Mark Martin has called him "the real deal". Joe Gibbs Racing has invested a lot of time and effort in him. On Saturday, Joey Logano will make his long awaited debut in the NASCAR Nationwide series, driving the #20 Gamestop Toyota in the Helluva Good! 200 at Dover International Raceway. Logano has been long considered the best driver with the greatest potential in the regional series in which he has raced in. The question on everyone's mind, however, is if Logano will be able to live up to his expectations, or if he will be another "also ran" in NASCAR's three national series.
On Sunday, an obviously upset Danica Patrick made her way to Ryan Briscoe's pit after he put her car into the wall on pit lane, breaking her suspension and ending her day in the Indy 500. Patrick, who was stopped by the head of security a the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, appeared hellbent on letting Briscoe and his team know what she thought about the move that knocked her out of the race. The question arises: Does Danica Patrick feel entitled to special treatment because she is a woman or is she simply becoming the "bad girl" on the track, similar to NASCAR's current "bad boy", Kyle Busch?
For the first time in two years, Kasey Kahne has taken his Budweiser Dodge to victory lane in stock car racing's longest race of the season, the Coca Cola 600 at Lowes Motor Speedway. Kasey Kahne started on the outside pole. Kahne had a strong car all day, running consistently in the top five most of the day. The Coca Cola 600 had a wild ending, as most of the field had to come into the pits for fuel with ten laps to go, and then race leader Tony Stewart blew a tire, allowing Kasey Kahne to take the lead and, eventually, the checkered flag. This is Kahne's second victory in as many weeks. Kahne won the NASCAR All-Star race last weekend at Lowes Motor Speedway after being voted into the race by fans. The Coca Cola 600 had 37 lead changes among 16 leaders.
After a month of grueling preparation, Scott Dixon dominated the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, capturing the win from the pole and taking is Chip Ganassi Target Car to victory lane. From the beginning of the race, he and teammate Dan Wheldon were running conservatively, first and second. Dixon had the right pit strategy and luck in the end as he was able to hold off a late race run by Vitor Meira and Marco Andretti. This win would mark Dixon's twelfth career win. Unfortunately for teammate Dan Wheldon, he would not be so lucky, finishing 19th, after running up front most of the day.
This week, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Season returns to Lowes Motor Speedway for the Memorial Day weekend tradition: the Coca Cola 600. After, what most are calling, a boring All Star race at the track on Saturday, fans are looking forward to an exciting and grueling Coca Cola 600. The Coca Cola 600 has been a race where many drivers capture their first Sprint Cup Career victory, including David Pearson, Bobby Labonte, Jeff Gordan, Matt Kenseth, and, most recently, Casey Mears. Pit strategy is going to be vital through the race Saturday night, along with making changes to the car's setup when necessary. Here are some drivers to watch on Sunday night:
Memorial Day weekend is one of the best weekends in all of motorsports. Fans will be treated to a double feature on Sunday, with the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday afternoon and the Coca Cola 600 from Charlotte, N.C. on Sunday evening. Whether you are a casual fan, or a die hard race fanatic, you cannot deny the the great weekend that race fans are in for. There is a story line for each race which fans will be closely watching. There is nothing like Memorial Day weekend if you are a race fan.
During the weekly top twelve driver's press conference last Thursday, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was asked if there was any chance of moving to the Sprint Cup level with his team, JR Motorsports. His reply caught many by surprise. Earnhardt Jr. stated, "I used to say no way, no way. But it’s almost as expensive to run in the Nationwide Series. And their going to bring a CoT in and we won’t be able to race in the Nationwide Series with the CoT probably. That’ll just be too expensive to switch all that over... And it would cost the same amount of money to [switch to a Cup team], as it is to run the Nationwide Series." Though it may take some time to acclimate, a move by JR Motorsports to the Sprint Cup series will likely be successful, especially if it continues its affiliation with Hendrick Motorsports.
For the first time in NASCAR history, a driver who made it into the show based on the fan voting process won the NASCAR Sprint Cup All Star Race when Kasey Kahne took his #9 Budweiser Dodge to victory lane. Kahne also captured a $1 million check for his victory. Kahne, who had to race in the Sprint Showdown earlier in the afternoon and finished fifth, made up track position after the final pit stop between segments by taking fuel only.
On Saturday night, Lowes Motor Speedway will host one of the most anticipated races of the NASCAR season: the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. The race will feature drivers who have won a race in either the 2007 or 2008 season, or are past champions of the event of of the series within the last ten years. For many drivers, however, the All-Star race is going to be the least of their concerns. 29 drivers will attempt to race their way in to the All-Star race by finishing first or second in the NASCAR Sprint Showdown, immediately before the All-Star race. There are many talented drivers in the lineup for the Sprint showdown. The only question is which one is going to survive to make it into the All-Star race field?
