by Patrick Zier | May 10, 2026 |
After Hendrick’s Chase Elliott won his second race of the season (his best start ever, by the way) at Texas last week, Jeff Gordon, now vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports, was asked how many Cup cars he thought could win races on a regular basis.
He really didn’t know, he could only guess, but it was probably around 12, Gordon replied according to the NASCAR media website. That makes sense. It covers all the entries on NASCAR’s three elite teams – Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing and Penske Racing.
Others have tried to get to their level, but they have all crashed and burned with one exception – Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin’s 23XI.
For a while, many thought Trackhouse would pull it off. But the team’s promising start has hit a brick wall, with its only real strength Shane van Gisbergen’s prowess on road courses.
After Brad Keselowski left Penske to inject new life into RFK (Roush-Fenway-Keselowski), it was thought they might make it but that hasn’t worked out, either, with the team stuck in neutral at best.
And then there’s Richard Childress Racing, which once had elite status when Dale Earnhardt was its primary driver but which has become mediocre, many would say less then that, in recent years despite the presence of a top talent in Kyle Busch.
That leaves 23XI as the only possible challenger, and led by Tyler Reddick, it is moving up. It needs more depth, but it has the necessary ingredients to make the big three the big four if it can keep improving.
“It’s really hard to put a number on it,” Gordon said in terms of trying to determine the number of cars with a chance to consistently run up front. “There’s a lot of strong teams that are very competitive, and this series is competitive. These cars are very close.
“I still think the best teams rise to the top. And so if you asked me about that, I would say the number gets lower because of full-team execution. It starts to separate you, from pit stops to the fine details.”
In fact, it turns out Gordon was right about that last point. Most teams simply don’t have the quality engine builders, technicians, shock specialists, etc. to compete week in and week out with the very best.
If you use the Old Guy Sport competition index as a gauge, and it’s a better indicator than the NASCAR point standings because it measures how teams and drivers perform, not how they finish, which is the main criteria for NASCAR, then there are just five drivers, not 12, who stand out.
They are Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell and Reddick. Since 2024, they have won 37 of the 68 races, 54 percent, used to compile the OGS competition index. OGS does not count the superspeedway races (Daytona, Atlanta and Talladega ) because luck, not driver or team performance, determines the outcome in those events.
And not only do they win the majority of races, they consistently lead in OGS points. In 2024 they took five of the first six spots with Larson winning the championship, Bell second and Hamlin third. Only William Byron broke into the top six from outside the group.
In 2025 they won four of the top five positions with Hamlin first, Larson second and Blaney third. Chase Briscoe was the lone outsider. Reddick was an anomaly, finishing 12th after facing a myriad of problems.
Currently, after eight races, Hamlin is the leader with Reddick second, Larson fourth, Bell fifth and Blaney sixth. Elliott holds down the third spot.
And it doesn’t seem likely that anything will change between now and the end of the season. Once again, the ‘Fab Five’ is firmly in control.
NASCAR NOTES
Three most likely winners at Watkins Glen: 1-Shane van Gisbergen, 2-Christopher Bell, 3-Tyler Reddick. Last year’s winner at Watkins Glen: van Gisbergen. Last year’s top 5 at Watkins Glen: 1-van Gisbergen, 2-Bell, 3-Chris Buescher, 4-William Byron, 5-Chase Briscoe.
Last week’s OGS Texas picks: 1-Ryan Blaney, 2-Denny Hamlin, 3-Kyle Larson. Texas winner: Chase Elliott. OGS season record after eight races: 4-4.
OGS competition index top 10: 1-Hamlin 236 points, 2-Reddick 230, 3-Elliott 166, 4-Kyle Larson 150, 5-Blaney 144, 6-Bell 128, 7-Ty Gibbs 123, 8-Brad Keselowski 63, 9-Byron 46, Briscoe 46.
