Will Richmond Lose a Race? | Ranking the Top Cup Series Drivers

[@BrianIsTheGOAT594]

Off topic, but today has sadly been 31 years since the late Alan Kulwicki passed away, as well with 40 years ago today, the late Marvin Gaye who passed away. I just wanted to point this out, and R.I.P. to both of those legends.

[@BurnoutsByTheBay]

My favorite nascar driver of all time. May he rest easy.

[@TexasNightmare24]

May they rest in peace peace

[@kenwright5718]

It broke my heart when we lost Alan, then a few short months later Davey was also gone.

[@Golfkid100]

RIP and prayers for them, their families, and friends. 🙏

[@JohnnyUtah13]

My local dirt track can figure out restarts with an orange road cone, basic electronics, and no cameras. NASCAR never fails to outdo itself LOL

[@namlat1513]

Notice how you said dirt tho, thinking asphalt short tracks are good is tough in itself, dont make fun of them. Asphalt short tracks are the WWE of racing its spectacle.

[@christophergritti9873]

Thank you for not blaming Denny. I've been seeing so many people crucify him for being a racing driver doing racing driver things.

[@johnhenryNC]

I don't blame Denny for jumping that restart. He dared NASCAR to make the call and they didn't. I blame NASCAR, not Hamlin.

[@josephphillippe8823]

Cheating is only OK if their guy benefits. It's not hamlins fault he got away with it

[@deliriouswhome1]

​​@@josephphillippe8823no one cheated though... Seriously doubt Hamlin wanted to put himself in position for NASCAR to decide on his finish.. Chances are he simply mistimed the restart.

[@josephphillippe8823]

@deliriouswhome1 denny did, nascar just ignored it. I'm a huge Hamlin Homer but that was obvious. I'm just not afraid to say that I don't care because my guy won.

[@deliriouswhome1]

@@josephphillippe8823 that doesn't exactly say , he cheated. Just says that he jumped the restart. Cheating is doing something on purpose in order to gain a competitive edge.. Chances are like I said , Hamlin simply mistimed the start, trying to get all he could.

[@gatling216]

I think the biggest April Fool's was telling myself Hamlin wouldn't add fuel to the fire.

[@DennyDeliversYT]

whatever happened to the racing we saw in the 2014 spring richmond race and why can’t we have that back??… 😭

[@timechanger9162]

Becuase nascar doesn’t care to fix the cars

[@JustACorvetteGuy]

The cars had 900 hp back then wink wink nudge nudge

[@JacobKaplan95]

@DennyDeliversYT it’s because the cars in 2014 had 900HP. Much much more than this trash package NASCAR runs today

[@AllanSmith859]

Tire wear

[@JackDaniels-m5d]

Dude. It's nostalgia that's all it is.

[@JrMichaelT]

Made the 8 hour drive to Richmond and it was well worth it. Short tracks are part of what make NASCAR unique and awesome. We had fun and will be back.

[@dannyalex7152]

Richmond doesn’t need two dates… bring back Chicagoland.

[@Lowlife-North]

No.

[@moddim]

@@Lowlife-Northyes

[@nicholascapps3145]

Hell yeah

[@nicholascapps3145]

​@@Lowlife-North can I have what you're smoking

[@truckercowboyed2638]

No

[@kylitothemidcreator]

Reducing Richmond to once a year? Yes Getting rid of it completely? I disagree

[@crystaljon]

I don't like how people act like the one solution to fixing the problem with a track is "just get rid of it," or "just go somewhere else."

[@kharnthebetrayer1575]

Home track , and keeping the August race would be fine ….. be better if sept like it used to be .

[@neanderthalsnavel7411]

​@@kharnthebetrayer1575if August must be at night. Too hot during the day.

[@kharnthebetrayer1575]

@@neanderthalsnavel7411 Oooo I agree since I’m a hour from the track and live on the coast. Why I really didn’t like the July day races ….. plus not as many drivers out signing stuff at day races.

[@ShanGamer1981]

Give more track one visit so others can be on the schedule

[@robbnutter4665]

Hamlin will blame everyone for everything, but he never does anything wrong.

[@supertornadogun1690]

Main reason He's my least favorite driver, biggest hypocrite in the cup series.

[@ChevyPeyton]

Double Standard Denny

[@miketwotwenty]

Truex does the same thing!

