Once we get past all the chaos and controversy surrounding Richmond; it becomes apparent that we still have a championship battle to talk about! Thirteen...yes, thirteen racers will battle tooth and nail for the coveted Sprint Cup trophy and they have ten races to get it done.
This past week has been unprecedented and historic for the sport of NASCAR, with the sanctioning body announcing the two major penalties, the first for Michael Waltrip Racing on Monday and then Friday announcing probation for Penske and Front Row Motorsports, as well as the historic placement of a thirteenth driver into the Chase, Jeff Gordon.
In an unprecedented Monday evening news conference after the wild Richmond race on Saturday night, NASCAR dropped the penalty hammer on Michael Waltrip Racing.
There was a lot on the line at Richmond Saturday night but was it so much so that it would actually push a team to deliberately alter the outcome in order to benefit themselves? When you're talking about a shot at the Sprint Cup championship; I'd say so.
The cliché holds true this week as “it all comes down to this”. Six guys have already claimed their top-10 spots when The Chase begins next week at Chicago – Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, and Matt Kenseth…that’s 2 Chevy’s, a Ford, and 3 Toyotas in case you're keeping score.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is in what is arguably his best season in several years. Currently seventh in points and is all but locked in to the Chase. He has 14 top-10’s and five top-5’s. The question is -Is it good enough?
After three nights of battling in the bullring that is Bristol Motor Speedway last weekend, the Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series head to Atlanta Motor Speedway for Labor Day weekend and more racing under the lights on the fast 1.5 mile speedway. With a track surface that is old and worn, having not been repaved since its reconfiguration in 1997, the track has gotten rave reviews from drivers who enjoy slipping and sliding around on the worn out asphalt.
It’s that time of year again. The weekend in late August that race fans circle on their calendars every year, the Bristol night race. Bristol Motor Speedway always produces great racing, but once night falls and the lights come on at the half-mile bullring, the intensity and action jumps up tenfold.
Johnson’s day ended when his engine blew on lap 55 and he eventually finished 40th, but still maintained a healthy lead in the Sprint Cup point standings. He leads Clint Bowyer by 41.
