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2000 Sprint Cup Series champion will compete in additional races for Phoenix Racing

Former NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Bobby Labonte will compete with Phoenix Racing in the 2014 Daytona 500, according to a news release from the team.
 
Labonte, the 2000 Cup champ, is without a full-time ride in the series for the upcoming season. He spent the last three seasons with JTG Daugherty Racing, but was replaced for a handful of races late in the year.
 
"I am grateful and excited to return to Daytona with Phoenix Racing," Labonte said. "The Daytona 500 is obviously a special event for everyone involved in the sport. I can’t wait to get back in the car for my 22nd Daytona 500."

The 49-year-old has 21 career Cup wins, but none since 2003. He finished 34th in points this past season with 28 starts.
 
Former Phoenix Racing owner James Finch, chairman emeritus of the single-car organization, will be listed as the car owner. Businessman Harry Scott, who also owns a stake in Turner Scott Motorsports, purchased the team in 2013.
 
"James continues to be a valuable part of our team and when he came up with the idea of running Bobby in a second car, I jumped at the opportunity to bring him back into the fold," Scott said. "Bobby is a veteran driver that can also provide valuable insight and leadership for Phoenix Racing."
 
In 21 previous starts in the 500, Labonte has two top-five finishes, including a career best second-place finish in 1998.
 
Phoenix Racing, which debuted in 1990 with former driver Jeff Purvis, competed in only select events through 2010. It competed full-time in 2011 and ’12 and made 26 starts this past season with the No. 51 Chevrolet.
 
The organization sports one career win, 2012 Cup champ Brad Keselowski‘s victory at Talladega Superspeedway in 2009.
 
According to the release, Labonte will compete in additional races for the team in ’14. Those races, as well as sponsorship, the car number and crew chief, will be announced at a later date.
 
No driver has been officially announced for the team’s No. 51 entry, although Steve Addington, former crew chief for Tony Stewart, has been named crew chief for that team.

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New Sprint Cup Series rules package will debut at Phoenix

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams were given the 2014 rules package on Tuesday, less than a week after the final on-track test at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
 
The package was developed after extensive on-track testing with teams as well as in-house analysis at the NASCAR Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C. The changes are expected to enhance competition on the series’ 1.5-mile and 2-mile venues.

The changes for 2014 include:

— Statically set car at race ride height — eliminate pre- and post-race front height rules and inspection.

— The use of a front splitter with a square leading edge.

— Skirts at 4-inch minimum ground clearance on both the left and right sides.

— Rear fascia trimmed 1.375 inches higher in current scallop region.

— The use of an 8-inch high rear spoiler.

— The use of a 43-inch wide by 13-inch long radiator pan.

Gene Stefanyshyn, who joined NASCAR as vice president, innovation and racing development in April 2013, headed up the project, which comes approximately one year after the introduction of the series’ Generation-6 car.

"The dials or the things we could do for the ’14 race season were somewhat limited by timing," Stefanyshyn said. "So it shouldn’t be construed that this is the final solution. The amount of flexibility we had given timing was not as great as we have, say, working on the ’15 season (when) we’ve got a whole year ahead of us.
 
"This is really the first installment in a journey towards a continual improvement process in regards to our race product."
 
Last week’s test, which included mini "races" of 40 laps or less, was the second such on-track effort, but the first with a majority of the teams (approximately 30) participating.

All cars featured the same base configurations prior to the start of the test, and that configuration will be implemented into the new rules package.
 
The use of a roof strip, as well as tapered spaces that decrease horsepower, were also tested, but are not a part of the rules package.

For now, increases in speed, some of which are part of the evolution of the Gen-6 car and some that are the result of the new package, will likely be dealt with through gear changes.
 
"The RPMs have been creeping up," Stefanyshyn said. "So we’ll take this opportunity given with the package we introduce here to bring the RPM ranges back down. That will attenuate some of the speed we’re dealing with."
 
The tapered spacer could be implemented later, possibly in time for the 2015 season.
 
"This is definitely something that we are entertaining for ’15, but we want to take a more holistic approach to when we solve it," he said. "We’d like to be able to do perhaps three things at once, and … come up with a more robust solution that can serve us better in the longer run."
 
