Chicagoland and Charlotte are just two of the stops this weekend for the CV Products Trackside program. In addition to those venues, you can find us in the pits this Saturday and Sunday at Salem Speedway (Salem, Illinois) and Gresham Motorsports Park (Jefferson, Georgia). It’s just your average weekend for the hardest working trackside crew in professional and semi-pro auto and NHRA racing.
Here’s where to find us:
Lucas Oil 225
Series: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
When: Saturday, September 13
Racetrack: Chicagoland Speedway — Joliet, Illinois
How to watch from home:
What you need to know: Rain hit the Joliet area earlier in the day today washing out qualifying and forcing tonight’s Lucas Oil 225 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series to move to Saturday evening at 7pm EST. Johnny Sauter has made the upper echelon of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series standings his home this season. He currently leads the driver points standings over ThorSport teammate Matt Crafton (-7) and remains the only driver to appear in the top five all season. Trailing Sauter and Crafton in the standings are Ryan Blaney (-13), Darrell Wallace Jr. (-38) and German Quiroga (-48). Don’t plan on Sauter falling from his perch atop the standings anytime soon. That’s because he has a combined average finish of 9.2 at the remaining eight tracks, and if he can hold on to the No. 1 spot, he will clinch his first NCWTS title. His previous high championship finishes were a runner-up showing in 2011 and a third-place performance in 2010. Last season, he finished fourth after posting a career-high three wins.
Pep Boys NHRA Carolina Nationals
Series: NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Schedule
When: Friday, September 12 – Sunday, September 14
Racetrack: zMAX Dragway — Charlotte, North Carolina
How to watch from home: 8:30pm EST on ESPN2
What you need to know: As competitive as every race on the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series circuit is, the start of the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship creates a palpable increase in intensity. Morgan Lucas (Top Fuel), Robert Hight (Funny Car), Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were last year’s winners of the NHRA Carolina Nationals. It’s also the kickoff event of the six-race Countdown to the Championship, as the top 10 in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle compete to win world championships in their respective categories.
Jimmy John’s Freaky Fast 300
Series: NASCAR Nationwide Series
When: Saturday, September 13
Racetrack: Chicagoland Speedway — Joliet, Illinois
How to watch from home: ESPN2 @ 3:30pm EST
What you need to know: For the first time, car owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. might be facing a problem most NASCAR Nationwide Series car owners would love to have — his two cars are fighting it out for the Nationwide Series title in the final races of the season. But Earnhardt surely knows that his biggest task will be keep his organization from becoming a house divided, because only one of his drivers can bring home the title. But which one? Regan Smith, second in the series standings, has eight races left in the season to catch his teammate Chase Elliott who is a comfortable 19 points ahead in the standings lead. Smith’s consistency has brought him to this point in the season, but out placing Elliott will be crucial in these final eight races if Smith wants the title. Unfortunately for Smith, Elliott’s stronghold on the point standings has been Continue reading…
