By Jared Turner, NASCAR Pole Position Contributor Kyle Larson has won the last two races at Michigan. It might not be a wise idea to bet against him. In three starts at Michigan, Chase Elliott has as many second-place finishes. To say Elliott is chomping at the bit to go to Victory Lane here would be an understatement. Martin Truex Jr. will unequivocally arrive at Michigan with both a fast Toyota Tundra and a load of confidence. Needing to go to Victory Lane in one of the next four races to punch his ticket into the playoffs, Joey Logano has a golden…

By Jared Turner, NASCAR Pole Position Contributor As the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads to Michigan International Speedway for the second time in two months, storylines abound. Can Kyle Larson make it three wins in a row at the fast 2-mile track? Can Dale Earnhardt Jr., Clint Bowyer or Joey Logano — three drivers who need a win to make the playoffs — finally go to Victory Lane? Can Chase Elliott, a runner-up in each of the past three races at MIS, score a breakthrough first career triumph? Will Kyle Busch or Brad Keselowski seek retaliation after their run-in last Sunday…

By Jared Turner What does a driver have to do to keep a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series ride these days? That’s the question I was left pondering after Stewart-Haas Racing announced last week that it would not be picking up the option on Kurt Busch’s contract for the 2018 season. While it’s still possible that Busch could ultimately stay put at SHR — the team tweeted last week that it expected to retain Busch for another season — it’s bordering on insanity than I’m even having to spend good time opining on this topic. Remember what Busch did in February? He…

By Jared Turner Bad Blood Lingers Between ‘Rowdy’ and ‘Bad Brad’ Longtime rivals Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski are at it again. The two drivers — who have a history of feuds — collided halfway through Sunday’s race at Watkins Glen, resulting in both spinning and losing ground. Busch, who had arguably the race’s dominant car, blamed Keselowski for the contact during a terse post-race interview, and then later took to Twitter to say that he would have made it through the corner had Keselowski not “drilled” him in his right side door. Keselowski, for his part, chalked the incident up to…