Stewart-Haas Racing to switch to Ford in 2017

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Holly Cain

Stewart-Haas Racing announced Wednesday that its four-car operation will switch from Chevrolet to Ford-powered cars in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series beginning in 2017 — the news catching most of the national media and racing insiders off-guard.

Co-team owner and driver Tony Stewart considers it a coup that they were even able to keep the past six months of negotiations with Ford under wraps before Wednesday’s big announcement — only two weeks into the 2016 season.

“I don’t think the timing was a big issue, we just wanted to make sure we were in control of it,” Stewart said. “It’s very hard to keep secrets in this sport.

“In figuring things were going to get out, we wanted to be proactive in announcing this.

“We’re going to get it out there, and then we’re going to get back to business.”

Both Stewart and co-owner Gene Haas opened their remarks on a national conference call Wednesday morning by thanking Chevrolet and committing to the 2016 season driving the GM brand before sharing their optimism about the Ford future.

Stewart said he spoke with Hendrick Motorsports founder Rick Hendrick last month about the possibility of SHR switching engine makes — SHR has a technical alliance with Hendrick — and informed him of the team’s final decision before Wednesday’s announcement.

Both Stewart and Haas were thankful to Chevy, Haas calling it a “long, awesome run” with the company. Stewart stressing, “we weren’t disappointed with Chevy” and said he felt this announcement and impending move would not seriously harm the current Chevy alliance with Hendrick Motorsports.

“I don’t think Rick looks at this as a betrayal,” Haas said of Hendrick. “I think he (Hendrick) respects the decision we have made. It’s a bottom line, business decision that enhances Stewart-Haas Racing in the future and an opportunity we couldn’t pass up.”

As the SHR announcement was ongoing Wednesday morning, Chevrolet released a statement from its Vice President Performance Vehicles and Motorsports, Jim Campbell saying, “We are disappointed with Stewart-Haas Racing‘s decision, but our focus for 2016 has not changed.”

Stewart was in complete agreement about the focus. He reiterated the group’s plans to win a 2016 Cup championship with Chevy this year and spoke about the move as a difficult, much-contemplated process.

“None of this was done on a coin toss,” Stewart said. “We’ve put six months of thought into it.”

SHR fields cars for 2014 Cup champion Kevin Harvick, 2004 series champion Kurt Busch, Danica Patrick and next year Clint Bowyer will take over for the retiring Stewart behind the wheel of the No. 14.

NASCAR released the following statement after the news broke:

“Stewart-Haas Racing has been a top-tier team in our sport for many years, and we wish them well in their future endeavor with Ford Performance. Our sport is rooted in healthy competition, and NASCAR is fortunate to have three strong auto manufacturer partners all committed to the common goals of winning and growing the sport. We know that SHR and Chevrolet will work together as hard as ever this season to win races and pursue their third Sprint Cup Championship together.”

Ford executives were clearly optimistic and eager about increasing their Cup tally, which also currently includes spotlight partners such as Penske Racing and Roush-Fenway Racing, Wood Brothers Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports and Front Row Motorsports.

“We believe the addition of Stewart-Haas Racing in 2017 will give our program a major boost in terms of being in contention for both drivers’ and manufacturers’ championships every year,” said Ford’s global Director of Performance Dave Pericak, who also noted, “This is just another addition; we’re not eliminating or reducing support to other teams.”

Stewart, who is currently sidelined in his final year of Cup competition while recovering from an L1 vertebrae fracture, admitted he had been monitoring social media such as Twitter after the initial announcement was made Wednesday morning. He was curious to reaction.

“I understand some people are upset and I’ve also read comments from people who are ecstatic about it,” he said, adding, “You can’t overlook great opportunities.”

He also said after a nearly 20-year personal tenure under the Chevy banner, “It was a big decision; it’s what’s best for our company going forward.”

In the hours after the decision was made, Ford drivers also reached out via Twitter to congratulate the SHR contingent.

“Welcome to the @FordPerformance family @StewartHaasRcng. Excited to have another team join the blue ovals,” tweeted Penske Racing driver Joey Logano.

MORE: Smith analyzes SHR move

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Staff Report

Allen Boes opened the 2016 NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze Series powered by iRacing.com season with a thrilling victory at Daytona International Speedway, beating Brandon Schmidt and PJ Stergios in an abbreviated green-white-checker run to the finish.

Boes (Deadzone) found himself out front when the caution flew on Lap 94 of 100 for a crash further back in the field. The yellow allowed the leaders, who were all borderline on fuel, to conserve enough to go the distance and when the green flew on Lap 99 the battle for the win was on.

