Last race of the season and the winner was Gael Brooks with an 868.
I scored a 717 and finished the season in 32nd place. Boo.
Allison Smith was our half-way point overall leader and she ended up the overall leader at the end, too. She also won three weeks [...]
We need to talk.
We’ve had a pretty decent relationship for the past 15 years (the past five I wrote about here in Track Talk). Some of those years were unbelievable. Yep, the late ’90s were really good for us.
But let’s be honest with each other. The past five years [...]
AP photo
Ron Hornaday Jr., NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion
AP photo
Kyle Busch, NASCAR Nationwide Series champion
Jimmie Johnson, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion
[...]
I forgot to post last week’s winner so let’s cover the past two races.
The winner for the Dickies 500 was Curtis Melton with a 793. And, the winner for the Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 was Larry Gowen with an 890.
I scored a 659 and 779, and am [...]
Jimmie Johnson celebrates with his crew after winning the Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 Presented by Pennzoil at Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale. (AP photo)
Jimmie Johnson’s crew did what championship teams do, right?
They rebound from adversity.
Johnson wrecked on Lap 3 last week at Texas and today at [...]
Pre-race observations…
As Jeff Gordon was walking out to driver introductions a woman asked him to sign her hat. As he handed it back to her, she clutched it to her chest, squealed and jumped up and down.It was adorable, if not a little weird.
And P.S. to that, Gordon received the [...]
I got to the track bright and early this morning. It was just me and a bunch of crew guys making our way from the parking lot to the infield.
For a person who works a lot of 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. shifts you better offer something good [...]
Well, well, well… next week is going to be pretty interesting if Denny Hamlin has anything to do about it.
During today’s Nationwide race, Hamlin bumped Brad Keselowski then Keselowski bumped Hamlin and then spun him out.
After the race Keselowski played it cool and said it was over to him.
Hamlin was [...]
OK, this race is called the Able Body Labor 200. I’m still waiting for someone to tell me what that means because, like I said on Twitter, Able Body Labor sounds like a birthing class.
I guess I should Google it.
The race hadn’t even started and someone was black-flagged for not [...]
There’s was a bit of a rain delay earlier as it started sprinkling just as Cup practice was starting.
The cars finally got on track about 30 minutes ago.
It should end close to 2 and then we’ll get ready for the Nationwide race.
Sun’s come out a bit but it’s still [...]
AP photo
Jeff Gordon convinced Rick Hendrick to hire Jimmie Johnson when no one had ever heard of the guy.
Way to go, Jeff.
It’s easy to assume that Gordon might regret that decision now that Johnson is about to tie him with four championships.
I know I would but I [...]
Denny Hamlin just left the media center and he summed up NASCAR’s problems in one simple sentence.
“A lot of people just agree with NASCAR because they don’t want to get in trouble with NASCAR but the truth is the truth.”
Amen.
I’m not one to say what that truth is but there’s [...]
In 2010, Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski will be the only two full-time Sprint Cup drivers who plan to run the entire Nationwide series, too.
It’s always bothered me that the big shots took spots in the field from guys who are trying to gain experience or make a name for [...]
AP photo
I’m all settled in here at Phoenix International Raceway.
I intended to get here a lot earlier than 12:30 p.m. but when I was still awake at 3:30 a.m. I realized waking up at 8 a.m. was not going to happen.
I left Tucson a little later than [...]
Note: I will be at Phoenix International Raceway Friday-Sunday. Check Track Talk for updates or follow along on Twitter at twitter.com/TrackTalkBlog
If you watched even 10 minutes of the Texas race today then you had about 20 reminders that Jimmie Johnson wrecked on Lap 3.
It’s all anyone wanted to talk [...]
Who is going to step up and wipe that smug smile off his pretty little face? And when? (AP photo)
I just had an epiphany.
It’s not Jimmie Johnson’s fault that NASCAR is boring.
It’s not Jimmie Johnson’s fault that NASCAR is boring.
