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In four years of the worst playoff system in recent history to be forced down sports fans’ throats, I still haven’t seen or heard anything resembling a viable argument in favor of the Chase, even...
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Most all of us at some point in our lives have been dissatisfied with where we are in life—in a job, where we live, with our cars. And if things aren’t perfect for us now, it’s natural to think...
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It all seems like it just flew by at this point, but ten years is a long time. More specifically, 338 races—356 by season’s end—is a lot of races.
We’ve gotten used to seeing the orange No. 20 car...
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Former NASCAR driver and current TV commentator Jimmy Spencer recently addressed a crowded media center for a modifieds celebration to answer questions, and while speaking, he showed some disdain for...
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The other night I was watching the movie Ransom, a thriller in which a dirty cop named Jimmy Shaker (played by Gary Sinise) kidnaps the son of wealthy airline entrepreneur Tom Mullen (played by Mel...
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When NASCAR holds a special closed-door driver’s meeting, you can bet it’s because they are not happy about one or more participants being critical, and it usually entails Mike Helton reminding the...
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Official Columnist of NASCAR Kurt Smith has the week off, while he seeks the sand, waves, and adventures of Wildwood, NJ. In his absence, we at the Frontstretch have recycled one of his favorite...
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The racing press has such a low opinion of Long Pond that when Bruton Smith purchased Kentucky Speedway and promised a Cup date there, it was immediately news that he might buy Pocono and move one of...
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Haas Motorsports is the latest student to be schooled in NASCAR Rule Enforcement. They committed the cardinal sin of tinkering with the CoT and have received a good old-fashioned whoopin? for it....
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If the old expression that “everything before the word but is a lie” holds true, then the world of NASCAR journalists are lying an awful lot about Kyle Busch. And that goes for whether...
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Dear Dale Earnhardt, Jr.:
Im writing to congratulate you on your terrific season so far. Smile, dude Jeff Gordon would love to be in your position right now.
Still, Im sure you grow weary of...
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A year and a half ago, Michael Waltrip was successfully wooing employees, a very eager foreign auto manufacturer, and several high profile sponsors to sign onto his new racing team. The pundits...
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From the about.com website explaining NASCAR:
A yellow flag means that there is a hazard on the racetrack and that the drivers should slow down and stay behind the pace car. This flag typically...
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If NASCAR is serious about putting racing success back in the hands of the driver, a position with which I agree and which was repeated frequently in their marketing of the new car, maybe they can...
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Being the undeniable gentleman that he is, Mark Martin would probably take exception to my calling him the unluckiest driver in auto racing. He would counter that he has won 35 Cup races and 47 Busch...
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Prior to the start of the 2008 NASCAR season, Brian France held his annual state of the sport press conference. In his announcements, to the surprise of some accustomed to the sports general...
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On several occasions during the Martinsville race this past Sunday, the announcers in the Fox booth analyzed short term gain vs. long term loss. The comparison was made whenever a driver skipped...
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Much has been said and written about the perceived fall from dominance of Hendrick Motorsports. It is the farthest theyve gone into a season without a victory since 2003, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie...
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