From Where I Sit: 2010 NASCAR Year in Review

Looking back on 2010, the NASCAR images that are emblazoned in my mind are those I witnessed in person.

Richard Petty and Bobby Allison running into each other before the Homestead race.

A young Dale Jr. fan telling Jimmie Johnson she'd switch drivers if he'd only sign her hat (which he promptly did with a smile).

Tony Stewart handing his Coke bottle to a little No. 14 fan after driver

The First NASCAR Day of Christmas: A Win for the Number Three

Dale Earnhardt Jr's Nationwide Series win in the No. 3 Wrangler car at Daytona was one of the brightest moments of the year.

The buildup to the race was unprecedented and the event itself was fraught with emotional weight and fan expectations.

It could easily have gone very badly.

But in the end, Dale Jr. and his cousin Tony Eury, Jr. reunited once more to bring one of the most recognizable

The Second NASCAR Day of Christmas: Two Fighting Jeffs

Sometimes the cosmic force behind NASCAR gives fans a gift that is so unexpectedly wonderful, it lives in the annals of racing lore for years.

And the fight between Jeff Gordon and Jeff Burton at Texas Motor Speedway is one of those gifts.

An unlikely pair of enemies, these two were applauded by fans for having the guts to "have at it" face to face (and not face to camera as other drivers

The Third NASCAR Day of Christmas: Three Rowdy Wins

In many ways 2010 was a banner year for Kyle Busch.

He got engaged to Samantha Sarcinella. He started his own race team, Kyle Busch Motorsports. He finished eighth in the Chase, and he won three Cup races all told.

But what iced the cake on Rowdy's eventful season was his historic performance at Bristol Motor Speedway in August.

Busch predicted he would win all three races - and he did just

The Fourth NASCAR Day of Christmas: Four for Ganassi

When Jamie McMurray returned to the Earnhardt-Ganassi fold, he brought a wave of good karma with him.

Coming off a lackluster 2009, McMurray was visibly thrilled to have a full-time ride in 2010.  And his EGR homecoming proved a boon not only to McMurray's career, but to team owner Chip Ganassi's as well.

Ol' Jamie Mac didn't just win for Ganassi - he won the biggest, most prestigious races on

The Fifth NASCAR Day of Christmas: Five in a Row

Jimmie Johnson celebrates each of his five championship wins - from 2006 to 2010.

Cale Yarborough didn't do it.

Dale Earnhardt didn't do it.

Even King Petty didn't do it.

But Jimmie Johnson, a kid from El Cajon, Calif., did.

Johnson's five consecutive Cup championships are unprecedented and unparalleled.  And with his monumental come-from-behind points win in 2010, the driver has

The Sixth NASCAR Day of Christmas: Six Weeks Suspension

Bowyer went from one to done after his car failed
inspection post-Loudon.
In NASCAR,  fortune can turn on a dime.

And no team knows that better than the No. 33 team of Clint Bowyer.

The Richard Childress Racing team went from the highest of highs (winning the first race of the Chase at Loudon) to the lowest of lows (failing inspection and getting docked 150 points).

Per the official NASCAR

The Seventh NASCAR Day of Christmas: Seventh Place for Stewart

Stewart takes a break with the Office Depot Foundation’s 2010 “Teddy B. Caring”
holiday bear. The Office Depot Foundation donates a portion of proceeds from sales
of the bear to help children and families in need around the world.
Photo Credit: MATTER/Edelman for Office Depot Racing

For the second consecutive year as a driver/owner Tony Stewart made the Chase.

Not only did he make the Chase

The Eighth NASCAR Day of Christmas: 8 NASCAR Babies

Ryan and Chrissie Newman
welcomed Brooklyn Sage
on Nov. 18, 2010.
In 2010, the Sprint Cup drivers' lot turned into Romper Room.

And it's not because Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski got into a play fight.

There was a bona fide baby boom in NASCAR that set this season apart.  At last count, a whopping seven babies were born to drivers and their wives - and there's one due at the end of this year

The Ninth NASCAR Day of Christmas: 9 Car-a-Swappin'

Uncertainty.

That's the word that best describes the state of Richard Petty Motorsports in 2010.

It was a tough year for The King and those in his employ.  They went from four cars to two.  Lost their primo driver.  And they suffered through layoffs and cutbacks in the process.

But there is one bright spot on what has lately been a dim horizon - and that's the 100-watt smile of Marcos

The Tenth NASCAR Day of Christmas: 10 Years of Harvick

Kevin Harvick celebrated his tenth year in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series in 2010.

And boy, what a year it was.

