News

Sep 27 2011 - 3:46pm

Upside Down, Inside Out

Perusing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings yesterday, I kept turning it upside down. Case in point: the drivers in third and 10th in the standings after two races. Brad Keselowski, the sheet told me, was third, 11 points off the leader, Tony...

Sep 26 2011 - 4:58pm

Pressure? What Pressure?

Every pro athlete knows a little something about pressure. There’s the pressure to perform, to do wondrous things on the court of choice, lead your team to victory, not screw it up. In basketball, baseball and hockey, there are seven-game final...

Sep 21 2011 - 10:26pm

Margin Call

The rule of thumb in Chases past has been, to a certain degree, that you have at least one race to use as a mulligan and still be in line to win the title. It’s worked since 2004, when Kurt Busch broke a transmission at Atlanta and still came back to...

Sep 19 2011 - 5:32pm

Mulligan Stew

Tony Stewart came up roses on a fuel gamble Monday at Chicagoland, canceling out his failed gamble last year in the Chase opener at New Hampshire.Several others in the Chase crowd weren’t so lucky, and they will pay the price. Jimmie Johnson, Kyle...

Sep 16 2011 - 9:58pm

Going After It...For Real

Well, on Sunday afternoon, there'll be a different feeling in the air at Chicagoland Speedway.For the first time in 2011, there's a title on the line for the 12 drivers in the Chase. That means, more than for the first 26 races of the season, there's...

Sep 14 2011 - 3:15pm

The Chase...Is Here

The Chase, be it ever so humble, is finally upon us.After more than seven months of trials and tribulations, we're about to embark on a 10-race roller-coaster that, unlike your favorite stationary ride, will move right, left, up and down over the next...

Sep 14 2011 - 3:11pm

Wide Open Chase

Now that the Chase is set and the racing for a title can begin, who is the favorite? That’s a little tougher to determine this year. In the past several years, there has been one driver who has held a decided advantage over the other Chasers, and it...

Sep 12 2011 - 4:22pm

A Gigantic Waste of Time

The 48 and the 22 are at it again, and I’m underwhelmed, to say the least.Jimme Johnson, the “five-time chump,” according to Busch, got the worst of Saturday night’s pitter-pat, finishing 31st, some 38 laps down. Busch went on to finish in the top 10....

Sep 9 2011 - 3:55pm

The 3,650

The 3,650Can you remember what you had for lunch last Wednesday?How about the last time you stopped and just appreciated where you were, who you were with and why you were there?Can you remember what it felt like to wake up on Sept. 11, 2001 and know,...

Sep 7 2011 - 3:09pm

And Then, There Was One...

That’s all there is to it, sports fans. One more race, and we’ll know who will contend for the title in 2011.The annual Chase-deciding race at Richmond is upon us, and we look forward to seeing who emerges from the hue and cry with a shot to win the...