ROAR! - Weekly Racing Magazine - March 30, 2020

WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE MAR. 30, 2020

REDDIT REACTS: SUAREZ’S SWING & A MISS

NICE GUYS FINISH FIRST 3 QUESTIONS WITH JAY ADAMCZYK OF JAYSKI

OUT OF THE GROOVE “THAT ALMOST LOOKED REAL!”

EXCITING O’REILLY 125 AT TEXAS DELIVERS SURPRISE WINNER RUSTY WALRUS ”TIMMY HILL WINS?!”

JUST SAYIN’ NO FANS, NO RACE

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THAT ALMOST LOOKED REAL...ALMOST! In this week’s episode of Out of the Groove, host and creator Eric Estepp gives us his race review and analysis of the eNASCAR Pro Invitational at Texas. That’s right, last week was no fluke, NASCAR has thrown its weight behind the series, and that means it’s time to talk about turning left, quickly.

Eric takes us through the context behind the moves, and explores the skill and performance 0 0 4

differences between the drivers with Cup experience and the drivers with iRacing experience. What’s the value of each, and where are they tending to fall within the standings?

But that’s not all, we also got a good look at how a week’s worth of practice affected the entire race. And speaking of the entire race, where did this week fall on the Groovy Gauge?

You’ll have to watch the episode and find out!

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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5 THINGS WE LEARNED

5

THINGS WE LEARNED AT TEXAS (IRACING STYLE) EXCITING O’REILLY 125 AT TEXAS DELIVERS SURPRISE WINNER HILL REIGNS SUPREME AT VIRTUAL TEXAS

After scoring a terrific third at the virtual Homestead-Miami Speedway, Timmy Hill displayed his incredible prowess behind the wheel by winning the O’Reilly 125 at the virtual Texas Motor Speedway. Hill earned his 674th iRacing victory in his 1,676th start and did so with a “simulation rig” akin to most gamers without the bells and whistles found in Denny Hamlin’s house. Hill, who started 10th, was not to be denied on this race day. With that, here’s five things to consider from Sunday’s O’Reilly 125 at Texas Motor Speedway.

BY ROB TIONGSON 0 0 6

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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5 THINGS WE LEARNED

5

BELL’S ROOKIE SEASON STRUGGLES CONTINUE TO ENASCAR

P

rior to the start of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, Christopher Bell seemed like a virtual shoe-in for NASCAR Cup Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year. After all, he entered the premier division with Leavine Family Racing, a team that knocked on the door for victories in 2019 with Matt DiBenedetto. Not to mention, the No. 95 team received a hearty technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing. However, Bell’s rookie season has been a bit of a struggle with his best finish coming in the crash-filled Daytona 500 with a 21st. As NASCAR racers made the move to virtual racing, Bell’s on-track struggles continue in the Pro Invitational Series. Following a 26th at Homestead, Bell’s promising run at Texas was curtailed by a crash in the fronstretch on lap 27 followed by an engine failure on lap 89. At some point, good luck must find Bell, real or virtual.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

5 THINGS WE LEARNED

4

THE BIFF’S RETURN RESULTS IN TEXAS TROUBLES

O

ne of the neatest aspects of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series is the return of beloved NASCAR Cup Series racers like 2000 Cup Series champion Bobby Labonte as well as Roush Fenway Racing’s Greg Biffle, one of the most aggressive and animated Cup Series racers in the past 20 years. Biffle, a Washington State native, was the proud recruit of Benny Parsons during the late 1990s with ESPN’s Winter Heat Series. Scoring titles in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series respectively in 2000 and ’02, Biffle scored 19 Cup Series wins in his 15-year Cup Series career that ended ingloriously in 2016. Making a one-off return for Kyle Busch Motorsports last year at Texas, Biffle scored the win, a moment that seemed like a Hollywood sports film. However, Biffle’s return to Cup, albeit in iRacing, wasn’t so kind with a lap 116 crash.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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5 THINGS WE LEARNED

3

LANDON CASSILL SHOWCASES SAVVY DRIVING AT TEXAS

L

andon Cassill is maximizing his opportunity with the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series.