Drivers and crew chiefs debriefed with NASCAR officials after each "race" to provide input and feedback.
 
"We all have different theories," Penske Racing driver Joey Logano said before the test. “Some of us want a smaller spoiler, some of us want a bigger spoiler, some want a tapered spacer, some want more horsepower. We all have our own arguments … and that’s fine. … "
 
"We’ve got to make sure we do this right — NASCAR as a team, not Penske Racing or Joe Gibbs Racing or Roush Fenway or whatever. We’ve got to be NASCAR as a team … go out there and make sure we put on the best race for our fans, keep our sport growing and getting stronger. I’m glad to be a part of that."

Stefanyshyn said while NASCAR has plenty of data at its disposal, the reaction of the fans would be the determining factor used to gauge the success of the changes.
 
"We’ll view it as our customer or a fan will view it," he said. "We’ll view it as are the cars closer together, and are they getting in a position to challenge each other and pass more often?
 
"So we’ll view it through the eyes of the fan."

The new rules package will be used in competition for the first time when the series travels to Phoenix International Raceway for the second stop of the 2014 Sprint Cup Series season. The new rules package will not be utilized for restrictor-plate races, including the Daytona 500 on Feb. 23.

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Biffle looks at 2014 as an opportunity to reset, regroup and come back fighting

This is the fifth in a series of 2013 Sprint Cup Series driver recaps that will be featured on NASCAR.com

Although he won one race and qualified for this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, the 2013 NASCAR season was definitely an “off” year for Roush Fenway Racing driver Greg Biffle.

Paired with crew chief Matt Puccia for just the second full season, the team fought often to find speed, and struggled for much of the season to find consistency.

Biffle’s return to the winner’s circle at Michigan International Speedway in June proved memorable — it was the 1,000th NASCAR national series win for Ford Motor Co. — but overall it was one of only a few highlights for the veteran driver and the No. 16 RFR team.

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SEASON IN REVIEW

"I would say we were average (in 2013)," Biffle said. "We made the Chase which was a difficult test. It’s not easy, there’s a bunch of guys that (didn’t). 

"Another benchmark is winning races and we were able to win this year. But overall we weren’t consistent enough, we didn’t have enough speed, and we weren’t competitive enough."

Biffle, a former Camping World Truck Series and Nationwide Series champion, won at least one race for the ninth time, but his top-five production fell off dramatically with only four through the season’s 36 points races. His top-10 finishes were also well off his 2012 numbers with eight fewer. 

While he did qualify for the Chase, having a shot at the championship going into the final 10 races didn’t deliver the spark that the team had hoped. By season’s end, he was ninth in points, his second worst overall finish since 2008.

"It’s frustrating; you want to throw the helmet down and kick the door," Biffle said. "I want to finish in the top five, I want to be competing for the win, I want to lead laps. I don’t want to be fighting tooth and nail for 13th or 15th. And that’s frustrating. 

"But you’ve got to keep your head up; you’ve got to work hard and come back the next week and say ‘what can we do to be better?’"

The 44-year-old wasn’t out front often, but there were opportunities and solid finishes from time to time. A week before his Michigan victory, Biffle finished second at Pocono; he was fourth earlier in the season at Texas and third during the fall Chase stop at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. 

Making the Chase was a statement, but so to was the team’s inability to contend once the 10-race playoff got under way. 

Biffle, one of three Cup drivers in the RFR stable, said he hopes the organization works more closely with Penske Racing, which also fields Fords, in the coming year. The 2012 season was the first time the two teams had been working with the same manufacturer (Penske made the switch from Dodge to Ford prior to the start of ’13). And while Penske driver and defending champion Brad Keselowski failed to make the Chase, teammate Joey Logano carved out an eighth-place points finish. 

"I hope we do; it looks like they are just a little bit better than we are," Biffle said. "They’ve got a little more consistent speed every week."

The off-season always provides the opportunity for a fresh start, and this year’s will be no different. With a new rules package ahead for the 1.5-mile tracks, Biffle said it could provide an opportunity to rediscover a strong intermediate-track program, something for which RFR had been noted in the past. 

"I’m looking as this as an opportunity to get on a level playing field," he said. "It’s been well documented that we as an organization were probably a little behind this year. We didn’t get our fair share of top-fives and 10s and wins this year that we probably should have, certainly not like we were in 2012. 

