Ku Busch wins a wild one at Atlanta

Kurt Busch survived to attempts at a green-white-checkered finish and scooted away from Matt Kenseth and Juan Montoya to win the Kobalt Tools 500.

Our View Busch had one of two dominant cars along with Kasey Kahne (who finished fourth).

This race featured action at the end and retaliation between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski for an early-race incident that shuffled the finishing order—but fans' hearts got to pumping.

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Stewart & Newman to change engines

According to @bobpockrass: Engine changes for Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart. Possible valve train issue. They will have to drop to the back for the start of the Kobalt Tools 500.

No other Hendrick cars will change engines (according to @JesseEssex). Didn't see same issues in "scope" if valve trains. #nascar

Burton Wins Kobalt Tools 500 Happy Hour

Jeff Burton had the quickest average time in Happy Hour for the Kobalt Tools 500 with a speed of 179.359 mph during 45 laps. His fastest circuit of 185.158 was sixth best, which gives him a great balance of speed and durability.

Our View Richard Childress Racing (RCR) has a ton of momentum, so this could be Burton's opportunity to score a second top-five in 2010 like he did at Auto Club Speedway.

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Martin fastest in Kobalt Tolls 500 Happy Hour

Mark Martin posted the single fastest lap in Happy Hour practice for the Kobalt Tools 500 with a speed of 185.524 mph.

Our View Races aren't won on a single lap, however, and his average speed of 178.074 during 45 laps was well down the chart. Moreover, last year Martin finished 31st in this race but was in top form during the fall with a fifth.

This weekend could go either way for the veteran.

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Ky Busch, Said run out of room in Atlanta Happy Hour

Kyle Busch and Boris Said ran out of room exiting turn two at Atlanta Motor Speedway in the closing minutes of practice and the two made contact. That will effectively end the session for the No. 18, which was 23rd on the speed chart.

Our View The damage on the No. 18 is not very great. It appears that it was all behind the wheels so he probably won't have to roll out a backup.

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Biffle slaps wall in Kobalt Tools 500 Happy Hour

Update: Greg Biffle has rolled out a backup.

Biffle slapped the wall 10 minutes into Happy Hour for the Kobalt Tools 500 and sustained significant damage.

Our View Expect him to roll out a backup car and give up his 13th-place starting position. Driver can come from the back at Atlanta Motor Speedway, but winning from there is nearly impossible.

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Menard notably fast in Kobalt Tools 500 practice 1

There weren't a lot of surprises on the average speed chart, but one name jumped to the forefront: Paul Menard posted the second quickest average speed of 180.614 during 27 laps.

Our View If you are looking for a sleeper this week, give Menard a second glance. Last fall, he was well worth starting in the fall Pep Boys Auto 500 with a 15th-place finish.

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Stewart wins Kobalt Tools 500 practice 1

Tony Stewart had only the 21st fastest lap in Saturday's first practice session, but races aren't won in a single circuit. His average speed of 180.900 during 25 laps was the fastest in the field.

Our View Stewart was the "cookie-cutter" king for a while—before Jimmie Johnson came along—and he is hungry to regain his crown.

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Johnson posts fastest lap in Kobalt Tolls 500 practice 1

Jimmie Johnson posted the single fastest lap in Saturday's first practice session with a speed of 189.694 mph.

Our View His average speed of 180.128 during 35 laps was not bad either and it ranked sixth on that chart. Once more, he will be one of the drivers to beat on Sunday.

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Yahoo! Qualification Story – Atlanta

With rapidly cooling conditions, drivers chased the weather and the track on a venue where qualification is very important. Who prevailed? Find out in this week's Yahoo! qualification story (.pdf).

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Almirola, Mears and Cook go home from Atlanta

Three drivers failed to make the Coca-Cola 600: Aric Almirola, Casey Mears and Terry Cook failed to find enough speed to qualify.

Our View Neither Mears nor Cook have made a single race this year.

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Earnhardt win Atlanta pole

Slowly but surely, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is turning his season around. He gave his fans something to cheer about this week by winning the pole for the Kobalt Tools 500.

