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Gen-6, NASCAR Next also in the NASCAR Motorsports Marketing Forum spotlight

LAS VEGAS, Nev. — As Scott Atherton put it, Brian France’s presence at the 2013 NASCAR Motorsports Marketing Forum at the Aria was lost on no one.

France, NASCAR chairman and CEO, kicked off the session on the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship by affirming his unqualified support of the racing series formed by the merger of the GRAND-AM Road Racing and American Le Mans Series.

"The results are tremendous, what we’re seeing with our OEM participation getting bigger and better, our sponsorships getting bigger and better. Interest in the combined schedule for 2014 has never been stronger. You can feel it." — NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France on TUDOR United Sports Car Championship

"A couple of years ago, we looked at sports car racing, which we had our own position in with Grand-American," France said. "It was very obvious that two separate sports car racing series would never achieve what we needed to.

"There were lots of difficulties in pulling that together, but we did. In 2012, we announced that, and then we went on in 2013 to integrate those two companies. The results are tremendous, what we’re seeing with our OEM participation getting bigger and better, our sponsorships getting bigger and better. Interest in the combined schedule for 2014 has never been stronger. You can feel it."

Atherton, president and chief operating officer of the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), the sanctioning body for the new series, concurred that enthusiasm for the merged series is building rapidly.

"Sept. 5, 2012, was when we went public with the announcement of the merger, and since that time, it has been the most incredible process I’ve ever been involved with," Atherton said. "There’s a large group of people that deserve a lot of credit for pulling this together…

"Next we had to define a new brand and a new name — United SportsCar Championship, and then the decision to put it all under the umbrella of IMSA as the sanctioning body of record. So, GRAND-AM as a brand and as an entity — gone. American Le Mans Series, brand and entity — also gone, replaced by IMSA."

According to Atherton, the new entity promises more racing for more drivers at historic venues, starting with the Rolex 24 At Daytona in late January.

"For years, we all took a sheet of paper and said, ‘OK, write down your dream schedule,’ and frankly, 2014 represents that," Atherton said. "To open up with the Rolex 24 At Daytona, followed by the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring, followed by the Long Beach Grand Prix…

"You name the track. If it’s a historically significant major-market sports car history venue, it’s on our calendar."

In addition to the attractive schedule, the series debuts with a five-year commitment from TUDOR, a division of Rolex that previously has marketed the brand primarily in Asia.

"We have this heritage in motorsports," said Russell Kelly, brand manager for TUDOR. "Rolex has supported motorsports and had a relationship with the France family since 1959. It’s no secret that we have a love of motorsports.

"TUDOR has just come back to the U.S. market in September of this year. It’s important for us because, first of all, the sports car racing series is defined by time. It’s not defined by distance. It’s not defined by the number of laps. It’s defined by time.

"More important, it helped us to reach a demographic where we wouldn’t otherwise have an audience… The TUDOR United SportsCar Championship really gives us an opportunity to come here, with a great schedule in two key markets for us, and speak to the local, domestic customer."

Atherton also revealed a new technology that will facilitate keeping track of the running positions of all cars in all series, an aspect of sports car and endurance racing that had the potential for confusion in the past.

Those who follow the sport will recall leader lights on the front-running cars. Now fans will be able to see the positions of every car on the track.

"Beginning in 2014 with the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, every car is going to have a digital panel on it, still color-coded to each class, but every position, regardless of where the car is, will be displayed in brilliant color that’s visible in the brightest of sunlight," Atherton said.

"So you can go away, have a lunch break, do whatever you do, come back, and within one lap you’re going to know every car’s position in every class simply by watching the cars go by in front of you. So we’re tackling some of the Achilles heels in sports car racing."

STRONG SEASON

France prefaced his introduction of the merged sports car series with a synopsis of the past season in NASCAR racing, referring notably to the introduction of the new Gen-6 race car to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

"We had a couple of things we had to get right," France said. "One of them was launching the Gen-6 race car at the Sprint Cup level. Understand that we didn’t have a very good track record. If you go back to ’08 (with the introduction of the Gen-5 as the ‘Car of Tomorrow’) — I take a lot of responsibility for this — we didn’t have the cooperation of the OEMs and the rest of the industry, and we didn’t get the proper launch of our product, which is a key thing we have to get right…

"So high expectations from us to get this right, get the OEMs back where they were positioned better with us, get the drivers and the teams liking the cars — how they drive and how they race — and the fans ultimately liking what they see on the track. After all, that’s the heart of what we do."

France referenced the upcoming testing (Dec. 9 at Charlotte Motor Speedway) and review as part of the continuing process in improving the performance of the Gen-6 car on intermediate speedways.

