NASCAR Cup Series

Long time readers of my columns know that I am not a fan of restrictor-plate racing. It’s not for the reasons that most think of after this week’s chaos at the end of the Coke Zero 400 at the Daytona International Speedway last Monday morning (that’s another story, for another day).

Even with only one top-five in four starts at Kentucky Speedway, Carl Edwards admits that he is a fan of Kentucky Speedway and hopes that he can have a good run on Saturday night after crashing out of the past two events.

Ever wonder about those engineers atop the pit box next to the crew chiefs working away on their computers during the race? This week’s NASCAR Behind the Scenes focuses on one such engineer, Tom Gray, who works with Jeff Gordon’s Hendrick Motorsports Team 24.

“We have the Minions Camry and this is pretty cool. We’re going to have a little bit of fun with it. For me, this weekend is special. This is the site of my first win in NASCAR – the Truck Series and it was huge. Then my win in 2005 in the Xfinity Series and now NASCAR is going the direction I’ve been wanting to go for a while with a less downforce package and I’m excited to see how it runs. Hopefully it will be a good weekend.”

New Kentucky-Specific Rules Package To Debut This Weekend; Four More Track-Specific Packages Scheduled

This week the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, XFINITY Series and the Camping World Truck Series travel to Kentucky Speedway for a tripleheader of racing action. The Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series practices, qualifying sessions and races will be televised on NBC Sports Live Extra.

One lucky person will win the trip of a lifetime, courtesy of Armour®, the makers of LunchMakers children's portable meals, savory frozen meatballs and sliced pepperoni. As part of the brand's primary sponsorship of the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) Sprint Cup Series team and driver Aric Almirola, Armour has launched a sweepstakes for race fans nationwide.

This weekend, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) makes its only stop of the season at Kentucky Speedway. Justin Allgaier will make his second NSCS start at Kentucky on Saturday night. In his first NSCS start at Kentucky last year, he finished 24th. Kentucky marks the final primary race for the Fraternal Order of Eagles (F.O.E.) this season. However, F.O.E. will appear on the No. 51 Chevy as a co-primary for two remaining TBD races.

“You’ve almost got to wear a mouthpiece in the No. 47 Kroger/SCOTT Products Chevrolet SS at Kentucky Speedway because it is one of the roughest tracks we race on,” Allmendinger said. “There are bumps that are really harsh that jar your teeth out and make the car bounce a lot and then there are just wavy bumps. It’s bumpy for sure and the goal is to get your car working over the bumps. If you can do that, you should have a good car."

The Petty Family is saddened to hear of the recent health news of Buddy Baker. Baker raced for Petty Enterprises in 1971 and 1972, winning one race each season.