Flashman's Take

Watching yesterday’s Kobalt 400 from Las Vegas Motor Speedway, it appeared from the beginning that this was a race that was supposed to be won by Hendrick Motorsports. The lineup of Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is formidable. What more could you ask?

So Jimmie Johnson thinks Carl Edwards cheated on two, not one, but two, restarts and Denny Hamlin thought the new Gen 6 car was worse than the old COT?

For NASCAR, the news is good. Ratings for the Daytona 500 were up 30% this season. That’s good for the sport and better for the bottom line. Final ratings are not out, though. We shall see.

Do you want predictions? I have them here. I probably will be no better than anyone else, and maybe worse, but as we begin a new season, it just seems proper to throw out a few. Having seen very little of the new Gen 6 car, it’s probably foolish, but maybe we can revise this as we go along. Or maybe we won’t.

So far, from a fan’s point of view, not much has changed since the advent of the much ballyhooed Gen 6 car arrived on the scene. At least on the racetrack. Yes, the cars look like showroom cars, but other than that, the same things keep happening

One the eve of the Spring Unlimited, nee the Busch Clash and Budweiser Shootout, the media met with the stars of NASCAR. Never mind that only three weeks ago, they spent a whole week interviewing and questioning most of these same stars, but there was a new subject that became almost an obsession.

I was a rookie. It seemed strange after covering more than 200 races live and knowing many of the people at the Sprint Media Tour, I had never attended the pre-season event.

The final day of the Sprint Media Tour had it all—announcements, fireworks, and humor at Joe Gibbs Racing. The first stop was the Ford breakfast where all the Ford teams with the notable exception of Roush-Fenway were represented. After a short introduction, drivers were given designated places for interviews. Drivers and officials from Richard Petty Motorsports, Front Row Motorsports, Germain Racing, and Wood Brothers Racing were in attendance along with Ford’s Edsel Ford and Jamie Allison.

The last stop on Day Three of the Sprint Media Tour found the media heading to Mooresville, North Carolina, to visit Penske racing. Fresh off a Sprint Cup Championship with Brad Keselowski winning the prize, things were still being improved and changed in the organization.

Day Three of the Sprint Media Tour continued with a trip back to Charlotte Motor Speedway and Hendrick Motorsports on Wednesday. The day will end with a trip to Penske Racing, the home of reigning Sprint Cup Champion Brad Keselowski.