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Check out the new looks hitting the track this weekend

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NASCAR returns to a an oval track — at least in the Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series — again this week at Michigan International Speedway, while the Nationwide Series heads to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for a week of road racing.

See this week’s schemes below and check back as we continue to update this page.

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Jamie McMurray will drive the No. 1 Advil Chevrolet.

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Kasey Kahne will drive the No. 5 Pepsi Max Chevrolet.

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Jeff Gordon will drive the No. 24 Standox Chevrolet.

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Ryan Newman will drive the No. 39 Quicken Loans PTA Chevrolet.

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Carl Edwards will drive the No. 99 Best Buy Geek Squad Ford.

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NATIONWIDE SERIES PAINT SCHEMES


Courtesy JR Motorsports

Ron Fellows will drive the No. 5 AER Manufacturing Chevrolet.

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Trevor Bayne will drive the No. 6 Nationwide Children’s Hospital Ford.

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Regan Smith will drive the No. 7 Nationwide Children’s Hospital Chevrolet.

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Marcos Ambrose will drive the No. 9 DeWalt Ford.

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Michael McDowell will drive the No. 18 K-Love Toyota.

Justin Allgaier will drive the No. 31 AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet.

Travis Pastrana will drive the No. 60 X Games Ford.

SHOP: Travis Pastrana die-casts

CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES PAINT SCHEMES

Johnny Sauter will drive the No. 98 Carolina Nut Co. Toyota.

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Nationwide Series updated owners standings

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BRISTOL, TENN. (Tuesday, August 13,  2013) – Intensity tends to get turned up a notch when all the rowdy friends show up at Bristol Motor Speedway in August, and it is just got a little rowdier.

Guests at the Last Great Colosseum do not have to wait for the green flag to drop on the IRWIN Tools Night Race for rollicking good time; August 24 the tone is set early with powerhouse performer Hank Williams, Jr., rocking the pre-race concert presented by the NRA.

“Hank Williams Jr. is an icon in both music and Southern culture,” said BMS General Manager Jerry Caldwell. “Featuring a legendary artist of this caliber makes perfect sense when you consider that a similar description is appropriate for Bristol Motor Speedway – a one-of-a-kind facility immersed in the history of motorsports but always looking for new ways to enhance the experience both on and off the track.”   

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With an array of familiar hits, the Grammy-award winning artist is primed to excite the crowd before one of NASCAR’s most-anticipated events.

 

“Tennessee is home and NASCAR fans are my fans!, says Hank Williams Jr.  “This show is going to be a fun one.  As a supporter of the NRA, I am proud to be performing on their stage and showing Bristol Motor Speedway fans how Bocephus boogie-woogies.”

 

Guests wanting a front row seat to Williams’s pre-race performance can purchase a Pre-Race Super Pass for just $80 with a portion of the proceeds benefitting the Bristol Chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities. Providing unparalleled access to Bristol’s renowned pre-race events, the pass puts fans front-and-center at the NRA stage for Hank Jr.’s show as well as the track’s acclaimed driver introductions.

 

For more information on pre-race SuperPass or to purchase, call (855) 580-5525 or visit www.bristoltix.com.

 

Tickets options are also still available for the August race weekend, with single day tickets starting at just $75 or $99 for weekend packages, but pricing increases at 12:01 a.m. Sunday, August 18 so call or visit www.bristoltix.com today and reserve your seat for the 2013 Bristol battle.

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Driver had been with Earnhardt Ganassi Racing full-time since 2007

Juan Pablo Montoya, a fixture with Chip Ganassi’s race team since he left Formula One for NASCAR prior to the 2007 season, will not return to the No. 42 car next year.

Montoya was informed Monday that his contract with Earnhardt Ganassi Racing would not be renewed beyond this season, NASCAR.com has learned. Employees at the EGR shop were told of the impending move Tuesday. Ganassi officials declined to comment, given the team owner’s policy of not speaking publicly on contract matters.

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The move opens a seat in the No. 42 car for next season, although a successor to Montoya has not yet been decided.

A 37-year-old native of Colombia, Montoya has won two races at NASCAR’s top level, one each on the road courses at Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen International, since leaving Formula One for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in late 2006. His best year was 2009 when he made the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and briefly flirted with championship contention before falling out of the hunt in the final races of the season. He also has one NASCAR Nationwide Series victory, for Ganassi at Mexico City in 2007.

