Jeff Hammond / FOX Sports
Posted: 1 hour ago
With great racing during the first three Car of Tomorrow races, Saturday night's event at Richmond International Raceway is going to be one of those races that you don't want to miss.
There's one group that hasn't figured out the COT yet, and they're going to struggle. But we're going to see the other group of drivers battle like they did at Phoenix and Martinsville. It will be even more intriguing for me to see if Jeff Gordon can stay on his current tear. He's been so good that he could have won every one of the last four races. As he goes for three consecutive wins, can he get the hat trick? The No. 24 team looks unstoppable after nine races. Unless they have some bad luck or get caught up in somebody else's bad luck, the Hendrick cars are going to be the ones to watch once again.
Who to Watch
Jeff Gordon: With 1st, 2nd and 3rd-place finishes in the first three Car of Tomorrow races, the No. 24 definitely has the Car of Tomorrow under control. He may not like it, but it sure likes him. I'm not betting against Gordon.
Denny Hamlin: Joe Gibbs Racing should be really strong again. With two third-place finishes in the last two Car of Tomorrow races, Hamlin has led at least 70 laps in each of the three events so far.
Jeff Burton: With two top-10 Car of Tomorrow finishes and a 13th-place finish in the third race at Phoenix, Burton and Richard Childress Racing seem to have the COT figured out. Only one practice to get the cars right could play into the No. 31 team's hands because they had the second-fastest Chevrolet during the Richmond test early last month.
Jeff Green: You can look at the finishes in the early COT races to get a pretty good idea of where the competition is going to come from. Green had 6th-place finishes at Bristol and Phoenix, and he had the fastest Chevy in the Richmond test.
What to Watch
Key to winning: The team with the best balanced, or tunable, package will be the one that will wind up in Richmond's Victory Lane.
Tested and ready: The teams tested at Richmond last month, and they've got the three COT races under their belts. NASCAR feels like it's a good time to put the new car to another test and see how the teams respond to an impound with it. It's going to be a challenge for them.
Impound again: Running a Saturday night race and trying to keep the teams from burning out, NASCAR created a concise impound schedule with just one practice on Friday. Especially with the Car of Tomorrow, just getting through inspection will take a toll on these teams. The impound should be a relief in a lot of ways for these teams.
Remembering Virginia Tech victims: The NASCAR family will show once again how we care about our fellow Americans and our fellow human beings. Understanding the pain for their losses and all of the hurt and sorrow from this tragedy at Virginia Tech, we would like folks to tune in because we're going to talk about some of the people that have been associated with Virginia Tech. Starting with practice through Trackside and throughout the weekend, we're going to pay tribute to the fallen Virginia Tech students and teachers. It's going to be a really special weekend for everyone who follows racing and for everyone who has followed this tragedy.
Posted: 1 hour ago
With great racing during the first three Car of Tomorrow races, Saturday night's event at Richmond International Raceway is going to be one of those races that you don't want to miss.
There's one group that hasn't figured out the COT yet, and they're going to struggle. But we're going to see the other group of drivers battle like they did at Phoenix and Martinsville. It will be even more intriguing for me to see if Jeff Gordon can stay on his current tear. He's been so good that he could have won every one of the last four races. As he goes for three consecutive wins, can he get the hat trick? The No. 24 team looks unstoppable after nine races. Unless they have some bad luck or get caught up in somebody else's bad luck, the Hendrick cars are going to be the ones to watch once again.
Who to Watch
Jeff Gordon: With 1st, 2nd and 3rd-place finishes in the first three Car of Tomorrow races, the No. 24 definitely has the Car of Tomorrow under control. He may not like it, but it sure likes him. I'm not betting against Gordon.
Denny Hamlin: Joe Gibbs Racing should be really strong again. With two third-place finishes in the last two Car of Tomorrow races, Hamlin has led at least 70 laps in each of the three events so far.
Jeff Burton: With two top-10 Car of Tomorrow finishes and a 13th-place finish in the third race at Phoenix, Burton and Richard Childress Racing seem to have the COT figured out. Only one practice to get the cars right could play into the No. 31 team's hands because they had the second-fastest Chevrolet during the Richmond test early last month.
Jeff Green: You can look at the finishes in the early COT races to get a pretty good idea of where the competition is going to come from. Green had 6th-place finishes at Bristol and Phoenix, and he had the fastest Chevy in the Richmond test.
What to Watch
Key to winning: The team with the best balanced, or tunable, package will be the one that will wind up in Richmond's Victory Lane.
Tested and ready: The teams tested at Richmond last month, and they've got the three COT races under their belts. NASCAR feels like it's a good time to put the new car to another test and see how the teams respond to an impound with it. It's going to be a challenge for them.
Impound again: Running a Saturday night race and trying to keep the teams from burning out, NASCAR created a concise impound schedule with just one practice on Friday. Especially with the Car of Tomorrow, just getting through inspection will take a toll on these teams. The impound should be a relief in a lot of ways for these teams.
Remembering Virginia Tech victims: The NASCAR family will show once again how we care about our fellow Americans and our fellow human beings. Understanding the pain for their losses and all of the hurt and sorrow from this tragedy at Virginia Tech, we would like folks to tune in because we're going to talk about some of the people that have been associated with Virginia Tech. Starting with practice through Trackside and throughout the weekend, we're going to pay tribute to the fallen Virginia Tech students and teachers. It's going to be a really special weekend for everyone who follows racing and for everyone who has followed this tragedy.
