Lisa's Lugnuts

                                              North Wilkesboro Speedway,2009 
                                                   Photo credit: Lisa Nellis

Welcome to our new semi-regular column, Lisa's Lugnuts. Think of it as a Jayski-type read, only with more estrogen!

NASCAR has had a couple of surprises this week. Let's look at them here.

First, Brad Keselowski is almost certainly leaving Penske next season and going to Roush Fenway as both a driver AND part owner. Crazy, right? Not really. In 2022, with the new car setup, all cars will be "equal." Kes will have the same setup as evryother car in the field. So it's a great time to make a change. It's no secret that BK hasn't been happy at Penske, but until now he hadn't had a lot of options to leave. It's not like he hasn't had a huge influence on Penske, winning the team their first championship and urging them to sign Joey Logano.

This move poses a lot of questions. Where will Ryan Newman go? Will Matt DiBenedetto (currently in the No. 21 for the Wood Brothers) move to Penske, or stay where he is? Which car at Penske will Austin Cindric slide into? 

 And if Brad ends up in the No. 6, will the Oscar Mayer car turn into a Polish sausage?

Next, some encouraging news from North Carolina. Governor Cooper has pledged $30 million to three tracks in the state under the American Rescue Plan: North Wilkesboro, Rockingham, and Charlotte. 

Die-hard fans have been chomping at the bit for North Wilkesboro to be resurrected for years, as the last Cup race run at the legendary short track was in 1996. Additionally, Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis has hinted at a $1 million investment and a promise to build a facility adjacent to the track. Budding NASCAR Historian-in-Chief Dale Earnhardt, Jr. famously featured the track in the pilot episode of his new series "Lost Speedways." Stay tuned!
Lisa's Lugnuts Lisa's Lugnuts Reviewed by laweez on Thursday, May 20, 2021 Rating: 5