Our View His top speed of 192.761 is the fastest pole ever recorded for the Car of Tomorrow (COT) and Earnhardt's second at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

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Martin fastest in Atlanta practice 1

Mark Martin posted the fastest single lap in the first practice session with a 189.409 mph.

Our View Martin only took nine laps total, but he made the most of them. Last year, Martin tried to take the nickname "Rocketman" away from Ryan Newman and he should be considered a threat for the Kobalt Tools 500 pole.

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Yahoo! Atlanta Preview

Two "cookie-cutter" races in a row will present fantasy owners with some predictable options, but it would be difficult for this race to be as similar as between Auto Club Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Check out this week's Yahoo! Preview (.pdf).

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Johnson wins two in a row

Jimmie Johnson took four tires while Jeff Gordon took only two on the final pit stop and that made the difference at the end. Johnson won his second race in a row in the Shelby American. In fact, for the second consecutive race, he finished just ahead of Kevin Harvick as that driver also slipped past Gordon.

Our View Johnson has officially regained his title as the "Cookie-cutter" king after struggling at Vegas during the last two races.

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N'Wide: Harvick wins at Vegas

Kevin Harvick was happy with the result of the Sam's Town 300, but he was not happy with the crew's performance. Using a long green flag segment to finish the race, he scooted out to a 1.3 second lead over Denny Hamlin.

Our View Mistakes in the pit could have cost him the race, but Harvick's talent in the car made up the difference.

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Martin wins Vegas Happy Hour

Mark Martin posted the quickest average speed in Las Vegas Happy Hour with a speed of 181.356 mph during 26 laps and with the third-fastest speed of 183.299 mph, he had the best mix of speed and durability.

Our View Martin blew an engine in this race last year, but it's impossible to overlook him as one of the favorites to win the Shelby American.

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Bowyer fastest in Vegas Happy Hour

Clint Bowyer posted the fastest single lap in Happy Hour for the Shelby American with a speed of 183.530 mph. The session was shortened a little by rain.

Our View RCR has the greatest momentum of all teams and with a decent qualification run in the top 15, Bowyer is liable to be the best of that group.

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Earnhardt spins in Vegas Happy Hour

"Twenty-nine, seventy-four, that's your fastest lap so far," Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s spotter called just before he spun five minutes into Happy Hour. Guess he found the limit.

Our View Fortunately, Earnhardt did not make any contact with the wall or another car—and the engine did not appear to over-rev while he was spinning. Four fresh tires should be all the No. 88 needs before continuing practice.

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Ky Busch wins first Sat. Vegas practice

Kyle Busch posted the fastest single lap of practice in the first Saturday session with a speed of 184.037 mph. His brother Kurt was not far behind: the No. 2 posted a lap of 183.486 mph, which was third best.

In fact, Kyle won practice overall; he also posted the quickest average speed of 181.725 mph during 30 laps.

Our View Of the two, Kyle has a much greater chance of finishing up front. He's finished 11th or better at Vegas in all but one of his starts.

Kurt's average speed of 180.499 was only 14th quick, which is about where you can expect to find him at the end of a typical Vegas race.

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N'Wide: Keselowski on Vegas pole

Brad Keselowski carried his momentum from last week's third-place finish in the Stater Bros. 300 at Auto Club Speedway into this week's Las Vegas Motor Speedway race and that was enough to give him the pole for Saturday's contest.

Our View Unfortunately, he's suffered crash damage in his last two Nationwide attempts on this track and he's blown an engine one other time. In four Nationwide starts at Vegas, his best result is only 23rd.

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Yahoo! Qualification Story – Las Vegas

One hometown hero won the pole for the Shelby American, but another is much more likely to win the race. Find out which is which in this week's Yahoo! qualification story (.pdf).

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Ku Busch wins pole at hometown LVMS

Cool temperatures helped Kurt Busch and a myriad of other drivers break the old track record. When the dust finally settled, he raised the mark to 188.719 mph.