After all, the journeyman Cup Series racer could view this limited-run series as an audition, of sorts, to earn a solid NASCAR opportunity when on-track action returns sometime in the future. For now, the four-time iRacing winner enjoys his virtual racing situation with a pretty formidable rig and great sponsor placement with Blue Emu for Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 125. Cassill, who could be perceived as the “people’s champion” for his earthy demeanor and accessibility with fans at the track and on social media, wheeled the No. 89 Chevy from the fifth starting position with a fantastic fourth-place finish. Throughout the race, Cassill kept his cool during tenuous moments in the lead pack. In fact, one could say he had a resting racer’s face while he was wheeling his distinct ride at the front of the field.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

5 THINGS WE LEARNED

2

DALE JR. OVERCOMES ADVERSITY WITH TOP-10 FINISH

W

hile Dale Earnhardt Jr nearly scored the win at Homestead-Miami Speedway last Sunday, the popular NASCAR legend had a truly eventful O’Reilly 125 at Texas Motor Speedway. Despite starting second, Earnhardt’s running order throughout the race had more ups and downs than The Irishman on Netflix. Running outside the top-10 on lap 73, Earnhardt pancaked the Turn 4 wall, resulting in right front damage and lost track position. However, Earnhardt, perhaps tapping into his on-track and sim racing experience, didn’t panic, keeping his No. 8 car on track while the leaders began their final pit stops of the race. On lap 94, Earnhardt took the lead during the cycle of stops before pitting on lap 108. While it seemed like Earnhardt would finish a lap down, a caution came out for Daniel Suarez on lap 110. Earning the “lucky dog,” Earnhardt fought hard to place a solid sixth at Texas.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

5 THINGS WE LEARNED

1

HILL PROVES GOOD FOLKS CAN FINISH FIRST

U

ltimately, Timmy Hill was the biggest story and takeaway of Sunday’s virtual race. After all, the popular underdog NASCAR driver is the epitome of the everyday hero in sports with his remarkable and underappreciated sense of humor, scored a truly popular win that reached national and global television audiences. Naturally, most newcomers to sim racing immediately observed his modest sim racing gig with a steering wheel mounted to his workstation. Hill’s victory may inspire viewers to take up iRacing in the hopes that they could take after the Port Tobacco, Md. native with success in a virtual car while forging a path into an on-track NASCAR career. As evident with the past three weeks of ROAR!, it can be said that sim racing is the true equalizer for racers with incredible talent. In addition, Hill’s victory is the momentous highlight that NASCAR, as a league, needed during these challenging times.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

JUST SAYIN’ ▶

NASCAR SHOULDN’T CONSIDER RACING WITHOUT FANS

A report surfaced this past week suggesting that NASCAR — in an attempt to not forego plans to resume competition in early May — might still explore the possibility of having its premier series initially compete with no fans in attendance. While this is arguably a better option than further delaying the return to racing (which seems virtually inevitable as COVID-19 cases continue to mount nationwide), let’s hope NASCAR ultimately choses against this. The depressing optics of having any race with no fans simply aren’t worth it.

JA RED TURNER ▶ THE CLOCK IS TICKING ON “SILLY SEASON” “Silly Season” began in earnest several weeks ago when one of NASCAR’s most sought-after drivers, Ryan Blaney, signed a multi-year contract extension with Team Penske. With Blaney now off the market, the question becomes: How eventful — or uneventful — will this “Silly Season” ultimately be? At the very least, Hendrick Motorsports is going to need to someone to fill the No. 48 car of the retiring Jimmie Johnson. However, we don’t know who that driver will be and whether their selection could create a domino effect throughout the garage. Stay tuned; it’s about to get really interesting.

■■ NASCAR should not return until it is safe for fans to attend races.

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▶ DOUBLE-HEADER’ OPTION WOULD BE BAD FOR BUSINESS Whenever the NASCAR Cup Series finally gets rolling again, one of the biggest challenges will be trying to squeeze in all 36 races. While the sport’s decision-makers have some options, let’s hope the idea of staging more “double-headers” doesn’t gain much traction. While NASCAR was already planning to test this concept at Pocono Raceway this year, it wouldn’t be wise to force multiple tracks to host two Cup Series races on the same weekend. The economic impact this would have on the tracks scheduled to host two race weekends would be crushing.