[@Mr_Dopey]

I blame Hamlin's pit crew for being so much better than Truex's.

[@josephphillippe8823]

Meanwhile truex laid into larson for no reason

[@Irritate]

For anyone that didn't know, Austin Cindric punted Blaney into 1 and put them both up the track causing them to lose spots. Blaney was competing with top 10 cars even though he was a lap down for most of the race.

[@parker838]

I'm still in favor of the idea of every track besides Daytona and Talladega should have only 1 date. Same argument with the spring bristol date, if you can't get people in the stands just have the bristol night race in the summer you'll have better attendance and a better atmosphere.

[@MayBeSomething]

I really liked the Pocono double-header. I only saw it once, but I like the idea of it. 2 races of 2 lengths in 2 days, ideally using 2 different packages, being run on a track that you can do Pythagorean Theorem on.

[@acedelta12]

@@MayBeSomething In 2 different times of the day, too

[@zzz6valvoline]

I'm totally with some tracks losing dates. In fact, we should have more tracks than race days. That way, every season is unique.

[@Mr_Dopey]

The top ten drivers might as well be a list of Toyota and Hendrick drivers so far this year.

[@tloz171nfs]

Featuring Ryan Blaney 😂

[@MayBeSomething]

I think it'd be REALLY funny if Hamlin's last season ends like this: He goes on a tear, wins 3-5 regular season races, and is the regular season points leader. He points his way through the round of 16, wins in the round of 12, and wins 2 races in the round of 8. Late in the Championship race, he's leading. Then Chastain spins him, and he tags the wall. Not much damage, but enough to keep him in his pit box for an extra 3-6 tenths of a second to try and quickly fix it. He loses the lead, and comes out in 8th (3rd out of the Championship Drivers). Tyler Reddick - also a Championship Driver - starts in first, and holds off the field for 4 laps, winning the race, and becoming a first-time Cup Series Champion, and getting 23XI's first Championship. I am a Denny Hamlin fan, but mostly because I like the villain role he's accepted, and because he drives a Toyota. That situation I described would be a hilarious end to his full-time Cup Series career. He never wins a Championship as a driver, but he gets one as an owner. Edit: When's Eric bringing back Out of The Crowd?

[@patrickcaine8568]

For whatever it's worth Road America drew substatinial numbers to a smaller market at a cheaper price and was axed for a more expensive street course race in Chicago... buscher bringing back the classic roush consistency of Kenseth, Martin, Biffle, of the early 2000s and man does it it look good!

[@joshuathecat-human1247]

Road America and Chicagoland will never come back because of poor rating of NASCAR itself.

[@ScottG91]

Congrats on the engagement Eric

[@GenXRedneck420]

Can't say North wilkesboro is a new track. I had chills when nascar went back. Richmond lost its spark cause no one really does the bump and run anymore. That's the place Dale uses the chrome horn the most. Lol

[@jayminbernhardt4952]

Congratulations on your engagement Eric! Amazing stuff!

[@5124ever]

Any track that has half the stands empty should be considered.

[@AllanSmith859]

It was raining. Not everyone is going to stick around

[@cryptofreedom772]

@@AllanSmith859and Easter

[@Cbazz]

The Only 4 Tracks that should have multiple races are (sort of) Daytona Talladega Martinsville (because of traditions) & Charlotte (Oval & Roval)

[@baileywinston9384]

Agree with everything until you said Roval at Charlotte.

[@Takingyoutojail]

Atlanta should definitely have 2 dates Kansas should have 2 dates

[@stephensurratt2909]

I think the Roval sucks.

[@Williambyron24fan]

With how well this next gen car has done on Atlanta they might add 2 dates for it

[@Takingyoutojail]

@@stephensurratt2909 the Roval doesn’t suck Each year it has produced great racing and a memorable finish

[@paulhutton1507]

I’m always glad to see 2 race tracks loose a race. NASCAR has too many repeated tracks.

[@fishindixie3359]

The first laps on wet weather tires were awesome. I dont think it's richmond or any short track problems. I think it's the tires.

[@GymLeaderEllie]

super pleased to see buescher backing up last year's success. he was really impressive with the 2nd place at the phoenix race i saw in person. the fact that he and brad always seem to finish near each other for the entire rfk era lends so much credence to chris's abilities as a driver, on par with the past champ.