"So I’m hoping this new rules package gives us something of a reset, a chance to get back and try new things and maybe we get to the punch a little quicker than the competition does."

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Busch led single-car team of Furniture Row Racing into the Chase

This is the fourth in a series of 2013 Sprint Cup Series driver recaps that will be featured on NASCAR.com

Kurt Busch wanted a 15th-place finish in the final Sprint Cup Series points. Instead, the former champion got what he called the second-biggest accomplishment of his career at NASCAR’s highest level.

Busch’s full season stint with Furniture Row Racing was a boon to both the driver and the Denver-based organization, returning the 2004 champ to the ranks of the elite while elevating the No. 78 team into playoff position for the first time. Busch didn’t win a race in 2013, but he came awfully close several times, and in the process helped Furniture Row become the first single-car team ever to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

"We achieved our goal," said Busch, who placed 10th in the final standings. "My goal was to go from 25th to 15th in points. Once we got to the summer months, the Chase was right there. We knocked the door down, we got in. It was an amazing season."

FULL SERIES COVERAGE

SEASON IN REVIEW

In more ways than one. For Busch it was the final step in an odyssey that began with his split from Penske Racing following the 2011 campaign, and saw him race with sponsor-strapped Phoenix Racing for most of 2012. At the tail end of that season he moved to the No. 78 team, which had won one race with Regan Smith at Darlington in 2011, but had never sniffed the Chase — Smith was in 23rd, the highest position ever for a Furniture Row driver, before he was replaced.

But as he showed in flashes with Phoenix — including a miracle third-place run at Sonoma — Busch is clearly a driver capable of lifting a team to new heights. And he did just that with Furniture Row, winning the pole at Darlington, starting on the front row nine times, and standing as high as fifth in points after the opening race of the Chase at Chicagoland.

"I think it was our Darlington pole that showed we’ve got the raw speed and our numbers are going to stack up in qualifying, and they did after that," he said. "But then it was the Month of May in Charlotte. The All-Star Race we were leading, just had a bad pit stop at the end and came home fifth. Coke 600 we were leading, had a battery cable issue, came home third. When you’re upset about top-five finishes, that’s when you know you’ve made it."

Indeed, those two weeks at Charlotte — a pair of races Busch could have easily swept if not for a slow pit stop and then a battery failure — were when everyone realized the No. 78 team was for real. But Busch could only do so much, evident in the pit-stop issues that plagued Furniture Row for much of the year, leading to an over-the-wall shuffle early in the Chase and likely preventing the No. 78 from reaching Victory Lane. And the car’s balance went awry after a second-place finish in the fall race at Kansas, leading to a final points position that wasn’t indicative of how the team ran most of the year.

"It’s easy to Monday morning quarterback," Busch said. "… Sometimes those things happen."

If there was one moment that encapsulated Busch’s short stint with Furniture Row Racing, it was a dramatic restart at Atlanta where he vaulted from 11th to second in a single lap, jetting in and around cars to net a fourth-place finish he had to have to keep the No. 78 team in the Chase hunt. The next week, he made it in with no problem.

In the end, everyone won — Furniture Row improved enough to acquire the services of another playoff-caliber driver in Martin Truex Jr. for 2014, and Busch is set to race a fourth car for Stewart-Haas Racing, having been handpicked by co-owner Gene Haas.

"His mentality matches mine. He doesn’t care about the rough edges I have," said Busch, who will have Haas’ machine-equipment company as primary sponsor on his No. 41 car. "… I still have a lot to learn, a lot to prove, a lot to do. I have a championship from years ago, and it’s time to put it to good use with Stewart-Haas Racing."

But not before taking one wistful and thankful look back at his single season with Furniture Row Racing, which for both for driver and team will likely be viewed in retrospect as a bridge to better things. No, Busch didn’t win a race in 2013. But thanks in large part to Barney Visser’s race team from Colorado, he did something much bigger — once again ascended to the level where everyone knows he should be.

"It’s been a long journey, and it’s great to finally grab that cherry on top and eat it," he said. "But I know that even back on even ground, so to speak, there’s still so much more ahead of me in my career. I look at 14 years as being a nice, solid number. There should be another 10 on the other side of it."

