Benny Gordon News Archives

Since the death of Dale Earnhardt NASCAR fans have longed for a driver that had a take no prisoners attitude.

Johnson Gets Irritated when Other Drivers, " Don't Give Him Room" Jimmy Johnson and Chad Knaus have teamed up for their fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship along with car Owners Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon, who owns a percentage of the Lowes #48 team.

During childhood visits to his grandparents' house, Jim Cramsey would usually gravitate a few doors down the street to the garage of Chris Szarko, a local stock car driver who ran regularly at Dorney Park 's old dirt race track.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. got called to the principala s office. So did Jeff Gordon. So did all of the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers and they were told to bring their parents along.

Formula One driver Felipe Massa returned to competition for the first time since his life-threatening accident four months ago, finishing third in a charity karting event won by Michael Schumacher.

HOMESTEAD, Fla. Penske Racing's Kurt Busch finished out his tenure with crew chief Pat Tryson on a positive note, finishing fourth in Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Lap 161: David Ragan's car is smoking - tire rub. GREEN FLAG - Lap 161: Denny Hamlin leads field to the green.

NASCAR Sprint Cup owner/driver Robby Gordon was the top-ranked independent team this season, finishing 34th in the standings.

Johnny Damon knows how difficult it can be to win a championship. After all, it took him four years to finally win the World Series with the Yankees.

Man, it's hard to believe that another season is coming to an end this weekend in South Florida.

Every form of media has saturated the market for weeks now speculating Jimmie Johnsona s fourth title.

Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo joined pal Jimmie Johnson at Wall at the W South Beach on Sunday night to celebrate Johnson's NASCAR Sprint Cup season championship, which he sealed with a fifth-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

When it was announced that Richard Petty Motorsports would switch to Ford in 2010, it meant that one of the most recognizable figures in racing was switching affiliations.

As Jimmie Johnson was basking in the glow of his historic achievement Sunday night, the attention of many NASCAR fans and followers was already turning toward 2010.

NASCAR Sprint Cup owner/driver Robby Gordon completed a dominating season in the Tecate Score International Off-Road Racing Series, winning the 2009 overall series championship by winning the Trophy Truck division title.

It's not your average Black Friday sale. This one could end with you driving your personal car around a race track.

Chad Knaus believes he and Jimmie Johnson can continue to add to their championship total for years to come.

Pets: Cat-loving chihuahua suckles seven abandoned kittens The Heldenfiles: Sunday Notebook Patrick McManamon: Browns sick after sick loss in Detroit Akron Zips: Zips advance to Sweet Sixteen Tribe Matters: Seven players added to Tribe's 40-man roster Cleveland Browns: Post-game defensive quotes Kent State Sports: Kent State defeats Rochester ...

Indy Racing League Vice President of Public Relations John Griffin is resigning, effective Dec.

ON ANOTHER NFL Sunday, perhaps football fans were aware that Jimmie Johnson was closing in on a four-peat. To the general sports fan, NASCAR is made up of those guys who race fast, make a lot of left turns and wear uniforms littered with sponsors logos.

Getting Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s team back on track is Rick Hendrick's top priority now that Jimmie Johnson has his record fourth consecutive NASCAR championship.

A die-hard NASCAR fan from Northwest Indiana recently won driver Jeff Gordon 's $82,500 Corvette in a raffle and -- unlike some unlucky Oprah audience members -- won't be swallowed up in taxes after receiving his shiny new ride.

Denny Hamlin beamed from ear-to-ear as he gleefully explained his role in the latest round of bumper cars with nemesis Brad Keselowski.

After the conclusion of the 2008 Sprint Cup season I wrote an article that consisted of 36 quotes, one from each race from last year that was memorable.

There has been one big question on everyone's mind over the last four years in NASCAR: when will Jimmie Johnson's dominance end? The answer has yet to be seen, and the fact that he's not getting ready to retire anytime soon doesn't bode well for haters of the No.

Desert racing's young ace Andy McMillin won his second Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 Saturday in front of an estimated crowd of more than 250,000 in Baja California, Mexico.

Denny Hamlin put the rest of the Cup field on notice for 2010. Hamlin's victory Sunday night at Homestead-Miami Speedway was his fourth of the season and sixth top-five in the 10-race Chase for the championship.

Mark Martin led Denny Hamlin, pole-winner Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman and Kyle Busch in Saturday afternoon's 45-minute Cup practice session at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

NASCAR Chairman Brian France said series officials will look at the Chase, the car and lengths of races during the offseason, among other things, but wasn't specific on if changes will be made.

While Hendrick teammate Jimmie Johnson will most likely make history with his fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship, Jeff Gordon is looking to make a little history of his own.A Gordon is attempting to win at Homestead, the only active Cup track where he has competed but not taken the checkered flag.

The sixth version of the Chase for the Sprint Cup comes to an end this weekend in Miami.

Chill the champagne and order the party hats. With the 2009 championship all but signed, sealed and delivered, we can all get ready for the Big Banquet in Vegas, where Jimmie Johnson will make history as the first driver ever to win four consecutive championships.