[@LyleFrancisDelp]

Miss two dates at Dover....concrete track and lots of tire wear. Forces drivers to find the best way around the track. I've attended many races there, and it always good...as long as ASSCAR doesn't throw unnecessary cautions.

[@mork3489]

I think if Richmond loses a date, they should bring the rock back. The people over there have been doing their best to bring nascar back and I hope it returns

[@GrantRustin]

What good are rules if you don’t enforce them.. they penalize the crap out of someone for touching a next gen part, but Denny Hamlin clearly jumps the final restart and they won’t even look at it.. classic Nascar

[@Jimmy25-SimRacing]

As Kyle Larson said, "Denny's always right." He thinks he can do no wrong.

[@hunternixonfishing2500]

I second a previous comment. Richmond don’t need 2 dates. Bring back Chicagoland

[@BlueJimmie48Fan]

Richmond can definitely be another track that can benefit from only having one date on the schedule. I was at the 2022 Summer race and despite the horrendous DC traffic, I had a great experience!

[@FusionRacing24]

super congratulations on the engagement!

[@jacobevenson8702]

Here's a wacky idea for Richmond... Make it a doubleheader like some people have suggested, lets say one race 250 laps and one race 275 or 300 laps, but make one of those races have no stage cautions while the other does. Not only would that greatly change the strategy between races, maybe the result of that kind of doubleheader would get NASCAR to at least consider ditching stage cautions overall.

[@darrylniehoff2707]

That's what happened at Bristol .tires shredded. Old school racing .

[@jamiesweitzer8469]

The weekly "Power Rankings" segment has, for myself, already & very rapidly become a reliable source of which drivers are trending , along with those that are not, followed with any/all most probable causes for changes in the weekly power rankings! #22 #JustJoeyFanForever #TeamPenske ❤

[@Ice-Blade]

just want to say this podcast is a heck of alot better then most of them out there top 2-3 for sure. probly my number #1 to watch before all others. wish i had the personality/desire for it lol. just truthful mostly non biased ( A ford kenseth fan ;) )to best of double E's abilities, information and no misleading about it.

[@edwardcorrado2541]

Eric: If you are going to go by the letter of the law on Hamlin, you need to go by the letter of the law on Truex and Lagano for laying back. Rember last year when after New Hampshire, Elton Sawyer said "there will be a very stern communication line to our drivers in all three series that laying back is not going to be acceptable.” Penalize all three or none.

[@jasonbarnes1435]

One might agree with you except Denny accelerated prior to the restart zone. He may be the control car but why have a restart zone if we’re not going to enforce it?

[@johnboyd2099]

Poconos economy has gone down because the loss of a Pocono Race and everybody that's losing the race will also be losing money

[@elijahjp2158]

I'm probably in the minority here, but I am all for cutting tracks down to one date. It means NASCAR can expand its track market, and each race is now special and unique because there's only one race date per year instead of two.

[@AlexE5250]

I agree, I like having as many different tracks in the schedule as possible, but there are a few notable exceptions that deserve two dates. Talladega and Daytona (Atlanta too, if you want to count it as a mini super speedway) each need two just because they are so unique from all the others. I like having two races at Darlington because it’s one of my favorites, and because one is the Southern 500 so it’s special and different on its own. Same with Charlotte and the 600.

[@williamwert4528]

@@AlexE5250 Darlington is my favorite track, I live within an hour of it. But it needs to lose the spring date. I wasn't a fan of it when they gave it back in 2021 and not now, it takes away from the Southern 500.

[@bradnerling7156]

Finally something we agree on. As far as the Denny jump.

[@Turn4_media48]

Eric the one point I don’t get is when you said “uncomfortable position “ that should not be like that for NASCAR there job is of many to stop stuff like this happening if it’s uncomfortable for them they have something wrong

[@gagelewis6264]

I think they need to dig up the turns at richmond, tighten the turns so they aren't so sweeping, and add some banking, similar to Bristol corners

[@josephphillippe8823]

You can be mad at denny all you like, it is 100% on nascar to enforce their rules and they didnt.

[@Eagleracer38x]

Darlington lost a race for awhile, but fans wanted the 2nd race again. And, Southern 500 date moved for a few years was also very controversial.

