Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (November 3, 2015) – Today at the 2015 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas, NASCAR and Universal Technical Institute (NYSE: UTI) announced a 10-year partnership extension, ensuring the official partner will continue providing training for students seeking employment in the motorsports and automotive services industries.

The partnership was highlighted by the opening of UTI’s subsidiary school, NASCAR Technical Institute (NASCAR Tech) in 2002. NASCAR and UTI have partnered to offer a curriculum that has developed new generations of technicians to serve motorsports and the automotive services industries.

“UTI has created a pipeline of highly skilled automotive technicians that have been embedded throughout the NASCAR ecosystem for the past 15 years,” said Norris Scott, NASCAR vice president of partnership marketing. “Our 10-year extension underscores the mutual benefit of our partnership and sets us up for a decade of success.”   

UTI Vice President John Dodson will discuss the early renewal live on Fanschoice.TV from the Las Vegas Convention Center, where each year more than 100,000 industry executives, buyers, influencers and car enthusiasts attend the SEMA Show. Afterward, a special panel of NASCAR Tech graduates, each now gainfully employed within the motorsports industry, will share stories about the program’s impact on their professional careers.

“This long-term renewal accentuates the sustained success of our program, and perfectly aligns with our plans to celebrate UTI’s 50th anniversary this upcoming year,” said Dodson. “By offering students hands-on experience and the opportunity to build relationships with key manufacturers, our students graduate with the ideal skill set to succeed in this competitive industry.”

NASCAR Tech has become the leader in the industry for technical education, graduating thousands of students. Four out of five graduates from NASCAR Tech find employment in careers within their field of study. Team Penske has hired nearly 50 NASCAR Tech graduates, more than any other team.

NASCAR Tech alumni featured at the SEMA Show include Jennifer LaFever, who manages quality assurance at Roush Yates Racing Engines, and Van Nguyen, a development engineer for Toyota Racing Development.

The graduates will be joined on the panel by Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 42 Chevrolet for Chip Ganassi Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Prior to competing in NASCAR’s national series, Larson won the 2012 championship in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, where his Rev Racing car engines were built and maintained by NASCAR Tech students.

The No. 2 UTI / NASCAR Tech Rev Racing Toyota Camry, driven to Victory Lane at Dover International Speedway by current NASCAR K&N Pro Series East driver Collin Cabre, is on display at the NASCAR booth. The race-winning car’s engine was also a product of the NASCAR Spec Engine Program.  

Other NASCAR Activities at SEMA

•    In addition to the No. 2 Rev Racing Toyota, there are three other NASCAR vehicle attractions on display at the SEMA Show, which runs through Nov. 6: The No. 21 Motorcraft Ford Fusion driven by NASCAR driver Ryan Blaney, the No. 31 Whelen Chevrolet Corvette DP that competes in the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the No. 22 WeatherTech Porsche 911 – highlight the NASCAR area on the show floor.

•    The display also includes demonstrations of the new pit road technology used in NASCAR that has increased the accuracy, efficiency and safety of pit-road officiating.

•    NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Richard Petty is joining several current drivers from NASCAR’s national and Touring & Weekly Series and IMSA for appearances at the NASCAR display, where fans following the event from their computer, tablet or mobile device can watch driver interviews live on Fanschoice.tv.

•    Scott Atherton, president of IMSA, will discuss the importance of technology and innovation in growing the series during the Racing and Performance Forum, part of the SEMA Show’s Technology Briefing Seminars.

Tune-in to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Eliminator Round’s second race, the AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, on Sunday, Nov. 8 at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and PRN, with additional coverage on NASCAR.com.

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RELATED: Kenseth suspended for two races

Joe Gibbs Racing statement regarding today’s ruling by NASCAR

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (November 3, 2015) – Joe Gibbs Racing announces today that driver Matt Kenseth will appeal the penalty issued by NASCAR.  
 
The appeal will challenge the severity of the penalty which is believed to be inconsistent with previous penalties for similar on-track incidents. There will be no further comments from JGR personnel during the appeal process.

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Jeff Gordon earned a berth in the Championship Round of this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, and according to team owner Rick Hendrick, it couldn’t have come at a better time or taken place at a better track.
 
