Posted on by Daytona International Speedway

RELATED: Buy tickets to Daytona, other races

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 16, 2016) — Reserved stadium tickets for the 58th annual DAYTONA 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, the first following the completion of the $400 million DAYTONA Rising redevelopment project, are sold out. Ticket holders for “The Great American Race” will enjoy 101,500 permanent and wider seats, five expanded and redesigned entrances, 40 escalators and upgraded amenities throughout the 11 football-field sized neighborhoods in the world’s first motorsports stadium.

Premium hospitality, infield admissions and Sprint FANZONE/Pre-Race access still remain for the DAYTONA 500 and fans have an opportunity to enjoy the new motorsports stadium during other Speedweeks 2016 events including the PowerShares QQQ 300, NextEra Energy Resources 250 and the Cam-Am Duel 150-mile qualifying races. Tickets are available at www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.

“We’re ecstatic to hold the first DAYTONA 500 since the completion of our $400 million DAYTONA Rising project,” said Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood III. “The demand for this historic race has been tremendous, and we look forward to waving the green flag on February 21.”

This year’s DAYTONA 500 will be attended by fans representing 44 different countries and every state in the U.S.

Posted on by Nascar

RELATED: New overtime rules | How the ‘overtime line’ works


DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The latest version of NASCAR’s green-white-checkered overtime rule was a direct result of input from the NASCAR drivers’ council.

It’s just one item among many that were discussed by the nine-member group, which formed last year at the behest of NASCAR, and put forth to the sanctioning body.

The 2016 season marks the first full year for the council, which this year consists of Dale Earnhardt Jr., six-time series champion Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart, 2015 series champ Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson.

Rather than having numerous drivers approach NASCAR to air concerns or offer suggestions, the council serves as both a clearinghouse for ideas and a single entity that can go to NASCAR officials and speak on behalf of the entire group.

“We’ve already had our first meeting this year,” Earnhardt Jr. said during Tuesday’s Media Day activities at Daytona International Speedway. “You know, the council is going to do great things. It’s starting to show its potential.”

That other drivers understand the importance of such a group is crucial to its ability to be heard, he said.

“It will be even more credible and have more potential as soon as all the drivers start to get in the discussions and add ideas,” Earnhardt Jr. said.

“The green-white-checkered rule was a collaboration between NASCAR and the drivers. As (Steve) O’Donnell said, ‘Is that the final decision? Is that the end point? Is that the perfect way to do it?’ We don’t know. But the fact that we came to that solution together was a great thing, I thought.”

O’Donnell is Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer for NASCAR.

While the council does not meet often, its members stay in touch through group texts.

“I think it’s been a fun and good experience for everyone, even if you’re not on the council,” Johnson said. “It’s created a lot of conversation between the drivers. Even if we don’t agree, that’s fine. …

“Now being on the council, the daily interaction that takes place, outside of my three other teammates, which I don’t even talk to daily, there’s much more conversation with these guys. That’s been an interesting perk to it all that I didn’t see coming.”

“Drivers are all naturally very self-motivated and sometimes what is in the best interest of a driver is not what is in the best interest of the sport,” Keselowski said, “and that becomes a very delicate line to walk.

“Having the formats that are now available thanks to NASCAR have, I think, shed some of that.”

While he isn’t a member of the council, Ryan Newman said he believes it’s been a positive move for the drivers to have a unified voice, one that can touch on any number of issues that might surface.

“I’ve listened in on a couple of meetings and read some notes,” the Richard Childress Racing driver said. “It’s a good thing to have that common voice. Like any other situation, it has to be handled the right way.

“From what I’ve seen, there is a lot of positive feedback and a lot of positive reception from both the owners as well as NASCAR in some of the things we’ve brought up. It may be something as simple as hard cards for our kids or something like that. But it’s all in respect to making it a better place for everybody here.”

Posted on by Nascar

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Today, Dale Earnhardt Jr. owns auto dealerships.

But there was a time when the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver worked in one. In the service department. Quick lubes were his specialty.

Can you hear it now? Dale Earnhardt Jr., twice a winner of the Daytona 500, 26 times a winner in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series and a two-time NASCAR XFINITY Series champion, asking if you wanted the synthetic or conventional blend?

 

And all those customers he’s served? What would they say now?

“I remember when he changed the oil in my car.”

“That boy sure could align a front end.”

