Getty Images After breaking a 70-race winless streak last week at Phoenix, Carl Edwards will try to make it two in a row this afternoon at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Prior to his Phoenix triumph, Edwards’ most recent win had been on Vegas’ 1.5-miler back in March of 2011. Even with the new Generation-6 cars now in the equation, one assumes he stands a good shot today at keeping up his newfound momentum – which he credits to his new crew chief, veteran Jimmy Fennig, and his entire No. 99 Roush Fenway Racing team.
“I believe the ingredients we have right now, the pit stops are fast, Jimmy Fennig’s experience, the cars seem to be running really well, the engines are fast,” he told The Charlotte Observer’s Jim Utter this weekend. “I think all of those things are good for this season.”
“Cousin Carl” has done well at Vegas in his career with two victories and three top-5 finishes in eight Sprint Cup tries. But his Roush Fenway squad as a whole has had quite the tradition of success in Sin City.
RFR won the first three Cup events at the track, with Mark Martin claiming the inaugural win in 1998 and Jeff Burton going back-to-back in 1999 and 2000. Then Matt Kenseth added two more Vegas wins in 2003 and 2004, which were followed by Edwards heading to LVMS’ Victory Lane in 2008 and 2011.
Here’s some more impressive statistics. RFR has won seven of the 15 Cup events at LVMS, and in its 68 Cup starts there as a team, its drivers have finished in the Top 10 53 percent of the time. It has placed at least one driver in the Top 10 in each of Vegas’ Cup events and multiple drivers inside the Top 10 in all but two.
With all that said, it’s easy to see why Edwards would be confident of his chances today.
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Brian Vickers to attempt grueling dual road-course weekend
Jun 18, 2013, 8:58 PM EDT
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Brian Vickers loves to race, any time, anywhere. He also loves to travel. He’ll get more than his share of both this weekend, as he’s the only driver who will attempt to race in Saturday’s Nationwide Series Johnsonville Sausage 200 (no, we’re not making that name up) at Road America and then double up by…
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Nationwide Series crew member Ryan Hess suspended for second time in 10 months
Jun 18, 2013, 7:37 PM EDT
Nationwide Series crew member Ryan Hess has been suspended by NASCAR for the second time in 10 months for failing a random drug test, the sanctioning body announced Tuesday. In a brief statement, NASCAR said: “Ryan Hess, a crew member in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, has been indefinitely suspended from NASCAR for violating the sanctioning…
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Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards have apparently toned down their post-race rhetoric against each other following Biffle’s win Sunday at Michigan International Speedway. “We’re going to sit down and talk about it, just expectations, what can you do to help another competitor,” Biffle said during NASCAR’s weekly media teleconference call on Tuesday. “I’ve backed up…
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Boston fanfest set to promote NHRA drag racing’s first-ever race in New Hampshire
Jun 18, 2013, 5:52 PM EDT
When New Hampshire Dragway opened its doors in 1966, its goal was to eventually play host to a National Hot Rod Association national event. It may have taken nearly 50 years to fulfill that goal, but drag racing fans wanting to see the sport’s biggest stars will finally get that opportunity in this weekend’s inaugural…
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Daytona International Speedway to get major facelift, eliminate 46,000 seats
Jun 18, 2013, 4:43 PM EDT
Illustration courtesy of Daytona International Speedway.
