By Jared Turner One race down, nine to go in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. With the Sprint Cup Series heading to New Hampshire Motor Speedway this weekend on the heels of Sunday’s Chase opener at Chicagoland Speedway, only one of the 16 Chase drivers – Martin Truex Jr. – can breathe completely easy. That’s because Truex, who won at Chicagoland, has already clinched an automatic berth in the next Chase round. The other 15 Chase drivers all still have work to do over the next two races in order to be among the 12 who advance and remain in…

By Jared Turner Chase Elliott Is Learning How To Handle Disappointment On previous occasions this season when Chase Elliott was in contention for a win, only to come up painfully short in the end, the rookie driver has been exceedingly hard on himself to the point of sulking during post-race interviews. But Sunday’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup opener at Chicagoland Speedway was a different story. Elliott, the second-generation driver who replaced Jeff Gordon this season in Hendrick Motorsports’ iconic No. 24 Chevrolet, was cruising to an almost certain victory when Michael McDowell’s tire failure brought out a caution flag with…

By Joseph Wolkin Richmond International Raceway President Dennis Bickmeier loves greeting fans who enter his ¾-mile facility. Indeed, he loves when the crowd roars when the green flag waves. For the man who runs the track, implementing new ideas is just a small step in achieving a greater goal. According to a lot of fans, the racing was better at Richmond this year. What do you feel like was the biggest difference maker? “I think it definitely has something to do with the package and the tires. I know everyone was really pleased with the tire Goodyear brought in April. We saw…

It’s a whole new ballgame now. With the 16-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field finally set, NASCAR’s season-ending 10-race playoff begins Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway. The winner of Sunday afternoon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 400 will become the first driver to punch his ticket into the Round of 12, which commences with Chase Race No. 4 of 10. So which Chase drivers have the best chance of beginning the Chase with a trip to Victory Lane? Kevin Harvick is a two-time Chicagoland winner, but hasn’t triumphed at the 1.5-mile track since 2002. Brad Keselowski has captured two of the past…