OGS competition index top 10 on road courses (tracks most similar to Watkins Glen) 1-Reddick 75 points, 2-van Gisbergen 41, 3-Bell 30, 4-Gibbs 22, 5-Michael McDowell 15, 6-Briscoe 4, 7-Ross Chastain 2, 8-Byron 1.
by Patrick Zier | May 5, 2026 |
(This is the first of a two-part series on the hurdles USF faces as it tries to get into a Power Four conference.)
Almost from the day it played its first game against Kentucky Wesleyan in 1997, there has never been much question about where South Florida wanted to go. The only question was, could it get there?
As a major state university in one of the biggest TV markets in the country and with the potential to recruit top high school talent, playing in a Power Five, now Power Four, conference seemed a reasonable goal.
But 1997, and the ensuing years that followed it, was very different than the chaotic state of affairs that exists in college sports now. Then, there were some guidelines, now, there are none.
No one can tell you, with any certainty, what college football will look like next year or the year after that, what you will need to do to compete at the highest level.
One thing is certain, though. However college football reinvents itself, money will be a major factor, maybe almost limitless amounts of money. And if that becomes the case, will college football even survive?
College athletics is gradually becoming more of a business then a sport, with the funding of revenue producing programs, primarily football and to some extent basketball, the key to preventing a total collapse.
Already, it now costs almost $40 million to field a top tier college football team, $10 million or more for basketball. And those numbers are only going to rise.
The House vs. NCAA settlement agreed on last year allows teams to pay up to $20.5 million to players, with that number expected to increase over time. And that doesn’t include NIL (name, image, likeness) money.
There are supposed to be guidelines to control NIL, but nobody pays any attention to them. So the cash going into those deals depends solely on the amount of money supporters of the various schools are willing to spend.
As a result, the richest schools are going to have the best teams, because the foundation for most college football programs is signing the best “free agents,” players in the transfer portal going from one school to another. And the way to get the best players is to pay them more than they can get anyplace else.
That has made finding new revenue streams the top priority for almost all college athletic directors. One potential source of revenue, which is now permitted by the NCAA, is selling uniform patches.
Companies and corporations pay to have their logo put on a school’s team uniform, and if it’s a big enough brand, this can bring in millions for the college or university involved.
For example, LSU has a seven-year deal with Woodside Energy that pays it at least $10 million a year. Even Group of Six teams are getting in on the action.
South Florida has hooked up with Tampa General Hospital, which has become heavily integrated with USF athletics, on a multi-year partnership to have its logo on the Bulls’ uniforms.
Financial details were not disclosed, but UNLV, another Group of Six team, signed a five-year, $11 million contract with Acesso Biologics and the Tampa General Hospital-USF arrangement is probably pretty similar.
There is another source of revenue that teams and conferences can choose to exploit, but which most have chosen to stay away from because it is highly controversial, and that’s investment from private equity firms.
These institutions can make huge sums of money available to teams and conferences for use in strengthening their athletic programs and could enable them to be more competitive, even some at the highest level.
The problem is that private equity firms expect a return on investment, and if a team of a conference is unable to pay the money back – with interest – the firms might demand a say in how the team or conference is run.
Despite this, the Big 12 recently became the first conference to accept private equity money, agreeing to a five year partnership with Redbird that provides $12.5 million up front to the conference and extends a $30 million line of credit to each of the conference’s 16 teams.
While it has not said anything publicly, the Big 12 is the target Power Four conference for USF because its television contract is the first to expire in 2031, but before the Big 12 or any other Power Four conference even thinks about expansion, the out-of-control financial morass all colleges and universities find themselves in will have to be resolved.
(Next: For USF, will bigger really be that much better?)
by Patrick Zier | Apr 30, 2026 |
Denny Hamlin is always one step ahead of the game. Maybe not physically anymore, but mentally for sure. As the Cup series heads for Texas this week, Hamlin will be looking for his second win of the season.
And if he gets it, it will be No. 62 in his career, putting him one behind ninth place Kyle Busch, who has 63. That Hamlin, who turns 46 this November, is still at or near the top of his game despite his age is remarkable.
Most drivers are just hanging on once they hit their 40s if they’re still driving at all. There are exceptions, such as Kevin Harvick, who won 29 races in his 40s, but not many.