"I’m pleased to say that we got all that right, for the most part," France said. "We’re still working on one significant part of that. And one part of that is our competition review that we’ve been doing, knowing that the stated goal of NASCAR is very simple: to have the closest, most competitive and safest racing in the world."

FANS FIRST

In one of the early-morning sessions, NASCAR Senior Vice President of Racing Operations Steve O’Donnell spearheaded a discussion about creating the ultimate fan experience.

Much of the focus dealt with the influx of new young talent through NASCAR’s touring series and the concerted effort to make the young drivers household names to the fan base.

"What you’ve seen, by investing in the NASCAR touring series, by investing in the NASCAR Next program, you’ve got Ryan Blaney coming up, you’ve got Chase Elliott coming up, Kyle Larson, names that people have now heard of who are winning — Austin Dillon, Ty Dillon, Daniel Suarez out of Mexico," O’Donnell said.

"So I think that we have really taken the initiative to not just look at Cup, but all the way down to the touring series."

During a panel discussion focused on attracting new fans to motorsports, NASCAR Vice President of Marketing Kim Brink noted that the sanctioning body had expanded the scope of its advertising to underline the drama and danger inherent to the sport.

"Steve Phelps, our CMO was making a presentation," Brink said. "And he said, ‘What our drivers do day-in and day-out; it’s dangerous; it’s hard; it’s intense.’ So I said, ‘Steve, we have a body of (advertising) work, and we’re not showing that. Can we have the latitude to really be able to show that intensity?’

"We’re always really careful not to show anything where a fan is hurt or a driver’s hurt… With those parameters, we showed it to Brian (France) and to Mike (Helton, NASCAR president) and to Steve, and there was absolutely no hesitation."

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Posted on by Holly Cain

Six-time champ says it never gets old during "Victory Lap" burnout 

LAS VEGAS — Thousands of fans lined the sidewalks and skywalks along and above the famous Las Vegas Strip Thursday afternoon and even above the roar of 13 race cars, the cheers for NASCAR’s newly-crowned six-time Sprint Cup Series champ Jimmie Johnson were unmistakable.

Given the incredible opportunity to ride shotgun with Johnson in his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet for the "Victory Lap" portion of NASCAR’s Champion’s Week, it quickly became obvious to me the passion and loyalty goes both ways.

"It never gets old," Johnson said with a big grin as we took off down Las Vegas Boulevard for a mid-speed parade starring the 13 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers bookended with a pair of crowd-pleasing burnouts.

The only advice Johnson gave was a warning that I better be prepared when the jack came off the car on my side for a two-tire pit stop demonstration.

"It drops pretty hard," Johnson said. And he was right.

Watch: Holly Cain’s in-car view of Jimmie Johnson’s "Victory Lap" burnout

The burnouts absolutely lived up to my expectations and his promise that we’d "have a little fun." The second of Johnson’s burnouts was so intense, it ended with a blown left rear tire.

"You hear that?" Johnson asked, with a mischievous smile. "Blew a tire."

With all the smoke billowing around the car as we spun and Johnson madly manhandling the steering wheel, I wondered how he could even keep his orientation in the intersection or when he does donuts on the race track celebrating a win.

"You don’t," he said with a laugh, before revving the car and spinning us for an encore.

Leading the Chase field down the boulevard in between the two burnout stations and the pit stop, Johnson’s head moved like he was watching a fast-paced point in tennis. He waved to both sides of the street and took note that it was one of the largest crowds in memory despite cool temperatures in the 40s. Fans on both sides screamed out for him. Standing on one corner was a couple who had hats with neon signs on top blinking "48-CHAMP" in bright red lights. Middle-aged women squealed, college-aged guys whistled and screamed.

"Germany loves you!" one fan yelled out.

"Wow, Germany, now that’s cool," Johnson said giving the fan a thumbs-up with one hand, genuinely impressed with the attention and humbled by the big reception.

Johnson was clearly soaking it all in. In a week jam-packed with television appearances, luncheons, media interviews, he said this loud drive in the car was among the most reflective times of the week.

Six championships puts him one shy of NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. From the moment Johnson officially clinched this year’s title everyone else wanted to focus on that historic seventh. Johnson just wants to relish his sixth.

Before arriving in Las Vegas, Johnson said he watched the speech Earnhardt gave at the 1993 banquet after accepting his sixth championship trophy. Although he said he was initially watching it to hear a motivating line or perhaps discover a similar story, instead what struck Johnson most was how nervous Earnhardt looked at times — "Just like the rest of us" — and how simple the message really needed to be.

Even in different eras of the sport, the champion’s thank you boiled down to showing your appreciation for sponsors, the team and family. And the fans.

"Did you watch Dale’s seventh championship speech?" I asked, knowing the answer.

Johnson shook his head "no" and smiled.

