Victory Lane

Motor Racing Network lead play-by-play anchor and Berlin Raceway general manager Jeff Striegle joins Davey Segal (5:05) to discuss his career in motorsports, spanning driving, ownership, broadcasting and track operation. He dives into how a trip to Berlin at an early age started the wheels in motion, why he wound up starting his driving career at 23-years-old and the reasons for him hanging up the helmet.

Once that door closed, others opened in the form of broadcasting. Before MRN came calling, Striegle implemented a a MRN-style radio broadcast at Berlin, which gave him experience and exposure to eventually land a gig with them. He recalls his memorable audition at Daytona, his first broadcast and errors he made, the nerves that he had on the mic with legends and the art form that is picking up and handing off from one announcer to another on a live race broadcast.

Striegle explains why he decided to take the GM job at Berlin, why he frankly doesn't think he should be in the job as currently constructed, why his charitable initiatives with RacingAwareness has been the most rewarding thing in his career and how he balances being on the road so much while running a race track and having a family. Plus, the two discuss their Michigan State Spartans and why it's better to root for the green and white rather than that other team in the state.

Davey discusses the All-Star Race at Texas and chaotic ending that ensued, briefly previews the Coca-Cola 600 and Papa Segal pays homage to the "Convertible King."

Camping World Truck Series rookie Dean Thompson joins Davey Segal (7:15) to discuss how his first season in NASCAR's National Series is going, how the opportunity with Niece Motorsports came about in the first place and why Carson Hocevar was a major help throughout the process.

Thompson dives into his start in racing as a kid before choosing to play hockey over motorsports. He explains why he made that choice and his years as a goalie before eventually coming back to motorsports thanks to Cole Custer inviting him to Auto Club Speedway for a race weekend. After tearing up the local racing scene in California winning multiple track championships at Irwindale Speedway, Thompson went ARCA racing. The next logical step? The Camping World Truck Series.

Thompson also gets real about the importance of enjoying racing and not making it purely a job, how he handles those thinking he got to where he is purely based off family money, how he felt racing in his first ever Truck race and more, including forgetting his hard card, his passion for fishing (but getting out-fished by his girlfriend), losing his sunglasses on the water and his goals for the remainder of the 2022 season.

Davey discusses Kurt Busch's Kansas Speedway triumph and the career arc of the future Hall of Famer, explains why the All-Star Race isn't doing it for him anymore and Papa Segal pays homage to some guy who made the No. 48 iconic.

Brad Gillie of PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio joins Davey Segal this week (5:40) to discuss how he got started in the broadcasting industry and his early passion for racing. He describes the racing scene in Texas and why despite a lack of asphalt short tracks, the vibrancy of motorsports was on display early and often.

Working at Texas Motor Speedway shortly after its grand opening, Gillie worked as the PA announcer, ran the dirt track, fire and EMS teams, among other roles. He dives into his roles and responsibilities at TMS, working for and with Eddie Gossage and when broadcasting on a more regular basis came calling in the form of PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

He explains what his role as Program and Affiliate manager at PRN entails, how preparation for race broadcasts versus talk radio differ, recalls stories from years gone by, discusses working with legendary crew chiefs Jeff Hammond and Todd Gordon, his passion for motorcycles and more.

Davey analyzes Joey Logano's move on William Byron for the win at Darlington, Formula 1's inaugural Miami Grand Prix and previews Kansas this weekend. Plus, Papa Segal pays homage to a pioneer when it comes to two-way radio communication in NASCAR.

Spire Motorsports crew chief Ryan Sparks joins Davey Segal (6:50) for a wide-ranging conversation. He details his beginning in racing, why he chose to go down the engineering path and how he wound up at Richard Childress Racing straight out of college, where he stayed for 13 years.

Sparks wasn't intimidated joining a championship organization, and honed his craft as a data acquisition engineer. He explains what his role and responsibility was, winning the Daytona 500 and Coca-Cola 600, growing with Austin Dillon through the ranks and how he eventually wound up at Go FAS Racing, in part thanks to a phone call Childress personally made recommending Sparks for the job.

