SM Staff

In a mixture of apprehension, excitement, and remembrance, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series headed into Richmond International Raceway for the final race before the Chase.

The Air Guard 400 from Richmond International Raceway was mixture of pride and prestige as NASCAR honored not only the 9th anniversary of the 9-11 tragedy but also the brave men and women of our armed forces and first responders to the horrific scenes of that horrible day.

Denny Hamlin wins the last regular NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race of the season in Saturday nights Air Guard 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

The Nationwide Series night life kicked into high gear at Richmond International Speedway with Kevin Harvick leading the field to the green friday night.

This weekend, NASCAR and Richmond International Raceway will face a unique challenge, that of balancing the excitement of setting the field for the final twelve Chasers for the Sprint Cup Championship while also honoring the memory of American lives lost on September 11th, 2001.

The Cup Series moved to Atlanta Motor Speedway, hoping to create a new Labor Day tradition of Sunday night racing in spite of the news that Atlanta had lost one of its Cup races for the 2011 season.

Over the previous weekend we watched Tony Stewart "smoke" up Atlanta-Georgia following Sunday night's NASCAR Sprint Cup race. In Nationwide Series action we watched a popular driver, crew chief and team owner return to victory lane.

So they’re going to rid Atlanta of a race? Anyone watching the race on Sunday night would have to ask why.

He has not given up throughout the season so far, but victory had eluded Tony Stewart all year. That denial was not the result of any lacking on the part of the driver or his team.

The headlines screamed the news when Randy LaJoie was suspended from NASCAR for violation of the sport’s stringent substance abuse policy.