"Not yet."

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The global leading beverage company becomes first three-time recipient of NASCAR Marketing Achievement Award

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Dec. 5, 2013) – The Coca-Cola Company was honored today with the 2013 NASCAR Marketing Achievement Award at the NASCAR NMPA Myers Brothers Awards Luncheon held in the Encore Ballroom at Wynn Las Vegas. An official partner since 1998, Coca-Cola becomes the first three-time recipient of the prestigious award. Utilizing an immersive integrated marketing approach, Coca-Cola has engaged fans, customers and employees across virtually every facet of the NASCAR ecosystem, including intellectual property, promotions, public relations, B2B, online, broadcast, at track, event marketing, social media and retail.

"Over the course of our 15-year relationship Coca-Cola has become one of the most recognized brands in our sport," said Jim O’Connell, NASCAR chief sales officer. "Once again Coca-Cola raised the bar by creating innovative activation and an integrated marketing approach to engage with millions of NASCAR fans, embodying the spirit of the award."

This year, Coca-Cola introduced a series of brand spots titled, "Coca-Cola Racing Family Road Trip," featuring NASCAR stars Tony Stewart, Danica Patrick, Greg Biffle, Ryan Newman, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano. The four-part series premiered during the Daytona 500 and its creative mirrored storylines that were playing out on the track throughout the season.

"The Coca-Cola partnership with NASCAR is rich in history and passionately multifaceted. We’re honored and humbled to receive this prestigious award from such a valuable partner," said Sharon Byers, senior vice president, sports and entertainment marketing, Coca-Cola North America Group. "From our Coca-Cola Racing Family members to decades of supporting local, regional and national activation, together our properties talk to a broad scope of fans. In 2013, the NASCAR partnership extended across 19 tracks, 13 current and alumni drivers, two entitlement races, activation with 36 national retail partners in over 250,000 retail locations, 2.8 million My Coke Rewards entries in NASCAR-themed sweepstakes and nearly 12,000 participants in our Coca-Cola Family Track Walks."

In 2013, Coca-Cola executed a number of integrated marketing campaigns designed to reach its key stakeholders, including:

• Coca-Cola’s two entitlement races, Coca-Cola 600 and Coke Zero 400, which bookend the summer months – a particularly important selling-season for Coca-Cola.

• Coca-Cola 600 activation included a Coca-Cola Racing Family Track Walk and iHeart Radio Trace Adkins Concert attended by 1,500 members of the military in Charlotte, N.C.

• The "Coke Zero Enjoy Everything Island" was created on Lake Lloyd during the Coke Zero 400 in Daytona Beach, Fla., featuring games / prizes, driver interviews and live music.

• Coke Zero teamed up with Danica Patrick to release new Enjoy Everything creative that aired during the Coke Zero 400.

• Partnered with NASCAR’s three auto manufacturers (Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota) to create three My Coke Rewards promotions that resulted in more than 2.8 million entries and a total of 160,000 opt-ins for the auto manufacturers.

• Implemented a sweepstakes program in 180 military commissaries across the country during the "NASCAR: An American Salute" program in May.

• Through various retail and local market activations Coca-Cola executed more than 100 programs leveraging its status as the Official Soft Drink of NASCAR. 

• Continued to execute an at-track recycling program that places approximately 10,000 recycling bins at NASCAR race tracks throughout the season, resulting in more than 15 million cans and bottles recycled to date, enabling NASCAR to become the largest recycler in sports.

Previous winners of the NASCAR Marketing Achievement Award include: Anheuser-Busch; Mars, Incorporated; ESPN; FOX / TNT / NBC; Gillette; Kmart; Nationwide Insurance; Office Depot; Sprint; The Home Depot; and Toyota.

This year’s awards will take place Dec. 6, returning to Wynn Las Vegas with FOX Sports 2 and NASCAR.com providing coverage from 9 p.m. – midnight ET. Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 will provide live coverage.

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Six modifications made for eligibility and selection process

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Dec. 5, 2013) — NASCAR today announced a number of changes to the selection process for the NASCAR Hall of Fame (NHOF), including a modification to driver eligibility parameters and the creation of a new award to honor significant contributions to the growth and success of the sport.

In all, six changes and updates will be made starting with the selection of the Class of 2015 — all designed to improve upon an already strong process that has led to the selection of 25 deserving inductees.

"We’re very proud of how the NASCAR Hall of Fame has evolved and believe the first five classes reflect the strength of the nominating and voting procedures, with voices from every corner of our industry included in the selection process," said Brett Jewkes, NASCAR vice president and chief communications officer. "Based on feedback from voters, industry leaders, media who cover our sport and the fans, we believe the changes announced today are a strong recognition of the uniqueness of our sport and will make the overall selection process even stronger in how we honor those who have driven NASCAR to great success on and off the track."