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

NASCAR COMMUNITY

REDDIT REACTIONS COMPILED BY ROB TIONGSON r/NASCAR . Submitted by u/cysticfiberoptics

847

The OG Tiger King Terry Labonte

Cysticfiberoptics shared a sweet photo of “Texas” Terry Labonte’s Kellogg’s “Tony the Tiger” Chevy Monte Carlo from the 2003 NASCAR Cup Series season. Naturally, most folks have hunkered down with Netflix’s “Tiger King.” Beyond the reference of this unusual documentary, fans took the time to reminisce about the 2003 season and the template of the cars. Funnily, fans pined for the 1990’s during the 2003 season as the “common template” because the norm. Now, we long for 2003’s racing action.

r/NASCAR . Posted by u/goodmjim

1202

Timmy Hill, winner of the Texas iRacing ProInvitational, makes for an... interesting burnout

Yes, Timmy Hill’s one of the nicest guys in all of NASCAR. However, whether it was intentional or not, one must credit Hill with truly having a witty, dry sense of humor. Perhaps making the likes of Greg Biffle proud, it’s safe to say that you either caught this interesting choice of burnout live or because of a Reddit user like goodmjim. Then again, Hill did his burnout so smoothly, the smirk from this hilarious screencap spoke a thousand words.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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NASCAR COMMUNITY r/NASCAR . Posted by u/Leuel48Fan 224

Daniel Suarez’s Swing and Miss on Ty Dillon Get’s parked from iRace, reminds Mike Joy of Danica Patrick!

One of the most bizarre moments from Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 125 at the virtual Texas Motor Speedway occurred on lap 110. Daniel Suarez, attempting to wreck Ty Dillon, destroyed his No. 96 car and earned the ire of iRacing officials who disqualified him from the Pro Invitational Series race.

r/NASCAR . Posted by u/RickyChanning 53

Fun fact: only 14 of the 43 car field in the 2015 Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 Atlanta race are still full time Cup drivers.

They say that the more things change, the more they stay the same. However, it’s quite an interesting fact, as pointed out by RickyChanning, that only 14 of the 43 drivers in the 2015 Atlanta Cup Series race are still competing in 2020. Care to guess these racers without cheating?

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

r/NASCAR . Posted by u/jakobwedel76 56

Not the greatest picture but: Jeff Gordon’s burnout at Kansas 2014

It’s funny to consider a moment from 2014 as a throwback but what’s truly been six years feels like ages given our current situation. Fans took the time to reflect on the high horsepower, high downforce package and Jeff Gordon’s incredible resurgence. Also, who remembers Kansas’ first night Cup race?

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TWEETSTORM COMPILED BY ROB TIONGSON

▶ Whoa, Nelly. Landon Cassill carved his way through some virtual carnage in the vein of Mark Martin in the 1996 Coca-Cola 600. Seriously, whether it’s real or iRacing, avoiding mayhem takes incredible talent, reaction, and handeye coordination. It’s no secret that, at least for NASCAR and professional drivers, iRacing is like most athletes turning to exercises to sharpen their skills. Cassill’s crash avoidance skills were so fleek, he’d likely give great pointers to gamers with some NASCAR Heat 4 challenges.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

▶ They say that payback is a beach and well, William Byron may resort to “Lord Byron” tactics next Sunday at Bristol with Timmy Hill or the leader on the final laps. By turning into “Lord Byron,” perhaps Driver 24 will be “mad, bad, and dangerous to know.” Of course, racers like Byron realize this is a fun escape and outlet but that doesn’t mean the competitive sides completely disappear.

Basically, keep your eyes on the No. 24 Chevy next Sunday.

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NASCAR COMMUNITY

▶ One-handed driving seems to be the iRacing version of planking from 2011. In this case, Kyle Larson had one hand on his steering wheel and the other on his McDonald’s meal. While it’s OK with iRacing or most games, perhaps it’s not too keen to replicate for the actual roadway.

▶ If most folks didn’t realize it, it’s like the T-1000 arrived on Earth from the future thanks to Skynet. Instead, Matt DiBenedetto decided to take those old records off the shelf. Social media’s darling was either channeling uber confidence or extreme bravery on his Twitter with his peers and fans.

▶ Finally, Aaron Studwell, a Houston, Texas native and popular meteorologists in the NASCAR world, pondered this appropriate thought following Troy Aikman’s neat command prior to Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 125. It’s safe to say that many shouldn’t feel “dazed and confused” with the Dallas Cowboys legend’s callback with his command.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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COMMUNITY CREATOR: ERIC ESTEPP

TWITTER HANDLES:

@ericestepp17 | @j66anderson | @rajahcaruth_ | @NPPMag

ENASCAR PRO INVITATIONAL PRE-RACE SHOW The eNASCAR Pro Invitational iRacing Series continued this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway for the O’Reilly Auto Parts 125. To help bring these two fanbases together - esports and motorsports - we put together this pre-race livestream with Eric Estepp’s Out of the Groove.