This is not your father's NASCAR. It's great that the Latin community pays attention to what I'm doing [but] I didn't come to NASCAR to create that.

Kevin and Delana Harvick were an extremely happy couple Friday night. Kevin Harvick made a late pass to cap a dominating show to win the season-ending Trucks Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, and wife Delana clinched the owners' championship when Ron Hornaday Jr.

Jimmie Johnson has won the right to a fourth straight title thanks to his four wins and eight top-10s in nine Chase races.

Jimmie Johnson will remain in a Hendrick Chevy through 2015. Rick Hendrick has made sure that soon-to-be four-time champion Jimmie Johnson won't be driving for anyone else any time soon.

There will be much for Hendrick Motorsports to celebrate on Sunday night. A record-tying ninth NASCAR title, either from Jimmie Johnson or Mark Martin.

Jimmie Johnson celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.

Ron Capps: Finishes third in the final Funny Car standings in the NHRA drag-racing series.

This weekend, NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson is expected to wrap up a record fourth straight Sprint Cup points title.

Robby Gordon will be competing in both the Baja 1000 and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Ford 400 this weekend.

Carl Edwards rolled to a dominating win at Phoenix International Speedway that temporarily staved off Kyle Busch's bid to clinch the Nationwide Series title.

Somewhere in the future race fans will sit back in an easy chair relating to a younger generation how they enjoyed watching one of the best drivers in stock car history.

The Frontstretch: Broadcasting Brillance: My Picks For An All-Star NASCAR Commentating Crew by Vito Pugliese -- Tuesday November 17, 2009 The 2009 Sprint Cup season is nearly over, with Jimmie Johnson simply responsible for his engine turning over next Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the mercy killing of the 2009 season and Chase for The ...

Hendrick Motorsports' Dale Earnhardt Jr. remains the most popular driver with the majority of NASCAR fans according to a recent study.

Go for it Mark. It's not over, buddy. Did you see the Indianapolis Colts rally from 17 points down to beat the New England Patriots Sunday night? Or the Buffalo Bills fighting back from a 35-3 deficit in the 1992 season's playoffs against the Houston Oilers? Or Jennifer Capriati , in a 4-6, 0-4 hole against Martina Hingis in the final of the ...

The winds of change will be blowing at Homestead-Miami Speedway this week. The season-ending Ford 400 at the 1.5-mile track marks the end of the road for more than a handful of relationships in the Cup garage.

Denny Hamlin is continuing to take a more vocal role in the garage and called on NASCAR to give all drivers equal opportunity to help shape policy and procedure.

Earlier today, 50-year-old Mark Martin was announced as the winner of the 2009 NASCAR Illustrated Person of the Year Presented by Old Spice.

AVONDALE, Ariz. Penske Racing's Sam Hornish Jr. surged to the top of the speed chart late in Friday's opening NASCAR Sprint Cup practice at Phoenix International Raceway and held on to pace the session with a lap of 133.884 mph.

Denny Hamlin is continuing to take a more vocal role in the garage and called on NASCAR to give all drivers equal opportunity to help shape policy and procedure.

THREE THINGS TO WATCH 1. Texas Motor Speedway was once one of Jeff Gordon's least favorite stops in the Sprint Cup Series.

AVONDALE, Ariz. - Of all the second-place finishes in Mark Martin's career - and there have been a bunch - the prospect of being second again in this year's Chase for the Championship doesn't seem so bad.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin recently used the social media site Twitter to make his opinions known about NASCAR's rules on bump drafting at Talladega.

Hendrick Motorsports' Jeff Gordon leads the field to the start of Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Ron Hornaday Jr. captured his record-setting fourth championship in the Camping World Truck Series with a fourth-place finish, while Hornaday's team owner, Kevin Harvick, won Friday's Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix International Raceway.

For a sport centered around cars that get about 5 mpg, Nascar is an unlikely incubator for some eco-friendly practices.

Celtics and Nuggets taste defeat...Gordon on Texas pole UNDATED There are no more undefeated teams in the NBA now that Boston and Denver have lost.

So I've got egg on my face after Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Texas. I said Jimmy Johnson was bullet-proof and would wrap up the championship with a solid finish there.

Drivers and crew chiefs talked about how successful that team had been. Jimmie Johnson 's crew chief, Chad Knaus , even called it "disgusting." But success can be measured in many ways.

Jimmie Johnson's drive to history took a hard hit against the wall and Kyle Busch ran out of gas trying to complete an unprecedented NASCAR trifecta.

Imagine this a Chase of Dreams. Take 12 of the best drivers in NASCAR history all nominees for the new NASCAR Hall of Fame and throw them into the Chase For The Sprint Cup format, racing on today's tracks, against today's stars, going for NASCAR's ultimate prize.

With two races left in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Jimmie Johnson leads the standings by 73 points over second-place Mark Martin and 112 points over third-place Jeff Gordon.

Ryan Newman is still sore and frustrated from Talladega. What frustrates Newman more than anything after his harrowing crash with five laps remaining last weekend is that it's the same kind of situation he was concerned about after the last race at Talladega six months earlier.