Gordon, 44 and closing out one of the most impressive careers in the history of NASCAR, scored his 93rd career victory Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, automatically earning a chance to race for a fifth, and final, title three weeks from now at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
 
“I won my first race (as an owner) there,” with driver Geoff Bodine, Hendrick told NASCAR.com on Tuesday. It was a victory that “kept us alive,” he said.
 
This most recent win “puts Jeff in the Chase in his final year. … He’s been such a big asset to our company and to me personally as a friend. It’s pretty darn special.”
 
Hendrick said there were several things that made Sunday’s victory in the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 more meaningful than most. Which is pretty strong when one considers that Hendrick teams have won 238 points races, including the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400, Southern 500 and Coca-Cola 600. Legendary races at legendary facilities.
 
“We were so close last year with Jeff,” Hendrick said. “We go to Texas leading the points (and) he gets taken out. We go to Phoenix, he runs second. He goes to Homestead and leads the better part of that race and you think what could have been. Because the race was actually over in Texas and they threw that damn caution. That was kind of bitter.
 
“You start this year and we didn’t run as good this year as we did a year ago. Then you go to Martinsville, a place that’s been so good to us, the 22 or so wins, and it’s been a place where we’ve had tragedy. …
 
“To see him on his ‘farewell tour,’ his last race, go to Homestead and be one of four cars that have a shot to win the championship, I think that’s a storybook (finish) all in itself, no matter how he ends up. That’s a great deal. It’s going to be special for a lot of his fans and the sport itself. I just think Martinsville was a super, unbelievable win. It’s got to go in there, probably ranks as one of the most important and special wins in our career.”
 
Gordon won championships for Hendrick in 1995, ’97-98 and ’01. He has not won a title since the Chase format was adopted in 2004, but has finished as high as second (2007).
 
As of now, he’s the only driver guaranteed to be racing for the championship. Stops at Texas, up this weekend, and Phoenix in two weeks, will trim the eight-driver field down to its final four.
 
“I think by winning early for Jeff, he won’t be as nervous at Phoenix and he won’t be as nervous at Texas and there will be a whole lot of guys around you racing awfully nervous,” Hendrick said, “… a mistake’s going to cost them.
 
“There are a lot of good guys and it’s going to be really interesting to see who the final four are going to be, when you’ve got some guys at the bottom that are on the outside looking in. Somebody’s going to be disappointed in the next two weeks.”
 
Gordon has driven for no other team owner in the Sprint Cup Series since making his debut with HMS at the end of the 1992 season. Hendrick has seen the driver thoroughly dominate the competition – he won 47 races in a five-year span between ’95 and ’99 – and he’s seen him struggle, going winless in ’08 and ’10.
 
Although Sunday’s victory was Gordon’s first of the season, Hendrick says he knows the No. 24 team has the talent and ability to win the title.
 
“Just knowing Jeff Gordon and how he can step it up when it’s time,” he said. “He’s not going to go back there and turn over people to run 15th or 11th.
 
“You haven’t seen him in a situation where it’s all the marbles for a championship. Usually you work all year long and it’s every single week. Now it’s a one-race championship really, that’s what it’s come down to. At a place where he won the race the year before last, led a lot of laps last year. Different rules, but he likes the track, just like Martinsville.”
 
Hendrick would like nothing better than to see his driver go out on top, a fitting end to an amazing career. The stakes won’t be any higher but the owner says he has no trouble keeping things in perspective.
 
“It ain’t life-threatening, that’s what I always say,” Hendrick said. “I’ve learned if you let it eat you alive, you never get better. When we lose, it motivates us to go back and work harder.
 
“We’re just going to do the best we can; we’ll go down there with the best stuff we have and try to beat the rest of them.
 
“We made it this far; we made it to the final round and right now we’re the only ones that can say that.”

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: NASCAR suspends Kenseth | Drivers react to ruling

 

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin, a teammate of Matt Kenseth, said Tuesday night on FS1’s “Race Hub” that Kenseth was upholding the “driver code” when he tangled with Joey Logano on Sunday at Martinsville Speedway.

 

The penalty of a two-race suspension — which NASCAR handed out to Kenseth on Tuesday — was therefore too harsh, Hamlin said.

“There’s an unspoken driver code,” Hamlin said. “We talk about this a lot. A lot of fans don’t understand what driver code is, (but) any race car driver that has been doing this long enough understands what driver code is. I feel like the driver code that’s been established for — since racing began, 100 years ago — that driver code is more compromised now than ever.