Following is a summary of changes:

Driver Eligibility

Currently, drivers who have competed in NASCAR for at least 10 years and been retired for three years are eligible for nomination to the NHOF. That will not change.

Moving forward, however, 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. Also, any competitor 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.

Nominating Committee Will Select Five Fewer Nominees for Enshrinement

Throughout its history, the NHOF Nominating Committee has selected 25 nominees each year to be discussed and voted on for NHOF enshrinement. That number will be reduced to 20 starting with the selection process for the 2015 class.

Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR

Beginning with the 2015 class, a new award — Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR — will be initiated to honor significant contributions to the growth and esteem of NASCAR.

Potential Landmark Award recipients could 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 will remain eligible for NHOF enshrinement.

Five nominees will be selected by the NHOF Nominating Committee and then be voted on by the Voting Panel. To win the award, an individual must appear on at least 60 percent of the ballots and no more than one award will be presented annually. Voting for this award will occur immediately following the voting for the NHOF class and be monitored by the same independent accounting firm that oversees NHOF voting.

Nominating Committee to Meet, Vote on 20 NHOF Nominees / Five Landmark Award Nominees

For the first time, the Nominating Committee will meet in person to discuss, debate and vote to create two ballots — the NHOF ballot and the Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR ballot. Previously, the committee submitted nominees via mail to an independent accounting firm that tallies the nominations in order to create the final NHOF ballot.

The Nominating Committee will meet during Speedweeks at Daytona on Friday, Feb. 21, 2014, and the nominees for both ballots will be announced later that day.

Nominees To Be Recused From the Nominating / Voting Process

Any member of the Nominating Committee or Voting Panel who appeared on the previous year’s ballot or current year’s ballot will now be recused from participating in the nominating and / or voting process for as long as he / she appears on the ballot. If an individual who is currently on the Nominating Committee or Voting Panel is inducted, or is no longer included on a final ballot, he or she is immediately reinstated to active participation on the panel(s).

Reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Added To Voting Panel

As was already announced on Nov. 14 at Homestead-Miami Speedway during the annual NASCAR Championship Contenders Press Conference, the reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion will be added to the following year’s voting panel.

That means Jimmie Johnson, who captured his sixth NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship, will be included in the selection meeting and can cast a vote for the NHOF Class of 2015 on Voting Day, Wednesday, May 21, 2014.

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Posted on by Staff Report

Veteran helped plan national series’ return to dirt in 2013

Tony Stewart was announced Thursday as the 2013 National Motorsports Press Association’s Myers Brothers Award for outstanding contributions to the sport of stock-car racing.
 
The honor was announced during the annual Myers Brothers Awards Luncheon as part of NASCAR Champion’s Week at the Wynn Las Vegas.

Stewart, a three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, helped to organize and promote NASCAR’s first national series race on dirt since 1970, hosting the first Mudsummer Classic in July for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The event was run before a capacity crowd at Stewart’s Eldora Speedway in Ohio and drew rave reviews from drivers, fans and officials.
 
Stewart’s passion for racing extends beyond his ownership stake in Stewart-Haas Racing, his powerhouse team which will expand to four full-time Sprint Cup cars in 2014. Besides the half-mile dirt oval at Eldora, Stewart is also part-owner of local tracks in Macon, Ill., and Paducah, Ky.
 
Stewart is also a frequent competitor at the local level, especially in the open-wheeled sprint cars from his earliest days in racing. A crash in early August left Stewart with a severely broken leg, cutting short both his season in NASCAR’s big leagues and his grass-roots endeavors.
 
"I don’t know of anyone more passionate about what they do than Tony Stewart," NMPA president Kenny Bruce said. "Before an injury sidelined him during the second half of the season, he was on pace to compete in more than 100 races in 2013. Tony eats, sleeps, lives and breathes racing and he understands the importance of the local weekend shows better than most. It’s where he came from, and he’s never forgotten that or those who made it possible."
 
The Myers Brothers Award has been given annually since 1958. It’s the second straight year that a current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competitor has won, on the heels of four-time champion Jeff Gordon receiving the honor in 2012.

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Posted on by Staff Report

Dale Earnhardt Jr. tops fan ballot with more than 700,000 votes

Video: Earnhardt Jr. discusses his eBay ‘addiction’

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was announced Thursday as winner of the NASCAR Most Popular Driver Award for a record 11th consecutive time.
 
Earnhardt topped the fan balloting, conducted by the National Motorsports Press Association, with more than 700,000 votes to continue a streak that began in 2003. His 11th award broke a tie for most consecutive most popular driver awards with Bill Elliott, who still holds the all-time record as a 16-time award recipient.