But Montoya’s fortunes ebbed along with those of the organization as a whole, and he has struggled to build any momentum in recent years. He finished 21st and 22nd respectively in Sprint Cup points the past two seasons, and at Richmond in April recorded his first top-five finish in two years. Montoya is currently 22nd in points after a fifth-place finish Sunday at Watkins Glen.


Watch Juan Pablo Montoya run out of gas while in prime position at Sonoma.

Ganassi and Montoya have a close friendship dating back to their first stint together in open-wheel cars, which produced an Indianapolis 500 victory in 2000. Although Ganassi also fields entries in open-wheel and sports car circuits, it’s unclear as to whether Montoya would be interested in pursuing such an option should the opportunity arise.

Felix Sabates, minority owner of EGR, confirmed the move later Tuesday in an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, saying it was just time for a change on the No. 42 car.

"It’s frustrating for everybody," Sabates told the satellite station. "When you know you’ve got good equipment and you just can’t seem to put everything together still, it’s just, you can’t ever point a finger at one person, two persons, three persons, because we win as a team and lose as a team. And we’ve had a lot of things happen to us this year and last year that wasn’t anybody’s fault, but it happens, and sometimes you have to make a change and hopefully you have that bad luck go away."
  
As for potential successors, Sabates was asked about EGR developmental driver Kyle Larson, who competes in the Nationwide Series for Turner Scott Motorsports. The 21-year-old Larson has 21 career starts on the Nationwide tour.

"There’s a lot of options out there," Sabates said. "There’s just not one person, and we’re going to keep all our options open. That’s the truth. We don’t know ourselves what we’re going to do. You’ve got several drivers out there, good drivers, that (will) be available that would fit our organization. Kyle Larson is one of the prospects, but he’s one of several."
 
The decision not to retain Montoya wasn’t an easy one, Sabates added. "It was a difficult decision, but he understands," Sabates said. "He’s a professional, and you know, you’ve got to move on in life sometimes."

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Similarities between the two drivers helped Stewart-Haas Racing make decision

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It was special enough that Austin Dillon won last month’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Eldora Speedway, the sport’s first national event on dirt in more than 40 years, but what made triumph even more meaningful was when the track owner presented him with the trophy.

“Tony Stewart is one of my heroes," Dillon said Tuesday.

In that respect, then, it perhaps shouldn’t have been too surprising that Stewart-Haas Racing selected Dillon to drive Stewart’s No. 14 car this weekend at Michigan International Speedway, the second consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event the three-time champion will miss after breaking his lower right leg in a sprint car crash last week. The two are kindred spirits, a pair of former dirt racers who still compete whenever and wherever they can, and for whom July 24 at Eldora will be a night they will never forget.

"Tony Stewart is one of my heroes."

— Austin Dillon

Stewart’s respect for Dillon, the current points leader in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, was evident in a text he sent the 23-year-old earlier this week:

“I’m glad I’ve got a good wheel man in my race car this weekend.”

When Stewart and Dillon tested trucks at Eldora in a secret session on the half-mile oval long before the NASCAR race there was announced, the three-time premier-series champion let his protégé be the first one out on the track.

“Every time I’ve gone to him to ask him questions, he’s always been very helpful. I think he respects my dirt background,” Dillon said at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, where some of his Eldora mementos were put on display. “When we went the first time to Eldora together … he let me go out first. He wanted me to be the first one to hit the dirt. I thought that was very special. He’s always been very helpful to me and my career.”

Stewart broke the tibia and fibula in his right leg in a sprint car crash in Iowa on Aug. 5, and is out indefinitely. Max Papis filled in last weekend on the road course at Watkins Glen in the No. 14 car, which maintains 11th place in the owners’ standings even though the injury has taken Stewart out of contention for the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Monday, SHR competition director Greg Zipadelli, left open the possibility that Dillon could do more than one race in Stewart’s vehicle.

That would be just fine with Dillon, who holds a three-point lead over Sam Hornish Jr. in the Nationwide race, although the regular Richard Childress Racing driver understands he’d have to strike a balance between both series.

“I feel like I can drive everything, every day of the week," Dillon said. "The hardest thing is giving equal opportunity to both teams, and my guys are not discouraged that we’re not giving a full effort to them. Keeping both sides happy is big.

“I think my guys know I have plenty of confidence that I can do double duty each weekend. We’ll just take it one week at a time. I’d love to announce we’re going to do them all or something like that. But the biggest thing is taking it one week at a time and trying to give equal opportunity to each team. That main goal from the beginning of the season is winning that Nationwide championship. I think that’s very important. But things happen like this, and you have to take advantage of them.”

