NASCAR on NBC podcast

NASCAR on NBC analyst Jeff Burton on sizing up the Daytona regular-season finale (1:00); putting maybe an unprecedented premium on points mattering in this race (3:30); another wrinkle: A new rules package for Daytona since February (4:30); the importance of the already heightened impact of manufacturer and teammate alliances (6:30); unpacking the COVID-19 news from Michigan (10:00); the debate over a negative test providing clearance (12:30); “this is a tough situation for all of us” (14:30); drivers wrestling with a bigger picture (16:30); the vaccination part of the equation (18:30); the inherent self-determination of the driver and racer (21:00); are we witnessing the championship contender emergence of Ryan Blaney? (24:00); if the 750 horsepower tracks will be a Penske strength in the playoffs (26:30). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

NASCAR on NBC analyst Steve Letarte on evaluating the “State Fair” of Motorsports at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the NASCAR-IndyCar crossover on the road course (1:00); making a Rolex 24 comparison (3:00); how about having an IndyCar-Cup doubleheader (4:00) … or even both series on track concurrently? (5:30); how the atmosphere compared to the Brickyard 400 (7:00); what a victory means for Kaulig Racing (8:30); and AJ Allmendinger (10:00); breaking down Briscoe v. Hamlin (12:00); Could Briscoe really have been unaware of the penalty (13:30); does the team bear responsibility for the penalty going unheard? (15:00); the way Briscoe roughed up Hamlin (16:30); Stevie’s opinion that Briscoe owes Hamlin another conversation (18:00); Is it time to start a SAFER-style project for track cleanup enhancements? (20:00); the track curbing failure (21:30); is the curbing even needed? Dale Jr. and Stevie wonder (23:00); and is there a better solution for the 90-degree curb? (24:30); other fixes to consider (26:00); the enforcement of track limits (27:30); resin at Nashville! (29:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

NASCAR and NFL Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs and team president Dave Alpern on why Joe Gibbs Racing went years without a sign out front (1:00); the impetus for Dave Alpern’s book (3:00); Joe Gibbs’ thoughts on authorship and having something to say (5:00); how Dave Alpern became tight with the Gibbs family (7:30); what Gibbs saw early in Dave Alpern (10:00); the legend of the “College Pukes” of JGR (12:00); the origins of JGR’s “buttbusters” (13:30); how being a “racer” fit the Gibbs mold (16:00); the five principles of JGR (17:30); “Everything that I’ve been in has been team” (20:00); on the culture and people-first legacy of J.D. Gibbs (22:30); the regular six-hour commute that Alpern made in his early years (25:30); how Joe Gibbs tries to lead by example and how the team maximizes those strengths (28:00); Joe Gibbs, the $100 million Fed Ex salesman (31:00); how JGR had to renegotiate its sponsorship deals after Carl Edwards’ retirement (34:30); how faith fits in as a core value at JGR (38:00); reconciling Christian principles with competing in a sport where bending the rules is a necessity (41:00); how JGR has dealt with rules transgressions and its understanding in toeing the competitive line (43:00); how difficult it was for Dave to revisit the final years with J.D. Gibbs (46:00); the pain of watching the debilitating illness that took his best friend (49:00); how Dave has gotten Coach Joe to adapt to more work-life balance (52:00); the complementary styles of Alpern, Gibbs and other JGR leadership (54:00); how JGR will manage the future as NASCAR endures some revolutionary structural changes with the Next Gen car (56:30). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

The renaissance of Kurt Busch (1:30); is Kurt a better driver now than ever in his 21st Cup season? (3:30); what Kyle Busch and Ross Chastain said about their battle (5:30); Burton’s read? “They’re both right,” and here’s why (7:15); Kurt’s hearty endorsement of Ross’ actions (9:30); And why things would be different in the playoffs (10:30); did being a big brother to Ross help Kurt beat his younger brother Kyle? (13:00); does there seem to be more of an edge to this sibling rivalry? (15:30); unpacking Kyle Busch’s rant and drivers’ displeasure about the Atlanta Motor Speedway changes for 2022 (18:00); how Burton handled his airing of grievances about safety 20 years ago (19:30); Burton’s case for removing emotions from the discussion with frustration naturally boiling over from so much happening in NASCAR (22:00); how much do the drivers need to be informed as a professional courtesy (24:30); Burton’s conversation with Marcus Smith (27:00); trying to redesign a track with a completely new car (30:00); “Pick up the phone and call Marcus. Nothing’s been graded yet” (32:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

NASCAR on NBC analyst Parker Kligerman on the eSports/iRacing eRacer.gg venture with Landon Cassill (1:00); the demand for iRacing events such as these remaining strong as the pandemic ebbs (3:00); the “euphoric moment” around motorsports and why it’s happening (4:30); the sales pitch for getting a “Drive to Survive” fan to NASCAR (6:30); drawing parallels between different series’ driver personalities (8:30); what the deal was with Lando Norris (10:30); Parker’s F1 dream nearly is realized! (12:00); life as a new minority owner of historic Lime Rock Park (14:00); what his involvement with ownership is (16:30); what crazy things does Parker have planned for being a track-owning pit reporter in the IMSA Lime Rock race? (18:30); the “Bristol Bullring” of GT sports cars (20:30); the backstory of Parker’s new Silicon Valley-style sponsorship (21:30); should more drivers and teams be DM’ing tech companies to start sponsor relationships? (24:30); a discussion about the improving economics of the truck series (27:00); how team budgets have decreased as much as 50 percent over the past four years (29:00); the midpack teams that are moving up the grid and changing the face of the Xfinity Series (33:00); the efficiencies discovered through pandemic racing that must remain permanent (37:00); how Parker and his team are benefiting this season (39:30); thoughts on Justin Marks buying Chip Ganassi Racing and what it might mean for prospective Cup drivers such as Parker if the ownership demo changes (45:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