Neither has happened, unfortunately. No one has come forward to fondly relive past oil changes with the Hendrick Motorsports driver.

 

And he didn’t do alignments.

“I was the quick lube guy,” NASCAR’s most popular driver for 13 years running said Tuesday during Media Day activities at Daytona International Speedway. “I got moved to a couple of different positions for a couple of months at a time. But I always kind of ended up back at the quick lube machine. That was strictly my job.”

The 41-year-old worked in the service department at his father’s dealership for “a couple of years.” The utensil drawer in the kitchen of seven-time series champion Dale Earnhardt held no silver spoons.

“I changed a lot of oil,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I had a lot of fun doing that. I think I was there for two-and-a-half years. It was a fun time but I haven’t really run across anybody that has said, ‘You used to change the oil in my car back then.’ “

Earnhardt Jr. will be bidding for a third Daytona 500 title Sunday when NASCAR begins its 2016 season in earnest. The season-opening points event is scheduled to being at 1 p.m. ET (FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR).

It seems speed has always been a factor in Earnhardt Jr.’s life. Today it’s on the track. Back in the service department, it was get ’em in and get ’em out in 29 minutes or less.

“I got put on commission for a week and I made too much money; they took me back off commission because I was doing them in eight minutes,” he said. “I was doing them pretty fast when I learned that I could make money doing it. I was going through them pretty quick.”

A little too quick, perhaps?

“One time I drove out of the lot without the filter on the car and ran all the oil out of it right through the parking lot,” he admitted. “It was hilarious.”

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Kevin Harvick‘s jackman, Mike Casto, who has been jacking for nearly 15 years, will miss at least the Daytona 500 on Feb. 21 after off-season surgery on both his shoulder and knee to repair injuries suffered while working in the pits. Stan Doolittle, backup jackman at Stewart-Haas Racing, will replace Casto.

 

Casto had left shoulder surgery to repair the rotator and AC joint Nov. 25, and right knee surgery three weeks later to fix torn meniscus. He is hopeful to return for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 in Atlanta on Feb. 28, but is targeting Las Vegas’ Kobalt 400 on March 6 as a definite return.

 

Casto suffered the shoulder injury three years ago during a pit stop in Chicago.

 

“There was a four-tire stop called and it was changed to a two-tire stop,” Casto said. “I didn’t hear the changed call and when I came around the car, the hose puller pulled the hose up in front me to try and stop me, I think. I tripped and fell into the spinning left rear tire and my head hit the rear quarter panel. I’ve been getting shots in it to [delay] the surgery.”

 

The knee injury occurred last year in Chicago, again, and Casto said he needed 50 cc of fluid drained from it each week until the end of the season.

 

When both injuries hampered him last season, Casto admited he began to think about the longevity of his career.

“I’ve always said that I will do this as long as my body lets me and I’m competitive,” Casto said. “Do injuries put questions in your head? Sure. But I never doubt my ability to always do my best and to get back and be better than I was before, irrelevant of my age. No one is ever really pain-free in this sport, but it’s all about how you manage it.”

 

Casto said he now has had five surgeries in his nearly 15-year career, all injuries suffered from blunt-force traumas.

 

For more pit crew news, visit PitTalks.com.

Posted on by Zack Albert

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — At least two NASCAR drivers competing in Sunday’s Daytona 500 have expressed interest in running the 100th Indianapolis 500 on May 29th. For one, the goal could be closer to reality than the other.

Kurt Busch and Kasey Kahne both said they’ve left the possibility open of racing at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a Memorial Day double alongside stock-car racing’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Busch attempted the feat once — in 2014 — finishing a commendable sixth in his first open-wheel race at the Brickyard. He said during Tuesday’s NASCAR Media Day at Daytona International Speedway that he should reach a decision next month.

“We’re at Daytona and we’re all focused on Daytona,” Busch said. “I think once we get through Atlanta and that NASCAR Goes West Tour, that will give a better indication on whether I’m going to run Indy this year.”

Kahne, who has never competed in IndyCar racing, said he has discussed an Indy 500 opportunity with teams, but that attempts to reach an agreement this year have fizzled so far. The 35-year-old driver did leave open the possibility of doing the double in years ahead.

“It actually was more about the team and being in the right spot and things like that,” Kahne said. “It’s definitely on my radar. It’s something that could happen in the future. It didn’t really get off the ground, but I did some talking to see what was out there.”