The results of the voting were announced Thursday at the annual NMPA Myers Brothers Awards Luncheon, part of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week, at the Wynn Las Vegas.

"We always have such great support from our fans," Earnhardt said. "They always come through every year, and this year we feel like we were giving them a lot to cheer for on the race track and paying them back for all the years they’ve voted for us to win this award."
 
The top 10 vote-getters were: 1. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 2. Kasey Kahne, 3. Jeff Gordon, 4. Tony Stewart, 5. Danica Patrick, 6. Jimmie Johnson, 7. Kevin Harvick, 8. Matt Kenseth, 9. Kyle Busch, 10. Carl Edwards.
 
More than 1 million votes were cast for 39 eligible drivers, according to the NMPA. Fans were allowed to vote once a day during the Sprint Cup season for their favorite driver.
 
Elliott dominated the most popular driver balloting from 1984 to 2002 — his reign interrupted only by Darrell Waltrip’s awards in 1989 and ’90, and the posthumous award to Dale Earnhardt in 2001.
 
"I don’t really keep track of the stats or the score, but Bill was a great driver and ambassador for the sport," Earnhardt Jr. said. "He represents the sport really well to this day, as does his son Chase, who’s coming up and carrying on the family name. But, I’ve always looked up to Bill as a driver so it’s pretty neat."

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Posted on by Nascar

Three-time Sprint Cup Series champion honored for contributions to the sport

LAS VEGAS – Three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart made a surprise appearance at this year’s National Motorsports Press Association’s Myers Brothers Awards luncheon, and left with a word of warning for the competition, including this year’s championship-winning team of Jimmie Johnson.
 
"I gave you guys 14 weeks without me," he said, referring to his lengthy absence. "I’ll be ready for Daytona and be back kicking your ass again, so you guys enjoy it."
 
The co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing and owner of Eldora Speedway, Stewart was presented the Myers Brothers Award for his contributions to the sport. The award, determined by a vote of the NMPA membership, has been presented annually since 1958.
 
Stewart, 42, suffered a broken right leg while competing in a sprint car race August 5 in Iowa. He subsequently underwent three surgeries, and is currently undergoing physical therapy.
 
While he isn’t scheduled to be back behind the wheel before the start of next season, Stewart has maintained his stance that he will be ready for the 2014 season-opening Daytona 500, scheduled for Feb. 23.

"It was hard sitting on the sidelines watching, but it gave me a different perspective that I haven’t seen in years of what we all do each week," he said of his time out of the No. 14 Chevrolet. "It was a lot of fun to sit there on the side and watch you guys do what we do."
 
Working with his management team, Stewart was able to convince NASCAR officials to award a Camping World Truck Series race to his Eldora facility for 2013. The Mudsummer Classic, held July 24, marked the first time a NASCAR national series had competed on dirt since 1970.
 
"It is crazy," Stewart said. "Steve O’Donnell (senior vice president of racing operations for NASCAR) probably deserves more credit for what we did at Eldora than anybody. … Everybody always asks us drivers if we can be president of NASCAR for a day, what would we do — and I always joked around that a dirt race on the schedule would be great. And then Steve came to us two years ago and asked if we were really serious about it. …
 
"Our wheels went spinning in a bunch of different directions but Steve really made this happen. Roger Slack, who runs our facility at Eldora Speedway, just did a phenomenal job with our staff up there.
 
"To host an event takes a lot of time and effort and work and it takes a great staff to do that. I am very fortunate and blessed to have a good staff at Eldora and just very surprised by this. I thought I was coming to support my crew chief Matt Borland for his award and I’m very glad I came out now for sure."
 
Borland, crew chief for former SHR driver Ryan Newman, was attending the luncheon to receive the Moog Steering & Suspension Problem Solver of the Year award.
 
Nineteen individual awards were presented during the program, including those for NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver — won for the 11th consecutive time by Dale Earnhardt Jr. — and the annual Buddy Shuman Award, which was presented to officials from Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota for their development of the Generation-6 platform which hit the track in 2013.
 
Roush Fenway Racing’s Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was officially recognized as the Sprint Cup Series’ Sunoco Rookie of the Year as well.
 
But the event clearly was bolstered when Stewart, walking with a slight limp, surprised the crowd as he made his way to the stage for the afternoon’s final presentation.
 
"This sport means a lot to me. It’s … what our passion is. There are no hidden agendas, just passion and desire to do what we do," Stewart said afterward.
 
"I was so excited when Steve asked me about doing the truck race; to be a part of that and be a part of history with NASCAR, that wasn’t the driving force behind it, but when you have time like we had with this injury to sit back and think about things, you realize what it means in the big picture versus just face value.
 
"It’s just neat to be able to do what we do … I still don’t know what to say."
 
