A year ago, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. won at Phoenix. Five of the six before that, Kevin Harvick claimed the prize. Now, if anyone could use a win this weekend, Danica Patrick, Chase Elliott, and Clint Bowyer would be among them. They sure are not among the Hot 20 going into Sunday’s action.
Rules be rules, and the book was tossed at a number of folks after Atlanta. The biggest hit was taken by Martin Truex Jr. after a roof flap issue meant the loss of 15 points.
Kyle Larson topped the chart in the one practice session before qualifying. The driver of the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 28.740 and a speed of 192.902 mph.
Interesting things can happen after the first race of the season. Some names usually near the front find themselves as also-rans as the schedule continues on to Atlanta. No Junior. No Biffle, No Bowyer. No Patrick. Okay, I’ve gone too far, I know.
The hottest 20 drivers heading into Sunday are all locked in. Thanks to some large wallets, even Carl Edwards and Kurt Busch are good to go for the rest of the season, buying up those Charters from Waltrip’s defunct operation.
Starting in ten days, just about every week the engines will roar to life and 43 cars will take the green flag. However, we all know that not all race drivers and teams are created equal.
I loved watching Cale Yarborough in the No. 11 and Richard Petty piloting the No. 43. How I miss seeing Dale Earnhardt in that black No. 3. I wish I could see Rusty Wallace again in that blue deuce though my reasoning is that him driving means there was no way in hell he would be announcing.
As the beginning of a new year of racing approaches, it's often difficult to keep up with the off-season changes. Drivers move to different teams, crew chiefs come and go, new sponsors are announced and more. To aid your transition into the 2016 NASCAR season, I've compiled a list of the major changes.
With rain interfering one last time and delaying the race start for over an hour, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the season finale, the 17th annual Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Kyle Larson posted the fastest time in second practice. The driver of the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 30.680 and a speed of 176.010 mph.
