Race fans sit atop Rattlesnake Hill and watch the action during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series SUBWAY Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on March 4, 2012
Photo – Robert Laberge/Getty Images

Last time the Sprint Cup Series left Phoenix, we had a fight in the garage, Clint Bowyer running and a big mess on the front straightway. Pure excitement that was. Things may be a bit different this time around but, pure excitement always seems to arrive at the Phoenix International Raceway and this Sunday should be no different. After the track was reconfigured in 2011, the excitement has been at an all-time high. The cars can pass just about anywhere and the dog-leg on the backstretch makes for some exciting side-by-side racing. This gem in the desert always puts on quite a performance.

The Subway Fresh Fit 500(k) will take place on Sunday March 3^rd, 2013 and the expected time the green flag will wave is 3:14 PM EST (1:14 PM MT). The race will feature 312 exciting laps and 312 (500k) miles. The weather for race day is looking good with partly cloudy conditions and a 10% chance of rain. The high temperature for the day will be 83 F and the low will be 52 F. The TV broadcast of the race can be seen live on FOX and the radio version of the broadcast can be heard on MRN.

Last year’s Subway Fresh Fit 500 was a pretty calm race following the 2012 Daytona 500 which featured the infamous jet dryer incident. Denny Hamlin won the race and it was his first victory at Phoenix. This was Hamlin’s first win in a season of many victories to come. Hamlin had the dominant car that day and he proved that by pulling into victory lane once the checkered flag fell. The November race will be most remembered Phoenix Race from 2012 since it featured the Jeff Gordon/Clint Bowyer altercation which created an all-out crew brawl in the garage. This race may be a bit less-wild but, surely, it will still offer some surprises.

Kevin Harvick will look to take two in a row at Phoenix after he won the November race but, Denny Hamlin will look to take his second straight Subway Fresh Fit 500. Jimmie Johnson is always strong at Phoenix and he will look to back up his Daytona 500 win with a win out in the desert. A.J Allmendinger will be back in the Sprint Cup garage this weekend with Phoenix Racing as he continues to look for a career rebound after he failed a drug-test last season. Scott Riggs will be making his season debut with a new team to the Sprint Cup Series (XXXtreme Motorsport) in the No.44 car. After parting ways with BK Racing in the off-season, Landon Cassill will be back in the Cup Series Sunday driving the No.33 car for team-owner Joe Falk. The Gen 6 car will bring some unknowns to this race but, it will be exciting to see how the Gen 6 car fares this Sunday in the Phoenix desert.

We probably won’t see the miracle of Clint Bowyer running through the garage area this Sunday in the Subway Fresh Fit 500 but, the race will surely provide some excitement. The reconfigured Phoenix surface has created great racing in the three races NASCAR has had on the surface and now with the Gen 6 car, the racing can only be better. The Hendrick Motorsports stable will be strong once again on Sunday but, it will be interesting to see who can compete with Team Hendrick. Sunday’s the day and Phoenix is where it’s at. Round two of the Sprint Cup Series season will go green Sunday out in the Phoenix desert and it will surely be a race to watch.

Event Schedule

12:00-1:25 PM MT, 2:00-3:25 PM EST (Friday) Sprint Cup Series Practice, televised on SPEED

4:10 PM MT, 6:10 PM EST (Friday) Sprint Cup Series Qualifying, televised on SPEED

10:00-10:55 AM MT, 12:00-12:55 PM EST (Saturday) Sprint Cup Series Practice, televised on SPEED

1:00 PM MT, 3:00 PM EST (Sunday) Sprint Cup Series Race, Subway Fresh Fit 500(k), televised on FOX

Next Race– 3/10 Kobalt Tools 500 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Las Vegas, Nevada

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