Big changes are on the way for NASCAR’s most famous racetrack, Daytona International Speedway, with the most significant facelift since the track opened 54 years ago in 1959. Home of the season-opening Daytona 500 and the early July Coke Zero 400, the track will undergo a multi-phase update that will break ground July 5, the…
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Forget driving or flying to Sonoma NASCAR race: take the train
Jun 18, 2013, 3:59 PM EDT
You’ve heard of the Chattanooga Choo-Choo, the Orange Blossom Special and the Wabash Cannonball. Now you can add the NASCAR Express to the list, as fans attending this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Toyota/SaveMart 350 race and activities at Sonoma Raceway will have a rather unique way to say they’ve arrived — at the racetrack,…
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Sonoma Raceway to honor memory of late PR chief John Cardinale
Jun 18, 2013, 3:17 PM EDT
Sonoma Raceway will honor its late public relations director, John Cardinale, during this weekend’s 25th Toyota/SaveMart 350 activities. Cardinale passed away in March after a two-year fight with stage IV gastric cancer. He had worked at the track since 1998 and was promoted to Vice President of Media and Community Relations in 2003, a post…
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Pirelli World Challenge: Duncan Ende highlights dangers of distracted driving
Jun 18, 2013, 3:00 PM EDT
Living in Los Angeles, Pirelli World Challenge driver Duncan Ende is constantly reminded of the dangers of distracted driving. “It’s bad when I’m driving in my car and sometimes really scary when I’m on my road bicycle, and drivers on the road are speaking on the phone, looking at the map on their phone, or…
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Force India’s 2013 performance thanks to car working with tires
Jun 18, 2013, 1:30 PM EDT
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Force India’s pair of drivers has made the most of the Pirelli tires this year, as evident by their performances in Canada. The validation for the prime medium compound tires came via Paul Di Resta, who ran a 56-lap opening stint in Montreal before switching to the supersofts for the finish. He ultimately finished seventh…
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As Chicago temperatures crept close to 90 degrees on Monday, NASCAR Nationwide Series drivers Regan Smith and Travis Pastrana cooled off in a unique way — and did a good deed in the process. Making several stops around the Windy City, Smith, who won Saturday’s NNS race at Michigan, and Pastrana sold ice cream bars…
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Lotus stake sale to Infinity creates a more tangled web of names
Jun 18, 2013, 12:15 PM EDT
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Sooner or later, it seems every team in the Formula One paddock might be interconnected by way of similar names or branding. The latest chapter came Tuesday, as Lotus announced a 35 percent sale to an investment consortium called Infinity. And now we begin our six degrees of Kevin Bacon to describe the tangential relationships…
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Lotus F1 Team had been wholly owned by Genii Capital, but on Tuesday the Enstone-based squad announced a sale of 35 percent stake of the team to a new investor group called Infinity Racing Partners Limited. Noting the spelling, this Infinity is not at all related to Infiniti, the car manufacturer that sponsors Red Bull.…
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NASCAR driver Mike Harmon has turned himself in to authorities after warrants were issued for him and a business partner. Rowan County (N.C.) Sheriff’s deputies said warrants were issued on Monday, while Harmon and his business partner are charged with breaking and entering and larceny after breaking and entering. It’s the latest turn in the…
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Ferrari has crunched the numbers from the first seven Grands Prix of the 2013 Formula One season and determined it has been one of the top overtaking teams this year. That highlights the team’s qualifying gap to Red Bull and Mercedes this year – Ferrari is yet to take a pole position – but nonetheless…
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Shank’s team takes second huge hit in as many Rolex races (VIDEO)
Jun 17, 2013, 6:00 PM EDT
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Ex-Indy Lights driver Gustavo Yacaman has made a name for himself in the last two GRAND-AM Rolex Series races, albeit I’m guessing not in the manner he or his team would like. Two weeks ago in Detroit, Yacaman attempted a pass on Memo Rojas’ No. 01 Cessna-sponsored Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates BMW Riley…
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Murray Walker (right, with 1964 World Champion John Surtees), the iconic Formula One broadcaster, has been diagnosed with a mild form of cancer. The 89-year-old will undergo chemotherapy to attempt to cure the form of lymphatic system cancer, according to the BBC. Last month, he fell and broke his pelvis and the cancer was diagnosed…
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AP
Something weird happened at the IZOD IndyCar Series’ weekend at The Milwaukee Mile. It was just a pure race that went down as smooth as a cold Spotted Cow. IndyCar is in a mad stretch of six races in five weekends. The Indianapolis 500 kicked it off, followed by the doubleheader in Detroit, the lone…
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The team now known as Mercedes heads to this week’s FIA Tribunal having been in hot water with the FIA before, but not as Mercedes. They’ve had to accept rulings from the FIA under an earlier guise of British American Racing, in that team’s first (1999) and last (2005) year on the Formula One grid.…
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With Team Penske breaking through at Texas and Will Power scoring his first podium of 2013 at Milwaukee, the onus is now back on Target Chip Ganassi Racing to deliver the results it’s been accustomed to in the IZOD IndyCar Series: winning. It was another tough day at the office for Scott Dixon and Dario…
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First tests for two drivers this week at Caterham, Marussia
Jun 17, 2013, 10:19 AM EDT
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A pair of Formula One feeder series drivers will have their first runs in F1 cars this week. Caterham will provide its GP2 Series driver, 27-year-old Spaniard Sergio Canamasas, a chance to perform an aero test on Thursday in the Caterham CT03. That will be held in France, and he’ll be at the team’s base…
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Video: Hunter-Reay celebrates win in Milwaukee
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Video: Highlights: Hunter-Reay wins Milwaukee Mile again
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Video: Andretti Autosports dominates
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Video: Andretti makes it look easy in Milwaukee
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Video: Indy Car Series: Fast forward Texas
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Video: A recap of Pagenaud's first career IndyCar victory