The event was held in the Encore Ballroom of the Wynn Las Vegas. The Myers Brothers Award is named in honor of Billy and Bobby Myers, two of the sports racing pioneers.

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Johnson’s career accomplishments have only made him more humble

LAS VEGAS — When Jimmie Johnson was racing in the Nationwide Series, he often made appearances on behalf of his sponsor that had him sitting outside of a convenience store under a pop-up tent, handing out autograph cards along with samples of the headache-relief brand that was on the hood of his car. He didn’t always make much of an impression.

"They thought I worked for Excedrin, and wondered where the race car driver was," Johnson said, laughing. "Things have changed a lot since then."

They have — and they haven’t. Johnson is now a six-time champion of NASCAR’s premier series, on the short list of the greatest drivers ever, and on the doorstep of matching the sport’s record for total titles at the highest level. And yet in many ways, he’s still the exact same guy who once handed out product samples outside a drug store, the same person who shook so many hands and handed out so many business cards trying to break through, the same dude from Southern California who enjoys a cold Corona. Johnson has come a long way, and yet he’s remained in the same place all along.

Aside from his innate talent behind the wheel — when it comes to clean lines and ruthless efficiency on the race track, the Hendrick Motorsports driver is probably on a par with greats like Michael Schumacher and Jim Clark — the beauty of Jimmie Johnson is that through it all he’s remained so true to himself. He has six championships and an ironclad legacy, but he’s still relatively uncomplicated. On and off the track, he keeps things simple. He values loyalty, minimizes distractions, and thrives on long-term partnerships. All that may make him easy to mischaracterize, but it also makes him genuine.

Because honestly, it’s difficult to get more genuine than a true American success story like Johnson, who grew up in a household he called "lower middle class," the son of a school bus driver and a heavy equipment operator. No question Johnson benefitted from a few people who believed in him, from Chevrolet executive Herb Fishel to Jeff Gordon to Ricky Hendrick. But he also made a lot of it happen on his own, learning how to network at an age when many young drivers are singularly-focused on speed, being able to sell himself to corporate executives, and delivering once he finally climbed into top equipment. If there’s ever been an ideal by-the-bootstraps model for aspiring drivers, it’s the former and current Sprint Cup Series champion.

And not just in how to make it — but how to handle the success once they have. Having been on hand for Johnson’s first start in the Sprint Cup Series, on a trying weekend at Charlotte in the fall of 2001 after his friend Blaise Alexander had been killed in an ARCA event, yours truly can attest that there is virtually no difference between the Johnson of then and the Johnson of now, except for that perpetual five o’clock shadow and six big trophies on the mantle. A lot of people see that steely demeanor and presume it’s arrogance, when in truth it springs from something entirely different — humility.

Maintaining that, through all the years and all the race wins and all the championships, has been just as impressive as maintaining performance over so many seasons on the race track. Where does it come from? The simple way in which he was raised, the enthusiasm for racing that was handed down from his father, and the struggles he went through trying to get to where he is now.

"Honestly, I have to give credit to the lack of success I had through a large part of my career. I did well, I did enough to be noticed, I had Chevrolet’s support. They did what they could. I made it from one division to the next, I had enough success just to kind of be noticed and continue forward progress," Johnson said at the NASCAR Motorsports Marketing Forum that kicked off Champions Week.

"But all those years of trying to survive — it really shaped me into who I am today. So once the success came, it didn’t affect me all that much. Sure, everyone has an ego, and it feels damn good to win all these races and championships, I’m not going to lie. But at the end of the day, I really identified with my passion and why I want to race. I’ve never raced for trophies. I’ve always raced for the experiences that have happened, on the dirt bike or in the car. There’s something in competition that I can’t get away from. That’s what draws me to it."

Certainly, he’s not alone there. But in terms of career accomplishments, he’s reached rarefied heights indeed, and at age 38 he’s far from finished. The unrelenting nature of those five consecutive championships made Johnson something of a polarizing figure in NASCAR — he won so much in such a relatively short period of time, it rubbed some the wrong way. This title, though, feels different. The response Johnson received at Homestead-Miami Speedway both before and after he clinched his sixth crown was overwhelmingly positive. Maybe the two-year break helped. Maybe people are beginning to appreciate the history unfolding before them.

Regardless, Johnson could sense it. "There was a lot of cheering, through all the social channels, a lot of respect being shown for the 48," he said in the days immediately following Homestead. "I can’t tell you how many things I’ve seen — ‘Not usually cheering for you, but congrats, respect.’ At the end of the day, that’s what I would hope for. People don’t have to be my fan. But I’m a very respectful person. When respect is shown to me or handed out to me, I take that and appreciate it."

From Jimmie Johnson, who at the same time manages to be a six-time Sprint Cup champion as well as just a simple dude from Southern California, no one would expect anything less.

