NASCAR mom Natalie Decker returns to racing after wild radio meltdown, Trump's insane pizza move & FIFA women!
We made it. Middle Friday of June. After today, we only have two more left until we're in July. You blink, and we'll be in football season before you know it.
And I mean football. Not whatever game is currently being played in the US of A right now.
Relax. It's a joke. I'm a company man, which means for the next month, I love soccer! If FOX loves it, I love it. I hope the ratings are great, because that would go a long way in AI not replacing me ... at least for a while.
So, cheers to the FIFA World Cup! USA plays tonight. It's a great day to win a ballgame, as my old little league coach used to say.
Welcome to a Friday Nightcaps — the one where NASCAR mom Natalie Decker revs engines again for the first time since her Hall of Fame radio tirade last month.
What else? I've got the best of the rest from a big week of #content, some reader mail that I'd like to address, more rib talk, and AJ McCarron gives us all a pep talk heading into the weekend.
Sound good? Good!
Grab you a peanut butter cookie for National Peanut Butter Cookie Day, and settle in for a Friday 'Cap!
First of all, a warm, soft peanut butter cookie (preferably from Publix) is elite. Not the best, but it's on the Mount Rushmore.
Now that that's out of the way ... we're gonna switch things up a bit and start class with some mail.
From Sherri U:
Dude,
Help us middle agers and seniors out a little bit. Your story today was effectively a stream of consciousness rant with a bunch of screenshots. I was interested in the DCC that was fired, but no clue what's up based on what you wrote and a bunch of screenshots.
Check out some of the comments. See posts at top and bottom of this screenshot, which was within first hundred posts.
You're posting on Fox, not X, Instagram, Reddit etc. Please upgrade your writing style for your Fox readership.
Some of us choose to stay away from X, Instagram and the like, so posting a bunch of screenshots with links to additional story info on social media apps is useless.
Thanks, Sherri!
So, OutKick and Fox effectively became one unit about six weeks ago. It's been a bit bumpy, as these things usually are. While we've always been under one roof, the two sites are ... different. That's just the honest truth.
OutKick is a little more loosey-goosey. A little (lot) more opinionated. This column, in particular, has been a culture shock to a lot of folks who haven't been here for the past three years.
Nightcaps is a daily column we started back in 2023. In a nutshell, it's a daily rundown of the most viral moments you may have missed while at work. If you're getting on the subway, or the bus, or reading at red lights in your car on the way home, it's a way for you to catch up on the newsy things from the day you missed.
It's a bunch of quick-hitters, mainly from social media. It's fast, it's fun, it's interactive. I use a lot of embeds from Twitter and Instagram. I realize they don't work for some folks. I realize some folks may not be visual learners like I am. I realize some folks don't have access to them for whatever reason.
Going forward, now that we have a new audience, I'm going to do my best to work around this. I'll try to explain what I'm showing you via Twitter or Instagram a little better. It won't be perfect, and it'll almost certainly be ever-changing, but we are trying to workshop some things to make the transition a little smoother.
There's no real point to this explanation beyond me just being open and honest with everyone — including the longtime readers and the newcomers. I'm nothing if not open and honest. It's sort of the point of this class.
OK, we're nearly 700 words in and it's a summer Friday. Let's get this show on the road so we can all mail it in and get the weekend going.
NASCAR's Natalie Decker is BACK behind the wheel this weekend at Pocono for the first time since her radio meltdown in last month's truck race at Dover.
And while that was certainly embarrassing, we are still big Natalie Decker fans around here:
Welcome back, Natalie!
For those who can't see those embeds, or have no idea how to open them, some background ...
That, of course, isn't the whole story. Not even close. The in-car rant that followed was jarring to hear.
"You guys, I'm trying to hold my s--- together, but I don't want to keep doing this," she said after being told to come down pit road for a pass-through penalty. "There’s just so many s----- things that I could say right now, and I’m just trying to keep it together, about the f---ing director of the series.
"I feel like a f---ing failure ... There’s so many things I want to say and I’m probably going to get f---ing suspended, you have no idea."
Seems like a little time away has Natalie refreshed and ready to give the whole racing thing another go. Like any good American, I will be monitoring the situation this weekend at Pocono.
OK, let's get to the best internet #content from a big week. We'll start off with more Natalie, because it's a Friday after all:
Great week. For early June, you guys nailed it. Some consider this the down part of the year. Hogwash! And hey! The College World Series starts this weekend.
Give me that over FIFA any day of the week!
OK, let's rapid-fire this weird Friday class into a big Friday night. First up? Anyone see this Royals pitcher take one off the dome earlier this week?
Terrifying:
Goodness gracious. We see this happen about 2-3 times a season, and it's a hold-your-breath moment every time. I've NEVER seen a welt pop up that quickly. That has to be some sort of record.
Brandon Nimmo and Lugo were teammates with the Mets for years, by the way, which explains the immediate concern. He damn near ran over to him without even calling time. Lordy.
You'll be shocked to know that Lugo will be going through concussion protocol before his next start. Probably wise.
Next? A few more emails on this week's raging rib debate that I accidentally started when I told you I didn't pull the membrane off my rack (hey now!) earlier this week.
From Carole C:
NO…clock ticking or not…the silver skin HAS GOT TO GO….period! Sorry, you lose that one.
And, from Dom Z. in Scottsdale:
It’s a sham. Leave the skin ON.
I used to pull them, but I spent a good four years in KC, went to a lot of different BBQ Joints, and learned something. There is an old BBQ Joint called the Woodyard. I was watching and talking to their old Pitmaster put his ribs on. Their pit was literally right out front. Handmade brick one they built when they decided to BBQ their own meat and open a restaurant. He was not pulling the skins. So I asked, "What’s up?" He just smiled at me and said, "Now why would I ever do that?"
Thanks, you two! Obviously, I agree with ... Dom Z!
To be fair, I've done it both ways. I understand both sides of the argument. I will say this, and I omitted this from the column earlier this week ...
When I bought the ribs, I asked the butcher if the membrane was still on. He told me yes, he never pulls the membrane from St. Louis ribs because it's too hard and doesn't make a difference.
Take that for whatever it's worth.
OK, that's it for today. Good class, good week. Here's former Alabama QB AJ McCarron absolutely ripping his UFL team to SHREDS to get you fired up for a big weekend.
See you Monday.
OutKick Nightcaps is a daily column set to run Monday through Friday at 4 p.m. (roughly, we’re not robots).
Ever taken 107 off the face? Email me at Zach.Dean@OutKick.com.