Was this a reality check for the No. 48 team, or was it the racing gods letting NASCAR Nation know who is really in charge, after many fans chose to blame the team for the so-called boring chase that we have been witnessing.

Denny Hamlin is in his fourth season in the Sprint Cup Series. Every year, he has made the Chase.

Juan Pablo Montoya says the Sprint Cup Series is the most competitive racing series he's ever competed in.

Phoenix International Raceway is the site for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

Los Angeles Clippers guard Eric Gordon will miss at least 10 days with a sore left groin.

Mark Martin might be in a race with Tom Watson and Chesley Sullenberger for AARP's Man of the Year.

Kurt Busch combined a fast race car with great fuel mileage to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Texas on Sunday.

Five things we learned on a championship-changing afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway: 1. Mark Martin is still alive in the title hunt.

Kyle Busch keeps extending streaks at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth in search of a NASCAR first.

Not since 1997 has Jeff Gordon won fewer than two poles in a NASCAR Sprint Cup season.

NASCAR chairman Brian France says he wants TV broadcasters that work NASCAR events to call the sport like those in other sports do and limit their areas of criticism.

FORT WORTH, Texas What if Danica Patrick makes her NASCAR debut in the Daytona 500? More likely, of course, it would be the Nationwide Series race.

Coming into the 2009 Sprint Cup Series season, there were still a couple of tracks at which Jeff Gordon had yet to win.

Crew members repair Jimmie Johnson's car after Johnson wrecked in the opening laps of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway Sunday.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. says Danica Patrick would be good for NASCAR, but there's nothing new to report on the IndyCar star joining his team.

Fort Worth, Texas -- Jeff Gordon is suddenly having all kind of success at Texas Motor Speedway, a track where he had never won until earlier this season.

Kyle Busch's new crew chief knows what's coming. Dave Rogers also knows it won't do any good to worry about being on the receiving end of the demanding driver's first tirade.

Carl Edwards has found a way to try to mask the frustration of his winless NASCAR Sprint Cup season.

WITH THE interminable NASCAR season winding down, and Jimmie Johnson about to be crowned King James IV, please consider some suggestions to improve NASCAR: * The season is too long.

Most fans would probably agree that while it is great to debate the finer points of NASCAR, sometimes these discussions bring to mind the old saying: "It's only fun until someone loses an eye." But in the world of NASCAR partisanship, it's only fun until someone loses their temper.

Jeff Gordon is suddenly having all kind of success at Texas Motor Speedway, a track where he had never won until earlier this season.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. loves to talk about his sponsorship ties to the military. He had a hard time finding the words Friday to discuss the massacre that left 13 people dead at Fort Hood.

Fewer tracks hosting NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series have had as many last-lap passes as Talladega.

The Frontstretch: Danica Needs NASCAR - But Is It a Two-Way Street? by Amy Henderson -- Friday November 6, 2009 With it looking all but carved in stone that Danica Patrick will be joining the NASCAR ranks, there are many things NASCAR is happy about.

With the trip to Texas Motor Speedway this week, Jimmie Johnson returns to his bread-and-butter type of track, the intermediates.

Dickies 500 Site: Fort Worth, Texas. Schedule: Friday, practice , qualifying ; Saturday, practice ; Sunday, race, 12:15 p.m. . Track: Texas Motor Speedway .

NASCAR will point to the 58 lead changes among 26 drivers as proof of a good race at Talladega Superspeedway.

The idea behind the Chase for the Sprint Cup was to extend the championship excitement to the final race of the season.

TALLADEGA, Ala. The 43 drivers who roared off at the start of the Amp Energy 500 apparently wanted to send a little message to their autocratic rulers.

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE'S/KOBALT TOOLS IMPALA SS: "We finished second in the spring so as excited as I am for myself going back to Texas Motor Speedway, I know Jeff and the No.

Watch to see if Jeff Gordon can duplicate his success from the spring race at Texas Motor Speedway .

It's entirely appropriate that the NASCAR circus swings through Talladega over Halloween weekend.

TALLADEGA, Ala. a ' Kyle Busch used a generous bump from teammate Aric Almirola a few hundred yards from the finish to win the NASCAR Camping World Trucks race at Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday.

Just three races remain in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series, and Jimmy Johnson has all but wrapped up his fourth straight title.

The field spent most of the race single file, afraid to race for fear of being penalized, or being wrecked.

In the case of two completely different and talented drivers, as a 1980 song from the Beach Boys goes, "You Need Good Timin'" to be successful in some perilous situations in NASCAR Sprint Cup racing.

Hendrick Motorsports teammates Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon entered Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Amp Energy 500 at Talladega Superspeedway hoping to gain some ground on series-leading teammate Jimmie Johnson.

MARTINSVILLE, Va. a ' Juan Pablo Montoya had had it with Jeff Gordon, and when he felt Gordon began crowding him in the turns on Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, he got physical.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin gets into the back of Hendrick Motorsports' Jeff Gordon during practice this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.

Fans, all that fretting and worrying over who will dethrone Jimmie Johnson from the top of the NASCAR heap has come to a screeching and merciful halt.

Racing will return to North Wilkesboro Speedway next year with the USARacing Pro Cup Series announcing it will run there Oct.