NASCAR on NBC analyst Jeff Burton on revisiting the doubleheader concept (1:00); what can be transferred to other tracks and how? (2:30); how to keep fans’ energy up throughout the weekend (4:30); Burton’s case for bringing back more practice and qualifying (6:30); dissecting Kyle Larson’s masterful pass for the lead in Race 1 (8:45); whether it makes a difference when a teammate is involved (10:45); the code of racing in Cup (12:15); does Pocono cause more cut tires at the end of a run? (14:30); why Alex Bowman deserves more credit than just “being lucky” (15:45); a “step-up moment” for Bowman (17:45); NASCAR’s talks with Hendrick Motorsports about “addressing” their cars (19:45); NASCAR’s role in scrutinizing the fastest teams (22:15); what Kyle Busch meant about needing to use all four of his tires as good as they should (24:15); how Kyle Busch won only with fourth gear (27:00); Burton explains the most impressive part of what Kyle Busch did with only fourth gear (29:00); on the 18 becoming the best Gibbs/Toyota car (31:00); Kurt Busch’s push for the playoffs (32:15); on what’s next for Brad Keselowski and Penske (34:00); Road America preview (36:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

Chad Knaus, the vice president of competition for Hendrick Motorsports, on how much fun he’s had racing sports cars (1:00); the appeal of the cars (2:00); always on his bucket list (3:00); working with international drivers (4:30); the differences in the “cult” of IMSA vs. NASCAR (5:30); communication with multiple languages involved (7:00); Knaus’ takeaways from racing sports cars at Daytona and Sebring (9:00); explaining the drive time penalty at Sebring (11:30); on the thrash to prepare the backup tub at Sebring (13:30); working with Jimmie Johnson again (16:15); could there be more sports car endurance races in the future for Hendrick? (17:30); on how sports cars help with NextGen prep (19:30); and with larger wheels on pit stops (21:00); some of the sports cars in Knaus’ personal collection (22:00); how calling an endurance race is different and similar to calling a Cup race (23:30); Changing up the flow of Hendrick Motorsports’ NASCAR debriefs (26:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

NASCAR on NBC analyst Dale Jarrett on the NASCAR Cup Series being back in Nashville (1:00); how the surface responded to rubber and racing (2:30); the Kyle Larson in 2021 comparison to Jeff Gordon in 1998 (4:30); making the most of a second chance (6:30); how running sprint and stock cars is making Larson a better driver (8:30); applying the homework from NASCAR to racing sprint cars (11:00); how other teams might be able to pick up on what makes Larson so good … but also how leaning his secrets doesn’t matter (13:30); the long leash that Hendrick Motorsports has given Kyle Larson on running dirt races (16:00); DJ’s message to Rick Hendrick: “You’re the smartest guy I’ve ever known” (18:30); the takeaways from how Cliff Daniels and Kyle Larson managed the only nervous moment of Sunday’s race (21:00); “lessons learned” from the other races that got away (23:00); will competitive jealousy be a factor at Hendrick Motorsports (25:30); the Chase Elliott disqualification for five loose lug nuts (28:00); why did so many miss the boat on brakes? (30:30); how the track changed and what the future of resin and PJ1 might be (32:00); Pocono preview (36:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

NASCAR on NBC analysts Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte on Kyle Larson’s amazing roll of excellence (1:00); the tough decisions team face on 2021 vs. 2022 (3:30); a comparison to Hendrick in 2007 (5:00); regular season recap from Burton and Letarte through 16 races (6:00); on Kevin Harvick’s slower start (7:00); on Richard Childress Racing’s improvement (8:30); Nashville Superspeedway, the great unknown (10:30); a scouting report from Jeff Burton (11:30); what applying resin to the track means for practice (13:30); the importance of studying all the details ahead of time, especially in traffic (15:00); the concrete factor (16:30); the practice factor (18:30); memories of 2001-11 at Nashville Superspeedway (19:30); why the track reminds the analysts of Kentucky Speedway (20:30); the welcoming environment of downtown Nashville (21:30); a “new” old market for NASCAR (23:30); the unknowns of the final 10 regular-season races (25:00). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.

NASCAR on NBC analyst and NASCAR driver Parker Kligerman on how fast Kyle Larson was at Sonoma (1:00); the impressive feet of gaining 6 seconds in six laps on a leader (3:30); is it harder to drive well with a car that is so superior (5:30); what is making the Hendrick cars so good on road courses? (7:30); will the parts freeze and development restrictions make it tougher to catch Hendrick in 2021? (10:00); the homework Kyle Larson has been doing (12:15); and the Scott Speed connection of coaching (15:00); how data has finely honed driver coaching in all forms of top racing and namely IndyCar (17:30); even though some drivers don’t talk much about it (20:00); how Scott Speed makes an impact with limited recent experience (21:30); another surprising layer to the Cliff Daniels-Kyle Larson relationship that involves dirt racing (24:30); why it’s important to have a crew chief-driver relationship that at least fits some mold (27:00); Ross Chastain’s big move (29:00); talking some Formula One in Baku (32:00); what happened to Lewis Hamilton? (33:30); the interesting call by F1 to institute a NASCAR-style finish (37:30); F1’s new strategy for success (40:00); and the Americanization of F1 (42:30). Visit www.nbcsports.com/nascar and www.nbcsports.com/motors for more NASCAR and motorsports coverage from NBC Sports.