North Wilkesboro, North Carolina – NASCAR hopes that a repaved course and softer tires will result in more competitive short-track racing for Sunday’s All-Star race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

It couldn’t go any worse than last year.

After months of anticipation for the first race at the refurbished circuit since 1996, the All-Star race was a letdown, with Kyle Larson winning and taking home $1 million. He led for 145 of the 200 laps, at times by nearly 11 seconds, or more than half a lap on the 625-mile short track.

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NASCAR Hopes Repaved Track, Softer Tires Make For More Competitive All-Star Race At North Wilkesboro

Larson later boasted: “That was an old school (butt)-whipping, for sure.”

And that did not make for exciting television.

However, William Byron believes that this year’s race will be considerably closer. NASCAR tested softer tires on the short track during a rainy weekend in North Wilkesboro.

“This place is so different and unique; we almost need a couple more practices to get everyone closer,” remarked Byron. “There will be many comers and goers, and the gaps will be less because the pace is faster and there is less falloff. But I still believe it won’t be easy to finish the passes.

Larson is still aiming to race Sunday night after spending the week training for the Indianapolis 500.

Meanwhile, Kevin Harvick came out of retirement to drive Larson’s No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet during practice, which he never expected to happen.

“It’s definitely not the attire that I thought I’d be wearing this year,” Harvick joked while donning the Hendrick Motorsports fire suit.

However, Harvick, who now works in the broadcast booth, says it has been a good week.

Stewart-Haas Racing, Harvick’s former employer, even helped out by sending the chairs and seat rails he used while racing so he could fit better.

“Sometimes there are phone calls that you react to different than others,” Harvick stated. “When Rick (Hendrick) called and said what he needed and I said, ‘OK,’ everyone at Fox was kind enough to let us take the day to do what we needed to do.”

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NASCAR Hopes Repaved Track, Softer Tires Make For More Competitive All-Star Race At North Wilkesboro

Chase Elliott expressed interest in NASCAR’s experiment next year with an in-season bracket-style playoff, similar to what the NBA did this season.

“It sounds interesting, especially starting at Atlanta (Motor Speedway) with it now being a speedway thing,” Elliott stated. “But, yes, I believe it has the ability to add excitement to our year by doing something different. I have no problems with that.”

Chris Buescher and Tyler Reddick could have some bad blood this weekend. Buescher confronted Reddick in pit lane following last week’s race at Darlington, where Reddick forced him into the wall, eliminating his hopes of victory.

“When you are racing for the win, you are racing for the win,” Reddick stated. “In that moment I was trying to think how I could take my car that was in second place to first place.”

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NASCAR Hopes Repaved Track, Softer Tires Make For More Competitive All-Star Race At North Wilkesboro

Reddick stated, “The obvious thing is I drove in so deep that I needed the entire racetrack.” I did not have enough tires left to keep the outside lane free, so I’m simply trying to learn for the next time.

Denny Hamlin is the 19-4 favorite to win the All-Star race, edging out three-time champion Larson, according to BetMGM.

SOURCE – (AP)

Darlington said police pulled Scheffler out of the car, pushed him up against the car and immediately placed him in handcuffs.

“Scheffler was then walked over to the police car, placed in the back, in handcuffs, very stunned about what was happening, looked toward me as he was in those handcuffs and said, ‘Please help me,’” Darlington said. “He very clearly did not know what was happening in the situation. It moved very quickly, very rapidly, very aggressively.”

Scheffler was released by police and returned to the course at 9:12 a.m. Around 9:30 a.m., he arrived at the practice area to the cheers of fans; one yelled “Free Scottie!” and more followed later wearing “Free Scottie” T-shirts.

Scheffler seemed normal, relaxed, sharing a few laughs on the driving range.

“I was never angry. I was just in shock,” Scheffler said. “I was shaking the whole time. I was shaking for like an hour. It was definitely a new feeling for me.”

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Scottie Scheffler Arrested Outside PGA Championship, Then Returns And Climbs Leaderboard

He could see from a TV in the jail that tee times were pushed back 1 hour, 20 minutes because of the traffic situation, and realized when an officer knocked on the door and said, “Let’s go,” that he had a chance to play.

He made birdie on his first hole of the day after sticking his approach shot to 3 feet.

Darlington, the ESPN reporter, said police were initially unsure who Scheffler was. He said an officer asked him to leave, and when he identified himself as being with the media, he was told, “There’s nothing you can do. He’s going to jail.”

Darlington said another police officer later approached with a notepad and asked if he knew the name of the person they put in handcuffs.