“NASCAR said in years past — they said this year — that they like the drivers to police themselves. Matt was policing himself and he was policing the driver code, in my opinion.”

NASCAR on Tuesday suspended Kenseth for two races following Sunday’s on-track incident in which Kenseth, multiple laps down at the time, drove Logano, leading at the time, into the fence with less than 50 laps remaining.

Joe Gibbs Racing announced it would appeal the penalty. NASCAR announced it would expedite the appeals process.

Still, the ruling didn’t sit well with the driver of the No. 11 Toyota.

 

“You know, they digest a lot,” Hamlin said of NASCAR. “And they are the parent figure within our organization and tell us what the rules are. We try to play by them every week. Sometimes those rules are gray.”

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Daniel Hemric is moving to Brad Keselowski Racing for the 2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, the team announced in its 2016 driver lineup.

Hemric will pilot the No. 19 Ford F-150 with support from partners California Clean Power and Cequent, while Tyler Reddick will shift over to the No. 29 Ford F-150 with support from Cooper Standard.

“Our main goal is to build off our momentum from 2015 and pursue a championship with two great full-time drivers,” team owner Brad Keselowski said in a team release. “Both Tyler and Daniel have shown a lot of success on the race track and have more than earned this opportunity. We have two of the best drivers in the Series running on a full-time basis and I’m really happy about that and very optimistic about our future and chance for success in 2016.”

Keselowski will look to field a third team with a variety of drivers behind the wheel, according to the release. In 2015, the organization fielded two full-time teams with Reddick piloting the No. 19 Truck and a variety of drivers including Keselowski, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney and Austin Theriault among those behind the wheel of the No. 29 Truck.

Hemric, 24, is in his first full-time season in the series and competing for Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors with NTS Motorsports. He is seventh in the standings with four top fives and 12 top 10s. Reddick, 19, is third in the point standings this year for BKR and has two wins on the season.

“When the opportunity was available with Brad Keselowski Racing and all of our great partners, it seemed like a good deal for everyone concerned,” Hemric said in a team release. “It’s an honor to team up with Brad and to have common goals when you go to the race track: win races and put yourself in contention for a championship. To be able to insert yourself on a championship contending team and a team that has a solid baseline on what they need every weekend.”

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR announced a two-race suspension for Matt Kenseth on Tuesday for his on-track actions against Joey Logano at Martinsville Speedway.

RELATED: NASCAR suspends Kenseth | Official JGR statement

The NASCAR community sounded off on the decision via Twitter.

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: NASCAR official release | Kenseth suspended for two races

 

NASCAR officials penalized Danica Patrick on Tuesday for her aggressive on-track actions with David Gilliland last weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
 
NASCAR fined Patrick $50,000 and assessed her the loss of 25 points in the Sprint Cup Series driver standings. The behavioral penalty also places Patrick on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31.

The points penalty dropped Patrick to 27th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings.
 
Gilliland’s Front Row Motorsports No. 38 Ford made contact with Patrick’s Stewart-Haas Racing No. 10 Chevrolet, sending her car into the Turn 3 wall during the later stages of Sunday’s Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 . Patrick retaliated with a similar move, twice shoving Gilliland’s car up to the Turn 3 and 4 walls, bringing out a caution period on Lap 419 of 500.
 
Patrick rammed into the back of Gilliland’s car during the yellow flag before taking her car to the garage. She retired from the race in 40th place. Gilliland finished 24th in the 43-car field.
 
The two have been at odds in the past, with tensions rising in the spring of 2013 at Kansas Speedway. Patrick issued warnings over her team radio in response to Gilliland’s hard-nosed racing. Gilliland replied through a team spokesperson, telling Patrick to “shut up and race.”

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RELATED: Kenseth wrecks Logano


Matt Kenseth‘s apparent payback of Joey Logano at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday is dominating the talk around the NASCAR world and on the latest installment of “The Dale Jr. Download” on Dirty Mo Radio, Dale Earnhardt Jr. weighed in with his take.

“There’s a lot of things going on there and man, them guys hit that wall hard,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “They all went in there hard. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I mean I’ve seen guys get wrecked but damn, he put that (expletive) in the fence. Anyhow, don’t wreck Matt. Don’t piss Matt off because that’s what you get.” 