“I mean, it’s gratifying because I saw, like, the legendary Mount Rushmore guys, I’ve raced against them. I think at least two on Mount Rushmore I got to race against and I know how good they are,” Hamlin was quoted on NASCAR’s website after winning earlier this year at Las Vegas.
“I also saw at the end of their careers, when they got my age, their performance changed for whatever reason,” Hamlin commented. He was talking about Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, both of whom raced well into their 40s and, in Johnson’s case, beyond.
Gordon’s last big season came when he was 42 and won four times. Johnson, who has turned 50, hasn’t won a race in seven years although he still competes sporadically for Legacy Motor Club, a team he partially owns.
“Harvick is kind of the one that sticks out to me,” Hamlin said. “He was still doing it at a high level at this age. I don’t know when he stopped winning,” Hamlin added. “Maybe 46-ish, 47-ish, I’m not really sure.
“That was, like, motivation to me,” Hamlin said. “Okay, it’s possible. Not everyone ages the same. But that gave me hope, that, like, I think I can still do this.”
What sets Hamlin apart is the fact that he has one of the most introspective and analytical minds in NASCAR. His ability to look at himself objectively, to discern his strengths and weaknesses as a driver, enables him to make adjustments in his driving style that keep him competitive.
At least in part, Hamlin credits advances in technology for helping him stay sharp.
“I think data and analytics probably played a role in that,” Hamlin said. “I’m a very analytical person. I’m a very structured person. What data and analytics allowed me to do was identify my weaknesses, then allowed me to shore up those weaknesses.
“Before that, you’re kind of just going by the seat of your pants. If you want to get better, you have to go over to Matt Kenseth’s garage or Tony Stewart’s garage and ask ‘How are you driving turn three?’
“When we started sharing data and stuff like that, while it was negative in some ways because my information got out, it was also a positive at some racetracks where I wasn’t very good,” Hamlin commented. “It was a double- edged sword.
“I think I really embraced it,” Hamlin continued. “Okay, here’s the tools I have to identify my weaknesses, now what am I going to do about it? How can I fix them (his weaknesses) and what do I need to work on that will give me the best results?”
Going into the race at Texas, Hamlin sits second in the Old Guy Sport competition index behind Tyler Reddick, who drives one of the three cars co-owned by Hamlin and Michael Jordan.
Reddick, off to a very hot start, has 210 points, Hamlin 193. The OGS competition index is used rather than the NASCAR system because the NASCAR system places too much emphasis on finishing races rather than competing in them.
And even though he turns 46 later this year, Hamlin will be one of the guys to beat for the championship. And while he may be almost twice the age of most of them, he might also be almost twice as good.
NASCAR NOTES
Three most likely winners at Texas: 1-Ryan Blaney, 2-Denny Hamlin, 3-Kyle Larson. Last year’s winner at Texas: Joey Logano. Top five at Texas last year: 1-Logano, 2-Ross Chastain, 3-Blaney, 4-Larson, 5-Erik Jones.
Last week’s Old Guy Sport picks: No picks last week, OGS does not count the superspeedway races (Daytona, Talladega and Atlanta) in its standings because luck, and not team performance or driver skill, is most important in determining the outcome.
OGS Kansas picks (race prior to Talladega): 1-Hamlin, 2-Tyler Reddick, 3-Chase Briscoe. Kansas winner: Reddick. OGS record after seven races: 4-3.
OGS competition index top 10: 1-Reddick 210 points, 2-Hamlin 193, 3-Larson 150, 4-Blaney 143, 5-Christopher Bell 124, 6-Ty Gibbs 123, 7-Chase Elliott 102, 8-Brad Keselowski 63, 9-William Byron 46, 10-Chase Briscoe 45.
OGS competition index top 10 at intermediate tracks (tracks most like Texas): 1-Hamlin 117, 2-Reddick 115, 3-Larson 67, 4-Bell 33, 5-Briscoe 31, 6-Carson Hocevar 21, 7-Bubba Wallace 10, Austin Cindric 10.