Scheffler said he never told police who he was except to say, “I’m sorry, I’m just trying to get to my tee time.”

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Scottie Scheffler Arrested Outside PGA Championship, Then Returns And Climbs Leaderboard

Louisville police have attracted negative national attention in recent years after the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor in 2020 and a federal investigation into its policing practices.

A Department of Justice report released last year said Louisville officers use excessive force and conduct searches based on invalid warrants. The report said Black motorists in Louisville were more likely to be searched during traffic stops, and officers used neck restraints, police dogs and Tasers against people who posed no imminent threat.

Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, was shot by officers who had come to her apartment with a warrant that federal officials later said was falsified.

PGA of America, which runs the PGA Championship, offered sympathies for Mills’ family and said, “As it relates to the incident involving Scottie Scheffler, we are fully cooperating as local authorities review what took place.”

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Scottie Scheffler Arrested Outside PGA Championship, Then Returns And Climbs Leaderboard

Scheffler has won four of his last five tournaments, including his second Masters title. He has been home in Dallas the last three weeks, waiting for the birth of his first child, a son born May 8.

Scheffler is trying to become only the fifth player since 1960 to win the first two majors of the year.

SOURCE – (AP)

ATLANTA  Following the NBA’s lead, the NASCAR Cup Series plans a five-race, bracket-style tournament in the middle of the 2025 season, beginning with a night race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

The competition, which features a $1 million reward for the winner, is part of a new media rights agreement that includes TNT.

The Atlanta-based cable network will air all five races in the tournament, beginning with a 400-mile race in its home market on June 28, 2025.

“Next year, having $1 million on the line, that’s for sure going to be a goal before the season starts and something that you and your team strategize around,” Larson said. “I am looking forward to it. The summer months get boring. It’s not dull, although it does become repetitive. “You lose some excitement.”

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NASCAR planning in-season tournament in 2025, with opening race in Atlanta

Atlanta will host the inaugural tournament event, which has produced some of NASCAR’s most dramatic races since the circuit was reconfigured with more banking. The rest of the 36-race program will be released later.

Brandon Hutchison, president and general manager of the Atlanta track, stated that the venue was ready to offer racing after dark after being slated for two-day events this season. Receiving the first event of the new in-season tournament was a bonus.

“We have heard our fans loud and clear,” Hutchison stated. “We understand they wanted the night race back. We were overjoyed to even be able to consider giving it to them. Then, with TNT as a hometown broadcast partner, a home track, and the first season of the in-season bracket tournament in NASCAR history, we believe that June 28, 2025, will be a very exciting moment to be at Atlanta Motor Speedway.”

This season, the NBA introduced a competition that is based on in-season tournaments held by soccer leagues all over the world. The Los Angeles Lakers won the first event in December, defeating Indiana in a championship game hosted in Las Vegas.

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NASCAR planning in-season tournament in 2025, with opening race in Atlanta

The NASCAR tournament will include the top 32 drivers from three seeding races, which will be staged soon before the Atlanta event and aired on Amazon Prime.

The drivers will be paired in head-to-head contests based on seeding, with the victors moving on to the next round in a bracket-style similar to the NCAA basketball championships.

The number of competitors will be decreased to 16 for Race 2, followed by the quarterfinals in Race 3, the semifinals in Race 4, and the final in Race 5.

“There has never been a better time to be a motorsports fan, and this new, first-ever in-season tournament will add a new competitive dynamic to NASCAR’s summer race weekends,” said Craig Barry, executive vice president and chief content officer of TNT Sports.

Hutchison stated that the Atlanta track will continue to hold two races in 2025; however, the full calendar is still pending.

This season, the 1.54-mile oval in suburban Hampton hosted the second points race of the year on Feb. 25 — a week after the Daytona 500 — with Daniel Suarez edging Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch in a three-way photo finish.

The NASCAR playoffs will begin with Atlanta’s second race in 2024 on September 8. Next year, the race will be moved to the in-season tournament rather than the playoffs.

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NASCAR planning in-season tournament in 2025, with opening race in Atlanta

Denny Hamlin described the competition as “such a win for our sport and drivers” in a post on X, the social media platform that replaced Twitter. He playfully continued, “I’ll collect my $1 million royalty next season.”

Larson believes the tournament will be a much-needed pick-me-up during the summer slump.

“I think this bracket, or whatever you want to call it, is going to add a lot of excitement and more storylines,” he stated. “So I love it.”

SOURCE – (AP)