 By: Tom Luttermoser Image Via JR Motorsports Twitter
With Dale Jr entering several late model races over the last couple weeks showing his support for local short tracks and grassroots racing, obviously we owe him a huge thank you. It brings local short tracks to the front and center with the average NASCAR fans who otherwise may not know these races happen. Arguably the biggest of these events is the famous Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway down in Florida. Just like every year we see NASCAR drivers from ARCA all the way to Cup run the event with names such as Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Erik Jones and Chandler Smith being some of the names we've seen over the years. This year is no different with NASCAR being represented very well in the packed field for the 55th annual event being; (as of now)
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 By: Tom Luttermoser
A man who will make any race fan laugh, a man who is not afraid to voice his opinion and the man who pushed The Intimidator to his final win at Talladega in 2000 & brother of Rusty Wallace. Kenny Wallace has been a major part of the racing world since the 1980s with NASCAR as well as the dirt tracks of the nation. With a very enjoyable broadcast at the Gateway event this season, Kenny Wallace confirmed today on Facebook on Monday; "My response to the rumor. IT IS TRUE and i have been contacted and asked to come back and do some NASCAR TV and shows. They said to me: “TV and NASCAR executives watched the St.Louis race and pre race show behind the grandstands and took notice” If I did. It would only be for the sport and a handful of races. I really love my new life." I personally hope he does. Kenny with his larger than life personality, knowledge of the sport and sense of humor are some things we desperately need more of in this sport. He blended with the guys in the booth and behind the grandstands perfectly. Here's to hoping he makes it official!  By: Tom Luttermoser Image Via Rick Ware Racing Twitter
Rick Ware Racing will leave their alliance with Stewart-Haas Racing and will now forma a technical alliance with Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing for 2023. This partnership will see the RWR team leasing space out of the RFK shop in Concord, NC and the two will combine resources and share data under the Ford Performance umbrella. This is just another step that RWR has made in the last couple years to grow from the bottom of the Cup roster to improving their weekly performance. Both teams have seen improvements over the last 2 years with RWR seeing 40 lead lap finishes between 2021 & 2022 over the 14 in their previous 5 seasons. RFK Racing saw their first win since Carl Edwards 2014 Sonoma win outside of a superspeedway with Chris Buescher's win at Bristol in the second half of the 2022 season. Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing also has a technical alliance with Front Row Motorsports who also saw their best season to date in 2022. RFK will continue the alliance there as well.  With several high ranking drivers moving to new rides in 2023, we know not everyone is just going to knock it out of the park in their first season with their new pairings. But I take a look at the performance of the drivers themselves as well as their respective new teams in '22 to come up with these predictions. I guess we will see how I did next November. First we have the biggest free agent in a long... long time, Kyle Busch. Busch made the announcement that he would be moving over to Richard Childress Racing and the #8 Chevrolet after 15 years with TRD and Joe Gibbs Racing. Busch would have his worst season in a very, very long time in 2022 with only a single win that he would not have gotten if it were not for the leaders tangling in the final corner. On the other hand, RCR would have their best season since loosing Kevin Harvick in 2013 with 4 wins and an impressively strong second half of the season for both Reddick and Austin Dillon. If both parties can get their programs together I do expect to see the 8 car and Busch get into the Playoffs and possibly even extend Busch's win record to 19 consecutive seasons with at least a single victory, though I do not see them lighting the world on fire. Speaking of Tyler Reddick, he is moving over to 23XI's #45 Toyota Camry in 2023 to take the place of a retiring Kurt Busch. Reddick off of a 3 win season with the 8 car and RCR and the 45 team off their win at Kansas 1 with the elder Busch brother can make for a very strong pairing. I fully expect to see the 45 back in victory lane before Daytona in August and possibly even multiple times. 