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Posted on by NASCAR Official Release

Nationwide champ and his team visit the Nationwide Headquarters for a full day of activites

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Austin Dillon, the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series driver champion, and his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Nationwide team – led by crew chief Danny Stockman, were honored today with a full day – and evening – of activities, hosted by series sponsor Nationwide Insurance in its headquarters’ hometown of Columbus, Ohio.

This is the sixth consecutive year Nationwide Insurance has welcomed the series driver champion to its home turf, and the second time an RCR driver has been honored (Clint Bowyer, 2008). Following the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Awards on Nov. 18, Monday’s schedule allows Dillon’s championship celebration to continue a bit longer.

"It has been a big week," said Dillon, who last week announced that he will drive the No. 3 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2014. "I’m thankful for Nationwide Insurance and everybody that has made it possible for us to race in such a great series. I’m looking forward to being at Champion’s Day in Columbus. It is an honor and a privilege to represent Nationwide as their champion today. I am excited to celebrate this championship with my team."

The day began with a visit to Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Then Dillon and the No. 3 team received a tour of Nationwide’s corporate headquarters, participated in an exclusive Q&A session and signed autographs for Nationwide associates on site. 

Following lunch, the driver champion team headed to The Ohio State University for a tour of the famed Woody Hayes Athletic Complex, home of the Ohio State Buckeyes’ football practice facility. 

Late this afternoon and early evening, the team travels to Nationwide Arena, home of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League, for a tour of the facility and a game of broomball on the Jackets’ home ice. 

A unique experience follows as team members will be once again be introduced to a Columbus, Ohio original: Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream. Jeni’s was a garage favorite earlier this year at the inaugural Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio. 

The day concludes with a short trip back to Nationwide Arena for "NASCAR Night" where the team will enjoy the 7 p.m. ET matchup between the Blue Jackets and the Winnipeg Jets and be recognized at the game.

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Posted on by NASCAR Official Release

Will continue to oversee green innovation in elevated role

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.– NASCAR today announced the promotion of Dr. Michael Lynch to vice president, green innovation. The elevation of his role from managing director to VP reaffirms NASCAR’s commitment to aggressively continue to grow the sport’s green platform. As he has done over the past five years at NASCAR, Lynch will champion the adoption and implementation of sustainability practices across the sport.

Lynch joined NASCAR in 2008, shortly after NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France declared the sport would be venturing into an endeavor to reduce its environmental impact. After joining the company, Lynch launched NASCAR Green, which has since grown into the largest sustainability program in all of sports and one of the most powerful and impactful green programs in the public and private sectors.

"We knew that going green was not only the right thing to do, it was also good for business," said France. "In the process of creating programs and implementing changes to help make our sport more environmentally friendly, Mike has also helped generate commercial opportunities for the entire industry through partnerships with more than two dozen organizations interested in using NASCAR as a platform to uniquely validate their technologies."

Once coined ‘the dirtiest sport in America,’ NASCAR now boasts the three largest green programs in sports: renewable energy, recycling and clean air. As a result, 75 percent of NASCAR fans now say they ‘believe the sport cares for the environment’ and are ‘aware of NASCAR Green,’ according to Custom Environment-Related Tracker commissioned by NASCAR and conducted by Toluna in July 2013.

"NASCAR is a widely embraced and trusted form of community engagement to tens of millions of Americans," said Allen Hershkowitz, senior scientist, Natural Resources Defense Council. "NASCAR Green, through Dr. Lynch’s leadership, offers the encouraging prospect that millions of sports fans and businesses will be positively influenced about responsible environmental action for years to come."

One of Lynch’s key accomplishments was helping NASCAR develop and launch the world’s most visible biofuels program through the introduction of a 15 percent ethanol blended fuel, made from American-grown corn. In February 2011, Sunoco Green E15 made its competition debut and subsequently reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent while increasing race car horsepower. NASCAR has since put more than five million tough competition miles on the racing fuel.

Since joining the company, NASCAR has recycled more than 20 million bottles and cans; 600,000 race tires; and enough oil to power the Empire State Building for one year. It has also planted enough trees (188,000) to completely offset carbon emissions for all NASCAR national series racing for the past five years of NASCAR Green, plus the next 18 years. Additionally, NASCAR’s Daytona Beach, Fla., headquarters is LEED Gold certified, while NASCAR Plaza in Charlotte, N.C., has its LEED Silver certification. These bold initiatives also inspired change throughout the industry.

