By taking the checkered flag and firmly planting it in the Talladega infield on Saturday afternoon, Parker Kligerman put to rest two worries he’s been carrying around for quite a while.
Talladega Superspeedway is always known as the wild card race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup schedule. Known as a nightmare for many teams, including those competing for the Sprint Cup championship, Talladega can shake up the standings quite a bit. Simply put, the fourth and final restrictor plate event can do one of two things: it can close the battle for the point lead or it can separate it.
Everyone agrees that Rutledge Wood is one funny, interesting and cool talent for the SPEED Channel. Rutledge has had an incredible and interesting journey to working for SPEED and he now is able to enjoy his passion, racing.
With this having been the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, there are a number of things I am thankful for. Among them is the track in Talladega, Alabama and a race that lived up to expectations. A race where I watched lap after lap and did not feel compelled to wander away to find a ball game of some sort to break the monotony.
Kenseth held off, blocked and/or kept himself were he needed to be on Sunday and won the Good Sam 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Kenseth was out in front just enough not to be involved in a huge pileup on the final turn that collected over 20 drivers.
Talladega and Daytona is not racing! Both are a product of NASCAR misguided way to solve safety issues that have just created a big pile of BS, just like the 20+ cars were on Sunday.
Kyle Busch’s day was nearly spoiled on Sunday afternoon at Talladega when he sped on pit road and went a lap down before halfway. Then after carnage in turn three on the final lap, Busch was nearly the spoiler of the Chase, coming out of the smoke to finish third.
Matt Kenseth and his Roush-Fenway Racing teammate Greg Biffle ran strong for most of the day.with Kenseth leading three times for a total of 12 laps. After a a poor start in the Chase, this strong run was just what they needed to regain some momentum for the remainder of the Chase.
As we enter race No.4 of the 2012 Chase, a definite separation in the points standings has become apparent. The front-runners, Brad Keselowski, Jimmie Johnson, and Denny Hamlin are hoping to make it through NASCAR's "wildcard" race unscathed.
Hendrick Motorsports crew chief, Alan Gustafson, continues to showcase his talent when faced with adversity. The gusty chassis adjustment call at Richmond earlier this season that vaulted his No. 24 team into the Chase when the possibility of making the postseason looked grim, was just one example of many timely and “out of the box” calls Gustafson has made to overcome a problem.
In 28 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, Spire Motorsports has logged four top-20 finishes. Michael McDowell owns the team's best finish, a 12th-place effort earned in March 2025.
Entering Rounds Three and Four of the 2026 INDY NXT by Firestone season, HMD Motorsports heads to Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama, on March 27–29 focused on contending at the front.