Stergios started on the outside of the front row on the restart and began to make his move down the back straightaway, using a timely push from Schmidt (Last Row Motorsports). As Boes headed to turn three Stergios inched to his outside, but worn tires combined with a hot, slick race track were about to make turn three very interesting.

Almost every single car overestimated the grip level and slid up the track. Stergios grazed the wall as he fought to stay alongside Boes then made contact with the race leader. The impact killed Stergios’ momentum, along with his chance at victory.

The contact set up Schmidt to make a charge up the inside as the leaders came off turn four to take the white flag. Schmidt drew alongside Boes at the exit of the corner and the two cars came together. The contact sent Schmidt into a slide, just as Casey Tucker spun in front of the back half of the field.

The caution flew before the leaders could take the white flag, with Boes just in front of a sliding Schmidt when the caution lights illuminated. Schmidt regained control and held onto second followed by Corey Vincent (Premiere Motorsports Group) and Timmy Hill (Aftermath Motorsports and current NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver). Stergios faded to fifth after his brush with Boes and the turn three wall.

Initially, the race looked as if it would come down to fuel mileage after a caution on Lap 51 which put many drivers into a window to go the distance without stopping again if they could save a couple laps of fuel. A handful of drivers including reigning NPAS champion Kenny Humpe (The TEAM) decided against saving fuel and pitted in hopes the rest of the field would run out before the finish.

As the laps clicked down the strategy to pit appeared to have a chance at paying off as the pack of drivers who stayed out were running so slowly in an attempt to save fuel they were in danger of being run down by the cars with plenty of gas in the tank.

Unfortunately, the late-race caution did not allow the differing strategies to play out. The drivers that pitted under green and were not involved in the crash had little hope of securing a good finish with just two laps of racing remaining.

For the first time in the history of NPAS handling was an issue at Daytona. The drivers fought with ill-handling cars all race and passing proved difficult after the tires heated up. While the racing may not have been as close in years past, the race was more in the hands of the drivers instead of luck. Handling and a looser pack also contributed to less crashes as thirty-six cars finished the race, thirty-four of which were on the lead lap when the checkers flew.

The NPAS will go without an off week between the first and second races of the season as Atlanta Motor Speedway is due up next Tuesday. Atlanta is the first 1.5-mile track of six such circuits on the schedule and the race should be a great litmus test for which teams have done their homework over the offseason. Boes will look to continue his recent hot streak on the intermediate tracks, which dates back to the NASCAR iRacing Pro Series, but Humpe and the rest of the NPAS veterans will likely be hard to beat.

Who will come out of Atlanta in good position early in the season and who will have already dug themselves a hole? Tune into iRacingLive next Tuesday at 9 pm ET to catch the action!

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Staff Report

NASCAR penalized Cole Pearn, crew chief of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota, on Wednesday for infractions during Daytona Speedweeks.

The penalty was a P2 and fell under section 12.1 in the NASCAR rulebook — actions detrimental to stock car racing — and section 20.4.7.6 — which details the proper installation of roof flaps.

Pearn was put on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31.

Truex was second to Denny Hamlin in the closest-ever finish in Daytona 500 history.

Truex didn’t take the track in time during qualifying for the Daytona 500 because the team was unable to repair a roof flap problem. So he missed his chance to make qualifying laps and started from the rear of the field.

In Pearn’s first season as Truex’s crew chief in 2015, the team advanced to the Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

No. 41 team assessed P2 in Truck Series

Among the other penalties released on Wednesday, the No. 41 Camping World Truck Series team for Ben Rhodes received a P2 for violating sections 12.1 and 20.14.3.2.4.2.d.

Rhodes’ crew chief Kevin Bellicourt was fined $2,500 and placed on NASCAR probation through Dec. 31, and the team was assessed with the loss of 10 championship owner points and 10 championship driver points.

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Official NASCAR Release

Editor’s Note: This was originally published on October 14, 2016

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 24, 2016) — Legendary engine builders, crew chiefs, owners, drivers and the most recognizable voice in motorsports. The talents, eras and levels may differ, but all share a common thread. They shaped NASCAR, and on Wednesday, they were recognized as nominees for the highest honor the sport bestows — enshrinement into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

NASCAR today announced the 20 nominees for the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s Class of 2017, as well as the five nominees for the Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR. Included among the list are five first-time nominees, all legends who made excellence a habit through their various contributions to the sport.

