5 Lessons Learned: Junior, Smoke Are Feuding

By Jared Turner 5 Lessons Learned at Richmond   Kurt Busch Comeback Complete In practically every race since returning from an indefinite suspension for alleged domestic abuse, Kurt Busch has had tremendous speed in his No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet. It wasn’t until Sunday’s race at Richmond, however, that speed finally translated into a win. The 2004 Sprint Cup Series champion put a whipping on the competition at RIR, leading 291 of 400 laps on the way to his first victory in more than a year. Now, he’s locked into the Chase for the Sprint Cup and looks to be one of…

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Richmond Preview: Toyota No Favorite at RIR

By Jared Turner Saturday night’s race at Richmond International Raceway is called the Toyota Owners 400. But the past four times the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series has convened at the .75-mile Virginia short track, it’s been a Ford or a Chevrolet in Victory Lane. Last season, the Team Penske Fords of Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski swept the two Richmond races, respectively, as Logano took the checkered flag in the spring and Keselowski led 383 of 400 laps on the way to a dominant triumph in the fall. The previous year, it was the Roush Fenway Racing Ford of Carl Edwards taking…

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Fresh Faces: Austin Wayne Self Is Ready

By Joseph Wolkin Life for a normal 19-year-old usually involves getting ready for finals. But then again, Austin Wayne Self isn’t your normal 19-year-old. Racing for Mason Mitchell Motorsports in the ARCA Series, one of NASCAR’s top prospects has his sights set on winning the team its second straight championship. Last year, he won the Rookie of the Year award with Cunningham Motorsports, but there is more pressure now with the possibility of moving to one of NASCAR’s top-tier divisions in 2016. What is the biggest challenge you face while trying to make a name for yourself? “The biggest challenge is the…

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Speed Merchants: Fireball Roberts Paved the Way

By Ben White Throughout NASCAR’s 65-year history, many drivers enjoyed reputations of being the very best at driving with the pedal to the metal. They knew no other way to race than to run flat out every lap, no matter if sheet metal got crushed in the process. Glenn “Fireball” Roberts was known as one of NASCAR’s first superstars of stock car racing. The Apopka, Fla. driver was credited with helping build the sport’s popularity in the early 1960s. Roberts died on July 2, 1964 at the height of his career after suffering a crash at Charlotte Motor Speedway six weeks earlier.…

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Danica Continues to Show Big Gains

By Jerry Bonkowski I KNOW I shouldn’t say it – because it could ultimately wind up being a jinx. But I can’t help myself. I told you so. There, I said it – something I’ve been preaching since before the season – that Danica Patrick was going to have a break-through season in 2015. People sent me emails, called me on the radio and told me I was crazy. While others predicted she’d have her best success on either 1.5-mile tracks or superspeedways like Daytona and Talladega, I believed her best showings – even a potential win – would come on a…

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5 Lessons Learned: Matt Kenseth Is Back

By Jared Turner Hot Streaks Must End Coming into Sunday’s race at Bristol, only three drivers – Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano and Martin Truex Jr. – had finished in the top 10 in every race this season. By the time the dust settled on the rain-delayed, crash-marred marathon that finished some nine-and-a-half hours after its scheduled start time, not one of the three drivers had managed to keep his top-10 streak alive. The culprit for all three? Wrecks, which are just the nature of the beast in Thunder Valley. The good news? The three drivers still sit atop the Sprint Cup Series…

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