Kansas was a scheduled 400-mile contest but, truth be told, the highlight of this one arrived with 50 to go. It came in the form of a busted brake rotor, three destroyed cars, and a driver being airlifted to a local hospital. The event itself was just another 1.5-mile track, cars spread out hither and yon, and a generic sponsor non-iconic name attached. However, as they reached the 200th lap, we witnessed what could happen on this track, any track, to jerk us back to reality.
Ryan Blaney is still searching for his first victory in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series after another dominant performance ends with just a top-five finish in the Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway.
Ryan Blaney scored his first career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light Pole Award Friday at Kansas Speedway.
Blaney raced to the top of the qualifying leaderboard with a lap of 189.600 mph in his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford to earn his first pole in 64 Cup starts.
The world, as we know it, must be ending. Forget about all the politics and the violence and the hypocrisy and the attempts to mix cultures that just don’t mix. I am talking about something serious here. The television ratings from the race at Talladega are the worst in more than 20 years. Talladega. The worst. What in hell is going on?
So, let us talk about Talladega. We had Ricky Stenhouse Jr. start on the pole. Then we had a race full of excitement with a host of “oh, my God, did you see that?” moments. That pretty much covers the highlights from the opening 168 laps. It was as thrilling as I had hoped, but this one came down to the final 30 circuits on that big track.
NASCAR is losing steam. Surprise! It is not exactly news, but this week comments made by the top brass yet again reminded us of what has been going on for about a decade now. NASCAR got its big TV contract in 2001 to bring the action nationwide. It lost one of its legends in that opening race, then his son became part of a very compelling and riveting story line, and a fad was born.
We all know what it is like. We get all excited about some event, then it does not go as planned. That Christmas morning you waited for so long, only to wake up with the flu. The day at the ballpark longed dreamed of, only to see the storm clouds roll in. That long anticipated first date, only to discover you just blew the rear of your pants out. For me, that was Richmond.
As we near the first quarter mark of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, Ryan Blaney is in the midst of what looks like a breakout season.
One day they are going to make that movie. It will feature a young Dale Earnhardt Jr. growing up in the shadow of his legendary father. We will see his daddy’s pride as his namesake begins his racing career. That first Tier II win at Texas in 1998. The two Tier II titles that came that year, and the next.