Among them are record-holding four-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday Jr.; the man with the most car owner wins in NASCAR national series history with 322, Jack Roush; former all-time consecutive starts leader Ricky Rudd; legendary motorsports broadcasting pioneer Ken Squier; and three-time premier series champion engine builder and three-time Daytona 500-winning crew chief Waddell Wilson. For a full list of nominees, please see below.

The nominees were selected by a nominating committee consisting of representatives from NASCAR and the NASCAR Hall of Fame, track owners from both major facilities and historic short tracks, and the media. The committee’s votes were tabulated by accounting firm Ernst & Young.

From the list of 20 NASCAR Hall of Fame nominees, five inductees will be elected by the NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel, which includes a nationwide fan vote on NASCAR.com. Voting Day for the 2017 class will be Wednesday, May 25.

Added to this year’s list of Landmark Award nominees is Janet Guthrie — the first female driver to compete in a NASCAR premier series superspeedway race. The four returning nominees for the Landmark Award are H. Clay Earles, Raymond Parks, Ralph Seagraves and Squier (more on each below). Potential Landmark Award recipients include competitors or those working in the sport as a member of a racing organization, track facility, race team, sponsor, media partner or being a general ambassador for the sport through a professional or non-professional role. Award winners remain eligible for NHOF enshrinement.

Following are the 20 nominees for induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame, listed alphabetically:

Buddy Baker, won 19 times in NASCAR’s premier (now Sprint Cup) series, including the Daytona 500 and Southern 500.

Red Byron, first NASCAR premier series champion, in 1949.

Richard Childress, 11-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series.

Ray Evernham, three-time NASCAR premier series championship crew chief.

Ray Fox, legendary engine builder, crew chief and car owner.

Rick Hendrick, 14-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series.

Ron Hornaday, four-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion.

Harry Hyde, 1970 NASCAR premier series championship crew chief.

Alan Kulwicki, 1992 NASCAR premier series champion.

Mark Martin, 96-time race winner in NASCAR national series competition.

Hershel McGriff, 1986 NASCAR west series champion.

Raymond Parks, NASCAR’s first champion car owner.

Benny Parsons, 1973 NASCAR premier series champion.

Larry Phillips, only five-time NASCAR weekly series national champion.

Jack Roush, five-time car owner champion in NASCAR’s three national series.

Ricky Rudd, won 23 times in NASCAR’s premier series, including the 1997 Brickyard 400.

Ken Squier, legendary radio and television broadcaster; inaugural winner/namesake of Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence.

Mike Stefanik, winner of record-tying nine NASCAR championships.

Waddell Wilson, won three NASCAR premier series championships as an engine builder.

Robert Yates, won NASCAR premier series championship as both an engine builder and owner.

The five nominees for the Landmark Award, listed alphabetically, are:

H. Clay Earles, founder of Martinsville Speedway.

Janet Guthrie, the first female to compete in a NASCAR premier series superspeedway race.

Raymond Parks, NASCAR’s first champion car owner.

Ralph Seagraves, formed groundbreaking Winston-NASCAR partnership as executive with R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company.

Ken Squier, legendary radio and television broadcaster; inaugural winner/namesake of Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence.

NASCAR Hall of Fame Nomination Eligibility

— Drivers who have competed in NASCAR for at least 10 years and been retired for two years are eligible for nomination to the NHOF. Previously, eligible drivers must have been retired for three years.

— In addition, drivers who have competed for a minimum of 10 years and reached their 55th birthday on or before Dec. 31 of the year prior to the nominating year are immediately eligible for the NHOF.

— Any driver who has competed for 30 or more years in NASCAR competition by Dec. 31 of the year prior to the nominating year is automatically eligible, regardless of age.

— Drivers may continue to compete after reaching any of the aforementioned milestones without compromising eligibility for nomination or induction.

— For non-drivers, individuals must have worked at least 10 years in the NASCAR industry.

— Individuals may also be considered who made significant achievements in the sport, but left the sport early due to a variety of circumstances.

The 22-person Nominating Committee:

NOMINATION COMMITTEE

NASCAR Hall of Fame: Executive Director Winston Kelley; Historian Buz McKim.

NASCAR Officials: Chairman / CEO Brian France; Vice Chairman Jim France; Vice Chairman of NASCAR Mike Helton; Chief Operating Officer Brent Dewar; Executive Vice President / Chief Racing Development Officer Steve O’Donnell; Executive Vice President / Chief Marketing Officer Steve Phelps; Senior Vice President, Competition Scott Miller; Senior Vice President, Marketing & Driver Services Jill Gregory.

