Dear Readers,
During this holiday season, it’s time to reflect and give thanks, especially during this time of economic hardship for so many. We know it has been a difficult year, one where...
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Stats: 31 Races, Wins, Top 5s, Top 10s, Poles, 37th in Points.
Best Finish: 14th – Las Vegas, March.
Average Finish: 33.9.
High Point: David Gilliland may have been the most...
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Did You Notice?… That no less than 24 hours after Jimmie Johnson captured his fourth straight Cup championship, he was in front of your television practically everywhere you turned? At 1:30...
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The old proverb says, “To the victor, go the spoils.”
But as the Cup season hits the homestretch this weekend, there’s an All-Star cast of drivers who have yet to earn themselves a crumb.
With...
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Jimmie Johnson, Rick Hendrick, and Lowe’s announcing a contract extension shouldn’t be a big surprise to anyone.
And that’s exactly how they want it.
“Everybody’s on the same page,”...
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Did You Notice? … Sterling Marlin was still racing competitively? Seriously, the poor guy hasn’t run the full distance in a Cup show since Homestead in November, 2008. So that’s why, at 52, it’s no...
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In his 25th year in Sprint Cup, Rick Hendrick hasn’t just reached the peak of his sport … he’s carving a new mountain upon which all others must climb. With just one week left in 2009, his driver...
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Did You Notice?… The out-and-out rebellion going on in every aspect of NASCAR right now? It started from the drop of the green on Sunday, when the drivers’ single-file Talladega parade for most of...
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Did You Notice? … Both Busch brothers caused their crew chiefs to burn out at the same time? It’s ironic that NASCAR’s moodiest siblings are transitioning to new head wrenches after a similar time...
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The thought hung over Denny Hamlin like the Balloon Boy story over America before the hoax made us all want the darned thing to fly away on its own. Fresh off his third career victory – setting a new...
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Did You Notice? … Being the Rookie of the Year in the Nationwide Series can be the equivalent of the Kiss of Death? We’re reminded of their freefall this week, when Landon Cassill gets his first...
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As an editor, you’ve got to have all sorts of column ideas in your back pocket in case someone calls out sick. And sure enough, Danny Peters (who usually fills this space on Tuesdays) got a little...
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Did You Notice? … How the simple threat of future job security in NASCAR can motivate drivers sitting in midpack? Every year about this time, there can be so many drivers who enter that ugly malaise...
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Kurt and Kyle Busch have had their differences through half-a-decade of running Sprint Cup cars together.
But this morning, they woke up with a whole lot more in common than just their famous last...
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Join Matt Carey this week as he debates whether NASCAR’s decision to race in the rain at Montreal is a good thing. He thinks it makes for a more interesting show; but do you disagree? Be sure...
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Did You Notice? … That with Michael Waltrip and now Bobby Labonte possibly out of full-time rides in 2010, the Cup Series has become more of a young man’s game than ever before – and the age of...
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Bobby Labonte’s poor performance behind the wheel of the No. 96 has to be at least a partial determining factor in not securing the funding needed for all 36 races. That opened the door for him...
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Carl Edwards is having one of those years – and it’s not the warm and fuzzy kind.
Now, I say that with all due respect considering the man with an occasional hot streak has handled everything with...
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Did You Notice? … That Bruton Smith doesn’t have as much power in NASCAR as we think he does sometimes? For the second straight year, Smith has been adamant that Kentucky will get a Cup Series date,...
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Did You Notice? … How amazing it is Jeff Gordon’s competing for the title this year? I say that not because of his ailing back (although that’s another story all to itself) … it’s because he’s busy...
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Join Matt Carey this week as he looks into his crystal ball and tells us who will be the 12 drivers left standing in the Chase after Richmond. Do you disagree with any of his picks? Be sure to let us...
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The Key Moment: Tony Stewart got the jump on Kyle Busch on a double-file restart with 23 laps to go. After that, it was his race to lose unless the No. 14 spun or ran out of fuel – neither of which...
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Did You Notice?* … How much pit road mistakes have played into the momentum of teams this season? It started in Daytona, when Dale Earnhardt, Jr. missed his pit en route to what’s been a disastrous...