23XI has 3 wins in the last 2 seasons with 2 coming in 2022 both at Kansas showing strength with both the 23 & 45 teams. I see a strong chance at Reddick with a second 3x win season in a row next year. Kaulig Racing made the announcement late this season that the winningest road course racer in history, AJ Allmendinger would return to the Cup Series full time in 2023. In the Xfinity Series in '22, AJ only finished outside the Top-10 5x out of 33 races. AJ made 18 Cup Series starts in 2022 being a major threat to win 3 road courses as well as a spectacular race between himself, Ross Chastain and Kyle Larson for the win at Homestead-Miami eventually finishing 3rd. He even strung together 6 top-10 finishes in a row in the second half. AJ showed us all he was ready to return the Cup in the 16 car and I expect this team to build on '22 and not only get into the playoffs, but get a win or two in the process. AJ's former part time Kaulig teammate Noah Gragson comes off a runner up record Xfinity Series Season of 8 wins to his first full time Cup Series season racing for the King at Petty GMS Racing in the famed 42 car along side Erik Jones and team Co-Owner Jimmie Johnson. Noah has a decent number of Cup starts under his belt going into 2023, 18 to be exact. Although he has had a few good runs, he only has a single 5th place finish at Talladega for Beard Motorsports to brag about. Even racing the HMS 48 car he could never string together a solid Top-10. I can see Noah being competitive next season with his aggressive but maturing driving style as this is the same team that got teammate Jones 13 Top-10s and a win this season. I just cannot say that the 42 team will get into the playoffs. Lastly, we have Ty Gibbs. Gibbs is the reigning Xfinity Champion, 11x Xfinity winner as well as having 15 Cup starts to his name. Gibbs will be inheriting the 18 team from Kyle Busch in the Cup Series in 2023 but they have gone through a rebrand as the 54. Ty impressed early on in his fill-in roll at 23XI in the 45 even scoring his first Top-10 at Michigan, but he clearly concentrated on the Xfinity title fight instead. falling off the map after that 10th place finish. But now he can concentrate on the highest series in the sport, with the support of the 2x Cup title winning team and his team owning grandfather. All could be perfect if were not for the loss of Ty's father, Coy Gibbs the night of his championship. We all know loss can be a huge factor in life and concentration. Despite this, I do see the young Gibbs competing hard as ever even knocking on the door or a playoff run. By: Tom Luttermoser Image credit not found  By: Tom Luttermoser. Image Credit not found: Michigan International Speeway
It's no secret NASCAR has been growing annually for a few years now, but there are tons of once sold out races who's seats we just cannot seem to fill. Especially over the last year or two, the broadcast touts a sold out or record crowd and fans on social media just absolutely cannot seem to skip a beat with the trusty old "But look at all those empty seats!" Naturally forgetting that just a few years go, even pre-covid lockdowns, those same seats were not even close to being as filled. Fans (especially negative ones on social media) point out a lot of reasons for not attending races, poor on track product, ticket prices, "these aren't real stock cars" and my personal favorite... NASCAR died with Dale. Obviously everyone has their own reasoning, but it is none the less a problem. Here are some of the OFF track changes I would love to see NASCAR make that I think, could bring fans back.
$3 16 oz. Beer, Hamburger/Cheeseburger, BBQ Sandwich, Fried Bologna Sandwich, Talla-Mento Dogwich, Sausage, Nachos, Pretzels, Peanuts, Candy $4 Bill France Burger, Bill France BBQ Sandwich, Bill France Hot Dog, Philly Cheesesteak, Chicken Tenders & Fries, Loaded Philly Kettle Chips, Sugarlands Shine and Other Mixed Drinks You Can't tell me they're not selling the shit out of this stuff!
