Car FYI

Photo Credit: Logan Riely/Getty Images untitled NASCAR Cup Series: Kyle Larson Prevails in Heated Late Race Battle at Bristol The conclusion of the opening three-race round on the road to deciding the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series championship has playoff contenders as well as the rest of a 38-car field converging on the concrete 0.533 short oval of Bristol Motor Speedway for a 500-lap Saturday night affair. Ahead of the green flag for the Bristol’s Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, only 3 of the eligible 16 drivers had their places in the 12-spot second round of the 2021 Cup Series playoffs secured. Having already gained entry into the second round of the playoffs, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson won the opening two stages of the short track race. Drivers such as Kevin Harvick and Ryan Blaney would mathematically clinch their spots into the next round as the final stage of the Bristol race commenced for a 240-lap dash to the checkered flag. Hamlin’s quest for a second ...

Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images The first dirt race on NASCAR’s top series since 1970 (known as the Grand National Series at the time), The 2021 Food City Dirt Race at the Bristol Motor Speedway brought in 2,300 truckloads of dirt to create a spring race unlike any seen prior at the 0.533-mile oval. At the completion of an event that involved several multi-car wrecks and surprises, Joey Logano motored to a clean victory leading the final 60 laps in his #22 Shell Pennzoil-sponsored Ford Mustang.  Providing a challenge for every competitor and team as they attempt to discover the speed secrets for setting up a 3,400-pound race car on the new surface, the first modern NASCAR Cup Series race on dirt did manage to deliver an untidy yet thrilling experience. NASCAR was required to make several adjustments to the original plan for the race weekend with uncertainty of the Goodyear dirt tire changing the stage format for the Food City Dirt Race. Originally intended to consist a pa...

Photo Credit: Matt Sullivan/Getty Images If you’re a professional driver seeking to make their first NASCAR Cup Series start, it makes perfect sense to plan a debut during an event where a variety of unknowns exist. The March 28th Food City Dirt Race at Bristol Motor Speedway is going to be something new for the entire Cup Series field enters with an empty notebook. With varying levels of dirt experience among the regular competitors in the series, this first NASCAR Cup Series dirt race in 51 years provided the ideal time for Stewart Friesen to run his maiden effort in the tour. A native of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Stewart Friesen will be behind the wheel of a #77 Chevrolet Camaro fielded by Spire Motorsports. A mainstay of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series since 2016, Friesen’s career highlights in his 97 starts in the popular touring division include two victories including his first series win in the 2019 Eldora dirt event. Outside of NASCAR, Stewart Friesen has amassed a...

Photo Credit: Axalta When Jeff Gordon debuted in NASCAR Cup Series competition in the final race in 1992, it was difficult to miss the #24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Under sponsorship of DuPont Performance Coatings, the stock car not only wore the name of the popular paint company but its product. A multi-colour paint scheme accompanied by rainbows on the hood and side panels proved innovatively eye-catching in a period when the majority of professional stock car teams relied largely on a single colour. Created by now-famed motorsport artist Sam Bass, DuPont, Hendrick Motorsports and Jeff Gordon gained immediate notoriety. The #24 DuPont Chevrolet rainbow paint design's initial dazzle was eventually met with equally stunning performances on the track by the driver that would become one of the most winningest competitors in the NASCAR Cup Series. A memorable part of Jeff Gordon's stock car racing career, the Rainbow paint scheme will make one final appear...