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Denny Hamlin finally broke through on Monday, reaching Victory Lane after a 50-race drought. Is this the type of win that could lead to a momentum-building Chase performance … or was this just...
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While Pocono’s 500-miler was pushed back a day, the rain couldn’t do the same to my deadline. So while I’d love to write on the race itself, instead I started this Sunday night staring at a blank...
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Did You Notice? … All the hubbub surrounding Juan Pablo Montoya’s pit road penalty? In the wake of a boring race at Indy, it seems all everyone wants to talk about is a conspiracy theory, with NASCAR...
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Did You Notice? … Elliott Sadler needs to get over the Daytona 500? I was thinking this over when reading up on one of the driver’s favorite pastimes: golf. Most of us were captivated Sunday by Tom...
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The year was 1994; I was only 13, but the whirlwind of the Brickyard 400 remains as vivid in my mind as if it happened yesterday. From the moment the cars first hit the track for practice, drama was...
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Editor’s Note: For Part One of Matt’s retrospective on Davey Allison, click here.
Robert Yates Racing and the team’s talented young driver Davey Allison made their official...
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MOORESVILLE, N.C., July 13th, 2009 — After Devin Jones’ career-best 3rd place finish at Hickory Motorspeedway last weekend, the 14-year-old driver is eager to top his latest...
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So many are disgusted with the racing that went on Saturday night at Chicagoland. But to understand the present, we need to take a look at the past, reminding ourselves of the story how tracks like...
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Did You Notice? … With the Hall of Fame’s official selection of its Top 25, debate’s now raging on which five will be picked to be part of the Hall’s inaugural class. When that happens, there will...
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Third-Place Finish for Jones Exemplifies Vast Improvement
Jones Starting to Shine in Late Models
Devin Jones Racing Press
Three has been a lucky number for Devin Jones lately. While Jones has...
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Two restrictor plate races, two last lap finishes, and two frightening crashes. We’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly the last time out at both Daytona and Talladega, with battles for the win...
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Did You Notice? … That for all the Joey Logano hype, not everyone is jumping on the bandwagon quite yet? Certainly, Sunday’s race was a bonified step in the right direction for establishing the...
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The Key Moment: Joey Logano got the Lucky Dog not once, but twice, then caught a Lucky Break from Mother Nature to pull off one of the biggest upsets in the sport’s history.
In a Nutshell: A fine...
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Did You Notice? … There were stories on various television outlets that start and parkers need to be at the track each weekend so they don’t “lose touch” with what’s going on in the garage each...
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Did You Notice? … That in between all the controversy and opinions surrounding Kyle Busch and his guitar smashing, the No. 18 Cup team is in very real danger of not even making the Chase? Before we...
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As you wake up this morning, you’ll find so much written about what Tony Stewart has done this year … and rightfully so. As I said two weeks ago, the patience he’s showed as an owner/driver has been...
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Did You Notice? … That at the end of a provocative, fantastic
interview by ESPN’s Marty Smith, Carl Long took a swipe at NASCAR worth expanding on. In case you hadn’t heard, Long lost his appeal...
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It’s hard to believe a sport’s most successful athlete can go through a season all but forgotten.
But it’s a feeling Jimmie Johnson knows all too well at this point.
Heading into Dover this...
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Did You Notice? … All the wholesale changes that took place after NASCAR’s meeting with teams and owners Tuesday? No, I didn’t notice them either… and whether any happen at all is what’s really going...
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Did You Notice? … In this space last year, 11 races into the season we took a look at how the “Big Four” of Gibbs, Childress, Hendrick, and Roush were dominating the sport. Since we’re at the same...
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He that can have patience, can have what he will. – Benjamin Franklin
For over a decade, Tony Stewart was never confused with being a patient man. After all, the driver nicknamed Smoke for...
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Did You Notice? … How secretive NASCAR is trying to be with this whole drug thing? There’s two main questions that came up in my head since the positive test, ones I couldn’t answer immediately...
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Dynasty (n.): A group that maintains power for a significant period of time.
In America’s major sports, that word used to cause a sellout automatically — just mention it and a certain team...
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Did You Notice? … The big hubbub this week – by far – is whether Kyle Busch can get to 200 wins throughout his Cup career in NASCAR’s top three series.