Our View Until the final cars went out on track, however, Dale Earnhardt Jr. seemed unassailable with his speed of 188.173. He was the second driver to take time and settled into fourth on the grid. By comparison, the first driver was Jimmie Johnson and he eventually qualified 20th.

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Montoya fastest in Vegas practice 1

Juan Montoya posted the fastest single lap in the first practice session that is usually devoted to qualification setups. His top speed of 186.168 mph was set early in the session.

Our View Montoya has been solid on the unrestricted, intermediate speedways during the last two years, but last week's struggle at Auto Club Speedway and last year's trouble at Vegas make him a risky proposition.

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Some chassis choices for Vegas

@DustinLong has identified some of the cars that will be used this week:

Among RCR, Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton will have new cars this weekend; Clint Bowyer using same car he drove at Indy (21st) & Kansas (18th) last yearr.

Kurt Busch using same car @ Vegas that he won with at Texas last year and should have won with at Homestead.

Denny Hamlin will use this weekend @ Vegas has won in both its starts, winning at both Pocono and Martinsville last year.

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Yahoo! Las Vegas Preview

This week is the first of back-to-back "cookie-cutter" races. Who will get off on the right foot? Our best guesses can be found in this week's Yahoo! Preview (.pdf).

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Johnson wins fifth Auto Club race

He won in his first start at this track in 2002 and now Jimmie Johnson has five Auto Club Speedway victories after holding off a furious charge by Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton.

Our View That is his sixth top-three finish on this track in his last seven starts. During that span, he has an average finish of 2.57, which makes him as much of a must-have as you will find.

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N'Wide: Logano dominates, Busch wins Stater Bros. 300

Joey Logano dominated the race but he was roughed up by Greg Biffle on the final restart. Kyle Busch exacted revenge, however, and passed Biffle in the run to the checkers.

Our View The best car doesn't always win and today, they finished fifth after getting knocked around by Biffle and Brad Keselowski—who must have thought Denny Hamlin was in the No. 20 this week.

Keselowski dumped Logano only a few yards from the finish line.

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Johnson wins Auto Club Happy Hour

After posting the single fastest lap in the first Saturday practice session at Auto Club Speedway, Jimmie Johnson logged the quickest average speed in Happy Hour at 177.507 mph during 39 laps.

Our View Johnson has been as close to perfect in the last three years at Auto Club as is possible. He remains a must-have.

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Martin fastest in Auto Club Happy Hour

Mark Martin backed up his second fastest lap and second quickest time in the first practice session of Saturday with the fastest single lap (181.726 mph) and the fifth quickest average speed in Happy Hour.

Our View Martin was hit-and-miss on the two-mile tracks last year, but it appears this is going to be a great weekend for the veteran.

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Montoya wins Auto Club practice 2

Juan Montoya posted the quickest average speed during the Saturday morning session with a 178.917 during 12 laps.

Our View His fastest lap of 180.429 wasn't bad either; that placed him sixth on the speed chart and the No. 42 could be one of the best values in the game.

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Johnson posts fastest lap in Auto Club practice 2

Jimmie Johnson posted the fastest single lap of practice in the first Saturday session, with a speed of 182.537 mph.

Our View His average speed during 25 laps was third best at 178.253 mph, which gives him one of the best balances of speed and sustainability.

Both drivers ahead of him on the average speed chart posted fewer laps.

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N'Wide: Patrick's learning curve continues

Danica Patrick will race on Saturday afternoon, but not because of the time she laid down in qualification. She'll roll of the grid 36th, but was actually slower than two of the "go-or-go-home" drivers (Morgan Shepherd and Danny O'Quinn) who failed to make the show.

Our View She was tentative on her qualification lap in part because she knew that with top-30 owners' points, she would be guaranteed a starting position. She'll improve during the race, but a top-20 is probably the outside mark fantasy owners should expect.

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N'Wide: Logano on Auto Club pole

Joey Logano was the second driver to hit the track in qualification for the Stater Bros. 300, and despite slick track conditions, he logged the fastest time and will lead the field to green in a few hours.