One driver with no interest in the Charlotte-Indianapolis double is AJ Allmendinger, who competed in the Indy 500 in 2013 and came up through the Champ Car ranks.

“No. The moment Justin Wilson passed away I said, ‘Never again,’ ” Allmendinger said, referring to his close friend, who died in an accident last year at Pocono Raceway. “The only way I would do it is if they put in a closed cockpit over the car and tested it and they thought that was a good direction in safety then I might think about doing it again.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Chase Elliott, the newly christened Coors Light “21 Means 21” Pole Award Winner for Sunday’s Daytona 500, says his parents never pushed him toward a career in NASCAR. If they had their way, perhaps the 20-year-old would be taking up a much quieter pursuit.
 
“Mom wanted me to go play golf. She said golf would be a good choice,” Elliott said during Tuesday’s NASCAR Media Day rotations at Daytona International Speedway.
 
Instead of driving the fairways, Elliott has followed the driving path of his NASCAR Hall of Famer father, Bill Elliott, who started first in four Daytona 500s. Though his father has provided help as his son has risen through the NASCAR ranks, the younger Elliott said he respected that his parents never nudged him toward stock-car racing.


RELATED: Father-son duos to win poles for the ‘Great American Race’
 
“Neither one of them have ever forced me to race. It was never that way,” Chase Elliott said. “It was always my decision. They always let me make that call. They were always just very respectful. They weren’t that soccer mom and dad out there that sometimes can be tough when you have somebody pushing you to do something. It was just never that way.
 
“If I ever went home and told my dad I didn’t want to race, there wouldn’t be any hard feelings, we would just do something else and have fun with it. It was never like that.”
 
Elliott, who said he played peewee soccer at age 5, might be a natural behind the wheel. Golf, not so much.
 
“Terrible,” Elliott said of his game. “Terrible at golf.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Ty Dillon acknowledged Tuesday that he’s had discussions about potentially taking a substitute driving role with Stewart-Haas Racing, filling in for Tony Stewart as the three-time NASCAR champion recovers from a severe back injury.

“Obviously that’s something that’s been talked about a lot,” Dillon said. “Nothing has been finalized. Unfortunately, it kind of stinks that we’re even talking about that this year.”
 
Dillon, who is locked into the Daytona 500 field with Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing‘s No. 95 entry, could take the wheel of Stewart’s No. 14 Chevrolet in the second Sprint Cup Series race of the season — at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Dillon said no contract has been signed, but that he hoped to have news to report “sooner or later.”

RELATED: Vickers fills in on No. 14 at Daytona

Negotiations have been positive, Dillon said, adding that he’s honored to have his name mentioned as Stewart’s interim replacement.
 
“For my name to be thrown out there and pretty soon and pretty quick was an honor for me, especially to fill in in such a legendary seat,” Dillon said as he made the NASCAR Media Day rounds. “It’s Tony Stewart’s ride, a guy that I looked up to as a kid and watching. He’s a dirt race hero and I’m a dirt-race guy. For Stewart-Haas Racing to have interest in me to begin with is an honor.
 
“If we get everything done and I’m in the car at Atlanta, it would be great, but I’m not going to jump the gun and say it’s a done deal. It would be an honor to me is all I will say.”

RELATED: Career highlights for Stewart

Dillon is expected to compete part-time in the Sprint Cup Series with the Bob Leavine-owned team, which will run the full schedule, fielding the No. 95 for Michael McDowell in at least 26 races. Dillon has made seven career starts in NASCAR’s top division and will run a full season in the XFINITY Series for Richard Childress Racing.
 
Stewart, scheduled to run his final season in NASCAR’s premier series in 2016, is sidelined indefinitely after suffering a burst fracture in his back in an all-terrain vehicle accident Jan. 31.

RELATED: Full coverage of Stewart’s accident
 
Regan Smith, who had filled in for Stewart in 2014 after a sprint-car accident, said Tuesday that his name wasn’t in the pool of possible replacements. Smith, who had taken on the role of Sprint Cup super-sub during his XFINITY Series tenure, returns to the Sprint Cup Series full-time this season with Tommy Baldwin Racing.
 
