All posts by Toby Christie

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Deep down you can feel a shift of power occurring among the manufacturers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series ranks. Chevrolet has long had it’s foot on the throat of the competition, but weeks ago, one of the manufacturer’s strongest teams, Stewart-Haas Racing, announced that they are jumping ship after the 2016 season. But what kind of an impact will Stewart-Haas have on Ford’s attempt at catching Chevrolet as the Series’ top car brand? Ryan Blaney, who drives a Ford for the iconic Wood Brothers RacingRead More

SHOW #401 – Guests: Cole Pearn (78 Crew Chief)/Greg Ives (88 Crew Chief) – We break down the Las Vegas weekend, Hendrick plane news, Goodyear Tire Test, Payton Manning is NASCAR news somehow, plus we preview Phoenix and do a video version for the first time, check us out on YouTube, keyword finallapradio. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Toby Christie. ( Roughly 48:00 mins) DOWNLOAD HERE SEE KERRY AND TOBY IN STUDIO RECORDING THIS EPISODE [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_oF5oRNA8Q] CREDITS: Hosts: Kerry Murphey & Toby Christie Executive Producer: Kerry Murphey Music: RussellRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor It had been a long dry spell — 33 races to be exact — since Brad Keselowski had reached victory lane in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Sunday in the closing laps of the Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Keselowski looked ready, willing and able to do anything it took to snap the streak. Keselowski started the day from the fourth position, and for the majority of the day he drove smart. He didn’t push the issue, and he just hung around the top-five all race long. Read More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Roush Fenway Racing has taken a beating over the last few seasons due to their collective horrible production on the racetrack, but one of their drivers — Ricky Stenhouse Jr. — is quietly putting together the best start to a season of his career. Stenhouse had a 22nd place finish in the season-opening Daytona 500, which wasn’t too impressive, but at the 1.5-mile race tracks, which make up the majority of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule, Stenhouse has looked pretty good so far. LastRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Dale Earnhardt Jr. didn’t mince words after struggling to a 20th-place starting position for Sunday’s Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “We struggled out there in qualifying. The car’s been tight all day and lacked front grip, and we just never got it sorted out,” Earnhardt said after qualifying. “We’ve got two practices tomorrow to try and dial it in.” In addition to qualifying 20th, Earnhardt was also 15th-quickest in the opening practice session of the week on Friday. Earnhardt has seven top-10 finishesRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor Martin Truex Jr. has had a heck of a start to the 2016 season. He finished second in the Daytona 500 by a whisker, and in Atlanta last week he finished seventh after leading 34 laps. Truex, and Furniture Row Racing’s fast start this season has taken some by surprise, as many expected the team to struggle out of the gates after changing manufacturers in the offseason from Chevrolet to Toyota. In a media availability Friday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Truex indicated he didn’tRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor NOTE: Video of the finish of the 1999 Las Vegas 400 is included at the bottom of this post This week we turn back the clocks to March 7, 1999 for the NASCAR Sprint Cup (then Winston Cup) Series Las Vegas 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. To paint a picture of the world when this race occurred, here are some of the signs of the times from March 7, 1999: Tony Stewart was in the midst of his rookie season in the Sprint Cup Series. Current up-and-coming driver, Todd GillilandRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor This past weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Jimmie Johnson busted down the door to yet another career milestone — 76-career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins. That number is of course relevant in the world of NASCAR, because it now ties Johnson with the late Dale Earnhardt for seventh on the all-time win list. As you would expect, this win immediately spawned the question, is Johnson a better driver than Earnhardt was? Johnson fans will say yes, obviously. While Earnhardt fans will say no, just asRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor The second-place team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings — Furniture Row Racing — has been hit with a penalty after having an issue with their roof flap two weeks in a row. NASCAR announced that the latest infraction, which occurred in pre-race inspection for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta, qualified as a P3 penalty Wednesday. The penalties include the suspension of Cole Pearn, crew chief of the No. 78, for one race. Pearn will also be fined $50,000. Pearn is already on probation through theRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor It wasn’t an easy race by any stretch for Casey Mears and his Germain Racing team, but they dug deep and were able to record a top-15 finish this past Sunday in the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. As a result of his great weekend, Mears is the feature of our Keeping up with the underdogs series this week. Mears rolled off of the grid from the 15th position, his second consecutive top-15 starting spot to start 2016, and thanks toRead More