Tag Archives: Cale Yarborough

New Format Can Help Ease Pressure in Jimmie Johnson’s Quest for Eighth Title

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Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, stands on the grid prior to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Can-Am Duel 2 at Daytona International Speedway on February 23, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Florida. Photo – Chris Graythen/Getty Images

The new format in place for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship this year will help Jimmie Johnson keep his mind off what could be a monumental accomplishment.

Johnson notched his seventh title last year, tying icons Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt for the series record. An eighth champion would put Johnson at the top of the pyramid. Continue reading →

Déjà vu Would be Just Fine with Denny Hamlin

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DAYTONA BEACH, FL – FEBRUARY 17: A detail of the #11 FedEx Express Toyota, driven by Denny Hamlin during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Advance Auto Parts Clash on February 17, 2017 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
Photo – Getty Images

Denny Hamlin wouldn’t mind at all if history repeated itself during Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway.

Hamlin won the Advance Auto Parts Clash, and eight days later, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota followed up with his first Daytona 500 victory, a breathtaking affair that saw Hamlin beat fellow Camry driver Martin Truex Jr. to the finish line by 0.010 seconds, a margin of roughly six inches.

Hamlin is well aware that winning The Great American Race back-to-back is one of the toughest feats in motorsports, so tough that only three drivers have accomplished the feat: Richard Petty (1973-1974), Cale Yarborough (1983-1984) and Sterling Marlin (1994-1995). Continue reading →

Blaney Honoring the Late Neil Bonnett at Talladega

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Ryan Blaney and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team are planning an encore presentation of their throwback theme first used at the Darlington Raceway earlier this season.

Blaney, at his own request, will wear the same uniform he wore during the Southern 500 to honor David Pearson.

At Talladega, he’ll wear the uniform in honor of both Pearson and the late Neil Bonnett, who was from Bessemer, Ala., and considered Talladega his home track.

Bonnett succeeded Pearson as driver of the iconic No. 21 midway through the 1979 season and used a uniform just like the one Pearson wore. Once aboard the No. 21, Bonnett won in his third start, at Dover International Speedway. He won twice more that season, at Daytona and Atlanta. Continue reading →

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Coke Zero 400 at Daytona Preview

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams are at Daytona International Speedway for the second time this season as the series starts counting down last ten races before the Chase begins at Chicagoland Speedway in September.  On Saturday, July 2nd they’ll race 400 miles over 160 laps in the Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola with NBC coverage starting at 7 pm ET and a green flag at 7:45 pm ET. Radio coverage is available on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

Smoke Show: Stewart Fires Up Win at Sonoma

Even Smokey the Bear couldn’t have prevented the fire performance Tony Stewart produced in Sunday’s Toyota / Save Mart 350.

Stewart, who paced the field for 22 circuits, lost the lead to Denny Hamlin on the last lap, but moved him off the 11th turn to win his first race since June 2, 2013 at Dover – 110 events ago. The triumph marked Stewart’s first win in 84 starts. Continue reading →

Throwback Thursday: A Dover Race Lost Because of a Lug Nut

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Photo - Courtesy of Wood Brothers Racing

Photo – Courtesy of Wood Brothers Racing

The Motorcraft/Quick Lane team, with rookie driver Ryan Blaney now at the wheel, will be back on the track at Dover International Speedway this weekend for the first time since 2008, when the team cut back to a partial Sprint Cup schedule.

For the Wood Brothers, it’s a return to one of the tracks where they had great success in years past.

The Woods won seven times at Dover over the years, beginning with their first trip there in the fall of 1972.

David Pearson led 350 of that race’s 500 laps to win by three laps over second-place Richard Petty. Pearson swept the Dover races in 1973, beating Cale Yarborough in the spring and Bobby Allison in the fall.

Pearson won two more, in the spring of 1975 and the spring of 1978. Continue reading →