[@AllanSmith859]

You need to still be talking about the tire wear. Not removing a track. I've never seen so many people complain about Nascar every week.

[@rmg_2771]

I just wish NASCAR would try something drastic or try any options to improve the racing at Richmond. Besides the Spring 2014 and 2016 finish, mainly all the races the past 15 years has seen dominant performances and little action. Hell a lot of people forget the famous Kyle Busch Dale Jr moment in ‘08, Denny Hamlin led 380 laps prior to that. Richmond is a great facility and market, but if they don’t try something new and the racing remains stagnant, then it’s time for them to go to 1 race weekend

[@jervay-em2qn]

We don't necessarily have to replace a current track what a new track. It will be cool if we I had more different races than the topical back-to-back race.

[@7sins435]

Am I crazy for thinking Todd Gilliland should be in the top 10? He’s been arguably the most consistent ford 😂

[@bluegrassboy2448]

Richmond would be neat again if they used the asphalt sealer "bear grease" to slicken the surface and 1 lane racing like it used to be.

[@spoiler539]

Hamlin fan here, yes he clearly jumped the restart. I think if he hadn’t then the final 2 laps of the race would have been more fun to watch with MTJ and Hamlin battling it out for the lead.

[@M3RK_54]

The 19 and 22 held back on the restart That's why the in car looks the way it does, and that's likely why the tower didn't penalize the 11 for the jump

[@darrylniehoff2707]

If you notice the big teams are starting to win all the races .

[@mikevoyles397]

Why is it Monday is "cut a track" day. O my gracious will people calm down.

[@JoseRodriguez-rl3ch]

I’m in favor of racing only once on each track, bring back Rockingham and add Road America, Laguna Seca, Atlanta road race track….

[@travisjohnson6794]

​@@johnhaas2523nobody takes you serious. You said North wilkesboro would never come back and it did

[@JoseRodriguez-rl3ch]

@@johnhaas2523 very likely not, unless NASCAR buys it. 🤔 Id definitely prefer Rockingham over Phoenix.

[@travisjohnson6794]

@@johnhaas2523 you still were proven wrong bot

[@jokool_aid]

I'm going to be honest, I thought the racing was okay last night. Certainly wasn't amazing, but you had some great moments here and there, like Kyle Larson and Bubba Wallace side by side for the lead multiple laps during one of the restarts, and the racing in damp conditions with wet tires was a huge win! The thing that killed this race was the terrible calls (or lack of) NASCAR made: yellow flag instantly for Kyle Busch who barely touched the wall killing the strategy game; no call on Denny Hamlin's restart; I'd even go as far to say that the "competition yellow" for mandatory tire changes was a bit too early, I honestly would have liked to see them run a few more laps on those tires to really test them out.

[@ThatNascarGuy]

Eric has been a lot more bold with his statements this year

[@kingcanute907]

Rockingham is at the top of my list of tracks that NASCAR could go to.

[@Landmasters]

God I hope NASCAR drops a Richmond date like a bad habit. Some places like Vegas, Darlington, and the Superspeedways have earned two, but places like Martinsville, Richmond, Phoenix, and such need to make way for new tracks not only for expansion, but to prevent some areas from experiencing fatigue, especially the mid-east where almost every short track is in the same region

[@wesselweasel4838]

Phoenix sells out every year and event so it won’t drop thankfully (the race I go to) so as long as NASCAR gets its money it will stay

[@bradnerling7156]

Have them come to the Milwaukee mile. Other series do. That place is freaking great.

[@loganengland8177]

Richmond and Phoenix should both have only one race also congrats on the engagement

[@Williamplumadore]

Plumadore racing, All in for new endeavors. One race a year per track. Go NASCAR.

[@Sean_Downey]

I wouldn't mind a F1 style of one race per venue, and make it more special, as well as adding new tracks. That being said I worry the business side of these tracks being dependent on both races revenue to survive.

[@JBAlternate]

Richmond should probably lose a race for the time being. They can always add it back someday. But with Iowa and NWS needing a permanent spot on the schedule, it just makes sense that it would come from Richmond. Still waiting to see if Nashville Fairgrounds ends up on the schedule in a couple years. There hasn't been a ton of news about that track at all. And I know a lot of folks want to squeeze Rockingham on as well. And Auto Club still isn't officially done, so who knows. I think it's all doable if they're willing to alternate tracks every other year.