It’s not Jimmie Johnson’s fault that NASCAR is [...]
Ah, just a few races left and then we will crown a winner.
The weekly local winner was Clay Templin with a score of 906.
I scored a respectable 801. Well, respectable for me.
Click here to play along with us. There are only four races left.
[...]So Denny Hamlin held off Jimmie Johnson for the victory today at Martinsville.
Yay! Woo-hoo!
Someone other than Johnson wins!
Oh… wait…
Johnson came in second which means he still increased his points lead over everyone except Hamlin.
Sigh.
Is it too late to change next year’s schedule and find a way to Jimmie-proof the Chase? [...]
I wasn’t able to post the winners in the Fantasy Racing Challenge for a couple weeks while I was on vacation so let’s catch up.
The winner of the Kansas race was Lisa Moritz with a 937. The winner of the California race was Ed Pieske with an 897. [...]
I was stuck at work tonight so I followed all the NASCAR-related Twitter action while watching the race.
Here’s what I learned:
Jeff Gordon has a potty mouth and likes to drop F-bombs on his radio. What happened to the sweet, innocent kid who toasted Dale Earnhardt with milk? NASCAR fans on Twitter [...]Today was the big day. SPEED dedicated hours of TV coverage to the announcement of the inaugural class for the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
The five lucky guys are Dale Earnhardt, Bill France Sr., Bill France Jr., Junior Johnson and Richard Petty.
From NASCAR:
The NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel, consisting of [...]
MCT
Jeff Gordon wins. Steve Letarte is a genius.
Jeff Gordon leads the points. Steve Letarte can do no wrong.
Jeff Gordon’s car goes from great to terrible. Steve Letarte is a hack who needs to be fired.
We hear it all the time. It had quieted down since Gordon spent [...]
The story of the Atlanta race tonight was all the loose race cars. And the tires. And all the problems for big names drivers like Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart.
Thankfully most of them are safely in the Chase… except for poor little Kyle.
There is now only [...]
After a disappointing Carfax 400 which left me with a dismal 549 score, I rebounded a little and scored a 757 this week.
And who was our weekly winner? None other than Allison Smith. She may have lost the overall lead but she’s won three weeks and that means [...]
Just who was that guy who won in Bristol last night.
Looked like Kyle Busch but it certainly didn’t sound like Kyle Busch.
He thanked his team about 10 times on the radio. He had nothing but kind words to say about runner-up Mark Martin.
“Mark Martin, what a class act. He deserved [...]
Last year’s Chase drivers and past series champions visited the White House today to honor 2008 champion Jimmie Johnson along with President Barack Obama.
Photos and video below:
[...]
I did so bad this week that my score doesn’t even count, meaning it’s one of my lowest scores of the season.
Ouch.
Yep, it was a dismal 549.
But it seems it was a bad week for most. The local high scores are usually in the 800s and this week’s [...]
The race Sunday at Michigan International Speedway turned out to be pretty exciting.
Of course that was only because we didn’t know who had enough fuel to make it to the end.
And, oh my god, would Dale Earnhardt Jr. win?
Well, no, he didn’t. He needed Jimmie Johnson, Brian Vickers and Jeff [...]
Well, well, well, I am making my move back to the top. OK, not the top, just a little less embarrassing position.
I’m up to 30th after scoring a 747 this week.
Our winner was Edie Guild with a score of 865.
One of these weeks I am going to crack [...]
Yeah, you read that headline correct.
I want Tony Stewart to win the championship this season.
It’s his first season as a driver/owner.
He’s leading in the standings by 260 points over Jimmie Johnson.
He’s been in victory lane three times this season and has 18 top-10 finishes in 22 races.
Sure, Johnson has also [...]
AP
It wasn’t Mark Martin. It wasn’t Jimmie Johnson. It wasn’t Tony Stewart. It wasn’t Kyle Busch.
It was Denny Hamlin.
