Inside Circle Track

The Indy Road Course may produce a better race but it won’t be as prestigious

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is hallowed ground as far as the racing world is concerned. The 2.5-mile rectangular layout provides the setting for the most famous auto racing event in the world. The Indianapolis 500 has been contested every year since 1911 with the exception of the World War years. Winning at IMS would be a dream come true for any racer, and in 1994, the drivers from NASCAR would also be given the opportunity to experience that dream. And since then, legendary names such as Earnhardt, Gordon, Johnson and Jarrett have been among those NASCAR stars to visit the…

Ty Gibbs: True talent or a product of his situation?

One of the most interesting stories of the 2021 season so far in NASCAR has to be that of young Ty Gibbs. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has definitely proven that he can win races at the NASCAR Xfinity Series level as well as on the ARCA Menard’s Series. His most recent effort this weekend at Watkins Glen International only further cemented the fact that he can wheel a race car as he won the Xfinity Series Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey 200 in convincing fashion by leading more than half of the contested laps on the road course located in…

Kyle Larson outruns NASCAR field for Watkins Glen victory

By Holly Cain NASCAR Wire Service Kyle Larson had to navigate lapped traffic in the closing laps and hold off his hard-charging Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott – the track’s most prolific winner of late – to earn the victory in Sunday’s Go Bowling at the Glen. But the 28-year old Californian Larson has been a driver to count on this season, finishing either first or second 10 times through the 23 races to date. And Sunday’s trophy at the historic Watkins Glen International road course is Larson’s NASCAR Cup Series-best fifth of the year; 11th of his career….

Ty Gibbs adds another NASCAR Xfinity trophy with WGI victory

Aug. 7, 2021 By Holly Cain NASCAR Wire Service Even the very drivers he beat offered congratulations to 18-year old Ty Gibbs for the teenager’s victory in Saturday afternoon’s Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey 200 at the renowned Watkins Glen International road course. No matter which side of the track Gibbs re-started from, no matter the occasional hiccup getting up to speed, the grandson of NASCAR Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs proved he was up for the task – leading a race best (and career best) 43 of 82 laps to claim his third NASCAR Xfinity Series victory in 10 assorted…

Austin Hill wins weather interrupted NASCAR Truck Series race at The Glen

Aug. 7, 2021 By Holly Cain NASCAR Wire Service Race leader Austin Hill was declared the winner of Saturday’s United Rentals 176 at the famed Watkins Glen International road course after lightning in the immediate area forced the field to stop on pit road 11 laps from the scheduled race finish. Hill had taken a 1.023-second lead over John Hunter Nemechek before the trucks headed to pit road where they waited under red flag conditions for nearly an hour before the race was officially called. The race marked the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular season finale, officially setting the…

Is Kyle Larson worthy of comparisons to Foyt, Andretti?

It has been quite some time since drivers such as A.J Foyt and Mario Andretti used to compete and win in virtually everything on four wheels. However, there has been a revival of that sort of competitor as this year we have witnessed a driver earn wins across many of the disciplines that make up the sport of auto racing. Kyle Larson is achieving things that most modern-day racing fans have never seen in their lifetimes by acquiring checkered flags and trophies from highly coveted races within the various forms of motorsports. It’s rare here in the 21st century to…

Stewart Friesen positioning himself for multiple championships

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will end its regular season on Saturday on the road course at Watkins Glen International. When the checkered flag waves on the ‘United Rentals 176 at the Glen’, the NASCAR Playoffs field will be set for the seven-race run to the championship. There are seven drivers already locked into the playoff field with three spots still in question. While drivers Carson Hocevar, Stewart Friesen and Chandler Smith are positioned well going into the deciding race, they are not yet assured of a place. But one of those three drivers goes into the weekend with…

Ross Chastain to drive No. 1 car for Trackhouse in 2022

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Aug. 3, 2021) – Trackhouse Racing announced today that Ross Chastain will drive the organization’s second NASCAR Cup Series entry starting in 2022 and revealed his car will be the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro. Chastain will join the No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro driver Daniel Suárez when the first year Trackhouse organization expands into a two-car team in 2022. In June, Trackhouse announced the acquisition of Chip Ganassi Racing’s NASCAR assets, a move that secured two full-time NASCAR Cup Series entries and cleared the path for expansion. Chastain, who currently drives for Ganassi, has been one of the sport’s hottest…

Less practice and qualifying for NASCAR stars means more dirt racing opportunities

Since the return by NASCAR from pandemic restrictions in 2020, there have been numerous changes to the way the sport goes about its business. Among the biggest of those changes has been an almost complete elimination in the areas of race weekend practice and qualifying. The result of those changes has been far reaching in that the impact has been felt in others forms of the sport. Over the past 15 months or so, there have been multiple NASCAR drivers who have entered dirt track, short track, and road course races that might not have been an option had the…

NASCAR getting what it wanted from the Playoffs format

The two most recent NASCAR Cup Series races held before the two-week Olympics break have seen drivers score wins who were either on the cutline in the series standings or were well out of contention in terms of making the NASCAR Playoffs based on their points position. As a result, the list of drivers who have a chance at making the cut and being in contention for the title has been in a state of flux during this midsummer time out. And it would stand to reason that NASCAR and its television partners are just fine with that. Others, however,…