[@3120DownForce]

20-25 years ago, I would have been ok with having 4 Richmond Races a year. Now, I'm cool with 1. 🏁👍

[@theetravismiller6183]

10. Bowman 9. Buescher 8. Bell 7. Chastain 6. Blaney 5. Hamlin 4. Gibbs 3. Larson 2. Byron 1. Truex

[@melvinbuchanan3148]

Another great job

[@bonesdoes6142]

I love NASCAR,but sometimes NASCAR gets in NASCAR’s way so much it HuRtS😣 I’m not ready to see Ty Gibbs in the final 4 but that kid has stepped it up this season.

[@N9IBZED]

For once I agree with your entire rankings

[@thomasfarrenkopf7292]

I said this on the video from yesterday but I don’t think Hamlin jumped the restart. Take a look at Lagano and Larson, P3 and P4 respectively. It appears Truex either spun the tires or laid back when Lagano hit the restart zone. Either way, I think Hamlin was good. It just feels weird to agree with NASCAR.

[@Williambyron24fan]

In my opinion i think we should go back how it was where there was more than 40 races a year we just add more races for these new tracks

[@nathanielbailey108]

They need to have another dirt race. NOT at Bristol, but please give us an annual dirt race. Points or not don’t care just dirt race once per year.

[@Short_Hispanic]

If Richmond lost a date should bring back Kentucky speedway, 2019 Battle of the Busch’s was my first race I ever went to and still one of the best overtime finishes I have ever seen

[@Short_Hispanic]

Once Kentucky opens back up

[@richardhogenson594]

What’s the penalty for jumping the restart?

[@BA-xj9ew]

It should be an exception for any track to have two dates. Who invited all the empty seats to the spring date at Richmond? Keep the fall date and move this date. Charlotte roval can be moved too.

[@meister241]

I had season tickets at Richmond for 14 years but the racing got extremely boring especially when they went to a day race that’s when I stopped tickets because they’re now so easy to get. The September race is great but I get the point about dropping the early race.

[@BengtsonJ]

Richmond should just have one Race in the 2nd half of the Year. Mexico City takes their spring date. Chicagoland takes the Street race date. Give the Fall Las Vegas date to North Wilkesboro. All Star should rotate. Here is a random idea. All-Star in Kentucky. Still an SMI track. Works well with the Next-Gen car.

[@shaneharrisnj3484]

Chicagoland doesn't exist anymore. Maybe a race at The Milwaukee Mile or IRP would be nice.

[@zacharyphillips8910]

As a long time Richmond goer I’m fine if they lose a date it would give me a chance to go see other tracks although the date they keep needs to be on Saturday night under the lights not Easter Sunday

[@AT7_Racing]

Every time you say Power Rankings with your trademarked accentuation, I hear PowerHour. Are you guys doing any this year?

[@EricEstepp]

We've done a couple at the track this year, and are currently lining up our April episode :)

[@TroyCroteau]

I’d like to see you owner rankings too

[@roguepadawan1984]

I'm just at so much of a crossroads with Hamlin... I love what he has to say and offer off the track when it comes to issues the sport is facing and the future and more. He gets it and as an owner/driver his perspective is unique and warranted. Then there's Denny the crybaby driver. The infalable. The guy who never does anything wrong. Who never admits to any tiny sliver of mistake. Who treats other drivers far worse than they ever treat him. The dude is a walking double standard and I'm just absolutely over it. If that jumping the restart happened to him, he'd have already posted the incriminating SMT data. Denny, I'm over it dude.

[@samruth240]

DBC had a good take on the final restart!

[@ethanhenrichs5677]

I'm not really angry at Hamlin, I'm more upset at Larson and Bubba not keeping it together until the white flag.😅

[@darrylniehoff2707]

Short tracks are built for bias ply tires , not radials . The radial tires were the end for Richmond!

[@JackerWarriors25]

You should do more tier lists

[@III-jj8qk]

Only Daytona, Charlotte, and maybe Talladega or Darlington need multiple dates, we should go to more tracks so the at-track attendance is higher per race and more racing fans in different markets have a chance to see Cup Series, just look at WI, huge market without a race where as Richmond is not a huge market next to a bunch of other markets and gets two. I like Richmond and other than Nascar's BSsery I enjoyed the race, still think Hamlin should get DQ.