Our View The track may have been slick, but Logano benefited from cool conditions so the net effect was positive. He should have a car capable of staying in the top five all day.

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Yahoo! Qualification Story – Auto Club

Jamie McMurray carried his substantial momentum from the Daytona 500, but will it be enough to recommend him at Auto Club Speedway? And who is the driver most likely to star in a Hollywood horror story?

Find out in this week's Yahoo! qualification story (.pdf).

IRL: Sato coming to IndyCar

Former F1 driver Takuma Sato will race for KV Racing Technologies as a teammate to Hideki Mutoh, according to ESPN.com.

Our View It's kind of nice to see an open wheel guy stay with open wheel after the sudden influx of F1 drivers into NASCAR. Expect Sato to run better on road courses than ovals as he starts his learning curve in this type of racing.

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Martin wins Auto Club practice 1

Mark Martin set the pace early in the first practice session at Auto Club Speedway with a speed of 182.924 mph and he maintained his top spot until the end of Friday's 1.5-hour practice.

Our View This practice is typically used to work on qualification setups and while Martin was fast nearly everywhere, he struggled a bit at Auto Club with an 18th-place time trial run in this race and a ninth in the fall. As one of only three drivers to break the 182 mph mark, he should better that this week.

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Yahoo! Auto Club Preview

As unpredictable as Daytona International Speedway can be, Auto Club Speedway is much easier to predict. Here are the best bets to dominate this week's lineup (.pdf).

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Nationwide Inspection cleared

According to @bobpockrass: Inspection for the #NASCAR Nationwide Series is complete and there were no issues.

Smoke 'em: Stewart wins Daytona Nationwide race

Tony Stewart survived a wild Drive4COPD.com 300 to beat the field to the checkers and win in dominant fashion.

Our View "Survived" is the operative word as a 10-car crash erupted immediately behind him in the final quarter of the race. Stewart's odds for the Daytona 500 are improved after this run.

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Allmendinger to change engine

A.J. Allmendinger will change engines before for the start of the Daytona 500, according to a tweet from @DustinLong.

Our View The engine was spewing a lot of steam during practice, so this is likely a precaution. Teams are allowed one engine change during the 500 weekend, but this should be his second and will force him to the back of the pack. That shouldn't really matter on a restrictor-plate superspeedway track, however.

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Lucas Oil Chili Bowl on SPEED Moved to February 14

TULSA, Okla. (February 13, 2010) – Reset that DVR, as the 24th Annual Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals broadcast scheduled for Saturday night, February 13, on SPEED has been reset to Sunday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. EST due to the rain-induced shuffling of this week’s Daytona Speedweeks events.

So, cuddle up with that special Valentine or just get the whole gang together to catch the highlights of the 24th Annual Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals and Saturday’s stellar 50-lap Rockstar championship feature event, an event already being touted as ranking among the most spectacular in event history.

A total of 256 competitors from throughout the nation and beyond converged upon the QuikTrip Center’s Tulsa Expo Raceway for the January 12-16 event that culminated with Saturday night’s 50-lap Rockstar Energy Drink championship feature event.
That championship finale, along with other highlights throughout the week, will be included in the February 14 airing on SPEED.

Bowyer quickest in Daytona 500 Happy Hour

Teammate Jeff Burton may have been the fastest driver in Happy Hour practice for the Daytona 500, but Clint Bowyer had the distinction of being the quickest in terms of average speeds with a 191.050 during 11 laps.

Our View His times were skewed somewhat by the relative few laps he ran, but that speed is confirmed by Kevin Harvick, who was second quick with a 191.003 during 16 laps.

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Burton fastest in Daytona 500 Happy Hour

Jeff Burton posted the fastest single lap of Happy Hour practice for the Daytona 500 with a speed of 195.194 mph.

Our View His biggest concern was about comfort, however, and he logged 60 laps of practice, which was the most among all drivers. That was only good enough for 19th on the average speed chart.

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All Clear from Gatorade 150s

According to @dustinlong: Post-race inspection for qualifying races is done. No issues. #NASCAR