Going from a small fish in a big pond to a big fish in a small pond, Sparks had to adjust. He did so again, following Corey LaJoie to Spire Motorsports prior to the start of the 2021 season. He explains what his philosophy of building Spire "brick by brick" means, gives his thoughts on the four-week suspensions to crew chiefs for loose wheels and more. Plus, how often he gets his hair cut and why he may be the only Cup Series crew chief who lives with his parents.

Davey recaps the weekend of action at Dover, shares why the energy at his home track was better than recent years, previews Darlington and Papa Segal continues to pay homage to the Petty name.

Championship crew chief Rich Lushes joins Davey Segal (7:10) to discuss his storied career in motorsports that culminated in NASCAR's ultimate prize last season with Ben Rhodes and ThorSport Racing. He chats about his early days at the track and father's ownership of a local Ohio short track, why and when he realized driving wasn't the path for him, the culture of racing in Ohio where ThorSport is based and why the team likes avoiding "the swamp" in North Carolina.

Lushes has helped multiple young drivers blossom into short track and NASCAR stars, including the likes of Landon Cassill and Erik Jones. He recalls stories of the then teenagers honing their craft in the shop and on track before moving onto bigger and better things in NASCAR.

While successful, including an ARCA championship with Frank Kimmel in 2013, Lushes had never been a crew chief at the NASCAR level until 2018. He got his chance with Myatt Snider, but was demoted the following year. He gets real about his feelings in the two years that followed and why not just getting the chance again, but winning the opening two races with Ben Rhodes in 2021 put some pep back in his step en route to winning the Camping World Truck Series championship.

Plus, why he thrives at ThorSport in Ohio rather than with a bigger team in North Carolina, his "shoey" at Phoenix following the No. 99 team's championship, when he realized his driver couldn't handle his alcohol, why their recent victory on Bristol Dirt has was the biggest of his career and reflecting on the road to get to the top of the mountain.

Papa Segal pays homage to a fourth-generation driver gone too soon, Davey discusses Ross Chastain's Talladega victory and briefly previews the Monster Mile.

Bringing up the rear for over a decade, Brock Beard (A.K.A. Lastcar) joins Davey Segal this week (5:45) to discuss the work he does and how the concept of covering the back half of the NASCAR garage began in the first place. He explains the origins of his passion for racing and spotlighting those often overlooked, how he approaches covering drivers running in the rear, the reaction from fans and industry members to his coverage and more.

Beard also details giving out his LASTCAR Awards each year, if he gets nervous presenting it to drivers and some instances of when people in the garage didn't take too kindly to his work. He explains how he presents his content to someone who is unfamiliar with the purpose behind it, the effort to avoid the satirical label, his loyal following, passion for motorsports history, deep dives on YouTube and recent project authoring the biography of the late J.D. McDuffie, including the undertaking that helped that project come to life.

Papa Segal pays homage to another Petty and the number 44, while Davey discusses the second edition of the Bristol Dirt race, Chase Briscoe's move on Tyler Reddick at the finish and why things went much better this go around.

NASCAR weatherman extraordinaire Brian Neudorff (known as @NASCAR_WXMAN on Twitter) joins Davey this week (10:25) to explain how he started providing unofficial forecasts for races on social media and how he got started in the field of meteorology in general. He discusses his passion for racing growing up in the midwest, how he provides information in an easy-to-digest form for the race fan, dealing with vitriolic (and unjustified) feedback, knowing he won't get the forecast right every single time and why he hasn't been as active with NASCAR forecasts but is changing that. Plus, is Darrell Waltrip's infamous vortex theory real?

Davey discusses the uncharacteristic racing at Martinsville this past weekend and why it was different, Ty Gibbs vs. Sam Mayer post-race and previews Bristol Dirt. Plus, Papa Segal pays homage to Richard Petty and Davey shares a story of a memorable interaction with his birthday buddy: Richard Petty.