I like seeing guys who don’t win all the time pick up a victory. (And, no Joey Logano and David Reutimann don’t count.)
Hamlin had been in a pretty [...]
My editor pointed out to me today that if he were eligible he would be in 11th place.
Show-off.
The days of me dreaming about the top 10 or top 15 are slipping away. I sit in 36th place now.
Sigh.
This week’s winner is Debbie Temple. She scored an 882 and [...]
Just six races remain until the Chase field is set. So I thought this would be the perfect time to see how well – or not so well – my 12 pre-season Chase picks are doing.
Here they are, in alphabetical order:
1. Greg Biffle: 11th in points, 609 behind leader, wins, [...]
Kyle Busch crashes. Dale Earnhardt Jr. blows up. Juan Montoya dominates. Jimmie Johnson wins.
The end.
AP, Getty
Kyle Busch sits in the garage while his car is worked on after he hit the Turn 4 wall. (AP photo)
Kyle Busch has three wins this season.
He also has 12 finishes outside of the top 15, including Sunday’s 38th-place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
That just isn’t going to [...]
Juan Montoya drives past his pit stall after being penalized for speeding on pit road. (AP photos)
Any true NASCAR fan loves a good conspiracy theory, right?
Whether it’s favoring Dale Earnhardt Jr. (yeah, dude can’t buy a win but some still think NASCAR looks out for him) [...]
AP photo
The big news today is that NASCAR says that Jeremy Mayfield tested positive for methamphetamine a second time on July 6.
And maybe even more damning than the test, because Mayfield has been screaming “false positive” since this all started, is an affidavit from his stepmother Lisa [...]
I earned my highest score in six weeks but still fell three more spots down to 37th. Sigh.
Our weekly winner was Lee Bradshaw with an 857.
Enjoy the off-week. Then it will be time to hit the Brickyard.
All you need to do is win one week to be eligible [...]
Now we all know I am not a Mark Martin fan.
I didn’t like him 15 years ago and I see no reason to start liking him now.
I have never trusted those “Aw shucks,” nice-guy, never-say-a-bad-thing-about-anyone types.
I also don’t trust people who completely deprive themselves of junk food. Eating a doughnut [...]
AP photo
For reasons I don’t understand, a group of artists have been sculpting a life-size replica of Kyle’s Busch’s car in chocolate.
Oh, who am I kidding? We don’t need reasons to create something using that much chocolate.
Jim Victor of Philadelphia is the main artist and he’s been [...]
All right, folks, I think I am officially done. What place am I in now? Oh, 34th. Yeah. Not good.
Local weekly winner was Rachel Ellis with a score of 832.
All you need to do is win one week to be eligible for the grand prize so you can [...]
Well, it was certainly an exciting race.
I’ll be interested to see what Kyle Busch has to say about that last lap after he has a chance to calm down.
Here are some pics from the race and the pre-race festivities.
AP, MCT
AP photo
I am not a Kyle Busch fan. (Though I did used to tolerate him.) I am not a Tony Stewart fan. (Though I was kind of in love with him when I was 18.)
Tony Stewart deserved to win the race in Daytona tonight. He dominated and [...]
MCT
Juan Montoya is only in his third full-time Cup season and he just might make the Chase this year.
Montoya came into the series with a lot of attention focused on him. After all he was a former CART champion, Indianapolis 500 winner and Formula One driver.
He [...]
Every now and then I forget to update my team. Usually it doesn’t hurt too much but when you go from Sonoma to Loudon it does.
And because of that I fell to 22nd place in the standings. Boo.
Our local winner was Sherry Rost with a score of 883.
And [...]
Man, if you guys don’t follow #nascar on Twitter on race days, you should.
Folks were not pleased with the outcome of Sunday’s race.
Did I want the race to continue? Just look at who was sitting second and you’ll know the answer to that question.
Is winning your first race due to [...]
I didn’t think I did very well this week because of some not-so-common top-10 finishers but I did well enough to climb up to 16th.
