Rick Minter, Senior Writer
Rick Minter joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 1991, where he covered motorsports as well as serving as a bureau chief. From 2000-2008 he focused on racing exclusively, traveling the NASCAR circuit as the paper’s motorsports writer and winning awards from several organizations including the Georgia20 Automobile Racing Hall of Fame Association and the City of Atlanta. Minter and his wife Joanne live on the family farm in Inman, Ga. In his spare time he collects and restores antique tractors and trucks.
Articles by Rick Minter
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
It seems odd given the history and heritage of Indianapolis Motor Speedway that Jeff Gordon would spend much of Tuesday’s NASCAR teleconference answering questions about NASCAR’s continued participation at Indy.
Gordon, a one-time resident of nearby Pittsboro, Ind., isn’t the most unbiased one to answer, but he said he sees no [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Atlanta, Ga. – NASCAR driver David Ragan went back to his roots Thursday night – racing Legends cars on the quarter-mile track at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the same piece of asphalt where he drove his very first race at age 12.
He went not as a visiting Cup start but as [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Midweek observations:
* NASCAR’s double-file restart rules have added drama – and crashes – to races, and most fans and drivers are supportive of the new rules so far.
But there’s still no solution to the lack of action at the front of the pack once the field sets sail after a [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Atlanta – Denny Hamlin’s expression could best be described as a cold stare as he walked into the media room at Atlanta Motor Speedway Tuesday during a break in a Goodyear tire test.
But initial looks were deceiving. When it came time to meet with the media, Hamlin smiled broadly and [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Rarely is Boise, Idaho considered a prime breeding ground for NASCAR racers. But Brian Scott, the 21-year-old Camping World Truck Series driver, is beginning to prove otherwise.
Driving the Xpress Motorsports No. 16 Toyota Tundra, Scott has scored a win, a second and two third-place finishes in the past seven races [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
NASCAR’s tragedies have a way of making one wonder how things would be had they not happened. They remind racing folks of the words of the old George Jones song “Who’s gonna fill their shoes.”
Those thoughts come to mind today, the 16th anniversary of Davey Allison’s death due to a [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Wednesday observations:
* In the past three weeks, racing duties have carried me to two Georgia dirt tracks, Dixie Speedway and West Georgia Speedway, and to Daytona International Speedway.
At Dixie Speedway, I had barely gotten inside the gate when track owner Mickey Swims pulled up in an old water truck and [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Among the many empty seats in the infield media center at Daytona International Speedway last week was the one usually occupied by David Poole.
Poole wasn’t there because he died on April 28, just two days after covering the race at Talladega Superspeedway in which Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards wrecked [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Daytona Beach, Fla. – The temporarily reinstated Jeremy Mayfield isn’t among the entries for Saturday’s Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway, but he dominated the discussions between drivers and the media.
Most drivers said they wouldn’t be hesitant to race against him whenever he returns to competition, but there were [...]
By Rick Minter | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
Daytona Beach, Fla. – Some old NASCAR rules and a new one will be put to the test this weekend at Daytona International Speedway.
This weekend’s race are the first to be run on a restrictor-plate track using the new double-file restart format. From what most drivers say, the difference between [...]