NASCAR has the largest renewable energy stadium project in the world – the solar farm at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway – that powers more than 250 homes in the region. The sport also features teams such as Roush Fenway Racing which recycle as much as 96 percent of each race car.

These enhancements are among many that now make the sport a more attractive partner to companies in the green and technology sectors. Since 2010, the number of green companies investing in NASCAR has grown at a 90 percent rate year-over-year. To date more than 150 green brands have entered the sport as sponsors of our industry with race teams and venues.

"The backbone of NASCAR Green has been the mass adoption and acceptance of sustainable practices by our green-conscious fans; the steadfast involvement of the industry; and the strong and unwavering support from a range of Official NASCAR Partners," said Lynch. "Thanks to these key stakeholders, we’ve been able to make substantive changes to our operations and business practices and expand the reach and scope of the platform."

Prior to joining NASCAR, Lynch served as an executive at Tyco International and Boston Consulting Group. He was a tenured professor at Purdue University, with his lab funded by the National Institutes of Health. Lynch graduated the MBA program at the Booth School of Business at University of Chicago with honors in Finance and Strategic Management. Mike also holds a Bachelor of Music degree in studio music and jazz from the University of Miami, where he played tenor saxophone and worked extensively as a professional musician. He has several patents in green technology and has been published extensively in peer-reviewed academic journals.

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21-year-old will pilot the No. 31 in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

Ben Kennedy will drive his first full-time campaign in a NASCAR national series in 2014 for Turner Scott Motorsports. Kennedy will drive the No. 31 Chevrolet Silverado in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

Kennedy, 21, is the great grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr. and the son of Lesa France Kennedy, the CEO of International Speedway Corporation and a Vice Chairperson for NASCAR.

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"I’m really excited about the opportunity to be in Turner Scott Motorsports’ No. 31 truck for 2014 and to be able to work alongside Michael Shelton and a very talented crew," said Kennedy. "It will be a great year and I hope to really learn a lot in the series and compete for wins and Rookie of the Year. It’s going to be a blast to work with such great people; I can’t thank everyone I’ve worked with in the past enough for getting me to this point in my career. A big ‘thank you’ to all my fans for always sticking behind me."

Kennedy ran in five Truck Series events in 2013, posting a fourth-place finish at Martinsville Speedway in October. Kennedy ran for team co-owner Steve Turner in three of those five races, including Martinsville.

Kennedy made his touring series debut in 2010 in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and raced full-time in the series from 2011 to 2013. The Florida native enjoyed his best season on the K&N Pro Series East circuit in 2013, scoring two victories, nine top-10 finishes and a fourth-place finish in the point standings. He was also crowned as the series’ Most Popular Driver and also was selected for the NASCAR Next program in 2013.

Turner Scott Motorsports earned the 2012 Camping World Truck Series championship with James Buescher piloting the No. 31 truck. Buescher is moving up to the Nationwide Series with RAB Racing. His departure from Turner Scott Motorsports was announced on Friday.

"We are very excited to have Ben running full time for us in the Truck Series," said team co-owner Harry Scott Jr. "I believe we all have seen his potential over the last few years and we’re looking forward to seeing all that he can accomplish while running for us full time. He’s an impressive young man who is not only a talented racer, but also very smart and very driven. Turner Scott Motorsports has always been about developing talent for the future of our sport, and Ben is very representative of that. I know that everyone in our organization, especially the No. 31 crew, is looking forward to working with Ben and having a very successful year."

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Posted on by NASCAR Wire Service

Kwasniewski’s historic achievement among memorable moments

The common thread throughout Saturday’s NASCAR Night of Champion Touring Awards was of a dream realized.

From Lakeport, Calif., to San Sebastián, Spain, seven NASCAR drivers collected their series championship trophies and received their coveted championship rings from NASCAR President Mike Helton.

"To win this championship, to accomplish this goal, it means the world to me."

— Ryan Preece, 22, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion

"To win this championship, to accomplish this goal, it means the world to me," said 22-year-old Ryan Preece, who became the youngest champion of NASCAR’s oldest division, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour.