Allison Smith was our weekly winner for the second time. She’s also the overall leader.
After next week, the overall leader gets a fancy autographed [...]
AP photo
Kasey Kahne pulled off an unexpected win in Sonoma today. Middle-aged female NASCAR fans must be pretty happy right now.
I thought Kahne was a sitting duck with road course expert Tony Stewart behind him.
The fact that he held him off during four late restarts was [...]
My new goal of making the top 10 took a hit this week. I slipped from 15th to 19th.
We’ve hit the point where only our top 15 scores count and that hurt insted of helped me.
Our weekly winner was Brandon Gastelum with a score of 862.
Just a couple [...]
AP photo
I just can’t bring myself to care about his comeback.
Is it a nice story? Absolutely.
Does it make middle-aged people feel better about themselves? I guess although I don’t know why. Unless you are 50 and still competing with people half your age I would think [...]
What happened to you guys this week? I somehow managed to jump from 23rd to 15th-place in our overall standings.
And I did that by only scoring a 751. Was it a bad race for most of you guys?
My goal was top 20 so maybe I should set my [...]
Sunday’s race in Pocono turned into a fuel mileage race. Tony Stewart had just enough fuel to finish up front, do some burn-outs and drive to Victory Lane. His dad crying was super sweet.
Rick Hendrick may not be the owner of the 14 car but he still made an appearance [...]
AP photo
Sigh.
When Kyle Busch wins a race and takes a bow to the displeasure of most NASCAR fans, I smile.
When he talks smack about the one who all other drivers are afraid to criticize – ahem, Dale Earnhardt Jr. – I smile.
But Saturday’s post-race celebration at the [...]
AP photo
So back in February when I made my Chase predictions I also said I had a feeling about Kevin Harvick.
Yes, I picked him to win the championship this season. I had no real reason other then I felt like he was due. He’s been competitive [...]
I don’t know what happened to everyone this week but I jumped up to 23rd place! Yeah, I’m on my way to the top 20.
I scored my third highest total of the season, 781, and that was with Jeff Gordon finishing well outside the top 10. (Yes, I [...]
• Jimmie Johnson did an impressive job of hunting down Tony Stewart and Greg Biffle in the closing laps in Dover today.
• Lance McGrew took over the crew chief position for Dale Earnhardt Jr. a week earlier than planned when Brad Keselowski failed to qualify for the Cup race.
Earnhardt [...]
Dale Earnhardt Jr. talks with reporters on Thursday. (AP photo)
We knew it was coming.
Rick Hendrick had to make a change to the 88 team and the most logical step was to try a new crew chief, right?
So long Tony Eury Jr. Hello Lance McGrew. Team manager Brian [...]
OK, we were left with a pretty strange top 10 due to the rain at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
Robby Gordon, Joey Logano, David David Reutimann all in the top 10 means I scored a sad 661.
Our weekly winner was Allison Smith with a score of 740. She also took [...]
Memorial Day weekend is the biggest weekend of the year for us racing folks.
The Coca-Cola 600, the Indianapolis 500, the Monaco Grand Prix – lucky us.
I’ve been in Houston visiting the fam for a couple days and will be here until next week.
So I just wanted to wish everyone a [...]
Tony Stewart with his quasi teammates, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. (Charlotte Observer)
If you have read this blog even semi-regularly over the past four and a-half years then you should know about my love-hate relationship with Tony Stewart.
I will give a short recap:
I loved, loved, LOVED him [...]
Images from the NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., Saturday, May 16, 2009.
[...]
AP photo
Tony Stewart won the NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star race Saturday night and picked up a check for $1 million.
It was his first win as an owner/driver.
More tomorrow…
[...]
AP photo
During the first four races of the season Ryan Newman finished no better than 22nd.
Since then he has put up top-10 finishes in five of the past seven races and three-straight top-five finishes.
Newman has fought his way up to eighth in the points standings.
If I’d been [...]
Ladies and gentlemen, I jumped up from 59th place to 52nd this week.
