Christopher Leone

NASCAR Sprint Cup: 7 Biggest Names Who Will Be Left Out of the Chase

Selecting seven drivers who won’t be in this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup after the cutoff event at Richmond in two weeks. The list reads like a who’s who of NASCAR, a testament to some of the newer drivers and teams that have really elevated their game this year.

Kurt Busch: To an extent, we all knew this was coming. Nobody in their right mind thought that Phoenix Racing was going to keep Kurt Busch in the Chase when they entered into a handshake agreement before the start of this season. On the other hand, few probably thought that Busch wouldn’t be able to elevate James Finch’s equipment much beyond Landon Cassill’s 2011 experience.

*This article received 2,017 reads as of 9:00 PM on Thursday, August 30, 2012.

NASCAR: 5 Reasons Danica Patrick Should Get a Pass for 2012

Defending a run-of-the-mill season for Danica Patrick that sees her 10th in Nationwide Series points with only two top-10 finishes. Patrick has scored 11 top-15s in her 23 starts, while her lap 434 accident at Bristol on Saturday while running on the lead lap represented her best Sprint Cup run to date.

Unfortunately for Patrick, the two types of tracks that she seems to grasp best in a stock car are the two that show up least frequently on the schedule: superspeedways and technical road courses. Patrick seems to have qualifying figured out at Daytona, where she started first and third in two Nationwide events. Meanwhile, Patrick’s driving at both Road America and Montreal, two technical road courses exclusive to the Nationwide schedule, was excellent; she even managed to lead 20 laps in Canada.

*This article received 2,073 reads and 42 comments as of 9:00 PM, Thursday, August 30, 2012.

NASCAR's Hall of Shame (Bleacher Report)

Counting down some of the shadiest characters in NASCAR history, from drug-addicted drivers to owners and sponsors who left plenty of folks holding an empty bag.  Many of these folks never spent significant time in the sport, but there are a few names that almost any NASCAR fan knows, including Jeremy Mayfield.

Mayfield continues to insist on his innocence to this day, but according to NASCAR, multiple drug tests came up positive for methamphetamine in 2009. That began a long and twisted saga that included accusing his stepmother of the fatal shooting of his father, bankruptcy, and a documentary that hasn’t yet seen the light of day.

*This piece received 2,062 reads as of 1 PM ET on Wednesday, July 25, 2012.

25 All-Time Greats Who Would Struggle in NASCAR Today (Bleacher Report)

Attempting to explain why 25 of NASCAR’s all-time legends, had their careers with their old teams reached their peak in this era, would have struggled in modern motorsports. The reasons range from deeper fields to different cars to big-money organizations dominating the sport.

It’s true that different strategies and personalities work in different eras. In fact, the differences may be so large that any sort of comparison like this is impossible to accurately make. But with deeper fields, wins at a premium and most importantly, far more money in the sport, some of these drivers, despite all possessing Hall of Fame-worthy talent, wouldn’t have half as many wins as they eventually totaled in their careers.

*This piece received 4,465 reads as of 11 AM ET on Monday, July 9, 2012.

NASCAR: 10 Best Sprint Cup Drivers from Northern States (Bleacher Report)

While NASCAR still retains a southern-based image in some parts of the country, its base of drivers has become decidedly national in the past 15 years. In fact, some of the sport’s top contenders (half of the current Chase for the Sprint Cup) hailed from northern states.

Matt Kenseth, the current Sprint Cup points leader, honed his skills on local tracks in his home state of Wisconsin, winning track championships at Madison, Slinger, and Wisconsin International Raceway. He proved himself against such short-track legends as Dick Trickle and future crew chief Robbie Reiser, truly launching his NASCAR career in the latter’s Busch Series car in 1997.

*This piece received 2,737 reads and two comments as of 11 PM ET on Monday, June 25, 2012.

Kurt Busch: Why Sprint Cup Sponsors Are Afraid of the Former Cup Champ (Bleacher Report)

Analyzing the reasons behind sponsors’ hesitation to get behind 2004 Chase for the Cup winner Kurt Busch. Aside from the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona and Sprint All-Star Race, Busch’s car has carried sponsorship in only two points-paying events this season.

The biggest problem with Busch is that his behavior attracts the type of sponsorship that NASCAR would likely rather avoid. The only big name that has been rumored in connection with Phoenix is the Jerry Springer Show; it is typical, rowdy audience is the last thing that NASCAR would like to see coming into its races, as the sport still fights the last bastions of a trashy, “redneck” stereotype. A partnership like that, while great for an independent team that could use an infusion of sponsorship cash, could represent a major setback for a sport that still struggles to assert its maturity to parts of America.

*This piece received 2,335 reads and six comments as of 11 PM ET on Wednesday, June 20, 2012. It reached 3,184 reads as of 11 PM ET on Monday, June 25, 2012.

NASCAR: "Our Long National Nightmare Is Over": Peers Respond to Dale Jr.'s Win (Bleacher Report)

With today’s win in the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway, Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored the 19th win of his Sprint Cup career and snapped a career-worst 143-race winless drought. Needless to say, plenty of folks had words of congratulation all over the NASCAR paddock, and many of them made their way to Twitter.

The congratulations extended long beyond the fraternity of NASCAR drivers, though. 2003 CART champion Paul Tracy tweeted, “I refrained from saying go Dale go, (because) something goes wrong every time, but that was cool to see him dominate!” Legendary IndyCar driver and 1969 Indianapolis 500 winner Mario Andretti added, “Really great to see Dale Jr in victory lane again. Big congrats Jr!”

*This piece received 1,931 reads and 20 comments as of 1 PM ET on Monday, June 18, 2012. It increased to 2,932 reads and 31 comments as of 11 PM ET on Wednesday, June 20, 2012.

NASCAR: Eury Misses Mark with "Beat by a Girl" Comments About Danica Patrick (Bleacher Report)

Addressing Tony Eury Jr.’s post-race comments from yesterday’s Nationwide Series 200 at Michigan International Speedway. Eury insisted that drivers race Danica Patrick harder than they need to because of their hate for being “beat by a girl,” threatening to initiate some serious setbacks for his driver as the season continues.

Eury Jr. is toeing a fine line by saying that drivers hate to be beat by a girl and may even be misjudging the source of any animosity in the paddock. Remember, Patrick has had plenty of opportunities to develop in a stock car over the past three years, despite having no experience in the car and struggling to communicate with her crew because of major differences in stock car and open-wheel terminology. Are drivers really jealous of being beat by Patrick, or are they jealous of how long her team has been patient with her because of the marketing opportunities that she presents?

*This piece received 2,437 reads and four comments as of 1 PM ET, Monday, June 18.

Indy 500 2012: Analyzing Takuma Sato's Controversial Last-Lap Move (Bleacher Report)

Questioning whether or not Takuma Sato was wrongfully eliminated by Dario Franchitti’s defense of the lead on the final lap of today’s Indianapolis 500. Sato attempted to make his pass in the first turn, but did not have enough room to make his move.

The No. 15 Mi-Jack Honda pulled up alongside Franchitti’s No. 50 Target Honda, but suddenly Sato’s blue and white Dallara DW12 began to break loose. His wheels had hit the white paint just short of the edge of the pavement, causing him to lose traction in the same way that Ed Carpenter and Marco Andretti had to cause the previous two cautions. 

Sato smacked the outside wall. Race over. Franchitti wins under caution.

*This article reached 1,824 reads as of 10 PM on Monday, May 28, 2012.

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