"Being part of this is amazing," said Ander Vilarino, the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series champion. "I would have never imagined that one day I could say I’m a two-time NASCAR champion."

Preece and Vilarino were joined on the stage at the end of the night to show off their championship rings by NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion Dylan Kwasniewski, NASCAR K&N Pro Series West champion Derek Thorn, NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 champion Scott Steckly and NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour champion George Brunnhoelzl III.

Brunnhoelzl won his fourth NASCAR tour championship, while Steckly picked up his third.

The 18-year-old Kwasniewski became the first driver to win NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series West and East titles — and he did so in consecutive seasons.

"The drivers who graced the stage truly reflect the depth, talent and diversity of NASCAR in the 21st century," said George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president, regional and touring series. "And the seven NASCAR champions who were crowned embody the strength and future promise of our sport."

The championships were won in vastly different ways.

Brunnhoelzl used a mid-season run of three straight wins en route to his title, while Vilarino started off the season with a NASCAR touring-series record six straight wins. Steckly, on the other hand, finished outside the top 20 in the first two races and rallied by winning the finale to edge rival DJ Kennington by two points.

"This year has been amazing," Steckly said. "To race at this level and with other drivers who are such strong competitors is something I am very grateful for, and love doing."

The champions weren’t the only ones to pick up hardware Saturday night.

In addition to the championship awards, each series rookie of the year was honored. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award winners were Jesse Little in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, Dylan Lupton in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, Cole Powell in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and Luke Fleming in the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour. Top rookie performers in three international series were Alex Guenette in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Santiago Tovar in Mexico’s NASCAR Toyota Series and Yann Zimmer in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series.

The Most Popular Driver Awards for each series were also presented during the ceremony. The seven drivers honored with the prestigious award were Ben Kennedy in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, Cameron Hayley of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, Guenette in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Pepe Montaño of the NASCAR Mexico Toyota Series, Freddy Nordström from the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series, Mike Stefanik from the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and Andy Seuss from the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour. Montaño and Nordström were repeat winners from a season ago.

The top-10 drivers and car owners from each of NASCAR’s touring series also were recognized during the gala.

"There are a lot of young faces here tonight that you will probably be seeing a lot more of in the future," continued Silbermann. "They are the new ambassadors of our sport — fearless and very talented on the race track and eager to prove their mettle."

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Posted on by Staff Report

FORT WORTH, Texas (Dec. 12, 2013) – Texas Motor Speedway’s "Year In Photos – 2013," featuring 100 of the top images shot by award-winning Getty Images photographers on and off the track this past season, are now available to both media and racing fans.

The Getty Images photographs capture Texas Motor Speedway’s memorable on-track moments of the year highlighted by major race winners Jimmie Johnson (AAA Texas 500), Kyle Busch (NRA 500) and Helio Castroneves (Firestone 550) as well as a variety of other racing series and special events throughout the year.

The collection also features media events with NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Greg Biffle and INDYCAR driver Marco Andretti; Dude Perfect trick-shot competition with NASCAR and INDYCAR drivers; “Speeding To Read” events with four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon and 2012 Camping World Truck Series champ James Buescher; “Big Hoss TV” video board announcement; Wild Asphalt Circus Half Marathon & 5k; and Speedway Children’s Charities Tree Lighting & Grant Ceremony, among others.

The Texas Motor Speedway "Year in Photos-2013" is available in two versions, a slide show set to music with photo titles and individual photographs with photo titles and full cutlines.

The slide show currently is available to fans to view on the landing page of www.texasmotorspeedway.com and the individual photos are available to view at https://www.texasmotorspeedway.com/2013-year-in-photos. The images also are available to download in high resolution for complimentary screen savers showcasing your favorite moment from Texas Motor Speedway this past year.

Posted on by Holly Cain

2012 Camping World Truck Series champion moving to Nationwide Series full time

RAB Racing announced Friday that 2012 Camping World Truck Series champion James Buescher will drive the team’s No. 99 Toyota in the Nationwide Series in 2014.

After having to keep the news under wraps for weeks, Buescher was excited to finally be able to declare his plans for next season.

