The Silence Is Deafening: Wallace Humbled By 800th NASCAR start

It’s not often Kenny Wallace is at a loss for words. But he’s admitted as much heading into Friday night’s race where he’ll make the 800th start of his NASCAR national series career, placing him 17th on the all-time list.

Wallace became only the third driver to surpass 400 starts in the NASCAR Nationwide Series last year. His national series start totals: 444 NASCAR Nationwide, 344 NASCAR Sprint Cup and 11 NASCAR Camping World Truck.

His accomplishments in the NASCAR Nationwide Series are more than solid with nine wins, 64 top fives, 159 top 10s and 10 poles. He’s finished in the top 10 in the standings in eight of the 11 seasons he’s competed full time and has been named the series’ Most Popular Driver a record three times.

Race No. 26, the final race of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series “regular season,” is an anticipated event for every single driver in the series.

But it’s something else entirely for Denny Hamlin.

“Anticipation” fails to capture Hamlin’s emotions come race time at Richmond International Raceway.

Hamlin grew up in the .75-mile track’s shadows, and as such, pines for a victory at his very local short track. Literally, a NASCAR Sprint Cup win at Richmond is at the top of his wish list.

He has come close a number of times, but has yet to break through to Victory Lane.

Oddly, his best Richmond performance ended his worst Richmond finish.

In last season’s May Richmond race, Hamlin had the dominant car – by far. He led an astounding 381 of 400 laps. But a late-race tire problem killed his day, ended the dream and resulted in a 24th-place finish. Still, he finished up that race with a number of race-best statistics, including a Driver Rating of 129.1.

Continue reading “Numbers say Hamlin loves Richmond, but still no wins”

Mark Martin and Kyle Busch have a leg up toward earning a potential top seeding at the outset of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

Now, all they have to do is make the Chase.

Strange but true: Because of the increasingly demanding competition in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the guys with the most race victories thus far this year are in danger of not qualifying for NASCAR’s “playoffs.”

Continue reading “What if the top winners don't make the Chase?”

Amanda’s articles

By Amanda Vincent

With only one race remaining before the Chase cutoff — Saturday night’s Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway — a lot is on the line for several drivers.

With Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Denny Hamlin (the top four drivers in points) safely in the field for the 2009 Chase for the Sprint Cup, eight spots are still up for grabs, and 11 drivers still have a legitimate shot of laying claim to one of them. On the flip side, 11 drivers, who head into Richmond with dreams of making the Chase still alive, can find themselves on the outside looking in when the actual Chase begins the following weekend in Loudon, N.H.

Continue reading “Chase spots on line at Richmond”

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