If Dillon does become a permanent solution for SHR, getting through this weekend might be the trickiest part. He’ll be at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, all day Thursday for opening practice at the first-year Nationwide venue, and then at Michigan all day Friday for Sprint Cup activities. He’ll likely miss Nationwide qualifying on Saturday because of a conflict with Sprint Cup practice. Dillon wasn’t sure Tuesday if his No. 3 team would put another driver in for qualifying, or eschew it altogether given that he’d still have to start at the rear.

“We’ve tried every kind of situation to try and qualify,” said Dillon, who tested at Mid-Ohio earlier this year. “It’s a little bit of a bummer for our guys on the Nationwide team, because they want to qualify, but they understand the situation we’re in and the opportunity that’s there. We’ve all embraced that we can win from starting last at a road course. We now have to take that as a challenge and take it on and make it a positive.”

As for the Sprint Cup event, he’s aiming for a top 15. Dillon has made nine career starts at NASCAR’s highest level, with a best finish of 11th at Michigan on June 16 in the No. 51 car of Phoenix Racing. He’s also won two poles at the two-mile facility in the Nationwide Series. Although Zipadelli said Monday that Dillon’s relationship with sponsor Bass Pro Shops played a role in the decision to put the former Camping World Truck Series champion in the No. 14 car, there’s also clearly a comfort level with the race track.

“That’s the best place for me to go after a good finish,” Dillon said. “I’ve got a lot of laps there.”

Dillon spent Monday at the SHR shop meeting with the No. 14 crew and having his seat put into the car. He told crew chief Steve Addington to set up the vehicle “however you think is fastest,” he said.

“I don’t want anything to do with it. I just want to drive it. Tight or loose is all I’m going to give him, and we’re going to go after it and work hard.”

Dillon texted with Stewart on Monday, and planned to call him later Tuesday to discuss strategy and how the car drove at Michigan the last race there, where Stewart finished fifth.

“I don’t think speed will be a problem,” Dillon said. “It will be just driving around these guys and figuring out what it takes to get it to the front.”

It certainly doesn’t hurt that he has the confidence of the team owner. Dillon and Stewart have had a rapport ever since an indoor go-kart event they both competed in several years ago in Indiana, where Dillon led until the final laps — when he was spun, and saw Stewart whiz by. That connection was certainly bolstered at Eldora, where the former Camping World Truck Series champion returned to his dirt roots to win at Stewart’s track.

Some artifacts from that night — a jar of dirt from the track, the trophy and the No. 39 truck Dillon drove, still with the front right dented and Bear Bond covering the right rear — were put on display Tuesday for a limited time at the Hall of Fame. Dillon kept his own jar of dirt, as well as the checkered flag and a golden shovel he was awarded as the race winner.

“As much as I could take, I took,” Dillon said. “I’d have taken a piece of the wall if I could.”

That’s how strongly Dillon feels about Eldora — and about Stewart, down deep an old-school racer a lot like the 23-year-old driver he’s putting in his No. 14 car this weekend.

“Anytime a guy wants to race every night of the week,” Dillon said, “I think that’s awesome.”

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Michael Waltrip Racing moves forward with new full-time driver, added security

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The crucial race weekend that led to Brian Vickers’ return to full-time competition in the Sprint Cup Series may not have been New Hampshire, where the driver scored the third victory of his career. It just might have been two weeks earlier at Kentucky Speedway, when Aaron’s officials told Michael Waltrip Racing that they didn’t want part of the No. 55 car for next season.

They wanted all of it.

“They told us, ‘The thing we don’t like is co-branding. We want to focus on all 36 races.’ They told us that at Kentucky,” said Ty Norris, MWR’s vice president and general manager. “We were like — OK, that’s not what we were expecting, but it’s fantastic to have that conversation.”

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That conversation led to an announcement Tuesday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, where Vickers was officially named MWR’s full-time driver in the organization’s No. 55 car beginning next year. Fueling the move is backing from longtime MWR sponsor Aaron’s, which will be on the car for every points race the next two years — a rarity in an era where the vast majority of entries on NASCAR’s top series are funded by a variety of different sponsors that split the season.

Although Aaron’s has funded the bulk of this season, in which Vickers has split driving duties in the No. 55 with Waltrip and Mark Martin — the latter of whom has competed in most of the races — next year driver and sponsor will be the same every week.

