*Turn 2 Blog is a regular feature on InsideCircleTrack.com. Here, site operators Michael Moats and Richard Allen take turns offering their thoughts on the NASCAR and pavement short track racing topics of the day. What has happened to the road courses? Richard: When the Next Gen came along it looked promising in the beginning. Racing on the much-scorned intermediate tracks seemed to improve. And if that proved to be a long-term fix, it would be great news for NASCAR. After all, the road courses and short tracks would take car of themselves, right? Well, that is not proving to be…

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*Turn 2 Blog is a regular feature on InsideCircleTrack.com. Here, site operators Michael Moats and Richard Allen take turns offering their thoughts on the NASCAR and pavement short track racing topics of the day. Indy RC vs Indy oval? Richard: It seems like the races held on the Indianapolis Road Course have been a bit hit or miss. The 2023 version had the feel-good story of Michael McDowell and his lesser financed Front Row Motorsports team winning to lock themselves into the NASCAR Playoffs, but in reality, the racing was pretty good though not necessarily great. Overall, it was a…

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Bubba Wallace entered last weekend’s ‘Verizon 200 at the Brickyard’ NASCAR Cup Series race in relatively good shape as far as making the NASCAR Playoffs is concerned. The 23XI Racing driver was 15th in the standings a full 36 points ahead of Michael McDowell(16th) and 38 markers above the cutline. However, that race held on the road course at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway proved to be a worst case scenario for the Mobile, Alabama native. Neither Wallace nor McDowell had a victory to their credit entering that event but due to the fact that, unlike last season, there had…

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If Chase Elliott were to be placed in a do or die type scenario to save his NASCAR Cup Series life in terms of making it into the NASCAR Playoffs or not, Watkins Glen International would almost certainly be the track any fan of the popular driver would want for that race. And this weekend, that is pretty much the scenario at hand. After missing six races due to an injury suffered as the result of a snowboarding accident and one event due to suspension, Elliott currently ranks 19th in the Cup Series standings 80 points behind Bubba Wallace, who…

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Noah Gragson has never been one to shy away from controversy, and on Saturday morning, his own actions have once again placed him in the eye of a storm. It was revealed that the driver of the No. 42 Chevrolet’s own team, Legacy Motor Club, had suspended him for actions that, as the press release announcing the suspension said, “do not represent the values of our team”. The organization stated at that time the rookie pilot would be replaced for Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway by NASCAR Xfinity Series regular Josh Berry. NASCAR then took the team’s…

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Race car drivers should not be friends with each other. That’s it. That’s the answer to the question in the headline of this piece. Each person who flips the switch when drivers are told to start their engines is there to do the best that he/she can do for their team, their sponsors, their families, and themselves. The split second it could take to decide what to do in a given situation because of a relationship off the track could be the difference in winning and losing a race. If the decision of how to contest a position comes down…

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Voting was held on Wednesday to determine the newest inductees into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Donnie Allison was recognized as the Pioneer Era selection while driver Jimmie Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus were chosen from the so-called Modern Era ballot. While it it should not be shocking to anyone that Johnson and Knaus will be placed into the Hall of Fame, it would seem more than a little surprising that neither received unanimous support from the voters. Of the 57 ballots cast, 53 were marked in favor of Johnson and 46 were in favor of Knaus. Together the…

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*Turn 2 Blog is a regular feature on InsideCircleTrack.com. Here, site operators Michael Moats and Richard Allen take turns offering their thoughts on the NASCAR and pavement short track racing topics of the day. Which provided the better racing- Pocono or Richmond? Richard: Following Sunday’s Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway, Denny Hamlin said that racing purists would appreciate that race because it presumably brought in the elements of strategy and tire conservation. On the other hand, Pocono provided not only entertaining racing but a myriad of storylines as well. According to voters in the poll conducted weekly by Jeff…

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Denny Hamlin won the race but was vehemently booed by the fans during his post-race interview. Kyle Larson gave an angry post-race interview in which he said he now feels as if he has to race Hamlin more aggressively. Austin Dillon and his grandfather/team owner were very angry with former Richard Childress Racing driver Tyler Reddick. Ryan Preece angrily, and perhaps even physically, confronted Corey LaJoie after the race. And finally, Joey Logano launched into a verbal tirade directed at a pair of tow truck drivers. With all of this going on, the most recent NASCAR Cup Series race had…

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