"It’s like getting a new toy for Christmas when you’re a kid and can’t play with it," Buescher told NASCAR.com. "It’s a major career move and not being able to talk about it has been really hard but something things are worth waiting for."

It’s also an emotional move for 23-year old Buescher who has spent the last four years competing for his father-in-law Steve Turner at Turner Scott Motorsports. But all parties agreed it was the best move for Buescher’s career.

Buescher joked, it was a lot harder asking Turner for permission to marry his daughter Kris two years ago than to discuss his leaving the family’s team for another professional opportunity.

"It definitely makes it that much harder to leave Turner Scott Motorsports," Buscher said. "We’ve had a special four years in NASCAR together. It’s tough to walk away from that especially having my father in law the co-owner of the team. I think we all agree though it’s the best opportunity for me to go to next step in my career. It’s definitely going to be a change but everyone agrees it’s the best thing for me to do right now and everyone’s fully on board with it.

"It’s hard, but we’ll still support each other. It’s not something that was going to last forever, we knew that. He’s not in the Sprint Cup Series. Once I’m to that point, I would have had to leave anyway. It’s just a little sooner than we thought it would happen."

Turner reiterated his support for Buescher both personally and professionally.

"I have always been supportive of James and I am very proud of everything that he has accomplished while driving for our team," Turner said.

"I am excited for James and his new opportunities, and everyone at TSM would like to wish him the best in his future endeavors.

"I will always continue to support him and cheer him on as a member of my family, but his departure from Turner Scott Motorsports does not change the passion I have for this team. I love racing and have no plans to diminish my role as a co-owner of our organization. I am looking forward to a successful season in 2014 with a very strong lineup of drivers."

Listening to RAB Racing owner Robby Benton and Buescher speak about the new partnership, it’s hard to tell who thinks they got the better end of the deal. All signs point to a win-win relationship.

RAB Racing had a pair of top-five finishes last year with a rookie driver.

And Buescher has long been considered one of NASCAR’s brightest young talents.

He bested a field filled with Sprint Cup drivers to win the prestigious season-opening Nationwide Series race at Daytona in 2012.

Last year, he notched another top-five finish (at Daytona, July) in just four NNS starts. In all, Buescher has won two pole positions (at Memphis and Texas), four top-five finishes (the win and three runner-up showings) and 14 top-10s in 58 starts spread out through six years

"The word excited doesn’t really cover how we feel," RAB Racing owner Robby Benton said. "James is a NASCAR Champion at the age of 23. He has multiple wins in the Camping World Truck Series and has already won arguably the most prestigious race on our calendar in the Nationwide Series. We’re honored to have him join not only our team, but the Toyota family."

For Buescher this is the perfect progression in a career already so successful, it’s easy to forget he’s only 23. He had opportunities to move up to Nationwide last season, but chose to try to defend his Camping World Truck Series championship and become the first driver to ever claim back-to-back series titles.

And he came close, finishing third in the series with a pair of wins (at Michigan and Iowa), a pair of poles (at Kansas and Bowmanville, Ontario) and 14 top-10s.

"We came up a little short in defending the (truck) title, but the goal is to go up to Nationwide Series and follow the natural evolution and then move up the Cup Series," Buescher said. "This is the best opportunity for me to further my career and surround myself with good people and a good organization and a strong team to go out and win some races."

"We’re setting our goals at going out there winning the championship and winning races and sitting on poles. Contending for a championship is the ultimate goal. I know it won’t be easy. It wasn’t easy in the truck series and stepping up to the Nationwide Series, the next level of competition is going to be that much harder, but I feel like we’ll have what it take to make a run."

Buescher said he felt strongly that finally having the chance to run full time in the Nationwide Series could be the deciding factor in his success. It makes sense, when you consider what he was able to accomplish in a limited and sporadic Nationwide schedule driving for multiple teams.

"I think James brings a great deal of confidence along with him," Benton said. "Our 99 program is the same group of guys from the 2013 season, led by Chris Rice. They showed a lot of speed this year with three different drivers and I think it’s a perfect scenario to be able to simply plug James into an already established and productive group like that.

"While we’re just announcing things today, we’ve already spent a great deal of time with each other and will test together next week. I feel we’re getting the biggest jump start on the upcoming season that we’ve ever been able to take advantage of and that brings a very high level of enthusiasm to our team."

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