The genesis of the friction between Kenseth and Logano goes back to what happened in the closing laps at Kansas, where Logano turned a race-leading Kenseth to take the lead on Lap 263 (of a scheduled 267, although the race did end in a green-white-checkered finish, with Logano winning). This time, Kenseth, who was multiple laps down at Martinsville after an incident with Brad Keselowski and Kurt Busch on Lap 435, appeared to intentionally send race-leader Logano into the wall on Lap 454.

RELATED: Evolution of the Kenseth-Logano feud

“Everybody’s going to be talking about that mess with the 22 (Joey Logano) and the 20 (Matt Kenseth), so here’s my opinion on it,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “I thought the 22 was pretty aggressive at Kansas but what did him in, was kind of how he handled it afterwards. He said things that would piss off anyone that just got wrecked by him. I think what he said after the fact is what bothered Matt the most.

“It’s a difficult situation to handle if you’re Joey. After you punt somebody, it’s a fine line to walk and I guess he didn’t walk that the way Matt thought he should. So that really frustrated Matt.”

Those comments from Dale Jr. about how Logano handled his Kansas move post-race echoed what Martinsville race winner Jeff Gordon told “The Dan Patrick Show” on Monday.

RELATED: Gordon says he ‘can relate’ to Kenseth

Dale Jr. also thought the earlier incident with Keselowski, a driver that Kenseth has had some past run-ins with may have contributed to his frustration.

“I think Matt also thought that maybe the 2 had something with him wrecking at Martinsville. So maybe that fueled the fire a little bit. I’m just guessing on that one. Saw some scanner interaction about Matt wondering if the 2 took him out. Actually, the 2 broke a tire rod in, that’s why they all wrecked. I think Matt at the moment thought the 2 had just ran over him or clipped him somehow.”

For his race, Dale Jr. finished fourth but some mid-race contact with Gordon, his Hendrick Motorsports teammate left him a little miffed.

“We played bumper tag with Jeff (Gordon) for a little bit. As soon as he caught me, he ran into the back of me. I let him know I didn’t like that too much. I waited for him to run into the next car he caught but he didn’t. I was kind of offended a little bit.

“Anyhow, I was happy he won the race. I respect him, but you got to race people the way you want to be raced and vice versa. They need to race you that way. I didn’t think he did there for a second.”

RELATED: In-car audio of Dale Jr. and Gordon contact

Dale Jr. also had some hard racing with spring Martinsville winner Denny Hamlin in a battle for third place and the two-time winner in 2015 used that to explain his thoughts on moving drivers around.

“He gave me a little bit of the bumper, pushed me up off of 2. (He) Got the spot, but it was cool. Good racing. I don’t mind getting moved around a little bit as long as you don’t wreck me and as long as you don’t mind me moving you around. It was all good. We had a fun day.”

And if you are wondering who Dale Jr.’s championship allegiance is to, you don’t have to.

“I’m happy they won. I’m glad for Alan (Gustafson, Gordon’s crew chief). He’s an awesome guy. I got a lot of respect for him, too. Hope he wins this championship because he deserves it. They’ve been working real hard there. Been able to see that effort up close so I’ve got a lot of respect for him and his team. Obviously, Rick (Hendrick, team owner), you want Rick to win another championship. That would definitely make the boss man happy.”

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RELATED: Photos of the incident, from the track to garage

 

Any penalties handed down to Joe Gibbs Racing driver Matt Kenseth for his actions during Sunday’s race at Martinsville Speedway would likely come today.

The sanctioning body typically doles out penalties on Tuesdays, and Kenseth may be in line for some punishment after he appeared to intentionally wreck Joey Logano in the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500. Kenseth was multiple laps down at the time while Logano was in the race lead.

NASCAR officials met with Kenseth, crew chief Jason Ratcliff and team owner Joe Gibbs following Sunday’s event.

“There’s still a lot to digest from what happened tonight,” NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer Steve O’Donnell said immediately after the race. “We’ll do that. We’ll have some additional conversations and probably come out with something, if there is anything to discuss, on Tuesday.”

 

Danica Patrick may also face a penalty for her role in a wreck with David Gilliland .

 

Stay tuned to NASCAR.com throughout the day for the latest news and coverage.