What? I’ve been under the weather with some...
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There were three big reasons for three of NASCAR’s “Big Four” owners to smile on Saturday night. Joe Gibbs was busy congratulating Kyle Busch in Victory Lane, his young prodigy scoring a...
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In four years of covering the NASCAR beat, I never “officially” met David Poole. But you don’t have to know him to understand.
The word is beloved, and the year is 2006. I’m asked to speak for a...
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One of the biggest struggles we have in life is to try and figure out whether our glass is half empty or half full.
While contemplating Talladega, I think it’s appropriate to look at both.
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Did You Notice? … The Daytona 500 is less of an indicator of season-long success than ever before? Heading into the second restrictor plate race of the season, no less than six of this year’s top 10...
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This is a story about two men’s historic rise and fall from grace.
As Mark Martin took the checkered flag Saturday night, the desert night lit up with thousands of smiling faces. Sentimentality...
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Did You Notice? … With Jim France stepping down as CEO of International Speedway Corporation, it’ll be the first time since the company was incorporated in 1953 (then known as Bill France Racing,...
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As Joey Logano entered Victory Lane Saturday in Nashville, he flashed a smile the likes of which hasn’t been seen in months. Seven weeks after struggling through a nightmare of a rookie season in...
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Did You Notice? …What keeps Kevin Harvick from being labeled a serious championship contender? It’s his lifetime performance on 1.5-mile ovals. Those tracks used to be easy pickins’ for Harvick – his...
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After earning a full-time ride for the 2009 season, this was the year Aric Almirola was to step out of the shadows and into the limelight of what’s expected to be a strong Sprint Cup future....
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It’s been 12 years since Jeff Gordon made his first start at Texas Motor Speedway in the Spring of 1997. I was only 16… but I remember every bit of it. Gordon was nearing the peak of his career...
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Did You Notice? … How patience seems to still pay off in the long run? So often these days, Cup teams let their drivers go without giving them a full chance to develop. Between impatience amongst...
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Did You Notice? … Dale Earnhardt, Jr.’s been getting rather “lucky” these days? Just 19th in points after five races, so much talk has centered around the No. 88 team struggling to get it...
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As too many of you know firsthand, this recession has no filter in taking the innocent and making them innocent victims before they even know what hit them. Men and women who were the stars of their...
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Did You Notice? … A few little stat anomalies I picked up in the off week:
In the past three races, the No. 71 TRG Motorsports Chevrolet of David Gilliland has scored more points than Martin,...
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It’s a question us journalists hear all the time – especially after the three-week swing of racing at Fontana, Las Vegas, and Atlanta. If I had to count up all the random emails in my inbox from fans...
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Matt Kenseth may have won the Daytona 500, but Richard Petty Motorsports left the Great American Race as the talk of the town. With three cars in the top 10 — including a stellar third place...
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Matt’s stuck at home with a nasty case of the flu this week, so I’ve been pressed into service as a last-minute replacement for his column. Usually, I try my best to match his sarcasm when I sub in...
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Did You Notice? … Crew member Jimmy Watts’ penalty does not include a monetary fine … and I’m fine with that. A lot has been written about the pure idiocy of Watts running off pit road and onto the...
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No matter how many cars you have running on the Sprint Cup circuit these days, it’s difficult to get more than one to run competitively each week. For proof, look no further than Penske Racing, whose...
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Did You Notice? … The old guard is fighting back three weeks into the NASCAR season? After years of being dominated by the era of younger, more marketable drivers, these senior citizens still...
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Three races in, the NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings read like a who’s who of stock car racing. Four-time champ Jeff Gordon leads the pack, followed by reigning Nationwide King Clint Bowyer, Daytona...
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Did You Notice?… How much difference a pit crew makes to the success or failure of a race team? With Drew Blickensderfer taking the helm of the No. 17, the “Killer B’s” have been at the top of their...
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In racing, there’s that old analogy of “second place is the first loser.” And in certain ways Sunday, Jeff Gordon did come up short. As Matt Kenseth celebrated in Victory Lane late...