Harvick was the regular season champ and the perennial fan favorite.  When the Chase began, he kept fans' hopes high that a Richard Childress team would knock the dynastic No. 48 off its pedestal.

And, as always, Harvick kept things interesting.

He tangled with Joey Logano on track

The Boys Are Back in Town

Cup cars hit the new pavement at Daytona for the first time Wednesday.


For the first time since Kevin Harvick took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero 400 on July 3, race cars were back on track at Daytona International Speedway.

Eighteen NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers kicked off the first day of a two-day Goodyear tire test on the new racing surface in advance of the 53rd annual Daytona

The Eleventh NASCAR Day of Christmas: 11 Car-a-Spinnin'




The team works on the No. 11 car before the start
of the Ford 400 at Homestead.

In addition to "Jimmie Johnson Wins Fifth Consecutive Title," the headline following Homestead could well have been "The Mighty Denny Has Spun Out."

And though Denny's misstep made for a more dramatic race, it wasn't the cause of his failure to win the Chase crown.

His run for the championship started to

The Twelfth NASCAR Day of Christmas: 12 Chasers Chasing

.One of the best things about the 2010 season, was that the Sprint Cup Chase was the closest in Chase history. 

Twelve drivers didn't just make the Chase, they made the Chase exciting.

There were flying fists, fingers and fines.  There was high drama and low blows. And, to top it off, there was a reigning champ who came from behind to score his fifth championship in a row - a feat unparalleled

Some NASCAR Holiday Reading: These Are a Few of My Favorite Blogs

While there are still a lot of worthy NASCAR blogs out there,one of my favorites, NASCAR This Week, will go dark later this month.There's one thing I love about the NASCAR off-season, and that's having more time to catch up on what other bloggers are up to.There are the sites I read on a regular basis - and then there are those that I've just recently discovered. But what I've found across the

A NASCAR Christmas List

Now that "Team Earntarte" is a reality, Junior fans  have reason
to call Christmas merry.
Logs are crackling in the fireplace.  Lights are flickering on the tree. And marshmallows are melting their gooey goodness into my hot chocolate.

It's the perfect night for writing a Christmas list.

Or better still, the perfect night for contemplating what gifts our favorite drivers and their fans might

Johnson Gets Even More "Perfect" - As If That Were Possible

His chase for the Sprint Cup may not have been perfect, but his rebound from a points deficit was about as flawless as you can get.

So it's only right that five-time Sprint Cup champ Jimmie Johnson is one of the athletes featured in ESPN The Magazine's "The Perfect Issue," which is on newsstands now.

In the issue, Johnson joins top pros Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, Charles Woodson and Maya Moore

Smoke a Little Smoke ... All Year Long

If you're a fan of Tony Stewart, then a little Smoke is never enough.And while you may be upset that you can't see your favorite driver on TV in the off-season, the folks at Office Depot have something that will make the time between now and Daytona go by a little quicker.Introducing the 2011 Tony Stewart wall calendar, which is on sale now online and at select Office Depot stores. This pictoral

Papis Makes a Pit Stop at Daytona

Daytona International Speedway is kinda like your Grandma's house on Thanksgiving - you just never know who's going to drop in with a homemade casserole.

And although NASCAR driver Max Papis didn't have a casserole in tow, he did make a surprise visit to Daytona today to check in on the historic repaving project.

Papis, was traveling with his family back to North Carolina after spending

Johnson Has Nothing Left to Prove ... Almost

 Jimmie Johnson hoists the Sprint Cup Championship trophy
after claiming his fifth consecutive title at Homestead Miami Speedway.
Love him or hate him, Jimmie Johnson is the man.

He can win the Cup title when he dominates the Chase.  He can win the Cup title when he's trailing.

And what he doesn't do in the clutch may be even more important than what he does do.

Namely, he doesn't beat

'Twas the Night Before Homestead ...

'Twas the night before Homestead and all 'round the track,
Palm trees were swaying in the tropical black.

The drivers were tucked in their RVs with care,
in the hopes that a trophy would tomorrow be theirs.

Mike Ford in his kerchief, lay nervous in bed,
Where visions of fuel mileage danced through his head.

Denny Hamlin paced wildly 'cross his motorhome floor,
saying "I have to catch Jimmie

Score One for Johnson

Don't look now, but Jimmie Johnson has brought his "A" game to Homestead.

In one of the most important qualifying runs of the year, the defending champ threw down a dynamite lap time to cement a top 10 start - sixth to be exact.

The best part for Johnson? His fellow championship contenders didn't fare nearly as well.

He'll begin the race 22 spots ahead of his nearest title rival - Kevin