So it begins. Chicago, where the Chase began. Chicago, where winning was a big thing, but not the only thing. Win and you advance. Drop out or too near the rear of the pack and all you have is New Hampshire and Charlotte to get it right, to fix the problem, to save your season. Three races, 16 drivers, and just a dozen spots available in order to continue the quest.
Win and automatically advance to the next round. There are four rounds, each consisting of three races. Four drivers will be eliminated at the end of each round leaving four contenders to battle for the championship crown at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November.
Change can be a good thing. Sometimes it is, but other times it is a simple reminder that we are getting older and, like disco, what was popular yesterday might not be tomorrow.
Who won? -- That was the one and only question the 60th annual summer event at Richmond had to answer. Who would win it? Three drivers entered had won it twice before, one already had the hat trick. All 13 with multiple wins there during their career are in or will be in conversations regarding the Hall of Fame.
1. Martin Truex, Jr.: Truex won Stage 2 at Richmond was on his way to his fifth win of the year before a late caution flipped his fate. Kyle Larson beat Truex out of the pits and pulled away on the restart, while Truex tangled with Denny Hamlin and crashed. Truex finished 20th.
For a race that has been around since 1958, it is a damn shame that it does not carry the proper branding to link it over the decades to the time it was claimed by the likes of Speedy Thompson, Cotton Owens, and Joe Weatherly. Let us properly honor it and refer to this Saturday night’s contest in Richmond, Virginia as the Federated Auto Parts Capital City 400.
Denny Hamlin took the lead on the final restart, passing Joey Logano with a last lap inside crossover move to win the Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 Saturday at Darlington Raceway. It was his fifth XFINITY win at Darlington.
With the Southern 500 coming our way from Darlington this weekend, it seems like a good time to talk about tradition. The first one in the books was back in 1950, making it the oldest of the sport’s iconic events. Most of the time, it goes to someone who is in or will be in, the Hall of Fame. That number will only grow once Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson get in, along with a few other contenders I can think of.
Bristol is where the legends win. Darrell Waltrip won a dozen times there. Cale Yarborough, Dale Earnhardt, and Rusty Wallace each had nine. Then there is Kyle Busch, who’s victory on Saturday night pushed him to six, one more than his brother Kurt and David Pearson. Each one in the Hall of Fame, or will be. No exceptions.
Kyle Busch: Busch won the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race on Saturday night to complete the Bristol sweep after winning the Camping World Trucks race on Wednesday and Xfinity Series race on Friday.
