I hate mixing politics and religion with sports but despite NASCAR being stereotyped as a "white, Christian, conservative sport," it's surprising the number of fans you can meet on a race weekend that not only have a different skin color but a different religion as well as different political beliefs. They are liberal, conservative, black, white, brown, Muslim, Christian, and Atheist.
It is now official. Kevin Harvick is the most generous driver in NASCAR. No one shared like Harvick did Sunday at Dover. Harvick started up front after inspection issues removed Kyle Larson from starting at point. After leading the first 21 laps, he turned it over to Alex Bowman before Brad Keselowski took over for the next 60. Nearing the end of the opening segment, Harvick returned to wrap it up. Segment two, Harvick shared with Keselowski. Until the final 40 laps, when it was again all Harvick.
Talladega was sweet. That was the kind of action that captured my attention as a kid, watching Wide World of Sports. As Jim McKay so iconically put it all those years ago, “Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport... the thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat... the human drama of athletic competition.” That was Sunday at Talladega.
We truly are in a sweet spot in the NASCAR schedule. Last Sunday (and Monday) it was Bristol. This Saturday night they race at Richmond. We conclude April with the test that is Talladega. Action good enough to convince anyone who enjoys pure entertainment to become attracted to the sport.
If you missed the action from Las Vegas, allow me to bring you up to date. If you read my column from last week regarding Atlanta, consider yourself fully informed. Enjoy your day.
While Harvick led more than half the time, Brad Keselowski was second after holding point for 38 laps. Denny Hamlin was fourth with 26 up front, while Kurt Busch settled for eighth, taking the second stage and leading 52 circuits.
The nature of the Daytona 500 is for everyone to shine at some point during the race. This year, that was especially true of the new class of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup drivers, a group of twenty-somethings who have become the status quo in the sport.
Unstable. Set to go off with the least provocation. No, I’m not talking about CNN or late night talk show hosts, most celebrities, or more than a few politicians. What I am referring to is the Daytona 500.
Forty drivers, 40 spots. Still, despite the lack of interest and resources for additional teams to attempt to enter the iconic competition, we have some high-quality contenders to watch out for. Alex Bowman and Denny Hamlin are locked into the front row, as long as their cars last. The rest of the top 20 qualifiers went into Thursday trying to protect their positions from all challengers in the two 20 car heats.
It’s only a short time until the annual Media Tour at the Hall of Fame in Charlotte. We will learn a lot there, but a couple things are obvious. There will be 24 major teams running next year (10 Fords, nine Chevrolets, and five Toyotas).
