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Commentary No athlete has generated as much debate as Tim Tebow at the intersection of sport and faith. The multitude of stories on the Denver Broncos quarterback invariably include the word polarizing and that makes you wonder about NASCAR’s champions of faith.
Michael McDowell is no Kyle Busch. That much appeared certain on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway. After McDowell provided a silver lining in the dark cloud of a story that Busch created for Joe Gibbs Racing at Texas, the biggest opportunity in McDowell’s four-year Cup career ended with a 33rd-place finish in the No. 18 Toyota usually seen at the front of the field.
It was the late 1990s and certainly better days for Jeremy Mayfield. On the brink of breakout Cup success with team owner Michael Kranefuss, the soft-spoken native of Owensboro, Ky., found himself traveling in the back of a Chevrolet Monte Carlo (not any fault of the then Ford driver) to an appearance in Charlotte on behalf of Coca-Cola.
Thanks for playing, Denny Hamlin. The sometimes cruel and unusual nature of NASCAR competition can render a championship favorite an also-ran in the blink of a season. This time last year, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Hamlin was a popular pick to unseat the reigning and seemingly emeritus Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson. A career season featuring eight victories led Hamlin to the brink of his first Cup title. But the ill-fated words of crew chief Mike Ford came back to haunt Hamlin and the No. 11 JGR team.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. – In an overly caffeinated and fast-paced world, there’s no small degree of irony that Paul Menard and Slugger Labbe slowed down enough at Starbucks (of all places) to grab a cup of coffee that would change the arc of their NASCAR careers.
NASCAR must be commended for all advancements made in the name of safety, which was a huge priority in the creation of its current Cup car. But as work continues now on the 2013 model, the sanctioning body needs to focus foremost on performance without compromising the safety of its competitors.
LOUDON, N.H. – As his younger brother eyes a 100th NASCAR victory this weekend, Kurt Busch talked about the divergent paths that their careers have traveled today at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
SONOMA, Calif. – For an event staged in wine and cheese country, Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 felt more like a beer-induced backyard brawl.
In a strange twist of irony, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is not the early Sprint Cup leader in terms of sponsor exposure despite his improved performance so far in the 2011 season. That honor goes to Kyle Busch. Joyce Julius & Associates (JJA), an Ann Arbor, Mich.-based firm that specializes in measuring the worth of television exposure, pegged Busch’s value at $28.4 million through 12 NASCAR Cup races.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Richard Petty is NASCAR’s ultimate standup guy. Earlier this week in Charlotte, Petty continued his quest to help people unable to stand on their own.