Now these are just a few of the big ones I can think of. Obviously there are a few more out there, what do you guys think? What would help bring you or someone you know back to the track?  Original Story By: Tom Luttermoser w/ Image Credits: Paul Productions & Paul Wiedeler Last week it was announced that German race team 3 Friends Racing would field their first stock car in the US at this past weekends South Carolina 250 at Florence Motor Speedway with young driver Christopher Tate behind the wheel. With my limited knowledge of the South East's Late Model scene I had to figure out who this kid was. So, I hit him up on IG and got to chatting. Hailing from Decatur, Texas, Christopher Tate attended his first NASCAR race at 4 years old and was hooked instantly never wanting to miss seeing a race on TV or hearing it on the radio. Tate loved racing he started racing Motocross and trail racing at 12 till the ripe old age of 17. Tate had several wins and even a couple runner-up title finishes in his day on 2 wheels. He took his share of bumps and injuries before it finally figured (in his words) "It'd be best if I got a roll cage around me" and decided to chase his NASCAR dream. About his Junior year of high school he never even thought it was possible, he just never got his big break until now. In 2019 Tate got the opportunity to run the Myrtle Beach 400 which he credits as the race that truly cemented that he wanted to race as a career. With so few laps and a rainy week, there were a lot of firsts for Tate during that event and having to learn many of them on the fly. He started 37th out of 38 cars but managed to race his way up to 18th which is a result that should make any inexperienced driver happy. It has now been 3 years since that last race in a Late Model and since 2021 Tate has moved to North Carolina to pursue that dream I think all boys have in their childhood, to drive a race car. On top of that, also in 2021 Tate joined the United States Marine Corps and serves as a landing Support Specialist. He credits the Corps for teaching him the perseverance that he has today that allowed him keep on pushing to make his dreams come true stating that he could not be more thankful for that. At the Coke 600 weekend at Charlotte in 2022, Christopher may not have known it, he got a huge opportunity. Tate was a guest of David Starr at the event where he met Paul Wiedeler doing videography with Starr who introduced him to Dennis Hirtz who own 3 Friends Racing and the trio hit it off from there. Christopher Tate even began being listed as 3F Racing's development driver and over the last several weeks, Tate and 3F Racing's conversations started picking up steam about potentially fielding a car at the Thanksgiving Classic but ultimately deciding to attempt the South Carolina 250 at Florence Motor Speedway. The South Carolina 250 is the Limited Late Model event held at Florence every year and this was only Tate's 2nd start.. EVER... in a Late Model. Being first to qualify he unfortunately started P.23 of 26 starters. But with support from Xfinity Series driver and friend Ryan Vargas and the guys over at 3F Racing, Tate managed to keep the nose of the car clean and drive his #30 to a very respectable P.16. Talking to Christopher Tate he did mention that as of now there are no solid plans for 2023, but he did however say that he is eyeing an ARCA debut at Daytona. They are looking for funding, so if you can help... Give these guys a hand!  By: Tom Luttermoser Image Via: Nashville Superspeedway Twitter Champion's Week in Nashville, topped off by Burnouts on Broadway! An awesome spectacle topped off by the image above! Going from New York to Vegas to Nashville, the burnout celebration by the 16 Cup title contenders and the Xfinity, Truck and ARCA champions is a long standing tradition that unfortunately this year will sit out due to parts shortages and a lack of chassis. (The chassis should be on their way to NASCAR to receive the promised 2023 safety structural updates) There is also a lot of construction currently going on on Broadway making the street all but accessible for the tradition. The awards week goes from a four day event down to just two as seen in the schedule below, notice the burnouts are missing.. Hopefully we are all just missing something, but it's not looking good. Good news for fans of the burnout show, there is no reason it will not return in 2023!   Opinion Piece By: Tom Luttermoser
If 2022 taught us anything, these new cars have brought an incredible amount of parody to the races. 19 different winners and 21 winners when you factor in the exhibition races showing that anyone really can win at any time. So we look at last season's performances and improvements and speculate to look back at next August. Who will be your 16 car 2023 Playoff field? (in no particular order)
