Jeff Gordon found himself thinking about his back instead of his car. After hours of agony behind the wheel at Bristol Motor Speedway in March, Gordon wondered how much longer he could fight the pain.
“If my back was the way it was at Bristol this year, it’s definitely going to shorten my career,†Gordon said Thursday. “I can’t race like that.â€
The Sprint Cup points leader began a series of tests, which revealed minor arthritis and other issues. That led to a procedure on Monday that called for an injection of lidocaine or anti-inflammatory medication…Â Details
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Everything’s coming up roses for Stewart-Haas Racing.
Five days after owner/driver Tony Stewart won the Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, his teammate, Ryan Newman, ripped off a pole-winning run for Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 at the 1.5-mile track.
Newman turned a lap in 28.651 seconds (188.475 mph) Thursday to earn the top starting spot for the 600-miler, NASCAR’s longest race. Kyle Busch (188.258 mph) made a concerted attempt to unseat Newman, who gave Stewart-Haas its first Sprint Cup pole, but fell just short after a slight mistake getting into Turn 3…Â Details
NASCAR has called a mandatory meeting for all Sprint Cup drivers and team owners for Tuesday morning at the Research and Development Center in Concord.Â
Spokesman Ramsey Poston said it would be a town hall-type meeting to discuss the state of the sport.
Chairman Brian France and president Mike Helton will attend to answer any questions. Poston said the hope is to have the meetings on a more regular basis.
Speculation in the garage was the meeting is to …Â Details