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Executive Sam Flood plans big-picture changes; Burton readies for starring role

LAS VEGAS — If Sam Flood has his way, the radio communications that NBC viewers will hear between drivers, spotters and crew chiefs won’t be taped — they will be aired live.

If he can get around the not-so-small issue of swearing first.

"Emotion is a wonderful thing. It’s what makes sports great," said Flood, executive producer of NBC Sports, which returns as a NASCAR broadcast partner in 2015. "And I would bet with all the technology we have, there’s a way to filter swearing. It’s not there yet. I wouldn’t want to be on an NBC show having the FCC catch an F-bomb being plopped out of the air. But I’d be willing to try it over time if there’s that filter system that automatically gets a word that shouldn’t be going home."

NBC and NBC Sports Network will air the final 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races of the season beginning in 2015, and even though that kickoff is still more than a year away, the network’s plans for NASCAR are already coming into focus. Tuesday, 21-time race winner Jeff Burton was named as broadcast analyst, and on Wednesday, Rick Allen was named as the lead race announcer.

And it seems clear that a linchpin of NBC’s approach will be to maximize the emotion within the sport, even if that means trying to break drivers of some longstanding habits — like immediately thanking all of their sponsors when they climb out of a car in Victory Lane.

"I think the sponsors are so critical to this sport. They need to be honored and respected. But your first answer shouldn’t be thanking the sponsors," Flood said at the NASCAR Motorsports Marketing Forum that opened Champion’s Week. "The first answer should be the emotion of the moment and the significance of the moment. … The sponsors can come at the back end of it, and I would never shortchange that. But I think the emotion has to come first."

Burton agreed, saying the sponsor logos on a driver’s cap and firesuit should suffice.

"Do you really need to say it? I mean, most people can read," Burton said. "I’ve been in this sport forever, and when you push (sponsors) all the time, I think it takes away from the emotion of the sport. … That’s why you wear a uniform with all the stuff on it. And to be honest, that’s what I’ve done for 20 years. And I’ve never had a sponsor come to me and say, ‘You need to mention our name more.’ I don’t remember ever having that conversation. And the reason why was, I was respected for answering the question."

The concept of live team audio, though, presents a stickier issue. Flood called it "critical" to the NASCAR viewing experience, and wants to move it away from tape and into real time. But then how to prevent viewers from being hit with a barrage of four-letter words? "I think you have to get to a point where there’s a heavy fine for swearing," Flood said.

As in, fines levied by NASCAR. Burton believes the approach would need to be more gradual. "What would be difficult would be getting the drivers in the mindset of, you’re always live on TV. That would be a transition," he said. "The transition could happen, but it wouldn’t be an overnight transition. It would be a process to get there."

NASCAR and NBC Sports Group reached an agreement in July that grants NBC Universal exclusive rights to the final 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, final 19 NASCAR Nationwide Series events, select NASCAR Regional and Touring Series events, and other live content beginning in 2015. Of NBC Sports Group’s 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events, seven will be carried on NBC annually, with 13 airing on NBC Sports Network. Four of NBC Sports Group’s 19 NASCAR Nationwide Series races will air on NBC, with 15 airing on NBC Sports Network.

NBC aims to do some things differently than it did the last time it was a NASCAR broadcast partner, from 2001 through 2006. Jeff Behnke, a longtime Turner Sports producer who will head the NASCAR team’s day-to-day operations, will be based in Charlotte, N.C., marking the first time the head of a network’s NASCAR team will be stationed in the sport’s hub.

"To have someone in Charlotte with all the race shops and team owners, and getting to know the teams, having a real person on the ground," Flood said, "we think it’s a real change that’s going to help the sport and help us have a better relationship with every race team."

NBC also hopes to take a cue from its football coverage. Before each Sunday night NFL game, the network’s talent meets on Friday with the home team’s head coach, coordinators and key players, and then does the same with the visiting team’s on Saturday. Flood envisions similar, formalized meetings with key NASCAR teams each week.

"They need to have a schedule … where each weekend, six or seven race teams are going to get 10 minutes with our talent to talk about where they are, where they’re going," he said. "We didn’t have that in ’01 to ’06. It was all (former analyst) Benny Parsons leaning against tires having conversations. And Benny was great about it, because he never left the garage. One of the greatest guys of all time. … I think in this day and age with drivers pulled in all different directions, we need to formalize that."

Flood said he also wants to take advantage of what’s happening on pit road, as well as Burton’s perspective coming fresh from the race car. The Virginia native recently finished his final full-time season with Richard Childress Racing, and will test and compete on a limited basis with Michael Waltrip Racing in 2014 before transitioning into the booth the following year.

