Saturday evening's Nationwide Series race at Atlanta featured just one lead change. Polesitter Chase Elliott, racing at his home track, led the first 36 laps and then handed it to JR Motorsports driver Kevin Harvick. Harvick led the last 159 laps through two cautions en route to a second straight Nationwide win at the Georgia track. Atlanta was also the site of Harvick's first Sprint Cup Series win in 2001 in a close finish with Jeff Gordon. It was Harvick's third race after replacing the late Dale Earnhardt.
Sunday evening's Sprint Cup action also did not have much competition out front early, with Harvick, the polesitter this time, leading until the first restart, when Joe Gibbs driver Denny Hamlin got past Harvick. Jeff Gordon also stayed in second place behind Harvick for a while. He later had a tire issue that took him off the lead lap.
Atlanta is also not as fast as similar tracks such as Charlotte. It just isn't one of those tracks known for a special style of racing like, say, the restrictor plate tracks, Daytona and Talladega. But Atlanta is also known for a number of memorable finishes, and many people look forward to NASCAR events there, so it shouldn't be passed off as "just another race" either.
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Ty Dillon making highly anticipated Cup debut
Ty Dillon, who replaced his brother Austin in the #3 Nationwide Series car owned by grandfather Richard Childress, will be making his first start in the Sprint Cup Series on Sunday evening at Atlanta. Dillon will start 29th in the 43-car field in the #33 Chevrolet co-owned by Childress and Joe Falk. Fans have mixed expectations for the younger Dillon in NASCAR's top series. Austin Dillon took over the former #29 car of Kevin Harvick, which Childress turned back to the #3 car that Dale Earnhardt made famous, and he is running for the Rookie of the Year award in the series. Meanwhile, Ty Dillon is a Nationwide rookie and has won one race in the series.
Friday, August 29, 2014
Truck Series heads to Canada
The Camping World Truck Series will be racing at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario on Sunday. The road course race in Canada is the only race in all three of NASCAR's national series held outside of the United States, after the Nationwide Series left Montreal for Mid-Ohio following the 2012 season. Last year's edition of the race saw Chase Elliott get into Ty Dillon, causing Dillon to spin just before the white flag, with Elliott taking the win, his first in a top series after spending a number of years racing modifieds. Dillon had run out of gas and was coasting to the finish, with still a small chance to win. The truck point standings are currently topped by ThorSport teammates Johnny Sauter and Matt Crafton, the defending series champion. They have a combined three wins heading into Sunday's race.
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Tony Stewart returning to Sprint Cup racing at Atlanta
Tony Stewart will be returning to his #14 Chevrolet for the Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia on Sunday. Stewart missed the last three races after being involved in a fatal sprint car accident in Canandaigua, New York on August 9, the eve of the Cup race at the Watkins Glen road course. Stewart last raced in a Sprint Cup car on August 3 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania.
With the investigation of the incident complete, some people hope Stewart, a three-time Cup champion, can get his mind back on racing, but others are frustrated that he seemed to get away without any punishments from the sprint car sanctioning body or from NASCAR. Stewart will definitely get a mixed reception when he shows himself to the fans on Sunday evening. He has already been eliminated from the Chase, and this week marks the penultimate regular-season race, so all he can do is get his career as a driver and an owner back up and running. But this point in his career will surely stay with him for the rest of his life.
With the investigation of the incident complete, some people hope Stewart, a three-time Cup champion, can get his mind back on racing, but others are frustrated that he seemed to get away without any punishments from the sprint car sanctioning body or from NASCAR. Stewart will definitely get a mixed reception when he shows himself to the fans on Sunday evening. He has already been eliminated from the Chase, and this week marks the penultimate regular-season race, so all he can do is get his career as a driver and an owner back up and running. But this point in his career will surely stay with him for the rest of his life.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
NASCAR reveals 2015 Sprint Cup schedule
NASCAR confirmed some rumored changes to the Sprint Cup Series schedule for 2015 on Tuesday when they released the schedule to the public. Many of the race dates are unchanged from this year, but there are a few significant changes. The changes coincide with a new 10-year television contract between Fox and NBC that begins next year and runs through the 2024 season.
Perhaps the most notable modification to the schedule is the return of Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina to its original Labor Day weekend date. The original Southern 500 race was held from 1950 to 2004. The last Labor Day edition of that race took place in 2003, with veteran and two-time champion Terry Labonte winning his last race. In 2004 it became the penultimate race of the season in November, one week before the Homestead finale, and it was dropped from the 2005 schedule. This left Darlington with just one race weekend, whose Cup event became a 500-mile night race in 2005, inherited the "Southern 500" name in 2009, and is the race that is moving to Labor Day weekend next year. A lot of NASCAR fans are happy that a classic tradition is returning to the sport.