Yeah!
I scored a 742 but our big winner was Larry Steckler who put up an 835 score.
I still can’t find a way to break the 800-point mark.
Good thing I have about 25 races left to try [...]
MCT
Jeremy Mayfield has turned himself into the answer to a trivia question.
Who was the first Cup series driver to be suspended under NASCAR’s drug policy?
Jeremy Mayfield.
Ding ding ding. You are correct.
NASCAR’s policy calls for random testing for drivers and crew members throughout the year and at [...]
This is the second installment in a new monthly feature. I’m partnering with fellow NASCAR blogger, 4ever3 from the NASCAR Ranting and Raving blog, for a little friendly he said/she said debate. He’s a diehard Dale Earnhardt fan. I’m a diehard Jeff Gordon fan. He’s Canadian. I’m American. We’re [...]
The Indianapolis 500 is scheduled for May 24, 2009.
Here’s a look at some of the track’s great racing history from the Indy Racing League to NASCAR to Formula One.
[...]
So I totally forgot to submit picks last week so my Richmond drivers were the same as my Talladega drivers.
I scored a 655 and held on to my 59th-place ranking. Woo!
Our big winner was Wesley Nelson from Kansas City, Missouri. He scored a 793. He raked up lots [...]
Kyle Busch celebrated his 24th birthday by winning both the Nationwide and Cup races at Richmond. (AP photo)
… but I just can’t.
I’ve seen him sit in front of the media at press conferences and act like he’d rather be anywhere else in the world. I’ve seen him [...]
We have our first repeat winner this week, ladies and gentlemen, and it’s Elaine Johnsen.
Big wrecks took out lots of the big names at Talladega so we ended up with an unusual top 10. That made for some low scores.
I scored a pathetic 446. Ugh.
But Elaine bested me [...]
AP photo
“We’ll race like this until we kill somebody. Then (NASCAR) will change it.”
That was Carl Edwards’ reaction after his huge wreck Sunday at Talladega which sent him spiraling upside down into the safety fence and sent several fans to the hospital with minor injuries.
Now Jimmie Johnson [...]
NASCAR announced that the champions week activities are moving to Las Vegas after being held in New York City since 1981.
This sounds like a great idea to me.
Who wants to spend tons of money in New York in late November or early December when it’s about 500 [...]
AP photo
Every week I see the odds to win come across the AP wire and I never pay much attention to it.
But this weekend I will be in the land of fun and sin known as Las Vegas to celebrate the anniversary of my birth so I [...]
OK, my performance this past weekend was dismal. I scored a 639 and dropped to 62nd.
The local winner was Susan Anderson who scored an 812.
She’s now eligible for our big grand prize that includes tickets to the April 2010 race at Phoenix International Raceway.
If you’re not playing [...]
AP Photo/Matt York
Mark Martin broke a 97-race winless streak Saturday night at Phoenix International Raceway.
Here’s audio of the full post-race press conference at PIR with Martin and his crew chief, Alan Gustafson.
[...]
Cell phone pic from victory lane posted via TwitPic. Click image to enlarge.
Former Roush Racing teammates Jeff Burton and Matt Kenseth stopped by victory lane to congratulate Mark Martin. Jack Roush stopped by, [...]
I have been so wrapped up in Twitter that I haven’t even blogged today.
The highlight of the day so far was Michael Strahan and Carl Edwards coming into the media center to take some questions and talk about Subway.
As I [...]
First Kurt, now Kyle.
Kyle Busch stopped by the media center to talk about his qualifying run for the Cup race.
“(The car) felt pretty good off the truck. We made some minor changes to it,” he said. “Nothing really too huge. This is a lot better than I’ve ever run here [...]
Dale Earnhardt Jr. met with the media today and questions about his diet and exercise kept popping up.
It’s obvious he isn’t as skinny as he was 10 years ago and he’s trying to incorporate better eating habits into his life.
