Staff Report NASCAR today announced agreements with 23 tracks to field NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races for the next five years. Additionally, 24 tracks will host NASCAR XFINITY Series races through 2020. NASCAR also announced its 2016 schedule for both of these national series. The schedule and actual placement of the dates within each given season’s schedule beyond 2016 will be part of the on-going discussions between NASCAR and the tracks. Details are being finalized for the 2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series schedule to be announced at a later time. “NASCAR and the tracks take seriously our collective responsibility to the…

By Jared Turner 5. "Rowdy" Is Looking Really Good Of the drivers not named Jeff Gordon, no one left Martinsville Speedway in a better spot than Kyle Busch, who recovered from an early spin to finish fifth – and leave Martinsville tied for second among the eight remaining title contenders. While this is certainly no guarantee of advancing to Homestead-Miami Speedway for the winner-take-all championship race, Busch has the luxury of not needing to go for broke in either of the next two races leading into Homestead. If Busch does make it to Homestead, he certainly can’t be overlooked. After all, no…

By Jared Turner If you watched Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway there was certainly much to applaud. The racing, particularly in the latter stages, was some of the fiercest and most intense NASCAR has seen all season. And the fact that Jeff Gordon ended a drought of more than a year and landed a place among the Championship 4 in the process made for a super-compelling storyline. About the only disappointment was that the final laps of the race were virtually run in the dark as the sun began to set. In the final few laps it became increasingly difficult for drivers…

By Jared Turner After Sunday’s wild and controversial finish to the Chase Contender Round elimination race at Talladega Superspeedway, it’s on to Martinsville Speedway for Race One of the Chase Eliminator Round. Eight drivers will arrive at Martinsville, the Sprint Cup Series’ shortest track, deadlocked atop the standings with 4,000 points apiece. Those drivers – Joey Logano, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch – are the only drivers still in the hunt for the Sprint Cup title with four races remaining. So who has the edge among the final eight men? While…