NASCAR Cup Series

"So, we’ve been running where we’ve been finishing for the most part, but we do need to step that up, definitely. If you’re in the top 10, you’ve got a chance of finishing in the top 5, but rarely can you be in the top 10 and have a chance at winning. You have to be running in the top 5.

“It’s exciting to be back, especially with Team Penske and the SKF Ford. It’s pretty cool. I only had one day of testing in Nashville a little bit before the Indy 500, so it’s been awhile, but in Nashville it probably took me about five laps to really get comfortable in the car.

“I think it’s a great looking race car. I thought it looked awesome at Charlotte. Now we’ve got the gold numbers on it this weekend and Superman is on the hood. I’m excited. I enjoy working with DC Comics they are a fun group of people with a lot of great initiatives that match well with our sport and fit well with our sport.

Ricky Stenhouse, driver of the No. 17 EcoPower Ford Fusion, and car owner Jack Roush participated in a press conference this morning announcing their involvement with EcoPower re-refined motor oil, produced by Safety-Kleen. In addition, they answered questions regarding the 2014 season to date. Below is a transcript of that Q&A session:

“Michigan is a special place for me. It is the sight of my first Cup race. We’ve won races there, it’s fast, it’s in Ford’s backyard and it would be a great place for us to lock up a Chase spot with a second win. I got caught up in that wreck last weekend at Pocono, it’s not what we wanted so hopefully Michigan will give us a chance to prove that we have gained a little bit of ground on our big track program."

“Yeah, I think Michigan is a good track for a first win. It’s the size race track that I like. We have been close a few times. We have been pretty competitive every week so I think just keep knocking on the door and the wins will come. Just have to stay consistent and put yourself in contention each week to try and sneak out a win.”

CONCORD, N.C., and LOS ANGELES (June 13, 2014) – Farmers Insurance, one of the nation’s largest multiline insurers, has extended its sponsorship of Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 5 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team for three years and, in celebration, will give fans the opportunity to help design driver Kasey Kahne’s 2015 Chevrolet SS primary paint scheme.

HScott Motorsports announced earlier this week that Carcoons Storage Solutions will sponsor Justin Allgaier’s No. 55 Chevrolet SS this weekend in the Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway.

Free enterprise is a great concept, though in the presence of a monopoly it does not work worth crap. If one outfit gains near total dominance over any industry, there is no competition. Standard Oil, AT&T, Microsoft, U.S. Steel, and even Western Union have been accused of holding monopolies at some point in their history. Maybe you could add Hendrick Motorsports to that list.

Denny Hamlin finished fourth in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, logging his second-straight top-five finish in the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota. Hamlin and crew chief Darian Grubb played the strategy game to near-perfection in the 160-lap event won by Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the 2.5-mile triangular track.