Track Owners/Operators: International Speedway Corporation CEO Lesa France Kennedy; Martinsville Speedway President Clay Campbell; Texas Motor Speedway President Eddie Gossage; Atlanta Motor Speedway President Ed Clark; former Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Tony George; Dover Motorsports CEO Denis McGlynn; Pocono Raceway board of directors member Looie McNally; Bowman Gray Stadium operator Dale Pinilis; Holland Motorsports Complex operator Ron Bennett; Rockford Speedway operator Jody Deery; West Coast representative Ken Clapp.

Media: Mike Joy, FOX.

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Reid Spencer

Sunday’s Daytona 500 provided fans with the closest finish in the history of the Great American Race when winner Denny Hamlin edged runner-up Martin Truex Jr. by .010 seconds — roughly four inches on the track. But Hamlin’s impressive victory at Daytona International Speedway wasn’t the only record-setting event of the day.

On Wednesday, NASCAR released social media numbers generated from its biggest race, and Sunday’s Daytona 500 produced a litany of milestones.

The 2016 Daytona 500 set a record for most social impressions generated in one day by NASCAR’s social channels, with race-day impressions up 63 percent over last year’s Great American Race.

Engagement with NASCAR social media content — likes, comments and shares — increased threefold over the total generated during the 2015 Daytona 500.

“Social media gives fans a chance to get to know their favorite driver outside the track – their likes, dislikes and all-around personality,” JTG Daugherty Racing driver AJ Allmendinger said. “It allows fans to feel closer to their driver, and that helps push our sport forward into a new generation.”

The reasons for the spike are plenty, most notably the celebrity factor that the Daytona 500 often attracts. Singer Justin Bieber tweeted a photo of a NASCAR racing helmet to his 76 million followers. Ditto for actor Ashton Kutcher to his 17.4 million followers. Among the celebrities in attendance on Sunday, Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr., actor Gerard Butler, WWE wrestler John Cena, rapper Wyclef Jean, National League MVP Bryce Harper and comedian Gabriel Iglesias all tweeted from the grounds.

This year’s race dominated the Twitterverse. The Daytona 500, which peaked at 14.1 million television viewers tuned in for the checkered flag, generated more tweets than any other TV program on Sunday, beating second-place WWE Fastlane by 66 percent.

“The Daytona 500 is one of the biggest sporting events in the world and this year millions of fans consumed the race across television, radio, digital and social media,” said Steve Phelps, NASCAR executive vice president and chief marketing officer. “Sunday was especially a huge success for our social platforms, with race-day conversation around the Daytona 500 at an all-time high.

“By delivering original content via social channels during the race, we were able to engage with millions of passionate fans worldwide and set a single-day record for NASCAR social media impressions.”

NASCAR’s digital platform racked up 2.1 million unique visitors and 13 million page views. Fans spent a record 2.8 million minutes watching Daytona 500 content on a new race viewing product called NASCAR Drive, recently launched on NASCAR.com.

More than 23,000 unique Twitter users competed in the Hashtag 500, a “race” to be the 500th person to tweet unique hashtags, with race-used memorabilia as prizes. A tweet promoting the competition to win Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Daytona 500 firesuit generated the most NASCAR-related mentions in 60 seconds since the debut of the NASCAR Fan and Media Engagement Center, which measures such things.

A new partnership with Snapchat enabled NASCAR to reach millions of users with videos and photos uploaded as Daytona 500 content for the first Snapchat Live Story of 2016. Sunday’s race was the first installment of 2016, with several more races to follow.

Overall, the 2016 Daytona 500 saw more NASCAR-related social conversation than had previously occurred on any single day since the inception of the NASCAR Fan and Media Engagement Center. Social conversation was up 44 percent compared with last year’s race.

For Daytona 500 race week, total consumption in terms of page views per visit of NASCAR’s digital platform—NASCAR.com, mobile web and mobile apps — was up six percent over last year, making it NASCAR’s second-highest race week consumption rate of all time.

Posted on February 23, 2016 by

Sunday’s finish in the Daytona 500 didn’t just set a record for the closest finish. It also set a record for modern-day pit road infractions caused by pit crews, according to PitTalks.com data.

Each week, NASCAR notes penalties on pit road that occurred during the race, identifying if penalties were on drivers, teams or pit crews.

Sunday’s race in Daytona produced 12 penalties caused by pit crews. Since the inception of the camera system in 2015, the most penalties due to pit crews in a single race was nine (Fontana, Martinsville and Las Vegas).

Nine of the 12 pit crew penalties came from a crewman over the wall too soon, as teams seemingly seek to garner any advantage they can find during pit stops. The other three penalties were the result of an uncontrolled tire or as referred to on the infraction as outside half of the pit box tire violation/team member not in contact with the outside tires.

