Category: NASCAR Blogs

Every driver and team on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wants to win. However, there are several drivers who NEED to win, and they need to win very soon for multiple reasons. Obviously, a win at some point during this stretch of seven events leading up to the NASCAR Playoffs would serve a driver and his team well by essentially assuring them of a spot in those playoffs. Further, the contract status of some drivers going beyond this current season may be undecided and a win could show their current team or a prospective future team that he is capable…

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The Daytona International Speedway is often referred to the as the ‘World Center of Racing’ but this past Independence Day weekend the track located in the Atlantic coastal town of Daytona Beach, Fla. could have been more aptly named the ‘World Center of Feel Good Stories’ based on the way its two NASCAR sanctioned races played out. And who doesn’t love a feel-good story, right? Since the middle of 2018 watermelon farmer turned racer Ross Chastain has become the hero of many who have longed to pursue a dream. The Florida native got the chance of a lifetime and made…

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As the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series approaches the halfway mark of the 2019 season, there have been some very exciting and interesting races while there have also been several events that have not exactly been riveting. And unfortunately for both NASCAR and its fans, the more recent races to have been run are among those considered to be some of the least interesting of the year. Using reporter Jeff Gluck’s(@Jeff_Gluck on Twitter) “Was it a good race?” poll as a guide, races at Pocono, Michigan and Sonoma(the three most recent events) have been counted among the worst of the…

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After making the decision to switch his points status from the NASCAR Xfinity Series to the Gander Outdoors Truck Series just a week before, Ross Chastain looked as if his gamble had paid off in a major way on Sunday at the Iowa Speedway. The Florida driver wheeled his Niece Motorsports Chevrolet truck into victory lane after taking the checkered flag as the apparent winner of the M&M’s 200 presented by Casey’s General Stores. As a result of that win, Chastain was all but assured of making the NGOTS Playoffs. It proved to be a very well received situation as…

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On the surface, the SpeedyCash.com 400 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series race held on Friday night at the Texas Motor Speedway might seem like a somewhat historic event in the history of NASCAR because of the fact that driver Greg Biffle came out of retirement to score his first win in any of NASCAR’s top three divisions since 2013 and his first NGOTS victory since 2001. However, this race could actually go down in the history books for another reason as there may very well have been a new precedent set by the sanctioning body regarding the officiating of stage…

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The significance of the date June 4, 2017 should not be lost on fans of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. It was on that date that seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson wheeled his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet into victory lane at Dover International Speedway marking his last win. To put it in perspective, it has been almost two full years since the winner of 83 races in NASCAR’s top division last took a checkered flag. Considering just how good Johnson and longtime crew chief Chad Knaus were for a run that lasted a decade and a half, the fact…

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The similarities are remarkable. William Byron will start the 2019 Coca-Cola 600 from the pole position on Sunday as he seeks his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win driving for Hendrick Motorsports. Despite having noteworthy credentials coming into his current opportunity, there have been some who have questioned whether the 21-year-old driver should even be where he is during his first year-and-a-half in the No. 24 Chevrolet. Poor finishes were somewhat the norm for Byron during his rookie campaign as he would prove to be the only Hendrick Motorsports driver to miss the NASCAR Playoffs ultimately finishing in the…

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In an article posted recently by Motorsport.com Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin stated his belief that the Coca-Cola 600 race held annually on Memorial Day weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway has outlived its purpose in terms of distance. The winner of this year’s Daytona 500 suggested that the traditional event would hold as much prestige at a distance of 300 miles as it does at its current distance of 600 miles. “The sport doesn’t ‘need’ any particular thing. I don’t think that anything is totally necessary,” Hamlin said in the article. “If the race was 300 miles,…

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The NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series has reach its traditional All-Star break in the schedule. The break is a time for the teams evaluate where they are at this point of the season. There have been some interesting story lines and surprises as the Coca-Cola 600 approaches this weekend. The main story of the 2018 season was the “Big 3”, how Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, and Martin Truex Jr. were winning nearly all of the races. As the playoffs approached, the “Big 3” weren’t winning as much and it was Joey Logano that knocked off all three in the finale…

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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. Richard: There was much talk and speculation coming into the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season regarding the implementation of a new package teams would have to use on the race cars. Horsepower limitations and various aerodynamic adjustments were mandated by NASCAR with the hope that the on-track product would be improved. And while those at the top of the sanctioning body might not say…

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