Monthly Archives: January 2017

As Season Begins, Bubba Wallace is Under Pressure to Perform

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NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Darrell Wallace Jr. poses for a photo during the NASCAR 2017 Media Tour at the Charlotte Convention Center on January 25, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo – Jared C Tilton/Getty Images

Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. is under pressure this season—and not just the sort of natural butterflies a driver feels when he suits up and climbs into the cockpit before a race.

Wallace is racing in the face of unknowns, trusting that a strong performance in the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing NASCAR XFINITY Series Ford will prolong his tenure in the car. Continue reading →

Late-Season Progress Leaves Kasey Kahne Optimistic

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Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Kasey Kahne poses for a photo during the NASCAR 2017 Media Tour at the Charlotte Convention Center on January 25, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo – Jared C Tilton/Getty Images

Four years into his tenure at Hendrick Motorsports, Kasey Kahne is still looking for the sorts of results both he and team owner Rick Hendrick expected when Kahne signed on with the organization in 2010—and then waited a year to take the seat of the No. 5 Chevrolet.

Kahne hasn’t won a race since he triumphed at Atlanta on Aug. 31, 2014. In each of the last three seasons, he has posted three top-five finishes compared with 23 in his first two years with Hendrick combined (2012-2013). Continue reading →

Mr. Menard Meet Mr. Borland

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Photo – Getty Images

In a late-season move in early November, Richard Childress Racing hired veteran Matt Borland as crew chief of the No. 27 Chevrolet driven by Paul Menard.

Though Borland had worked extensively with Menard’s teammate, Ryan Newman, dating to Newman’s days at Team Penske, Menard and Borland didn’t know each other, but that’s a situation both driver and crew chief have been working hard to correct. Continue reading →

Daniel Suarez Should Provide Inspiration for New NASCAR Drive for Diversity Class

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Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Daniel Suarez poses for a photo during the NASCAR 2017 Media Tour at the Charlotte Convention Center on January 25, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo – Jared C Tilton/Getty Images

If the members of the 2017 NASCAR Drive for Diversity class need a beacon to guide them or a story to inspire them, they need look no further than Daniel Suarez.

Unexpectedly, and at least a year ahead of schedule, Suarez earned a battlefield promotion into the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series when Carl Edwards shocked the racing world with the January announcement that he was stepping away from racing. Continue reading →

Newly Married Dale Earnhardt Jr. Eager to Start 2017 Season

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Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. poses for a photo during the NASCAR 2017 Media Tour at the Charlotte Convention Center on January 25, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Photo – Jared C Tilton/Getty Images

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is in his happy place.

On New Year’s Eve, NASCAR’s most popular driver married long-time girlfriend Amy Reimann. The couple honeymooned on Maui and Kaua’i.

But neither of those Hawaiian Islands tugs on Earnhardt’s psyche the way Daytona Beach does, and at long last, in mid-February, he’ll be back on track at the Birthplace of Speed, racing a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series car for the first time since July 9 at Kentucky Speedway. Continue reading →