NASCAR at Texas: Hot News and Storylines for Old-Fashioned Texas Shootout

Night time is the right time for NASCAR racing, and one of the biggest shows for the two top series is up next at Texas Motor Speedway. The battle to fire the six-shooters in Victory Lane should be fierce.

Roush Fenway Racing has been dominant with eight victories. Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports each have three since the first race in the spring of 1997 at TMS.

Matt Kenseth is the defending winner and only driver with a top-10 average finish of 8.7 at this track. He is ranked fourth in the points tied with three other drivers, 12 points behind leader Greg Biffle.

Two drivers have swept both Texas races. Carl Edwards did it for Roush Fenway Racing in 2008, and Denny Hamlin won the pair of races at TMS with his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in 2010.

Kasey Kahne needs to win a race and dig himself out of the 31st position in the standings. Kahne is the only driver to win from the pole back in 2006. Of his 12 career wins, 10 have been on intermediate tracks.

Texas Motor Speedway is a track that plays well to the RFR drivers, but the Hendrick Motorsports drivers will all be hot on their tails, seeking that elusive 200th cup win for their boss.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is lurking second in points, six behind the leader, and is edging ever closer to that next win. He will be doing double-duty as he runs one of his limited NASCAR Nationwide races.

Kurt Busch will be in both races as he takes the wheel of the Kyle Busch Motorsports Monster Energy Nationwide Toyota from his brother, Kyle Busch, for the first time this year.

Other drivers doing double-duty include Kahne, Hamlin, Paul Menard, David Ragan, Joey Logano, Joe Nemechek and Brad Keselowski.

It's time for Danica Patrick to make a showing in the top 10 with the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300. Her best performance has been on an intermediate track, and she raced TMS with the IndyCar series.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. may be the favorite to win out of the series regulars, but Elliott Sadler, James Buescher and Austin Dillon are among those who will be ready to chase him down.

Night races are fan favorites, and the Samsung Mobile 500 at Texas is the first of four in the next six points races to be run at night. Races at Richmond, Darlington and Charlotte round out the four.

The exciting and popular non-points Sprint All-Star Race will be run at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 19.

Track president and promoter extraordinaire of TMS has picked Earnhardt to head for Victory Lane after the Samung Mobile 500.

Sparks should fly and fenders will bang as the drivers run hard on the fast, multi-groove Texas track.

It will be a shoot-out for the winner who wears the traditional cowboy hat and fires the famous six-shooters in the Winner's Circle.

Fans should be looking forward to the stretch of night races, and the show at Texas Motor Speedway is always a good one.