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Did You Notice? … The firestorm surrounding cutting the Daytona 500 48 laps short? Personally, I think the anger should be focused on the starting time of the race more than anything else. The 3:45...
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Like it or not, after just 380 miles the first race of the 2009 Sprint Cup season is officially in the books. Matt Kenseth was crowned the winner of just the fourth rain-shortened Daytona 500 in...
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Did You Notice… The giant black wrecking ball on the track Saturday night? NASCAR was looking for a new wrinkle to make the races more exciting, and…
Hold on a second. That was David...
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Heading into Speedweeks, Martin Truex, Jr.’s No. 1 on the side of his Chevy was synonymous with the one piece left alone from a desperation merger.
Now, that “1” stands for something far more...
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Dear NASCAR Faithful,
The offseason is over, and I can’t wait! What a refreshing change from the past few years; it’s amazing what a couple of weeks off not having to cover test after test in...
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Did You Notice… How this year’s offseason went extensive periods without any sort of NASCAR in the news? Yeah, it was merger central all the time with Richard Petty, Chip Ganassi, George Gillett, and...
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NASCAR has claimed 15 new owners applied for licenses in the month of January. Is this a bunch of hot air, or are we going to see a higher-than-expected car count at the Daytona 500… and beyond? More...
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Moments after taking his first career Darlington win, Kyle Busch got out of his car, hopped on the roof, and took a bow as if he were the hero. It was the culmination of a burnout performance worthy...
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Come with me on a journey into the battle that could have been.
Once upon a time, the laps are winding down at Homestead; and while you might not like a fuel mileage finish, for once, you’re...
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2008 Ride: No. 96 Hall of Fame Racing Toyota (2 Races)
No. 02 Home Depot Toyota (Texas)
2008 Primary Sponsors: DLP HDTV (No. 96)
Home Depot (No. 02)
2008 Owners: Jeff Moorad (No. 96), Joe...
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Dear Frontstretch readers,
After nine months and over 40 weeks of racing in NASCAR’s top three series, the season has come to a close once again. It’s been a tough year for the sport,...
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Did You Notice? … Yates Racing is cutting down to just two cars for next season? I’ve heard that talk for awhile now, and the move would put the beleaguered David Gilliland on the chopping block. If...
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Come with me on a journey into the battle that could have been.
Once upon a time, the laps are winding down at Homestead; and while you might not like a fuel mileage finish, for once, you’re...
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Did You Notice? … Jeff Gordon in the pre-race show on Sunday? When ESPN was interviewing him, I’ve never seen the guy look so old. Heck, he was talking about having breathing problems in his car!...
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For so many millions of us, favorite athletes become so much more. Role models for our kids, our communities, ourselves; they’re put on a pedestal of success we can only wish to achieve. Through...
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Sunday’s race at Phoenix could very well have been the day all teams in the Top 35 officially clinched their spots for 2009. But instead of the bubble teams following the lead of Jimmie Johnson...
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Did You Notice? … Juan Pablo Montoya’s sophomore season has officially become a nightmare? Of drivers who’ve started all 34 races in 2008, Montoya has the most DNFs with nine. Eight of those have...
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The Key Moment – Carl Edwards soft-pedaled 113.5 miles out of a tank of gas to cruise across the finish line first at half throttle.
In a Nutshell – Edwards day-long domination forced his...
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Sometimes, in love and in life, you have to take a gamble. But not everyone chooses to do so at the right time. Just like a craps table in Vegas, people will walk away before they’ve taken the chance...
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Did You Notice? … That in another championship battle, Kevin Harvick’s teams played it the right way? I was pleasantly surprised to see the No. 2 truck driven by Ryan Newman successfully run down and...
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Did You Notice? … NASCAR’s TV ratings at Martinsville were down significantly this weekend, an overnight 2.9 as compared to a 3.3 in 2007? That low rating isn’t going to do the Virginia track any...
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In a reversal of fortune from the first practice today, Jeff Gordon moved to the top spot during Happy Hour practice with a time of 20.002 seconds. Jimmie Johnson was close on his heels with a 20.009...
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Did You Notice? … How much rainouts are unfairly affecting qualifying these days? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen so much excitement from potential Sprint Cup debuts ruined by something as...
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