NASCAR Blogs – Page 9 – Inside Circle Track

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After two races, are enough people watching?

The grandstands at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California this past Sunday were obviously not filled to capacity although there was a very solid crowd there to attend the Pala Casino 400. Earlier in the day, however, the track had reported that the NASCAR Cup Series race was a sellout, and it very well could have been. Perhaps some tickets were sold to companies who did not use them all or perhaps the cool and rainy weather(it snowed there on Saturday) caused some southern California natives to opt for the warmer and drier environment of their living rooms instead of…

Turn 2 Blog: Evaluating Fox’s coverage & Daytona finishes

*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 are your thoughts on how all three races at Daytona finished? Richard: All three races in Daytona had a dissatisfying ending in that none of them actually took the checkered flag at speed to conclude the race. Although the finish of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race was out of the hands of the officials because of weather conditions, it is always disappointing to have…

Here’s why a Ford will win the Daytona 500

The Bluegreen Vacations Duel races held on Thursday night at the Daytona International Speedway demonstrated something very important that will likely prove to be a factor in deciding the eventual winner of the Daytona 500. Of course, picking a winner in the races held at this track and its sister venue, the Talladega Super Speedway, is much akin to playing darts blindfolded using your left hand(provided the thrower is right handed). Still, clues emerged that have been evident in previous years as well that can help in the predicting of a winner in ‘The Great American Race’. A Ford Mustang…

There can’t possibly be 19 different winners again … right?

The NASCAR Cup Series proved to be highly competitive in 2022 with a total of 19 different drivers making a trip to victory lane at some point during the season and that’s not including a driver who won the NASCAR All-Star Race but won no points-paying events. The competition was so evenly spread out that four drivers(including the injured Kurt Busch) who won a race did not make the NASCAR Playoffs. Whether it was because the teams are becoming more evenly matched or the Next Gen car brought an element of equality, there was a record-tying number of individual victors….

Turn 2 Blog: Who has the most to prove going into 2023?

*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. Is the Daytona 500 still the most prestigious race on the NASCAR schedule? Richard: There are some who will argue that the Daytona 500 has lost some luster over recent years because of the fact that it has the randomness that comes along with the pack racing generated by restrictor plate/tapered spacer type of action but I disagree with that. This race has always been and…

Heat races could add value to some NASCAR race weekends

The NASCAR Cup Series schedule is currently in the middle of a pair of events that use what essentially amounts to heat races to set the starting grid. The Busch Light Clash held inside the L.A. Coliseum used heat races to set its lineup and the Daytona 500 has throughout its history employed the Bluegreen Vacations Duels to establish the starting order for the sport’s biggest race. So should there be more races that use preliminary races to set the field? Arguably, the best racing of the weekend during the Busch Light Clash came during the heat races. The 150-lap…

Did The Clash actually do anybody any good?

NASCAR ought to be applauded for reaching out to new audiences and finding new or renewed venues for that purpose. That said, it would seem unlikely that the second running of the Busch Light Clash at the L.A. Coliseum did very much to hook new fans. In the space of a few hours, what began as a sensation stirring spectacle devolved into a tiresome grind. Sunday night began with some relatively entertaining heat races that featured many of the sights and sounds that a perspective new fan might find intriguing. Good competition, some fender rubbing, and even a dust up…

Is there enough rising talent in the pipeline to fill potentially vacant seats?

It looks as if NASCAR could be set for a generational change such as that from a few years ago when drivers such as Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards left the sport within the space of just a few seasons. Now, it appears as if Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. are at the age where they will be stepping away in the not-to-distant future. Of course, that process has already begun. Kurt Busch retired last year and Kevin Harvick has announced that this will be his last as a full-time competitor….

Which career would you rather have: Rusty Wallace or Denny Hamlin?

Is winning a championship the best gauge of career success in the NASCAR Cup Series? Many contend that Denny Hamlin is the best driver to have never(at least not yet) won a championship at the sport’s top level. It’s not very likely that anyone would say the 42-year-old driver’s career has been a disappointment despite not having earned a title. After all, he has won a total of 48 Cup races during his time wheeling the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11. Importantly, among those victories have been three Daytona 500 triumphs which, of course, is NASCAR’s premier event. But still,…

Kyle Larson’s dirt racing season off to strong start following Wild West Shootout

It is not unusual to be talking about Kyle Larson’s dirt racing adventures at this time of year. Normally in mid-January the driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on the NASCAR Cup Series would be coming off a run in the week-long Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals, an event he has won on two separate occasions. However, the 30-year-old racer opted this year to skip the contest for a ‘Golden Driller’ trophy held each year in Tulsa, Oklahoma in favor of another multi-day dirt racing affair. Larson entered the Rio Grande Waste Services Wild West Shootout for Dirt…