NASCAR Cup Series

Close quarters, full-contact action is something mixed martial arts star Miesha Tate does every time she steps into the octagon. Martinsville Speedway is also no stranger to close quarters, full-contact action. The two will come together when the Sprint Cup Series returns to the iconic half-mile track on Oct. 26.

The excitement of the newly reformatted Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup reached a new level Saturday evening at Charlotte Motor Speedway as emotions proved volatile amongst championship contenders.

“I’m really looking forward to Talladega this weekend. We almost had it won earlier this year and I hope to be in a similar position this time around. Hopefully we can stay up front and out of any trouble on the track and get our first win of the season.”

I’ve always said that Charlotte Motor Speedway is the crown palace of NASCAR. The track sits in the sleepy town of Concord, NC (some say it’s closer to Harrisburg, but locals say Concord), and has plenty of camping and lots of trams and golf carts to get you around the 1.5-mile racetrack in quick order.

The final race in the ‘Contender’ round portion of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup will take place this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, the sixth race in the final 10-race run for the series title. The 188-lap contest at the 2.66-mile track, the longest on the NASCAR tour, is famous for its unique nature, its close racing quarters and uncertainties of the draft.

On edge: “Our last race there, we finished fifth,” Allmendinger said. “Basically, I went with the strategy that if I was up front, I tried to stay up front. If I got shuffled to the middle, I just bailed out and went to the back. Honestly, I don’t think there is going to be a right or wrong. I think a lot of guys will be on edge. For those guys trying to make it to the next round in the Chase, it’s going to be real edgy. So, you’ve got to do what feels best at that time - in the moment. If we can get up front, I’ll run up front. If not, I’ll to try to ride around for a while until it's time to go.”

Denny the Deliverminator: Denny Hamlin will drive a special #11 FedEx One Rate/Deliverminator Toyota paint scheme in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The paint scheme, and accompanying firesuit, are derived from the FedEx One Rate commercial titled “Nickname” that starred Hamlin and began airing earlier this year.

NASCAR has assessed behavioral penalties to drivers Brad Keselowski and Tony Stewart for their involvement in post-race incidents on Oct. 11 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Harvick’s win last weekend at CMS marked his third victory at the 1.5-mile track. He now has 26 career victories and is tied with NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Fred Lorenzen for 25th on the all-time NSCS win list.

Golden Corral will continue its longstanding partnership with Tommy Baldwin Racing (TBR) and, for the first time, join NASCAR Sprint Cup Series rookie Michael Annett as the primary partner on his No. 7 Chevrolet SS in the upcoming Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday, Oct. 19.