“I honestly didn’t give it two thoughts,” said Smith, who took over TBR’s No. 7 seat last month. “When I saw he was out, my first thought was that sucks for Tony. Going into his last year, I felt bad for Tony. Still some of the details are a little shaky, but long story short, he broke his back and you don’t want to wish that on anybody. …
 
“I’m in a full-time ride and an opportunity with a team that is growing from the ground up and has a Charter nonetheless to race every week. Tony’s deal might be five weeks, it might be 25 weeks. I don’t think anybody really knows.”


MORE: Stewart breaks his silence, answers injury questions

Posted on by Zack Albert

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Since starting to race at age 5, Justin Allgaier has held a single goal: Contend to win races. That outlook changed somewhat over the last couple seasons, when he fought to finish in the top half of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pack with a scrappy, single-car team.
 
“Not that we ran bad by any means, we still had some great finishes, some great weeks but as a competitor, but I saw a side of myself that I didn’t necessarily like,” Allgaier said Tuesday during NASCAR Media Day at Daytona International Speedway. “I wanted to be competitive again. I started doing some things in the way that I approached the race track that I didn’t like the way I was doing; just certain things that you get in a rhythm or a habit of, things that you look at and you just say, ‘I need to do something different.’ “
 
This year holds the potential to be vastly different. Faced with an uncertain future in the premier series, the 29-year-old Illinois native signed on with JR Motorsports in late October, landing one of the NASCAR XFINITY Series’ highest-profile rides.
 
The move puts Allgaier back into the series that he called a full-time home from 2009-2013, a span where he won three races and finished in the top five of the season standings three times.
 
“I think it puts me back in that position where I feel like I need to be at, personally and competitively,” Allgaier said. “Hopefully, we can go out there and be competitive on a weekly basis and go for wins and a championship. And if we can do that, I think that my personal pressures — or whatever you want to call it — that I put on myself kick in and make it even better.”
 
Allgaier first joined the Sprint Cup Series in late 2013, making his debut with car owner Harry Scott Jr., who had recently purchased the team’s assets from James Finch. But the 75-race tenure with newly formed HScott Motorsports produced just one top-10 finish and performances around the top-30 mark in the series standings.
 
The cumulative effect was a change in attitude.
 
“I wouldn’t say that you came to the race track knowing you couldn’t win, but you came to the race track knowing you had a serious uphill battle in front of you,” Allgaier said. “And not that that’s a bad thing. Sometimes when you get lax and say ‘OK, it’s going to be easy,’ and you have a fast race car and you’re going to dominate every week. That’s a bad thing, too. As a racer, we all put stressors on ourselves, and we have plateaus or milestones that we want to hit.”
 
Which is where JRM’s No. 7 Chevrolet ride comes in. Regan Smith guided the team — co-owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and managed by his sister, Kelley Earnhardt Miller — to five victories over the last three seasons, placing in the top five of the series standings each year.
 
Allgaier said he’s already become better acquainted with his new team, watching portions of the Super Bowl with Earnhardt Miller’s family and racing against her daughter, Karsyn Elledge, in go-karts.
 
“Just very family-oriented, just a different feel,” Allgaier said of the JRM vibe. “I think that’s been the coolest part for me. They have a vision, they have a goal. They want to go to the race track and be competitive, and they do it very well and they’re great people. They’re very hands-on, and I think any time you have that — an owner who’s a racer and understands what the challenges are on track — all those pieces are only extras when it comes to going to the race track on a weekly basis.”

Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 16, 2016) – As anticipation builds for the 2016 DAYTONA 500® on February 21, NASCAR® and Twitter are collaborating to enhance the #DAYTONA500 conversation with fun, original content and unique activations around racing’s biggest event.
 
Plans to promote DAYTONA 500 weekend include a new Twitter emoji, Vine and Periscope content from Daytona International Speedway and the first-ever Hashtag 500, a Twitter race among fans that will reward winners with memorabilia from Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ race (1 p.m. ET on FOX).
 
“We’ve seen tremendous growth on Twitter and this collaboration only makes it easier for fans to engage and follow the DAYTONA 500 conversation,” said Jill Gregory, NASCAR senior vice president, marketing and industry services. “This level of activation and support from Twitter is truly unprecedented, and the big winners are the NASCAR fans.”
 
To help bring DAYTONA 500 tweets to life during race week, Twitter and NASCAR have created a special, race-themed Twitter emoji. Each time fans Tweet with the hashtag #DAYTONA500, the colorful, waving flags featured in the DAYTONA 500 logo will appear in the Tweet.
 
