TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Feb 8, 2012, 10:15 pm
Forbes Magazine released a poll on Wednesday ranking America’s most disliked athletes. Making the list were the infamous like Plaxico Burress and Michael Vick and the overexposed like Tiger Woods and Kris Humphries. Joining those mentioned above and others was the only NASCAR driver to register in...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Feb 6, 2012, 7:09 pm
As we have talked about before around here, the crew guy silly season can be just as crazy as the one involving drivers and sponsors. You won’t see press releases about changes, but teams vying for the top pit crew talent can be very competitive. I have absolutely no data to back this up, but TheN...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Feb 2, 2012, 11:30 pm
Remember that time Bobby Ginn was part of the Childress ownership group? And Chip Ganassi was a partner in that back marker Nationwide Team? Or how about when Jim Harris become a partial owner up at the now-defunct Randy Moss Motorsports? Yeah, not too memorable, right? Every year around this time t...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Feb 1, 2012, 5:29 pm
The last several NASCAR offseasons have all shared an unsettling common theme: contraction. 2011 was no different. In the Cup Series alone, we lost both Red Bull cars, a team from both Childress and Roush Fenway, and the privateer TRG Motorsports. And there were several more losses from the Nationwi...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Jan 13, 2012, 10:39 am
We’ve received some concerned tweets, emails, and comments about our whereabouts and I just wanted to drop in and ease your minds. No, we aren’t dead, haven’t been laid off, or been abducted by aliens. We are still deeply entrenched where we’ve always been. But after nearly four straight yea...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 29, 2011, 2:00 am
We’re just a week into the NASCAR off-season and the changes are coming fast and heavy. Layoffs Around The shoe hasn’t dropped everywhere just yet, but so far Roush Fenway has undertaken a massive layoff that we’ve heard was as many as 125 employees. This included many long-time Roush employee...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 21, 2011, 2:00 am
It was a wild season that began with 20-year-old Trevor Bayne winning the Daytona 500 and ended with a wild race that made series veteran Tony Stewart the first Cup Series Champion not named Jimmie Johnson since 2005. In the mean time: we saw 19 different winners, including five different first time...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 20, 2011, 5:53 pm
The fight for the Championship was the biggest story of the week as Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart sat just three points apart going into Homestead. The winner will become the sport’s first new Cup champion since 2005. In other news, NASCAR issued an unannounced penalty to Brad Keselowski this week...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 18, 2011, 1:49 am
The next couple of weeks will be a time for celebration in NASCAR. We’ll crown three different champions this weekend and then head to the respective banquets. It was a season of improved ratings, competition and the first Cup champion not named Jimmie Johnson since 2005. As some celebrate next we...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 17, 2011, 12:00 am
Do you remember when you were a little kid in your backyard playing whiffle ball with your buddies?  You always pretended it was the bottom of the ninth in game seven of the World Series.  There were two outs, the bases were loaded, and your team was down three runs.  You strode to the plate TheN...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 16, 2011, 2:00 am
The end is near.  All three series will close out their 2011 seasons this weekend at Homestead.  The Truck and Nationwide battles are all but sewed up, but we’ve got one hell of fight for the Cup title.  As we wait to find out who will be crowned, we’ve got the 152nd round of reader TheNASCAR...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 15, 2011, 2:00 am
Take note of this past week – it was one of the more interesting ones I think we’ve seen in a long time. Championship hopes dashed. A driver suspended. A championship team owner put in a bad spot. And sponsors very publicly exercising their influence. It was a strange mix of expectation and surp...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 14, 2011, 2:55 am
And then there were two. Following Sunday’s Cup Series race at Phoenix, only two drivers, Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards, still have a shot at the title.  Every other Chaser has been mathematically eliminated.  As we get ready for Homestead, we are in for one hell of  a battle with the two drive...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 13, 2011, 6:49 pm
Kyle Busch was talk of the week after last weekend’s suspension. On Monday, NASCAR fined the driver $50,000 and put him on probation through the end of the year. Busch’s sponsor Mars opted after the incident to pull sponsorship for the remainder of the season. Busch was also pulled from the rema...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 3, 2011, 1:00 am
Over the last couple of years, there has been quite a bit of discussion on this website about Jeremy Mayfield’s situation.  The failed NASCAR drug tests and the subsequent lawsuits have been the topic of more than a few TNI blog posts.  And those posts attracted dozens of reader comments with so...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 2, 2011, 3:00 am
Only a few short weeks remain in the 2011 season.  And what’s great, is we have three very close championship battles to enjoy.  A lot can and will happen between now and the checkered flags in Homestead.  As another week rolls along, we’ve made it to the 150th edition of ATIW.  If you donâ€...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Nov 1, 2011, 3:00 am