The next big change involves Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, where the Nationwide and Cup series race this coming weekend, and which has been the home of the Labor Day race weekend since 2011. With Darlington going to that spot on the schedule, Atlanta has been moved to the second race weekend of the season, after the Daytona 500 and its associated events. In addition, there will be a doubleheader featuring a Camping World Truck Series race and a Nationwide race on the day before the Cup race. The Atlanta Truck race will increase that season to 23 races. The Atlanta races will be held on February 28 and March 1 in 2015. This will be the first time that the second race weekend will take place in the southeastern United States since 2004, the year of the last race in Rockingham, North Carolina.
Another change, which became official a few days earlier, is the Bristol spring race moving one month later, to mid-April, in an attempt to avoid inclement weather situations, which have plagued the Bristol, Tennessee area a number of times during the race weekend's March dates, including earlier this year. Bristol will be the Cup series' eighth race starting in 2015. There will also be three straight races in the southwestern part of the country in March. These will be the third through fifth races, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Nevada, Phoenix International Raceway in Arizona and Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The Phoenix date, which has been the second race of the season for the past four years, will take Bristol's old spot as the fourth race after being bumped by Atlanta. Finally, the road course race in Sonoma, California will be held one week later, on June 28; the race at Kentucky Speedway has been moved two weeks later, to July 11; and the race at New Hampshire one week later as well, to July 19, which was an off weekend this year.
The 2015 Cup season will feature three off weekends, on April 5 (Easter), June 21 (between Michigan and Sonoma) and August 30 (between Bristol and Darlington). The last race before the Chase will still be at Richmond International Raceway in Richmond, Virginia, on September 12, and the season finale will stay at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida. In addition, Fox will broadcast the June races at Pocono, Michigan and Sonoma for the first time since 2006. Some races will be shown on cable counterparts Fox Sports 1 and NBC Sports Network. This new schedule is sure to get fans excited for next year, and it could make it easier for them to travel between certain races. We'll see how it all plays out in 2015.
Perhaps the most notable modification to the schedule is the return of Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina to its original Labor Day weekend date. The original Southern 500 race was held from 1950 to 2004. The last Labor Day edition of that race took place in 2003, with veteran and two-time champion Terry Labonte winning his last race. In 2004 it became the penultimate race of the season in November, one week before the Homestead finale, and it was dropped from the 2005 schedule. This left Darlington with just one race weekend, whose Cup event became a 500-mile night race in 2005, inherited the "Southern 500" name in 2009, and is the race that is moving to Labor Day weekend next year. A lot of NASCAR fans are happy that a classic tradition is returning to the sport.
The next big change involves Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, where the Nationwide and Cup series race this coming weekend, and which has been the home of the Labor Day race weekend since 2011. With Darlington going to that spot on the schedule, Atlanta has been moved to the second race weekend of the season, after the Daytona 500 and its associated events. In addition, there will be a doubleheader featuring a Camping World Truck Series race and a Nationwide race on the day before the Cup race. The Atlanta Truck race will increase that season to 23 races. The Atlanta races will be held on February 28 and March 1 in 2015. This will be the first time that the second race weekend will take place in the southeastern United States since 2004, the year of the last race in Rockingham, North Carolina.
Another change, which became official a few days earlier, is the Bristol spring race moving one month later, to mid-April, in an attempt to avoid inclement weather situations, which have plagued the Bristol, Tennessee area a number of times during the race weekend's March dates, including earlier this year. Bristol will be the Cup series' eighth race starting in 2015. There will also be three straight races in the southwestern part of the country in March. These will be the third through fifth races, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Nevada, Phoenix International Raceway in Arizona and Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The Phoenix date, which has been the second race of the season for the past four years, will take Bristol's old spot as the fourth race after being bumped by Atlanta. Finally, the road course race in Sonoma, California will be held one week later, on June 28; the race at Kentucky Speedway has been moved two weeks later, to July 11; and the race at New Hampshire one week later as well, to July 19, which was an off weekend this year.
The 2015 Cup season will feature three off weekends, on April 5 (Easter), June 21 (between Michigan and Sonoma) and August 30 (between Bristol and Darlington). The last race before the Chase will still be at Richmond International Raceway in Richmond, Virginia, on September 12, and the season finale will stay at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida. In addition, Fox will broadcast the June races at Pocono, Michigan and Sonoma for the first time since 2006. Some races will be shown on cable counterparts Fox Sports 1 and NBC Sports Network. This new schedule is sure to get fans excited for next year, and it could make it easier for them to travel between certain races. We'll see how it all plays out in 2015.
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Team Penske runs away with another Bristol win
The Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol on Saturday once again proved why so many people love night racing at Bristol. There was plenty of competition, with drivers racing side-by-side for position at times. The front row featured Kevin Harvick and Jeff Gordon, but the top two drivers at the end of the race were the Team Penske duo of Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski. Logano passed Joe Gibbs Racing driver Matt Kenseth, who drives the #20 car that Logano drove from 2009 to 2012, late in the race and managed to pull away from the other leaders to win. This puts Logano in a five-way tie for most wins this season, along with Keselowski, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. These five drivers each have three wins with two races left in the "regular season" before the Chase for the Sprint Cup begins.