Now, Earnhardt is nowhere near fat but he is trying to [...]
Kurt Busch stopped by the PIR media center and was asked about having the most poles at Phoenix International Raceway.
Just one problem, he’s never won a pole at PIR. The record holder is one Mr. Ryan Newman.
“I feel like this track is a track that has elluded me for getting [...]
Jeff Burton had a little fun with the media today at PIR.
He was about to be asked a question about Jeff Gordon and he interrupted and went on a funny little rant about how Gordon wasn’t supposed to ever be good again because he is a family man now.
Question: I’m [...]
I know that Phoenix International Raceway always ranks high with drivers when asked what their favorite tracks are.
But when they come to town and are asked about the track could they really say anything other than “I love this place soooo much”?
I guess they could if they were someone like [...]
Twitter is everywhere these days and I had promised myself I wouldn’t get sucked into its vortex but I wasn’t strong enough.
The Star has a couple different Twitter accounts and I have added another for Track Talk. I think my random observations from Phoenix International Raceway this weekend will find [...]
Maybe I’m starting to get the hang of this. I got my highest score this week with 796. I’m getting close to my goal of cracking the 800-point mark.
This week’s winner was Elaine Johnsen from Hyde Park, New York with a score of 885.
If you’re not playing along [...]
I really hate the stereotypical Texas celebration but today I’ll deal with it. (AP photo)
Jeff Gordon has been so close to winning in nearly every race so far this season.
When he didn’t win at Martinsville I thought his next best chance would be at Phoenix International Raceway.
Yes, [...]
This is the first installment in a new monthly feature. I’m partnering with fellow NASCAR blogger, 4ever3 from the NASCAR Ranting and Raving blog, for a little friendly he said/she said debate. He’s a diehard Dale Earnhardt fan. I’m a diehard Jeff Gordon fan. He’s Canadian. I’m American. We’re [...]
I’m posting this for two reasons – Bobby Labonte is a fellow Texan. My mom loves Bobby Labonte and only refers to him as “my Bobby.” (No idea how my dad feels about that.)
This week Labonte was inducted into the Texas Motorsports Fall of Fame. Then he decided to [...]
So I still can’t crack the 800-point mark. That’s become my goal in the Fantasy Racing Challenge. This past weekend I scored a 763.
That’s my highest score of the season. Yay!
For the first time this year we had a lady as our big winner. Gloria Cisneros scored an [...]
For the first 150 laps or so of the race at Martinsville today it looked like my bold prediction last week that Jeff Gordon was finally going to find his way to victory lane was going to come true.
But it wasn’t to be.
Then it looked like Denny Hamlin had it [...]
AP photo
The 2009 Sprint Cup season is five races old and Dale Earnhardt Jr. is 19th in points, 276 points behind teammate Jeff Gordon, who tops the standings.
Earnhardt lives under a microscope and all that attention lately seems to focus on him not living up to expectations.
Well, [...]
As the weeks go on I fall lower and lower in the rankings. I’m starting to think I should just pick 10 guys and ride out the season with them in the same exact spot.
It’d have to work out for me eventually, right?
I only scored 653 this week [...]
Getty
How beautiful a sight is that image above? I enjoy traveling the world but I think Bristol and Talladega are two of the places that I want to go to more than anywhere else. It looks amazing.
We’ve had five races this season and all have been won [...]
Tony Stewart and NHRA driver Tony Schumacher spent Thursday at Fort Knox in Kentucky at the base’s Close Combat Tactical Trainer Facility.
Somewhere along the way Stewart was given a gun… a big gun.
He fired an M4 rifle simulator from the driver’s seat of a Humvee simulator.
Read more about Stewart’s day [...]
I walked away from the Atlanta race with my highest score of the season, 711, in the Fantasy Racing Challenge. Woo-hoo! But I still managed to drop from 48th to 53rd. Boo.
And I’m now 22,907 out of 43,043 nationally. I hope I can crack the 20,000 mark [...]