“NASCAR has always understood the power of connecting with their fans on Vine, Periscope and Twitter,” said Danny Keens, director of North American sports partnerships, Twitter. “We are thrilled to take our relationship to the next level with one of the most innovative brands in the world ahead of #DAYTONA500.”
 
Activation on Twitter around “The Great American Race®” will also include the following:
 
• Vine & Periscope: @NASCAR will create Vines and live video via Periscope to give fans an inside look at the DAYTONA 500 experience, including the iconic, newly-reimagined motorsports stadium.

• Twitter Moments: @NASCAR will curate several moments capturing the spirit and excitement of the DAYTONA 500 festivities.

• Celebrities: Each year the DAYTONA 500 attracts some of sports and entertainment’s biggest names to Daytona Beach. @NASCAR will share content around appearances from John Cena, Florida Georgia Line and Ken Griffey Jr., who will wave the green flag to start Sunday’s race.
 
• Hashtag 500: The 500th person to tweet a custom hashtag on race day — unveiled by @NASCAR and @FOXtv via the race broadcast – in conjunction with #DAYTONA500 will win one of 10 pieces of memorabilia from the DAYTONA 500. For more information, visit NASCAR.com/hashtag500.

• Twitter Mirror: NASCAR race teams will use Twitter Mirror to bring behind-the-scenes content to life on their Twitter feeds all week long and during the DAYTONA 500.

• Infield Branding: The Twitter Bird logo, as well as @NASCAR and #DAYTONA500, will be featured as infield stencils inside Daytona International Speedway. There will also be a #DAYTONA500 structure inside fan central to remind fans how to join the conversation on Twitter.

The best and fastest way to join the NASCAR conversation and connect directly with the teams, drivers and fans during DAYTONA 500 weekend is to tweet with, and search for, #DAYTONA500.
 
NASCAR has more than 2.3 million followers on Twitter and increased follower engagement by 87 percent during the 2015 race season.

Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 16, 2016) – Mack Trucks, one of the most iconic American brands, has entered into a multi-year national sports partnership with NASCAR. The collaboration designates Mack Trucks as the “Official Hauler of NASCAR®.”

 

Each and every race week, NASCAR transports equipment and technology essential for facilitating the best racing in the world. Logging 450,000 miles a year, NASCAR has a unique travel structure that presents logistical challenges unlike any other sport. Mack, a leader in the design, engineering and production of heavy duty trucks, is providing custom-designed Mack® Pinnacle™ high-rise sleeper models that specifically meet NASCAR’s needs. All Mack trucks sold in the U.S. are made in America.

 

“The Mack Trucks brand has been a part of American culture for more than a century and is globally recognized for manufacturing a best-in-class product,” said Steve Phelps, NASCAR executive vice president and chief marketing officer. “The custom-designed Pinnacle models are masterfully engineered and we are proud that they will lead the NASCAR convoy to the track each race weekend.”

 

With its legendary Mack durability and performance, the Pinnacle model is the ideal truck to handle NASCAR’s demanding schedule. Each of the trucks is equipped with a 505-horsepower, 13-liter Mack MP8® engine, the productivity-boosting Mack mDRIVE™ automated manual transmission and Mack’s GuardDog® Connect telematics system. GuardDog Connect maximizes a truck’s uptime by proactively monitoring the truck’s performance and alerting customers to potential concerns. 

 

Mack Trucks will utilize the partnership to engage dealers and potential customers across the nation year round. Additionally, Mack Trucks joins the NASCAR Fuel for Business Council®, which brings together an exclusive group of nearly 60 Official NASCAR Partners four times per year to construct customized deals that help address specific business needs.

 

“We’re extremely excited about this partnership,” said John Walsh, Mack vice president of marketing. “Joining forces with NASCAR offers us the opportunity to use the sport to exemplify the quality and reliability we’ve proven for more than a century.”

 

NASCAR’s Mack Pinnacle models embarked on the fleet’s maiden journey to open the season at Daytona International Speedway in February. NASCAR will officially launch its 2016 season in the world’s first motorsports stadium, a world class facility with premium amenities unmatched in the industry, with the 58th annual DAYTONA 500.

 

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season will kick off at the DAYTONA 500 on Sunday, February 21 at 1 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.