1. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex and Kyle Busch wrecked as they battled for the lead on a restart with 50 laps remaining at Indianapolis. Both cars were unable to continue, and Truex's No. 78 became engulfed in flames. Truex finished 33rd.
It rained. TSN (Canada) pulled out, and the channel I was recording the race on abandoned the effort, presenting instead a few toss away programs. Well, to be fair, I did state before that I do not get all that excited about Indianapolis, and it would seem TSN took my comments to heart. On Sunday, they made like the NASCAR Nazi...and no race for me. I guess I could have watched some soccer but, as most folks know, soccer is not really a sport. Not like poker is, anyway.
While Kyle Busch has amassed a higher win total at three other tracks and has led more laps at 19, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is statistically his most consistent race track.
While the track is best known for the Indianapolis 500, NASCAR has made its mark there as well. Did you know that “kissing the bricks” was started by Dale Jarrett? In 1996, after winning the Brickyard 400, Jarrett and his crew chief, Todd Parrott, paid tribute to the track’s history by kneeling down and kissing the “Yard of Bricks.”
The most anticipated race of the week is not the one slated for Sunday in Indianapolis. Sure, the Brickyard has been around since 1909. Sure, it has been home to the Indianapolis 500 since 1911. Yes, it has hosted NASCAR’s Brickyard 400 since 1994, when Jeff Gordon won his first of five at the iconic track.
1. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex started on the pole and finished third at New Hampshire, posting his seventh top five of the season. He leads the Monster Energy Cup points standings by 38 points.
The weather was nice this past weekend up in my neck of the woods. Sadly, I paid the price for a root canal. No sleep Friday night. Zip for Saturday night. Sunday? The feature race was from Loudon. However, just as I rarely hurt after a visit to the dentist, maybe Loudon would go against type and be just wonderful. A race for the ages. Damn it, I deserved it.
LOUDON, N.H. – Kyle Busch’s celebratory burnout produced a cloud of smoke over the frontstretch at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, but Ryan Preece’s first run in top-of-the-line equipment made an even bigger impression in Saturday’s Overton’s 200 NASCAR XFINITY Series race.