For more pit crew news, visit PitTalks.com.

Posted on February 23, 2016 by Staff Report

Chat with fans during the season-opening weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Posted on February 23, 2016 by Staff Report

Stewart-Haas Racing confirmed that Ty Dillon will be the interim replacement driver for Tony Stewart‘s No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Another interim driver, Brian Vickers — who stepped in for Stewart during the Daytona 500 and finished 26th — will be behind the wheel at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, according to the team.

Stewart, who is out indefinitely with a broken back suffered in an all-terrain vehicle accident Jan. 31., called in to FOX’s pre-race show for the “Great American Race” to give a health update.

MORE: Listen to Stewart’s call here

“Honestly, every day just keeps getting better and better,” Stewart said. “I’m getting stronger and getting more mobile.”

Posted on February 23, 2016 by Pat DeCola

KyleBusch

‘Rowdy’ led 19 laps and was integral to helping his teammate pick up his first Daytona 500 crown. Solid first day back at work for the champ.

Kevinharvick

Harvick was blocked by eventual Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin on the final lap, taking away any shot the 2014 champ had at a race win. Still came home with a top-five, though.

DennyHamlin

It was already starting to feel like it may be Hamlin’s year, then he went out and gave us one of the most dramatic finishes to a Daytona 500 in history. Thirty-five race to go, but things are looking good for No. 11.

MORE: Hamlin wins thrilling race at Daytona

Joeylogano

-1

No back-to-back Daytona 500 wins for Logano, but he nearly had that outside lane going to propel him to the checkered. Emphasis on "nearly."

Martintruex jr

Any questions about the manufacturer change for the No. 78 team can now be dispelled. It’s clear Truex has the full support from Toyota and — perhaps more importantly — Joe Gibbs Racing, his technical partner.

MORE: Truex Jr. comes up inches short

JimmieJohnson

-2

Johnson didn’t manage a top-10, but he reminded us why he’s a six-time champ after leading 18 laps and having one of the best saves of the afternoon.

Mattkenseth

Tough break for Kenseth, who appeared destined in the closing laps to pick up another Daytona 500 win. His first 2016 win should come sooner than later, given how strong JGR is as a whole.

MORE: Kenseth reacts to Hamlin’s last-lap move

DaleEarnhardt Jr.

-2

Arguably the driver to beat throughout Speedweeks, Junior had to say goodbye to "Amelia" after the duo wrecked toward the end of the race. But man, were they a power couple.

MORE: Junior, ‘Amelia’ go for a spin

Kurtbusch

Quietly strong during most of Daytona on-track activity, it’s looking like another solid campaign for Kurt Busch is in the works.

BradKeselowski

-2

Keselowski and teammate Joey Logano weren’t able to hook up in the draft as planned and it certainly didn’t do them any favors.

Kylelarson

We know Larson likes big, wide tracks, but it hasn’t materialized at Daytona — until Sunday. Could this be a sign that the third-year driver is ready to take the next step?

Carledwards

Edwards really, really had to battle to get back into the top five, and it worked. Many pegged the veteran driver, in his second year at JGR, to make major moves this season.

MORE: Edwards shows off torn-up race car

Kaseykahne

As fast as Junior was, as much experience as Jimmie Johnson has, and where Chase Elliott started (on the pole), it’s hard to believe Kahne was the highest-finishing Hendrick driver, but it’s true.

AustinDillon

The No. 3 car seems to always find its way into the top 10 at Daytona. Funny how that happens, isn’t it?

ChaseElliott

-2

Tough break for Elliott, who had high expectations going into his first Daytona 500, starting from the pole. He’ll bounce back.

MORE: Elliott wrecks early at Daytona

Ryannewman

Newman is a pretty excellent plate racer and nearly snuck his way into the top 10. His bread and butter needs to be the intermediate tracks if he wants to inch towards his first title, however. He’ll get a shot this weekend at Atlanta.

Jamiemcmurray

-2

The 2010 Daytona 500 winner did not come up big when the stakes mattered most, as we’ve grown accustomed to him doing.

Paulmenard

We’ll see a lot of 15th to 20th-place finishes for Menard this season. It’ll keep him on the Chase bubble all year long.

Ryanblaney

Look past the 19th-place finish. Blaney had that No. 21 Ford running near the front quite often and nearly pulled off his own Trevor Bayne-type moment.

Aricalmirola

Almirola has gone from the routine 20th-place finishes, to 18th, to 15th. If he can make top-12s stick more often, he could be onto something.