Hamlin criticizes Gordon

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Keselowski may have rough road ahead

AVONDALE, Ariz. - Brad Keselowski's crew chief was headed to the pre-race driver meeting when Juan Pablo Montoya cut him off at the door.

"The next two weeks, you better bring your worst cars," Montoya told Roy McCauley.

"Why's that?" McCauley asked.

Contender status won't cut it, Hamlin says

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Denny Hamlin came to Daytona International Speedway in 2004 with the ultimate all-access badge.

An Internet racing buddy of NASCAR’s biggest personality, Hamlin spent much of Speedweeks lounging around Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s motor coach although he also would speak with Joe Gibbs about eventually signing with his Cup team and finished it in Victory Lane.

Somewhere there’s a photograph of a 23-year-old Hamlin, several pounds heavier, celebrating Earnhardt’s victory in the Daytona 500.

Johnson's dominance fine, France says

HOMESTEAD, Fla. NASCAR chairman Brian France wants Jimmie Johnson to be commended for his four-year run atop NASCAR, and not used as an example of why the championship format might be flawed.

Johnson heads into Sunday's finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway poised to become the first driver in NASCAR history to win four consecutive titles, all under the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship format implemented in 2004. His dominance has made it easy for Chase critics to blast the system, which France called unfair.

"The only way fair to look at it is not to pick apart the format, but recognize excellence," France said Friday. "I don't think historians could have predicted how good they are. What I wouldn't want to do is take away from the accomplishment of Jimmie and his team. In this format, dominating four straight years is incredibly difficult to do."

Hamlin, Keselowski rivalry is at its boiling point

The rivalry between Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski reached its apex in last Saturday's Nationwide Series race at Phoenix, and chances are the heated feud will boil over into this weekend's season finale at Homestead.

Hamlin and Keselowski's latest on-track altercation occurred on lap 158, when Keselowski spun Hamlin while the two were battling for a top-five position.

After the race, Keselowski claimed that Hamlin got into the back of him and pushed him up the track the lap prior to their incident. Hamlin saw things differently and promised retaliation at Homestead. When ESPN pit reporter Dave Burns asked Hamlin if NASCAR should intervene, he replied, "Nah, nah, I'll take care of him, it's no biggie. I got him. He'll learn the hard way."

NASCAR ready to fix its issues this season

Ask anyone in NASCAR about the many, many industry ailments and the answer is that everything will be just fine.

They better be right.

NASCAR opened Daytona International Speedway on Thursday for the first practice session of what's expected to be one of the most critical seasons in sport history. Faced with slumping attendance and television ratings, and economic woes that have handcuffed teams and manufacturers, NASCAR has planned a series of adjustments designed to re-energize the industry.