One big story was the Hendrick Motorsports cars not having a good race, like they've been having most of the season. Outside polesitter and last week's winner Jeff Gordon had a tire going down early and ended up finishing one lap down. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was in the wrong place at the wrong time when Kevin Harvick bumped Denny Hamlin out of the lead, causing Hamlin to spin and hit Earnhardt, ripping off the driver's side sheetmetal from the #88 car. Hamlin was mad at Harvick and threw his HANS device at the #4 car during the caution. Meanwhile, Earnhardt got back out for a few laps, but then went to the garage for good. Kasey Kahne, the only winless driver of the Hendrick bunch this year, also had a tire issue and finished 23 laps down. Jimmie Johnson got a speeding penalty during his first pit stop, but rebounded to finish fourth.
Kyle Busch, Hamlin and Kenseth's teammate, usually does well at Bristol, but had no luck on Saturday. He was also tagged for speeding with Johnson, and had to fight back to the front. Busch then got caught up in a crash with Clint Bowyer, Kyle Larson, Aric Almirola and Brian Vickers. After getting back into the race, Busch got into an argument with his crew chief on his radio, and parked his car out of frustration with a few laps left. Some fans are surprised that Busch did not win any of the three races this week at what is arguably his best track on every NASCAR national circuit. Busch also crashed at Michigan last week.
The Sprint Cup Series next races in the Atlanta suburb of Hampton, Georgia in a Labor Day eve race. Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are still the top two in the Chase grid. Some drivers locked into the Chase with wins, like Earnhardt and Almirola, did not have very good finishes last night, and the standings look different as a result.
One big story was the Hendrick Motorsports cars not having a good race, like they've been having most of the season. Outside polesitter and last week's winner Jeff Gordon had a tire going down early and ended up finishing one lap down. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was in the wrong place at the wrong time when Kevin Harvick bumped Denny Hamlin out of the lead, causing Hamlin to spin and hit Earnhardt, ripping off the driver's side sheetmetal from the #88 car. Hamlin was mad at Harvick and threw his HANS device at the #4 car during the caution. Meanwhile, Earnhardt got back out for a few laps, but then went to the garage for good. Kasey Kahne, the only winless driver of the Hendrick bunch this year, also had a tire issue and finished 23 laps down. Jimmie Johnson got a speeding penalty during his first pit stop, but rebounded to finish fourth.
Kyle Busch, Hamlin and Kenseth's teammate, usually does well at Bristol, but had no luck on Saturday. He was also tagged for speeding with Johnson, and had to fight back to the front. Busch then got caught up in a crash with Clint Bowyer, Kyle Larson, Aric Almirola and Brian Vickers. After getting back into the race, Busch got into an argument with his crew chief on his radio, and parked his car out of frustration with a few laps left. Some fans are surprised that Busch did not win any of the three races this week at what is arguably his best track on every NASCAR national circuit. Busch also crashed at Michigan last week.
The Sprint Cup Series next races in the Atlanta suburb of Hampton, Georgia in a Labor Day eve race. Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are still the top two in the Chase grid. Some drivers locked into the Chase with wins, like Earnhardt and Almirola, did not have very good finishes last night, and the standings look different as a result.
Saturday, August 23, 2014
Tony Stewart still not up to racing again
Tony Stewart, who was involved in an accident two weeks ago in a sprint car race in New York where his car hit and killed 20-year-old Kevin Ward Jr., will not compete in tonight's Sprint Cup race at Bristol, for the third week in a row. Stewart is being replaced by Jeff Burton again. Although many fans and fellow competitors, especially his driver and teammate Kevin Harvick, have showed support for him and do not believe the incident was at all intentional, Stewart has barely been heard from since his statement on the day after the accident. He last competed at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania on August 3.
While much of the buzz about the incident has died down greatly, it remains a serious case. Authorities are still trying to piece together information about it, and some people are even speculating that he may never race again, which may or may not be likely. But it's still Stewart's main concern right now. The fact that he is winless this season and is going to miss the Chase for the Sprint Cup, in the first running of its revamped format, doesn't matter to him now. The only thing that does matter is trying to put this tragic event behind him and return to doing what he likes.
While much of the buzz about the incident has died down greatly, it remains a serious case. Authorities are still trying to piece together information about it, and some people are even speculating that he may never race again, which may or may not be likely. But it's still Stewart's main concern right now. The fact that he is winless this season and is going to miss the Chase for the Sprint Cup, in the first running of its revamped format, doesn't matter to him now. The only thing that does matter is trying to put this tragic event behind him and return to doing what he likes.
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