Carl Edwards

With firecrackers sparkling, patriotism soaring and flags flying high in celebration of the July 4th holiday weekend, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the Coke Zero 400 run under the lights at Daytona International Speedway.

Time and experience had improved the Nationwide race immensely so the Cup series should be just as good. Realistic expectation perhaps, but it didn’t come to pass.

Edwards increased his lead in the point standings, and now leads Kevin Harvick by 25.

Here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 23rd annual Toyota/Save Mart 350 Sprint Cup Series race at Infineon Raceway.

I was looking forward to a solid race where I could see the action. No doubt the action was heated on track with the feuds, though the coverage took away from that greatly.

Carl Edwards: Edwards led 30 laps at Michigan and finished fifth, earning his series-best eighth top-5 result of the year.

One doesn’t have to look hard to find story lines during the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series season.

From oil pan issues for the cars of Joe Gibbs Racing to the end of probation for driver rivals Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick, the Irish hills of Michigan once again saw plenty of action for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Carl Edwards: Edwards dropped a valve 58 laps in to the 5-Hour Energy 500, ending the day early for the No. 99 Kellogg’s/Cheez-It Ford.

Here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 5-Hour Energy 500 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, PA.