Penske Racing driver AJ Allmendinger has  been temporarily suspended by NASCAR for failing a drug test and will not compete in tonight’s Coke Zero 400 Sprint Cup race at Daytona International Speedway.
NASCAR announced the suspension Saturday afternoon, saying he was temporarily suspended for his “A” sample including a banned substance. The test was conducted at [...]

RacinToday.com
Roush Fenway Racing’s Matt Kenseth, the series points leader, toured the 2.5-mile superspeedway in 46.781 seconds (192.386 mph) to win the pole Friday for Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
Ryan Newman was second fastest.
Tony Stewart, Newman’s Stewart-Haas Racing teammate, was initially second after posting a lap of [...]

By Jeff Hood | Senior Writer
RacinToday.com
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR’s summer visit to Daytona is traditionally considered the mid-point of the racing season.
It’s also an opportunity for NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France to meet the media to address a wide-range of questions related to the sport.
On the eve of Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 [...]

By Jim Pedley | Managing Editor
RacinToday.com
Reaction to a suggestion by race-track owner Bruton Smith to insert mandatory cautions into Sprint Cup races drew an assortment of reactions from drivers this week. Reactions that ranged from humorous to highly personal.
Included was a statement by NASCAR president Mike Helton that mandatory stops to spice action would never [...]

By Jim Pedley | Managing Editor
RacinToday.com
What’s in a name? Well, plenty for some of us who follow auto racing. Which is why this coming weekend’s Sprint Cup race contains a hint of bitterness that will ever so slightly taint the event no matter how exciting it turns out to be.
The race scheduled for Saturday at [...]

By Jim Pedley | Managing Editor
RacinToday.com
A final look back at a big weekend of racing:
– The stretch drive in the Chase for the Chase began Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway and it produced what I think most would agree is a slam dunk entrant to the playoffs. The first slam dunk entrant.
Brad Keselowski’s victory at [...]

RacinToday.com
Brad Keselowski expertly managed fuel mileage during the closing 56 laps of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ Quaker State 400 Saturday night en route to his second career victory at Kentucky Speedway.
Keselowski earned his third Cup win of 2012 and became the second driver to win both NSCS and NASCAR Nationwide Series titles at the [...]

By Jim Pedley | Managing Editor
RacinToday.com
One of these years, Sprint Cup racing at Kentucky will be about engines and horsepower and going fast and strategy. Just not this year.
This year, a year after the traffic and parking lots were the big story at Kentucky Speedway, heat has become the big topic. Heat that is expected [...]

RacinToday.com
Jimmie Johnson on Friday won the pole for this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Kentucky Speedway.
Johnson lapped the 1.5-mile speedway in 29.700 seconds (181.818 mph).
Johnson claimed his first pole award since Sept. 26, 2010 at Dover and the 26th of his career.
Kyle Busch (181.421 mph) qualified second, followed by Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny [...]

Jack Roush, co-owner of Roush Fenway Racing, met with the media today at Kentucky Speedway, site of this weekend’s Sprint Cup race.
Not surprisingly, Roush was asked about the announcement this week that driver Matt Kenseth would not return to Roush Fenway next season.
What follows is a transcript of the press conference.
Jack Roush: “On the matter [...]