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Twenty-four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams assembled Tuesday at Talladega Superspeedway in an R&D test session that was used to confirm that the gear ratio was compatible with the restrictor plate size for next month’s running of the Aaron’s 499.

 

 J. Gordon Comments after Spoiler test [22:03m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Back in 1982, NASCAR star Bill Elliott twice tamed the high banks at the track now known as Gresham Motorsports Park in a Ford Mustang.

Hickory native Shane Huffman came home victorious in the rain-delayed UARA-STARS 150 at the Hickory Motor Speedway on Sunday afternoon after a spirited, side-by-side battle with Coleman Pressley during the closing laps of the event.

NASCAR development driver George Miedecke dominated the Yokohama V8 Ute Legend race with a flag to flag win at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide.

Le Affair Mayfield has taken many twists and turns in the last 12 months, in a two part episode of the new year - “In Related Matters” - a few dots are being connected.

NASCAR has placed Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 car in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, on probation for the next three series events for a rule violation he committed during the race at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 7. Edwards’ probation will run until April 14 of this year.

The term racer to NASCAR fans means one thing, modern-day Gladiators wheeling 4 wheeled 3,500lb hunks of tin, Kevlar and fiberglass. Admittedly we as NASCAR fans have a very narrow definition of the term and that’s sad in many respects.

Looking around the racing newswires this Tuesday has been an exercise in, not futility or uselessness, more like “Ho-hum that all there is.” In that light here are a few headlines that did spark a bit of interest.

God help us, Speed Channel is about to find out if NASCAR fans are able to sing and dance. The network is launching a talent search show called “Fast Track to Fame,” on March 1.

PRISM Motorsports efforts at Daytona were called “historic.” For the first time in the team’s history they entered two cars for a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event, the #66 Toyota of Dave Blaney and the #55 Toyota of Michael McDowell.

A little short of three weeks ago Brian France said things are not as bad for NASCAR as last year, when a weak economy hurt fan attendance and corporate financial backing.

During the second half of the 1969 NASCAR Grand National season, Dodge rolled out the Daytona, a massive shark-nosed machine that featured an addition that looked like something out of the Hollywood hit, “2001: A Space Odyssey,” a giant rear wing that rose several feet above the rear deck lid.

When Richard Petty looked at what Chrysler was offering as race fodder for 1969, and then looked over at the long-nose Ford Torino Talladega, King Richard opted to put Petty Blue and the number 43 on a Ford for the year.

By the mid-Seventies the Detroit manufacturers had cooled in their enthusiasm for NASCAR—the country seemed to be more concerned with fuel economy than high performance. But then, when no one was looking, Chevrolet introduced the Laguna Type-S3 version of its midsize Chevelle and began dominating the premier series.

If ever there was a car shaped to go fast it was Ford’s 1987 Thunderbird. From the point of its slick beak to the slightly elevated trunk lid, the ‘87 T-Bird was shaped like a perfect projectile — three - quarters bullet and one-quarter B-1B wing.
Even more than two decades later, Bill Elliott’s T-Bird is [...]

Ford’s ‘83 to ‘86 Thunderbird presented a special challenge for NASCAR. It was clearly more aerodynamic than any car in General Motors’ race-eligible stable.

Number six on the list of Daytona’s best stock cars had a four year reign and ushered in both one of today’s biggest, most successful stars and was part of arguably one of NASCAR’s most emotional winner’s circle of all time.

The 1966 NASCAR season was marked by the re-introduction of Chrysler’s legendary Hemi engine and Ford’s departure from the sport. With less competition and more power than ever, Chrysler was a frequent visitor to the winner’s circle early in the season, though Ford’s boycott took a big bite out of attendance.

Back in 1955, NASCAR stock cars were still virtually indistinguishable from true stock production vehicles. Sure, there was some rudimentary safety equipment aboard and race numbers on the doors, but the race cars themselves often still had license plates and real headlights.

In the early days of NASCAR there was no such thing as a star. Well, at least there wasn’t until the Fabulous Hudson Hornet showed up and the car became The Star of the fledgling racing series.