[@fransvanolmen9923]

Just throwing this out there....instead of cutting a track's 2nd race, could we just add a race or two to the schedule? Instead of 36 races, maybe have 38 but keep the playoffs to 10 races. Eventually, may need to substitute one track for an ill-fated race weekend, but not because of a lack of good racing, but overall.

[@Mockorange09]

Gotta bring back minimum ride height. Get air back underneath "stock" cars and give them more horsepower. That'll bring back fast cars not getting killed by dirty air. If they're sucked to the ground, dirty air will kill any car. More power less aero.

[@williamlambert]

they need to put the darlington throwback weekend back on Southern 500 weekend then maybe drop the spring darlington race

[@JacksonVanZanten]

Honestly don’t blame Denny ham,in and I’m not buyest because I’m a Denny Hamlin fan but NASCAR didn’t check the restart so he shouldn’t be to blame

[@brewsnoop]

If attendance was a qualifier, we would still be racing at Road America with 100k fans showing up a few years ago. Sunday’s race in Richmond was unwatchable in my opinion.

[@Gr8estspySterlingArcher]

NASCAR Illuminati in a Smokey room looking at that tweet lmao

[@greatguardiank9s216]

#1 should be hamlin or byron good show as always

[@OBG791]

As someone from the area I honestly wouldn’t be mad if they did down it to one race

[@hacksawjimthuggin7411]

Taking a second date from Darlington would be a shit idea. Darlington is fantastic

[@stevencranejr.3297]

I'm okay with all tracks having 1 date. Adds more tracks to the schedule and should pack out each race

[@PoweroftheP00f]

I think it's very likely we're going to see both Richmond and Martinsville lose a Spring race in the next couple of years. The Spring dates just haven't inspired, and there are so many golden opportunities for those dates elsewhere.

[@frederickwstrawitchiii3329]

I just wanna see if Freddie was trolling about the Penalty Report on DBC today...

[@ba97racing]

Tracks that deserve 2 races: Daytona, Talladega, Martinsville, Bristol. Tracks that need to lose their 2nd race: - Richmond (I don't personally hate the racing here...I think the strategy is interesting enough to keep a race and maybe just one will help build up interest) - Darlington - love this track but leave the hype for the Southern 500. - Pheonix - no redeeming qualities - Vegas - eh...its alright. Doesn't need 2. - Kansas - best 1.5 but still only needs 1 race. - Atlanta - we don't need 6 supers on the schedule. Cool race but no. Especially not in the playoffs. Honorable mention - Texas motor speedway needs to be bulldozed and never run again. No races for that track. It sucks. If they keep it we will inevitably just have 8 Supers on the schedule when they repave and that's too much.

[@ba97racing]

@@johnhaas2523 its just a dream sheet. I'm not here looking at contracts etc.

[@sammcrary4722]

I’d slide Elliott and Logano in for Chastain and Buescher. Logano and Chase are showing more consistent speed and are former champions and know what they’re doing.

[@bradwarner464]

Look at what the definition of a zone is. The rules for the restart zone are black and white. Take a look, and i think this will show what a vet Denny is.🤔

[@skottydoesntn0o0]

Josh Wise summed it up well on Twitter. This is a common thing and Truex and Logano were laying back to get a run. People just hate Denny and are pissed he won lol. I'm sure if it was a Hendrick car or the Golden Boy Chase, the tune would be different.

[@ThePackerMan71]

Wrong. I'd be asking for a penalty REGARDLESS of who it is. Doesn't matter if it's Hamlin, Larson, Truex, or whomever. If you jump the restart, IT SHOULD BE A PENALTY. If you're not gonna bother enforcing the rules you set for races, then don't bother having them in the rulebook at all.

[@robertstone9988]

​@@ThePackerMan71 I just thank it's a missed call. Happens all the time in sports. Some times it go's your way some times it don't. I once saw Peyton Manning fake spike the ball so good the ref blew the whistle. Cost the colts the game. It was a bad call, but I once saw them win because a no call on a pass interface call so it all comes out in the wash.

[@chucklove8709]

Give Richmonds spring date to iowa. Put the all star back in Charlotte and give north wilkesboro a full race with darlingtons spring date