Inside Circle Track

The Four Drivers to Race for the Championship Will Be …

The strange and disjointed NASCAR Cup Series season is winding toward an ending with one more segment of three races remaining before the Championship 4 will race in the Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway on November 8th. Half of the 16 competitors who began the NASCAR Playoffs as title contenders have been eliminated with four more set to be removed following the next three events on the series schedule. The upcoming race this weekend at Kansas Speedway followed by contests at Texas Motor Speedway and Martinsville Speedway will determine who will be eliminated and who will remain with a…

Is racing in the rain the best way to determine NASCAR winners and playoff contenders?

Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 is set to take the green flag just after 2:30pm on the road course fashioned out of the infield and traditional NASCAR track at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. According to The Weather Channel, the forecast for that time of day calls for a 70% chance for rain in the Charlotte, NC area. That, of course, means there is the possibility that the NASCAR Cup Series could compete in wet conditions during a race that will serve as a cutoff for the second round in the NASCAR Playoffs. NASCAR calls for its teams to be…

At what point is a NASCAR season considered a failure?

In the immortal words of Talladega Nights movie character Ricky Bobby, “If you ain’t first, you’re last.” If that statement holds true, then where is the line drawn in the NASCAR Cup Series between success and failure? Fast forwarding from Ricky Bobby’s time to a time in which everything in the Cup Series seems to revolve around the NASCAR Playoffs, is there a definite point in which a driver and team’s season can be labelled as a failure? As we approach the second round of playoff cuts, perhaps this is a time in which such labelling can be applied. Were…

Alex Bowman to drive No. 48 for HMS in 2021; Plans for No. 88 TBA

Story and Photo provided by Hendrick Motorsports CONCORD, N.C. — Beginning with the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, Alex Bowman will drive the iconic No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE of Hendrick Motorsports with full-season primary sponsorship from Ally. The 27-year-old Bowman is enjoying a career-best year at NASCAR’s highest level. With five races remaining in the season, the Tucson, Arizona, native ranks in the top 10 in major statistical categories including stage wins, stage points, playoff points, total points, laps led, and average running position. He punched his 2020 playoff ticket on March 1 with a dominant victory at…

Travis Braden looking forward to upcoming big events

Whenever a major short-track pavement race is about to take place, Travis Braden has to be considered among the favorites to visit victory lane at the end of the evening. The Wheeling, WV native has in fact proven that he can win crown jewel events. He took the checkered flag from the Winchester 400 at Indiana’s Winchester Speedway back in 2016. And just last year the No. 26 Super Late Model scored the victory in this form of racing’s premier show when he won the Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway in Florida. The Winchester 400 will run this weekend(Oct….

Auto races should not end in a replay booth

Talladega Super Speedway produces some of the most intense and action-packed racing in all of NASCAR. Unfortunately, however, the longest oval in the sport does have a tendency to produce finishes that can be somewhat controversial and perhaps even disappointing. All three races held at the Alabama track this weekend among the sanctioning body’s top-three divisions could very well fall into both of those categories. Most notably, the NASCAR Cup Series YellaWood 500 ended with multiple penalties being handed out with some believing that at least one more infraction went unpunished. Denny Hamlin just barely beat Matt DiBenedetto to the…

Matt Craig, Nolan Pope earn CARS Tours wins at Florence

TIMMONSVILLE, S.C. (Oct. 3, 2020) – The Solid Rock Carriers CARS Tour’s inaugural trip to Florence Motor Speedway for the Aaron’s 250 saw Nolan Pope claim his first win in a thrilling last-lap battle with Timothy Peters, while Super Late Model points leader Matt Craig earned his third victory of the 2020 season. Craig knew that Trevor Noles, who started on pole after winning the U.S. Short Track Nationals at Bristol Motor Speedway the week before, would pose an immense challenge, but he felt confident in his chances to win as soon as he arrived at Florence on Friday. “We…

Time to bring Road Course Ringers back?

One of the first things that immediately jumped off the page at me when I took my first look at the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series schedule was the fact that there are now six points-paying road course races on the circuit. Joining mainstays Watkins Glen, Sonoma, and the Charlotte Roval will be Road America, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, and the Circuit of the Americas in the upcoming season. There will be more right turns than ever before on the traditionally oval dominant tour. The 2021 Busch Clash will also be run on the road course layout at the…

Turn 2 Blog: Is a Cup Series dirt race at Bristol really a good idea?

*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. Richard: The rumor mill had been churning for a while but on Wednesday the official announcement was made that the NASCAR Cup Series will contest a dirt race for the first time since 1970. Star drivers such as Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano will test their skills on a clay surface that will be put down on the high-banked Bristol…

Chad Knaus promoted to VP by Hendrick Motorsports

Story provided by Hendrick Motorsports CONCORD, N.C. — Hendrick Motorsports has promoted senior leaders Jeff Andrews and Chad Knaus into new roles designed to enhance the competition structure of the 12-time NASCAR Cup Series champions. The moves include the elevation of Knaus, one of the most decorated crew chiefs in NASCAR history, to an executive management position. As vice president of competition, Knaus will oversee the technical development of Hendrick Motorsports’ entire stable of Chevrolet race cars, including its implementation of NASCAR’s 2022 “Next Gen” vehicle. The Rockford, Illinois, native will be responsible for personnel dedicated to the organization’s four…