Inside Circle Track

Tyler Reddick grabs Roval pole; Hamlin mishap ends session early

The NASCAR Cup Series set its field of the Bank of America Roval 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon. That race will serve as the cutoff for the ‘Round of 12’ in the NASCAR Playoffs as the bottom four of those remaining in championship contention will be eliminated when the checkered flag waves on Sunday. After the qualifying session was completed, it was Tyler Reddick who earned the right to start the main event from the pole position. However, there was a bit of good fortune that fell the fast qualifier’s way. With cars still on track…

Kyle Larson facing uphill battle at Roval … but it’s not the first time

Following a mishap during Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series practice for the Bank of America Roval 400 on the road course located within the confines of the Charlotte Motor Speedway, Kyle Larson is facing an uphill battle going into Sunday’s race. The driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet will enter that event just 15 points above the cutline in a race that will serve as a cutoff for the ‘Round of 12’ in the NASCAR Playoffs. But this will not be the first time this driver and team have faced trouble on the Charlotte Roval. The damage suffered by…

Ross Chastain “absolutely” hopes to do more dirt racing

With the NASCAR Cup Series not planning to race on dirt in 2024, at least at Bristol Motor Speedway, it would seem as though the drivers in that series might be looking to shy away from racing on clay surfaces being that they may not need as much practice going forward in their primary rides. However, that is not the case for Trackhouse Racing star Ross Chastain. After making a couple of starts in a Dirt Late Model at Georgetown(DE) Speedway and Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, SC along with a Big Block Modified effort a New York’s Utica-Rome Speedway, the…

Turn 2 Blog: Too much teamwork? & Roval or Oval?

*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. Do teams and/or manufacturers get too caught up in working together on the drafting tracks? Richard: I think they absolutely do in the closing laps of the races held at Talladega and Daytona. I don’t blame the teams and manufacturers for working together during the first 450 miles of a race but once that last pit stop has been made, it’s every driver for himself. Trying…

Aric Almirola leads Ford charge in Talladega qualifying

Virtually everyone except the pole winner will discount the importance of qualifying at Talladega Super Speedway. On Saturday afternoon, it would be Stewart-Haas Racing and driver Aric Almirola who would be able to claim the bragging rights for their efforts in time-trials on the giant 2.66-mile track. The No. 10 Ford made it into the second round of the session then turned the fastest lap when it counted most to earn the right to lead the field to green on Sunday afternoon in the YellaWood 500. The 39-year-old native of Tampa, Florida was quick to praise his team as well…

Is Talladega really that random?

Whenever Talladega Super Speedway comes up in some NASCAR-related conversation, the notion that the winners there are totally random is usually brought up. “You could draw the winner’s name out of a hat” is something people will often say when asked to make a prediction. But are the races on the 2.66-mile high-banked track really that random? Yes, there are almost always big wrecks there that claim multiple cars at a time. Still, someone will survive those crashes and will go on to take the checkered flag at the front of the field. But do you really think one of…

How much is a NASCAR team worth compared to other sports?

Want to get into professional sports as an owner? If the answer to that question is yes then you better have a major source of revenue backing that desire because it takes what for the vast majority of us would be unthinkable amounts of money to get involved with an NFL, NBA or MLB franchise. By the time a potential owner acquired a franchise in one of those sports then began paying salaries of players, coaches and management, the cost would run well into the billions of dollars. NFL teams appear to come with the highest valuations among the sports…

John Hunter Nemechek focused on Xfinity title as Cup opportunity awaits

After a lackluster 2020 season in the NASCAR Cup Series with Front Row Motorsports, driver John Hunter Nemechek opted to leave the sport’s top division to accept a ride in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with Kyle Busch Motorsports thinking it would be better to run up front at a lower level than to run mid-pack at the top. At the time of that move, some questioned the decision but the Mooresville, North Carolina native quickly silenced the doubters by scoring five wins and placing third in the final 2021 Truck Series standings. Now, Nemechek is in prime position to…

Bubba Wallace grabs Texas pole

After the two rounds that made up NASCAR Cup Series qualifying for the the AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 at Texas Motor Speedway, it was Bubba Wallace who topped the charts earning the No. 1 starting position for Sunday’s race. It was the 23XI Racing Toyota driver’s first pole of the 2023 season and his second such career achievement. The race at the Fort Worth, Texas track will be the first of three in the ‘Round of 12’ portion of the NASCAR Playoffs. “It feels great,” Wallace told USA reporter Kim Coon following his effort. “I appreciate everybody on this 23…

Texas might be more of a wild card than people think

When fans, media and competitors consider which of the races within the second round could be one with the potential to turn the NASCAR Playoffs upside down, they typically think of the second race in the set at Talladega Super Speedway or the third on the makeshift road course known as the Roval at Charlotte Motor Speedway. But perhaps not enough credit is given to the AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 at the Texas Motor Speedway as a possible fly in the ointment. Yes, Talladega with its pack drafting and the ever present danger of the ‘Big One’ along with Charlotte…