"I think there’s a real relevance to him," Flood said of Burton. "And he’s a guy I’d like to have a beer with, have a conversation with. His ability to engage, to know what’s going on in real time, it’s so fresh. I think it’s going to be great for the audience to hear an unfiltered take from a guy right out of the race car."

For Burton, the challenge will be to maintain that relevance once he’s out of the vehicle.

"I have a lot of good relations now with people who will sit down and talk to me. But five years down the road, what am I going to be doing to ensure I still have those relationships?" he said. "That’s part of my role — to make sure I’m staying current, to make sure that I am working with people, that people trust me and can come talk to me. That I can ask them questions and they’re willing to answer them. I think that’s built though honesty and through trust. And that will take a while to build."

NBC’s previous stint as a NASCAR broadcast partner coincided with an era that saw the sport enjoy some of its highest levels of popularity. Flood believes NASCAR can get back there again, and it starts with winning over the core fans who have long been key to the circuit’s health.

"I think we learned the first time out that this is a passionate fan base you’ve got to embrace, to get them to understand that you’re there for them. Once you bring that passionate core in, you saw the sport grow from ’01 through ’05 or ’06 — we want to replicate that. We want to make people understand that we’re going to make this bigger, and get the core fan knowing we’re the place to be," he said.

"I want the core fan. We need the core fan. The sport needs the core fan. We need full seats. We need the stands full. We want to help race tracks do that. We want to do what we can to make sure the fans at home know, it’s pretty cool to be up there in the seats, I want to get back to the race track. That’s step one, filling up every race track, getting fans there to consume the race. Because once you go, you’re hooked."

And to Burton, the emotion the sport presents is often a key reason why. NBC’s goal will be to capture it.

"The more we can show how much it means to people, the better our sport is," Burton said. "So things like live audio, things like immediately getting out of the car and having a microphone in your face, those are good things. Those are things that make this sport great. It does matter that it is emotional. … We can’t manufacture emotion, but we don’t have to. If we’re there at the right time and the right place, the emotion’s there. We just have to be there."

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Drivers and fans participate in a game show together

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Dec. 4, 2013) – In the end, there was only one grand prize winner during the fifth annual Fanfest Presented by Las Vegas Motor Speedway held at the Fremont Street Experience, and she chose Kyle Busch and his case.

Her prize? Tickets to Friday night’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series AwardsTM at Wynn Las Vegas (Dec 6., with FOX Sports 2 and NASCAR.com providing coverage beginning at 9 p.m. ET; Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 at 8 p.m. ET).

The game-show format event featured six contest-winning fans selecting cases containing assorted prize packs from among the 13 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers. Each fan had the opportunity to select a driver and his sealed case during one of six rounds. Before revealing their prize, each fan had the choice to stay with that case or choose four others to eliminate. Between each round the cases were shuffled among the drivers.     

With unseasonably low temperatures for Las Vegas the top-six drivers in the final series standings were rewarded with personal heaters onstage to bear the cold. Unfortunately, Chase drivers finishing between seventh and 13th were seated in the second row and had no such convenience, including a shivering Clint Bowyer.

“Clint, you look cold,” teased host and ESPN pit reporter Jamie Little. “If you finished in the top six, you would have had your own heater.”

Bowyer wasn’t the only driver suffering from the cold. Six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, who had a heater, received laughs from the audience when it was discovered his heater wasn’t working properly as Little picked it up to keep him warm.

As the rounds drew on, the drivers became increasingly helpful in providing the contestants suggestions on which cases to select, despite the banker’s warnings.

“Let me remind the drivers that if they reveal their cases, they will start at the rear of the field for the KOBALT Tools 400 (the March Las Vegas race),” joked the banker. 

His warning did little to deter the drivers.

“I think the offer is a really good offer,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. informed the second fan, who ended up winning two tickets to the March race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  

The fourth fan chose Johnson, who suggested she select a different case based on his knowledge of the contents of his own case. The fan then chose Busch, who offered the same insight, as did Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman. Kasey Kahne came to the fan’s rescue when he raised his hand and recommended he be selected. The crowd went nuts. 

“Trust us, we’re really setting this game up well for the contestants,” Busch said.

Ultimately, the fan accepted the banker’s deal and ended up with race tickets to Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Neon Garage passes.

Every fan walked away a winner with prizes including key chains, hats, race packages and even tickets to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards for the Grand Prize winner.

Also honored on Wednesday were this year’s finalists for the Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award – Duncan Dobie, Lisa Hall, Richard Johnson and Don Post – at an afternoon reception at Wynn Las Vegas. The NASCAR Foundation will announce the Award winner during this year’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards. Fans can cast their vote to determine the 2013 Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award winner by visiting www.NASCAR.com/Award before 11:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 5.  

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