We got another stark reminder last week about how a weak economy and soft sponsorship market are affecting NASCAR teams. UPS announced they would be moving from full primary sponsorship at Roush Fenway to one race as a primary sponsor with a full season as an associate sponsorship. Ouch. The move l...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 31, 2011, 1:00 am
When the dust finally settled on Sunday, there didn’t appear to be a single car without some damage.  Martinsville is known for beating and banging, but what we saw in the Cup race was seriously ramped up.  All race long it was every driver for themselves, and it didn’t seem to matter for some...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 30, 2011, 6:48 pm
Michael Waltrip Racing and JTG Daugherty Racing led the news this week after the teams were heavily penalized following Talladega. After finding windshields for the #00, #56 and #47 did not meet specifications NASCAR suspended all three crew chiefs through the end of the season and fined them $50,00...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 28, 2011, 1:00 am
On Thursday, UPS announced what their future NASCAR involvement will entail.  And as expected, their team side sponsorship has been drastically reduced.  For 2012 the shipping giant will scale back to being just an associate sponsor on Carl Edwards #99, and will serve as a primary for just one Cup...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 27, 2011, 3:00 am
Superspeedway racing tends to bring out the worst in everyone and this weekend in Talladega was no different. We had accusations of team orders, then subsequent denials, crew chiefs telling drivers to wreck on purpose, blatant cheating and complaints from everyone on track about the driving. There h...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 26, 2011, 1:00 am
From NASCAR’s largest oval, to it’s smallest…  The Trucks and Cup cars are making the short trip up to Martinsville this week, while the Nationwide Series is off for another week.  We aren’t off though, as we have the 149 edition of questions and answers.  If you don’t know what this po...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 24, 2011, 11:52 pm
During the race, pit road can be a busy place.  Under cautions, it’s not uncommon for 30 or more cars to hit pit road for service.  When that happens, teams are at the mercy of those around them in regard to how they can get in and out of their pit stall.  But during green flag pit stops, crew ...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 24, 2011, 3:00 am
Ford and Jack Roush made waves this weekend after word seeped out of the camp that the teams were directed to draft exclusively with their manufacturing counterparts. With two Roush Fords in serious contention for the championship it wasn’t a surprising edict – especially not from Jack Roush. A...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 22, 2011, 10:33 pm
The death of IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon and questions about safety led the collective motorsports news this week. Wheldon was laid to rest Saturday in a private ceremony in St. Petersburg, Fla. NASCAR’s Jimmie Johnson drew ire this week after saying the IndyCar Series shouldn’t race on ovals. Af...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 20, 2011, 3:00 am
This week NASCAR’s at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Virginia for the annual Drive for Diversity Combine. The event brings together some of motorsports best young female and minority drivers to compete for a small number of spots in NASCAR’s D4D program. This year the class includes 26 drivers fro...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 19, 2011, 11:41 pm
NASCAR released the 2012 Nationwide Series schedule on Wednesday and as expected it didn’t contain any surprises.  The schedule is down a race, to 33, and when NASCAR finishes up the Truck Series schedule, expect it to be shorter as well. 2012 will have one less race because only one of the lost...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 19, 2011, 2:00 am
Five Chase races down, five to go.  With the Nationwide cars off for a few weeks, the Cup cars and Trucks will take to the high banks of Talladega.  We’ve got a solid batch of questions this week, so we’ll get to it.  If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all reader quest...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 18, 2011, 3:00 am
*post originally ran on April 19. Coming off of a season that saw a pot hole mar the opening race and then rain and other issues combine to make for a less than stellar start, 2011 has been nothing short of a breath of fresh air in the Cup Series. And consider this, with Jimmie Johnson’s come fro...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 17, 2011, 3:00 am
When I woke up on Sunday morning, I was kind of excited to write a post for Monday. Saturday night’s race at Charlotte left us with no shortage of interesting story lines. And with Jimmie Johnson’s tough wreck, we now have what appears to be a three horse race for the championship. But on Sunday...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 16, 2011, 11:38 pm
Plans for 2012 led the news this week with crew chief rumors and a scaled back Richard Childress Racing. The Charlotte Observer reported last week that Penske Racing crew chief Steve Addington was leaving the team at the end of the year. Addington denied the rumor. Joe Gibbs Racing said this week th...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 14, 2011, 2:00 am
It was officially announced today at Charlotte Motor Speedway that Dollar General would move it’s sponsorship from Turner Motorsports and Sarah Fisher Racing (IndyCar team) to Joe Gibbs Racing for 2012.  The retailer is upping it’s NASCAR spending from just a single, full time Nationwide Series...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 13, 2011, 3:11 am
For NASCAR it’s been three tough seasons. Ratings have fluctuated, mostly to the negative, sponsors have downsized and in some cases moved on and organizations at every level have pulled back or closed completely. Nowhere has the bad economy and changing sponsorship market hit harder than in the N...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 12, 2011, 3:00 am
