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@nascarcasm dishes out some awards after the season's first 22 NASCAR Cup Series races.
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THE NON-TROVERSY AWARD: Remember this during the Busch Clash? One good friend knocking his other friend out of the way for the win? “CAN RYAN BLANEY AND CHASE ELLIOTT REMAIN BUDDIES?” we wondered? While Twitter wondered if their friendship would last, Ryan and Chase probably texted about it and were playing “Among Us” together an hour later.
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THE YOU’RE-GONNA-NEED-THAT AWARD: I like to imagine that one crew guy was like “Hey, let’s see how we can ditch some weight out of the truck before qualifying” and the drive shaft was like, “SAY NO MORE.”
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LEMONS OUT OF LEMONADE AWARD: The Big One near the beginning of the Daytona 500 that preceded a lengthy rain delay wasn’t ideal for anyone. However Ryan Newman went from car to car telling drivers “Hey, we’re gonna go across the street to Hooters to watch the end of the race, see you there.”
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ACHIEVEMENT IN ADDITIONAL REVENUE STREAMS: You could just sit in your motorcoach and nap during a long rain delay. Or, you could make a little money on the side as the first driver to run the Daytona 500 AND deliver for DoorDash on the SAME DAY.
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MOST MEMORABLE RACE: The Bristol Dirt Race, primarily because we’re all still cleaning it out of our earlobes.
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ACHIEVEMENT IN CAR-RENTAL COMPANIES REFUSING TO RENT TO ANY OF US ANYMORE: If you ever wondered why they’re always pushy about getting you to buy the additional coverage, YOU CAN THANK JEFF GORDON AND CLINT BOWYER.
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IN MEMORIAM - LARRY MAC’S FILE: A repave of Atlanta Motor Speedway was inevitable, but this doesn’t mean we can’t mourn the loss of our favorite prop – the file that Larry McReynolds used to demonstrate what the track’s abrasive surface does to tires. Godspeed – you were grate.
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OUR NEW FAVORITE TRADITION: Hands down, the winner handing the checkered flag to a young fan is the best new custom in NASCAR. It’s just great to see our drivers giving an amazing souvenir to someone who is way, way younger than him. Man, if William Byron wins again, finding someone who is way, way younger gonna take a while, isn’t it.
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FEEL-GOOD STORY OF 2021: Gotta be Josh Berry and his success in the Xfinity Series. With limited starts in the JR Motorsports No. 8, he had four top-five finishes and one win. He’s Berry good! Dale Jr.’s a dad now so he might appreciate that joke.
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ALSO A FEEL-GOOD STORY OF 2021: Remember “Bad Luck Bowman”? He’s gone. Enter a rejuvenated, race-winning Alex Bowman, who has found Victory Lane three times in 2021. He also signed an extension with Hendrick Motorsports through 2023, which is probably the next time he’ll remember to perform a software update on his sim rig.
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THE “I WAS TOLD I WAS GOING TO A JIMMY BUFFETT CONCERT” AWARD: Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid at Kansas Speedway.
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The “KFB” Award (“Kyle’s Fabulous Body-Double”): This dude at Dover.
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ACHIEVEMENT IN NEVER GIVING UP: Come hell or high water ... OK, mostly high water ... there’s no way Kurt Busch was going to let himself get lodged in this gravel trap at Circuit of The Americas. All I know is if Kurt was driving that one container ship through the Suez Canal, no way would it have gotten stuck.
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THE “YEAH YEAH, YOU WON AGAIN, IS YOUR WIFE GONNA DO THE THING?” AWARD: This goes to Kyle Larson. Yeah, he’s absolutely dominated on track, amassing four wins and 11 top-fives in 2021. But our favorite aspect of Kyle’s success is that his wife, Katelyn, has brought back the best victory celebration in motorsports – The Shotgun. Pure bad-assery here. We hoped Kyle would join in but TBH, he seems more like a White-Claw-with-a-straw-in-it kind of guy.
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“SHOWING UP AT THE 4TH OF JULY PICNIC LIKE A BOSS” AWARD: Ross Chastain at the All-Star Race.
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THE “WE’RE BACK” AWARD: The race at Nashville Superspeedway. A fantastic weekend at a fantastic track in a fantastic city. There were issues on track, such as with Chris Buescher here running over Corey LaJoie’s rotor. But then again, you always hear of people going to Nashville in hopes of catching their big brake.
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PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR: This goes to Kyle Busch for his gutsy, unexpected, improbable win on the second day of the Pocono double-header. Broken clutch, car stuck in 4th gear – the day seemed lost. Then thanks to a lucky set of circumstances, Kyle was able to stretch his fuel far enough to win. The more things that are wrong with the car, the greater chance Kyle will win the race. Hell, have the drive shaft fall out of the car and Kyle will probably lap the field.
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THE “NASCAR IS LOVE” AWARD: This happy couple who got engaged before the race at Road America. We wish them the best and a joyful life together. Granted, it’s common for wedding proposals to happen at NASCAR races, but it’s usually teenage girls holding up signs reading “RYAN BLANEY MARRY ME.”
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“SKURRRRRT SKURRRRRRT” AWARD: Kurt Busch, naturally, for his big win at Atlanta Motor Speedway. It was the final race on Atlanta’s old surface, which decided to begin its repaving project mid-way through the race.
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ACHIEVEMENT IN DOING SOMETHING TOTALLY UNEXPECTED: That would be Aric Almirola, bad season and all, stunning all reaches of the known universe with his win at New Hampshire. This is honestly something we didn’t think we’d see, and not just because it was almost completely dark when it happened.