Some big names are clearly missing from this list, true. But I think that we will continue to see the shift to the younger drivers with wins and performances. But my 5 dark horse picks to knock out a win or sneak in would have to be;
By: Tom Luttermoser The 2023 Silly season still isn't finished. The major factors are in place such as Ty Gibbs, Tyler Reddick and Kyle Busch of course. One thing we did not see this season was retirements, next season I don't believe we will be so lucky. Here are just a few of the big possibilities going into 2024 that we may need to keep an eye out on sooner rather than later.  Kevin Harvick: Happy Harvick has been in the sport longer than anyone else in the field. Longer even than some drivers combined, he replaced the late Dale Earnhardt in a rebranded 3 team under the 29 banner in 2001. Harvick has had several nicknames over the years such as "Happy Harvick" & "The Closer". He became a Cup Series champion in 2014 and has amassed a series leading 60 Career victories and 3rd on the ALL-TIME combined win list with 121. In 2021 he went winless for the first time since 2009 at RCR and many said he was done, but 2022 he scored 2 Victories at Michigan and Richmond. He has made it very clear he is not happy with the "Next Gen" car with it's safety issues and with his contract coming up at SHR next season, we very well may see a farewell tour for Kevin Harvick. I think the only thing that can keep him in that seat after 2023 would be a major performance increase.  Denny Hamlin: Hamlin is the 3rd longest running driver in the Cup Series today. He has 48 Cup Series victories with 67 combined. 3x Daytona 500 winner, Coke 600, 3x Southern 500 winner, 2006 Rookie of the year and now co-owner of Cup team 23XI Racing. Denny has done it all.. Outside of that elusive championship. Arguably the best ever to not get one. But 2023's season end mark 2 big, important issues to Denny. The end of his contract at Joe Gibbs Racing and the end of Joe Gibbs Racing's contract with longtime Hamlin sponsor FedEx. Could this mark the end of Hamlin's long road at Gibbs? If Joe cannot get the sponsorship (like they couldn't with Busch), does Denny move on? Does he move on anyway to his own car over at 23XI? Time will tell.  Martin Truex Jr: Truex has had an up and down career. Starting our at Dale Earnhardt Inc. and then moving on to Michael Waltrip Racing where he scored 2 wins in the first 10 years of his career. After losing his ride at MWR he moved over to Furniture Row where he reignited his career with 17 wins and a Championship. When FR went under, he went to Joe Gibbs Racing where he continued the performance up to 31 total Cup wins. We all expected 2022, his first winless season since 2014, to be his last as he was critical of the car from the end of the 2021 season. Fate had a different story for us as Truex signed a contract for 1 more year at JGR and just like Harvick, I think performance will tell us if there is another extension or not.  Alex Bowman: Bowman the Showman. Bowman has scored at least 1 win per season since being full time with Hendrick Motorsports, a win and consistency early in the 2022 season showed us all he could have had a real chance. He made the playoffs but with concussion like symptoms after Texas, that would kill his season. But Bowman's contract is up at the end of 2023 and although I wouldn't call him the bottom guy at HMS, he brings no huge sponsorship $ outside of Ally Financial. Ally is more than likely the only reason he got his last contract re-upped. Bowman has won 7 races since 2018 showing improvement each year, but even before the Texas crash, Bowman had a pretty decent slump throughout the summer. Can Bowman prove he is the right guy for the 48 in 2023?
 Per The Athletic's Jeff Gluck, NASCAR may be making a change for 2023 that we all have been silently (or not so silently) begging for for a LONG time.
Fans have been very vocal on the post Stage caution for a great many reasons, but especially on road courses where a caution lap could take upwards of 3-4 minutes or more to complete, and with 2-4 laps during many of those cautions that some would say are needless.... That is a LONG time wasted. So, Per Gluck, NASCAR is considering removing those stage cautions at road courses. Nothing is yet set in stone and we don't know if that is for all RCs or half or even just one.... But it is a welcome idea for many of us! By: Tom Luttermoser Image Via: Unknown Photo Credit |
