Angie’s Spin Zone

Eleventh place may not seem like anything to brag about until you realize that everyone ahead of him has Sprint Cup backing. Surrounded by names like Roush Fenway Racing, JR Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing and Joe Gibbs Racings, Jeremy Clements Racing is David to their Goliath.

“I didn’t necessarily want to go to Cup racing when I did, but it’s what I had to do. I didn’t really have any other opportunities on the table. I’m glad I did, though; I’ve really been enjoying it. “It was go backward or go forward, I chose to go forward.”

Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Darlington Raceway was not your typical Southern 500. For starters, it was held on its traditional Labor Day weekend date, something diehard NASCAR fans have been clamoring for since this date was taken away from them after 2003.

Deep at the heart of it, family is the lifeblood of NASCAR. The family tree is populated with generations of drivers named Petty and Baker, Jarrett and Earnhardt, Waltrip and Labonte, Allison and Wallace and too many more to name.

In a season that has given the No. 14 team little reason to celebrate, Tony Stewart clinched his best starting position of the year for the upcoming Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

In a storied career that includes 92 wins and four championship titles, he has nothing left to prove. However, there is one accomplishment that would set him apart from any other driver in NASCAR history. A victory at Kentucky Speedway Saturday night would give Gordon a win at every track on the current Sprint Cup circuit.

As Dale Earnhardt Jr. crossed the finish line to claim his second win of the season at Daytona International Speedway, celebrating the victory was the last thing on his mind. He had just driven the last two laps of the race focused on the traffic behind him, moving around the track as needed to protect his position when he saw the wreck unfolding in his rearview mirror.

Darlington Raceway is a rare gem in today’s NASCAR because it is unlike any other track on the circuit. It was built on land that once grew cotton and peanuts and shaped around a minnow pond, giving it a unique design and producing NASCAR’s first paved superspeedway.

But this victory was about so much more than mere numbers. Its significance transcends breaking a losing streak, leading the most laps or cementing his standing in the Chase. This was about beating the odds, both professionally and personally.

In his first full-time season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, 19-year-old Tyler Reddick has emerged as one of NASCAR’s rising stars. He captured his second win of the season at Dover International Speedway last Friday and moved into second place in the series point standings, 11 points behind leader Matt Crafton.