Only six races remain in the 2011 Cup season.  The Nationwide and Cup cars will take to Charlotte this weekend, while the Trucks are in Las Vegas.  And as you’ve come to expect, we’ve got more answers to reader questions for you.  If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 11, 2011, 5:52 am
After Sunday’s dominant performance at Kansas, Jimmie Johnson is once again the talk of the Chase.  After a rough start to the playoffs, Johnson has rebounded to close within four points of the lead.  But right behind Johnson, who sits third in the standings, is Brad Keselowski.  Following a th...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 10, 2011, 2:09 am
After a weekend like this one it’s not unusual for us to find interesting comments on very old posts. People are angry, curious or bored and find us on Google. Watching Jimmie Johnson walk away with the race, and put himself on course to win another championship on Sunday was apparently enough for...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 9, 2011, 8:06 pm
Clint Bowyer led the news this week with the announcement that he had signed with Michael Waltrip Racing for the 2012 season and beyond. The team will be sponsored by 5 Hour Energy for 24 races. No word on who the crew chief will be for the team. In other news, Turner Motorsports announced this week...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 7, 2011, 3:00 am
As I watched Kurt Busch cross the finish line first last weekend, all I could think about was one thing, wouldn’t it be sweet payback if he won the championship? Busch of course left Roush Racing at the end of 2005, just a year after winning the championship, under very bad circumstances. Remembe...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 6, 2011, 12:03 am
On Tuesday, shortly after a Turner Motorsports press release confirmed our breaking news from Monday (Dollar General gone), we found out that Reed Sorenson had been bounced from Turner’s #32 Chevy.  The exact reason for why he was given the boot isn’t clear, but performance can be ruled out. Â...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 4, 2011, 11:24 pm
Hey readers, I know some of you have experienced some Javascript errors with the website, and I want everyone to know we are working on trying to track down exactly what is wrong.  For now, we’ve got the 146th edition of ATIW.  If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all reade...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 4, 2011, 3:00 am
Jimmie Johnson had a rough few weeks. He was involved in an on-track altercation with Kurt Busch at Richmond – he finished 31st. He went on to Chicago and had a respectable, but not overwhelming 10th place run. Then he struggled at New Hampshire, finishing 18th. The driver found himself 29 points...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 3, 2011, 6:05 pm
We are hearing that Turner Motorsports had meetings with the majority of their employees today and handed out letters in accordance with the North Carolina WARN Act regarding layoffs.  In case you aren’t familiar, the WARN Act “requires a 60-day notice to the state and employees if at least 50 ...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 3, 2011, 3:00 am
Before Daytona, I wrote a blog post with some random thoughts entering the season.  In it, I made predictions about which drivers I thought would win each championship.  I said Ron Hornaday would take the Truck title, Elliott Sadler would be your Nationwide champ, and Denny Hamlin would break thro...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Oct 2, 2011, 11:36 pm
Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson were the talk of week after the second Chase race of the year at New Hampshire. Stewart won his second straight propelling him into points lead, while Johnson found himself in unfamiliar territory, having to overcome a growing deficit with just eight races to go. In o...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Sep 29, 2011, 11:02 pm
... every week about another team that is preparing to lay off employees.  The U.S. economy has still not rebounded, and even though some signs are better for NASCAR (like ... like Brian Vickers and Mark Martin still haven’t locked down seats for 2012, and there are plenty of other free agent...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Sep 29, 2011, 12:28 am
You heard him say it. Sure he was angry and it’s not true – Waltrip did win two Daytona 500s after all – but it definitely adds an uncomfortable element to the Clint Bowyer to Michael Waltrip Racing rumors. Strange bedfellows? We often say around here not to burn bridges – the community i...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Sep 28, 2011, 12:12 am
Two Chase races, two Tony Stewart wins.  Could this be the year the 48 finally falls?  Dover is up next on the schedule, with the Nationwide and Cup Series in action.  With Wednesday upon us, we’ve got the 145th edition of ATIW.  If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all r...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Sep 26, 2011, 11:12 pm
There was an interesting piece today on NASCAR.com where Joe Menzer and Bill Kimm faced off about whether or not Chase teams should be allowed to make pit crew changes.  They referenced the changes that have happened to Kevin Harvick’s team the last two years, and the mid-race change for the #48 ...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Sep 26, 2011, 3:18 am
The only thing as sure as the next race is that there will be flux and change during the NASCAR season. And this year hasn’t been any different. This summer we saw crew chief shifts at some of the sport’s top tier teams – I even wrote about it here. From Earnhardt Ganassi Racing to Roush Fenwa...
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TC posted an article on The Nascar Insiders - Sep 24, 2011, 10:19 pm
Tony Stewart pulled off a fuel mileage victory in the opening race of the Chase putting him just 7 points from the Chase lead last weekend at Chicago. It was movement to Michael Waltrip Racing that led the news this week though. Richard Childress Racing Competition Director Scott Miller left the tea...
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