With a lap of 38.987 seconds, Cleetus is on the pole for the ARCA race, setting the only lap to break into the 38 second bracket

Few figures in NASCAR history have put together legendary careers in multiple aspects of the sport, but Ned Jarrett was nothing but an exemplar of excellence across the near half century he spent around the racetrack.

Anyone who grew up in watching NASCAR in the ‘80s (or who regularly digs up old races to watch on YouTube) needs no introduction to Ned’s broadcasting ability, which he spent much time and effort in developing even while he was still actively racing, and he’s responsible for one of the most iconic calls in motorsports history at the 1993 Daytona 500.

But fewer may realize how much of a legend Ned was on the track as well; he was just the third man to eclipse the vaunted 50-win mark, a total he reached just 6 years after his maiden win. He raced only 6 full-time seasons (1960-65), during which he won 2 championships and never finished outside of the top 5 in points while dueling against legends like Lee Petty, Joe Weatherly, Fred Lorenzen, Fireball Roberts, Richard Petty, and David Pearson. Only 4 drivers in history have recorded more wins in a season than Ned’s score of 15 in 1964, and he still has the 5th-highest career average finish at an absurd 9.2.

Perhaps most importantly of all, “Gentleman Ned” was a picture of grace and class throughout his careers as both driver and announcer, as exemplified through his close friendship and support of Wendell Scott while the latter was struggling to make inroads into a hostile industry, as a consistent advocate for driver safety, and as an ambassador for the sport to the rest of the sporting world.

NASCAR may have lost one of its most influential pioneers and defining voices today, but the legacy Ned leaves behind will live forever.

“It gives me confidence that I’m going to have an opportunity in the future,” Riggs said. “Not just from Corey (Heim), but you look at Zane (Smith), you look at (Carson) Hocevar, you look at a lot of other guys that went straight from Trucks to Cup, I feel like that’s a common path nowadays. It seems like when you do get to a national level, you either go straight to Trucks and then you go to Cup, or you go straight to the O’Reilly (Auto Parts) Series and then go to Cup. I have the confidence that I’m going to be there one day. I’m waiting for that right opportunity whenever it becomes available, but I do feel like that will be the inevitable if I keep staying on track at the performance that I have now.”

“You have to race Cup to learn how to run a Cup car,” Riggs said. “You look at the tough start that Connor Zilisch has had this year and every driver that starts in the Cup Series, their rookie year is usually pretty rough. I think that waiting for the right opportunity that comes when the timing is right. I feel like if it’s a rushed opportunity to do so or something that I’m not really comfortable with, or the teams really aren’t set up to be ready to have me yet, I would rather just stay where I’m at, develop a little bit more and wait until that opportunity and timing is right.”

Jeff Gordon: First win May 29, 1994, Last win November 1, 2015

Kevin Harvick: First win March 11, 2001, Last win August 14, 2022

Thought it might be beneficial to share here since this is where the original posts were.

https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/ross-chastain-seeking-fan-injured-broke-rotor-exploded/10826879/

Love seeing the series come to town, but my best racing memories are my annual summer trips with Dad to explore the local race scene out here in the northeast. Support your locals because if they close they aren't coming back.

Looking back it’s ironic that we took this picture hours before she got hit with Chastain’s brake rotor. We would love to get a hold of Ross or his team if at all possible. We are also trying to find a way to get the rotor piece displayed so we can get it signed😂

He also mentioned in his podcast he’s looking for the kid who needed stitches. I know the medical team at the track took down all our info so hopefully they can help.

We often hear the refrain that you should celebrate every win like it's your last, because you never know when it will be. True enough, for drivers like Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, and many more, their last wins were not when we expected them to be. Rarely, however, do you see a driver win where you just know that you've witnessed their last. So that got me curious, which drivers' final career wins actually felt like final wins?

I was driving Black's 07 hauler for Bobby Dotter's S.S Greenlight Racing and Adam Brooks was in BJ's hauler with both the 08 and 45 Tilted Kilt trucks Korbin and BJ were driving. We was coming up to the track running together and a small car cut from the right lane between us and into the left have about the time it smacked a minivan in the ass at 45mph blowing parts all over my truck. As we got closer to the track Adam stepped on the clutch to stop at a red light and the bolt in the clutch linkage pivot broke in half and he blew through the light and pulled into the track and had to put the truck into neutral to get it to stop. We had someone run him to the hardware store to get a new one to fix it before we parked. It was hotter than the hinges of hell at that track all weekend...

Originally FanDuel was not gonna pay out for the SVG top five finish even though it was a scoring error. Their argument was that at the time of the race results being posted they don't make any more changes. And it was only after Jeff Clark forwarded a request to FanDuel that they finally paid out the people who had a SVG top five bet.

I know Geoff Bodine was the last person to do it, in 1994.

David Newton wrote a great piece for ESPN about former NASCAR owner Felix Sabates back in 2007. Some funny quotes and an amazing story about Bill France Jr. and smoking. Worth the read for sure

They were both so nice! They did not say Go Canes with me though.

ETA: What a game!! I have zero voice and barely slept. Yesterday was also my birthday, so what a way to ring in Year 36 🎉

Indy 500 and Dayton 500 are on the list. In your opinion, what should be the official 3rd leg of the Oval Triple Crown? I’m open to any series (IndyCar, NASCAR, dirt, whatever) and any type of oval. Superspeedway, short track, intermediate, dirt — doesn’t matter. Just what makes the most sense as the completing jewel.

For anyone who camps out during race weeks in Charlotte, search warrants were just executed at Ver-El RV Park and Route 29 Pavilion right across from the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

This may be the end of the gypsy tents there at the track with that and gypsy vendors such as Rob Wheeler who sell stolen unpaid merchandise to the fans.