Eric sat down with NASCAR Truck Series driver and owner Jordan Anderson and iRacing veteran (as well as up-and-coming wheelman 0 2 8

himself) Rajah Caruth, to talk through the various contrasts between the virtual and real world, as well as the striking similarities between the two.

During the show they also take questions from the audience via chat and social media, and that leads to some interesting conversation on NASCAR video games, historic drivers, and more.

Check out the whole show above, you don’t want to miss this one.

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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NASCAR INDUSTRY: ROXOR

INSIDE THE MIND OF A NASCAR SPONSOR IN THIS SPECIAL EPISODE OF OUT OF THE GROOVE, Eric sits down with ROXOR Off Road’s Dan Proffer for a look inside the mind of a NASCAR sponsor. Although new to sport, ROXOR has been a huge supporter of NASCAR and motorsports in general. How do they decide what experiences and activations have the most impact?

What’s behind the logos on your favorite driver’s car? Eric and Dan talk it out.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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3 QUESTIONS

▶ DURING THESE CHALLENGING TIMES, HOW ARE YOU ADAPTING TO THE COVID-19 SITUATION TO INFORM FANS ABOUT THE HAPPENINGS IN NASCAR? Not much has changed as I work from home on the site. The weird thing is not having races or as much news as we are used to in the spring.

Adapting to provide folks with the eNASCAR stuff has pretty much been Scott’s deal. I have never been into gaming as I was usually working on the site. But it is obviously of interest to many NASCAR fans. Having almost a million viewers last week was quite a surprise. Drivers are now picking up sponsors to run these races so it’s a great idea. ▶ JAYSKI HAS BEEN THE EPICENTER FOR BREAKING NEWS OR POTENTIAL TEAM CHANGES. WHAT’S BEEN THE “SECRET SAUCE” OF SUCCESS FOR YOUR OUTLET? Can’t say there is a secret sauce, but mainly, I have always posted stuff that interested me and stayed away from rumors I couldn’t get feedback.

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

Plus, I respected NASCAR from day one, not blatantly using their stuff or others’ stuff without credit. I asked them about posting images from their site back in the late 1990s, and they said no, so I always respected that and would tell folks not to send me images from NASCAR.com. But my main things were to post what interests me and give credit. ▶ JAYSKI ENDURED THROUGH DIFFICULT TIMES WITH THE COUNTRY AND SITE. HOW HUMBLING IS IT THAT JAYSKI IS “STILL STANDING” THROUGH THE YEARS? We had a very rough year in 2001. With Dale Earnhardt Sr. passing away at Daytona, a personal loss, and the 9/11 attacks, it made me look at what was important and what I could do to make the site better and make changes personally in terms of where I wanted to live.

By 2004, I had moved from New Jersey to North Carolina. It was the best thing that ever happened. Not just to be close to NASCAR., I got married and made a bunch of great new friends, most who have no interest in NASCAR. And we had to adapt with the advent of Twitter and texting.

News gets out there much faster than before. That also led to folks trying to hoax us and make up rumors. There have been a couple of reports and writers who never really liked my site, who over the years loved to brag and say, Jayski.com will be gone by next season.

Yet, my site will celebrate its 24th birthday on August 26. Many of those reporters are with other organizations or gone from the sport now. I am a pretty humble guy, very little ego, so I am very proud of what the site was, is, and has become. Scott Page and Amanda Brooks do most of the day-to-day work. I do stats and keep track of what is going on and see how the site is being run. I couldn’t be more proud how Scott and Amanda followed the way I do things and run the site in the Jayski style.

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COMMUNITY CREATOR: RUSTY WALRUS

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TIMMY HILL WINS AT TEXAS!?

This week, popular YouTuber and streamer Rusty Walrus is back outside in his car for another fast reaction to the weekend’s race, the O’Reilly Auto Parts 125 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Fan favorite Timmy Hill’s victory obviously stole the show for Rusty, but there was a lot more excitement behind this week’s race than just an unexpected name taking home the checkered.

So much of the hype around the iRacing 0 3 4

series has focused on the raw numbers of the event - the record-shattering viewership, the engagement on social media, and so on. But to Rusty’s heart, this is feeling a lot like the Daytona 500 two weeks in a row!

