NASCAR Cup Series

Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet SS team travel to Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International (WGI) this weekend for Sunday’s Cheez-It 355 at The Glen NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race.

The past two years, Marcos Ambrose and the No. 9 Stanley Racing team of Richard Petty Motorsports have closed down Watkins Glen International while celebrating in Victory Lane. Ambrose is the defending two-time winner at the road course in Upstate New York and is looking for a three-peat this weekend.

David Ragan's most recent finish at Watkins Glen International (August 2012) was also his career best, and he'll look to top that result one year later as the Sprint Cup Series heads back to the 2.45-mile road course in New York's Finger Lakes region.

The Sprint Cup Series takes its Gen-6 car to Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International for the first time this weekend, but David Gilliland already has plenty of laps under his belt on the 2.45-mile road course. The No. 38 Long John Silver's team tested at the track last week to prepare for the series' second road race of the year.

Michael McDowell will bring his extensive road course-racing background to Front Row Motorsports for the Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International race weekend, as he'll get the nod to pilot the No. 35 Dockside Logistics Ford in the Sprint Cup Series' second road race of the season.

America has always had those who led them to the promised land. Daniel Boone blazed the Wilderness Road. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark followed the Missouri River enroute to the Pacific. Jim Bridger helped open the way to the wonders of Yellowstone.

Want to know what’s killing NASCAR? Maybe is the lack of parity. It isn’t talked about much these days, but years ago it was a topic of conversation. If one team for one brand became dominant, the sanctioning body would step in to make thing equal. In those days, it was important to level the playing field for all brands. You see brand was important. I thought it had come full circle by now, but I was wrong.

The all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series leader in road course victories with nine, Gordon has experienced success at Watkins Glen International. In 20 starts at the 2.45-mile track, the driver of the No. 24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet SS has four wins, two poles, six top-fives and nine top-10's. But while he has reeled off eight consecutive top-10 finishes at Sonoma, Gordon has only two here during that span.

Kasey Kahne saw a seven-second lead in his No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet SS erased by a late caution, but rallied back on the final restart of the GoBowling.com NASCAR Sprint Cup race to make an impressive pass on the outside in turn two for the win, with two laps remaining. It was a bittersweet win for Kahne in that he had to take it from his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet SS, on his birthday. With their 1-2 finish today, both drivers moved up one position in the point standings, to eighth and ninth respectively.

There was no birthday celebration for Kurt Busch on Sunday at Pocono; in fact he almost forgot it was his big day. But after 400...