Davey Segal welcomes on pit reporter Mike Massaro (9:10) to discuss his extensive career in motorsports broadcasting. Starting in the Northeast at Stafford Speedway, Massaro outlines why he gravitated towards the microphone rather than a steering wheel, tells some hilarious stories from the track involving legends Mike Joy and Jack Arute and how that sent him on a path to work in racing.

He also details his first time meeting Dale Earnhardt while auditioning for MRN Radio, his time at Inside NASCAR on TNN, how Allen Bestwick helped him land that job along the way, landing at ESPN to help spearhead their NASCAR coverage and the unthinkable first assignment he was put on: the 2001 Daytona 500.

Massaro explains why coverage at the event was a logistical nightmare, how they navigated it, the delicate nature covering an event like that race takes, lessons learned that year and how they were applied in 2014 while covering the Tony Stewart/Kevin Ward Jr. incident.

After leaving ESPN due to the NASCAR television rights change, Massaro landed at NBC Sports for a short period of time. He explains why he left that job for the betterment of his own mental health, but why he wishes he didn't all these years later. He also discusses the here and now: being back on pit road for MAVTV covering the ARCA Menards Series with many familiar faces, how that opportunity came up and how good it felt to put the headset back on. Plus, what is there still left for him to accomplish in broadcasting?

Davey briefly touches on Denny Hamlin's Richmond Raceway victory, provides an update on his time dealing with COVID-19 and Papa Segal pays homage to "The King Maker."

Spotter and racer extraordinaire Derek Kneeland joins Davey Segal (5:25) to discuss his career in motorsports atop the spotters stand and behind the wheel. He details his early racing career in the Northeast, why he wound up hanging up the helmet before his parents asked him to and how he stumbled into spotting to remain in racing.

Kneeland explains how he got his start on the roof, how he balances working in multiple series with multiple drivers, how he tailors spotting to his drivers and whether he does his job differently, the feeling of winning races and championships in NASCAR and more.

Plus, how he got his nickname "daddy" from Juan Pablo Montoya, how spotting has evolved over the years, not living "locally" in the Charlotte area, early days in Cup with Kyle Larson, ice fishing with Tyler Reddick, his current late model racing, whether staying behind the wheel helps him as a spotter.

Davey also touches briefly on Atlanta and COTA, the change in how racing and going for wins are approached nowadays and Papa Segal pays homage to a NASCAR Hall of Famer.

Monica Palumbo's enthusiasm, energy and positivity radiates in this wide-ranging conversation with Davey Segal(4:45), where she details her insanely busy schedule, how she balances it all and her time in motorsports as the original Miss Sprint Cup.

Palumbo's career started out in acting, and she explains why she went down that road and how she wound up working with A1 celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow and Jack Black. A former Miss North Carolina pageant winner (and Miss Congeniality, to nobody's surprise), Palumbo also worked with Sandra Bullock to help promote a movie that loosely mirrored her life. As if that wasn't enough, she also co-hosted with hit show "Live with Regis and Kelly" the legendary Regis Philbin and details how that opportunity came about.

Most know Palumbo from her work as the OG Miss Sprint Cup in the mid/late 2000s. She recalls why that position was created, how she was chosen for it, how she and Sprint went about being the liaison between drivers and fans, pressure with representing the top brand in the sport accurately, her most memorable times in Victory Lane over the years and. She also explains relationships she's cultivated over two decades remain crucial in her role now as an in-race host on the jumbotrons at the track, managing multiple voices in her head and how hosting on the big screen during races differs from her role as Miss Sprint Cup.

Plus, countless more stories from the Sprint days, how her time as MSC ended, her work with FOX Sports/SPEED channel, being at the forefront of the social media era and learning that on the fly, how starting a family has changed her life, her pizza/pug farm obsessions and more.

Davey also touches on Chase Briscoe's first career Cup Series victory at Phoenix Raceway, previews the newly reconfigured Atlanta Motor Speedway and Papa Segal pays homage to The Silver Bullet.