What has everyone so excited and hyped up about this race, even before it starts? Watch the episode and find out what Rusty Walrus has to say about it all!

ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

NASCAR PETS

THE FAST & THE FURRY NATALIE DECKER’S LOVE FOR ANIMALS

BY JA RED TURNER

N

atalie Decker couldn’t be more thankful for the opportunity to pursue her dreams as a NASCAR driver. Competing for a second season in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, Decker is able to travel the country and see lots of great people and places while participating in a sport she truly loves.

Being at the track and out on the road is especially enjoyable thanks to some furry companions she brings along.

Those companions are a mixed greyhound dog named Cash, an aging cat appropriately named NASCAR, and two dogs – a blackand-brown beagle named Hoosier (after the tire brand) and a white beagle named Camber (after the tilt of a race car wheel).

Cash lives with Decker and her boyfriend in Charlotte, North Carolina, while the other pets reside with her parents at their more pet-friendly estate in Eagle River, Wisconsin. Decker adores all of the animals as if they were her own, however. In fact, the three animals that don’t live with Decker travel with her parents in their motor home to all of her races and are reunited with Cash on

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

weekends at the track.

“They’re so special, and my mom is such a dog person,” Decker said. “I think one of her dreams is to have a beagle farm and have just a bunch of beagles everywhere. My mom loves traveling with them, and it’s great because she and my dad will bring them to all the races and I get to see them every weekend.”

When it came time for Decker and her boyfriend to search for a dog of their own, Cash was the perfect fit. From the moment they laid eyes on this sweet brown-and-white canine at a humane society near their North Carolina home, they knew he was the pet for them.

“When we got there, all the dogs were barking but Cash.

I was like, ‘Oh my goodness. I need this dog,’” Decker said.

“I don’t like really ‘barky,’ loud dogs. I was like, ‘He doesn’t bark. We need him.’ But we were leaving for the Michigan race so we filled out all the paperwork and got approved to adopt the dog, but we had to wait until we came home to get him and pray that he would still be there. He was still there, so it was totally meant to be to adopt him.”

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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NASCAR DEFINED NOTHING LIKE THE FIRST. Alex Bowman celebrates in Victory Lane after his first NASCAR Cup Series win in the Camping World 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on June 30, 2019.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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DR. DAYTONA. Denny Hamlin celebrates the first of three career DAYTONA 500 victories at Daytona International Speedway on February 21, 2016.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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A CAREER YEAR. Kevin Harvick celebrates his lone career NASCAR Cup Series championship with the trophy after winning the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 16, 2014.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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THE ‘DEGA DANCE. Chase Elliott takes the checkered flag to win the NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 28, 2019.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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A PLAYOFF PERFORMER. Ryan Blaney, who has three career Cup Series wins to his name, takes the checkered flag ahead of Ryan Newman to win the 1000Bulbs.com 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on October 14, 2019.

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A PLAYOFF PUSH. Kyle Larson led 154 of the 400 laps and held off nearest challenger Martin Truex Jr. by 1.578 seconds at the finish of the Drydene 400 at Dover International Speedway on Oct. 6, 2019. Larson’s first postseason victory, which moved him to the playoffs’ Round of 8, came in Dover’s 100th race for NASCAR’s top division.

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THE START OF A DYNASTY. Jimmie Johnson’s victory in the 2006 Daytona 500 kicked off a stretch in which he won five NASCAR Cup Series championships in a stretch of five years.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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AN ORIGINAL OUTLIER. With a breakthrough victory in July at Daytona International Speedway and a career-best finish – at that time – of 16th in the Cup Series standings, Aric Almirola considered 2014 a success for his No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports team.

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ROAR! WEEKLY RACING MAGAZINE: MAR. 30, 2020

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BEST BREAK-THROUGH PERFORMANCE. While not a win, Matt DiBenedetto’s best career finish in the NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on August 17, 2019 served as a highlight for both his team and his fans.

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SUBSCRIPTIONS: YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTIONS CAN BE ORDERED ONLINE AT POLEPOSITIONMAG.COM. SALES INQUIRIES: IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN ADVERTISING IN ROAR! WEEKLY RACE MAGAZINE, OR WOULD LIKE TO BECOME A FIELD REPRESENTATIVE, PLEASE CONTACT DAVID WATSON AT (727) 209-0789, OR DKW@AE-ENGINE.COM.