“I’ve been a longtime NASCAR fan, and this has been kind of a natural for me in a way,” said Ron Allen, who became Aaron’s president and chief executive officer in late 2011. “… I met Brian back at our national manager’s meeting. I knew a lot about his background, and I just think he a real competitor, which is important. He wants to win races, and he has the character and integrity we look for in the people who represent Aaron’s.”

For Vickers, 29, Tuesday’s announcement was the end of a long climb back to the top of NASCAR’s premier series. The Thomasville, N.C., native was sidelined for much of the 2010 campaign by blood clots that ultimately required heart surgery, and after the following season the Red Bull team for which he had been driving pulled out of the sport. He’s competed part-time for MWR the past two years, with three races remaining in a 12-event slate this season.

“It’s huge,” he said. “This for me is a very special moment. Something I wasn’t sure if it would ever happen again.”

Vickers has competed full-time this season on the Nationwide Series for Joe Gibbs Racing, which like MWR fields Toyotas. He is currently fifth in that circuit’s standings, 18 points behind leader Austin Dillon. Although he didn’t rule out the possibility of more Nationwide events next year, Vickers said his priority would the No. 55 car, and another full Nationwide slate in 2014 would be unlikely.

As far as a Sprint Cup ride, Vickers said he had other options, but he felt at home at MWR and liked the rapport he’d built with crew chief Rodney Childers, who Vickers has known since both were racing go-karts.

“There were some options. Over the last two years, actually,” Vickers said. “But it’s so difficult to find a team and crew chief and a crew and an owner and a sponsor you just feel like you fit with, and it’s not something you wan to give up lightly. I’m not going to say that it was never an option or never a topic of discussion, but it was pretty far down the list, to be honest with you.”

Waltrip said the team was close to re-signing Childers as well. “Brian and Rodney have a great relationship,” said the two-time Daytona 500 winner. “They’ve known each other since they were kids. They love working together. There’s a lot of harmony and confidence in one another. We plan on the whole team being back together in 2014 and beyond.”

Beginning next season, the No. 55 car will join the small number of remaining vehicles — which includes another Waltrip entry, the NAPA-backed No. 56 of Martin Truex Jr. — with one sponsor covering the entire season. Multiple sponsors have almost become a necessity, Norris said, given the costs today of fielding a championship car. As far as the No. 55 is concerned, Toyota helps make up the difference.

“The ability to get to that level is largely and almost exclusively because of Toyota. Our arrangement with Toyota allows us to be able to do this at a very competitive rate,” Norris said. “That’s what we started working on. But (Aaron’s) came to us about all 36 races versus any other arrangement, and that to me was one of the great moments.”

MWR certainly tried to sway the negotiations in that direction. Norris brought up 2010, when former MWR driver David Reutimann won at Chicagoland, and the first text he received from an Aaron’s executive lamented the fact that Tums was the brand on the hood of the car. Then there’s Waltrip, who does whatever he can to further relationships — as he will next week, when instead of being in Bristol he’ll be racing a K&N Pro Series West car in Spokane, Wash., in conjunction with a NAPA event.

“I don’t twist anybody’s arms. I go quite the opposite,” Waltrip said. “I hug them a lot, and ask them what can I do to make this partnership work for them. … It’s not like a race where you can run over somebody. You just have to present your case, and hopefully people appreciate who you are.”

The most immediate beneficiary is Vickers, who next year will be back on the Sprint Cup tour full-time for the first time since 2011. 

“I feel like I’ve finally found a home,” Vickers said.

 Tuesday’s announcement came a month after his victory at New Hampshire, a surprise win in a part-time ride.

 Asked by a television reporter immediately afterward if Vickers had clinched the ride, Childers offered a prediction: “I think this might seal the deal,” the crew chief said.

Allen remembers watching that on TV and laughing. By then, a full-season deal was already in the works.

“We still had some details to work out, but with our getting to know Brian and Michael’s knowing Brian, we thought it was a very good choice,” Allen said. “That wasn’t necessary for him to win that race, but it didn’t hurt.”

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Wrecks involving Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Dale Earnhardt Jr. put pall on Jimmie Johnson’s Chase clinch

                                   

1. Jimmie Johnson       

Outlook: It was a terrible day for Hendrick Motorsports overall, but at least Johnson clinched his Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup spot. Finally, he can take a breather. It was looking a little hairy there for a while. (Just kidding.)
Related Video: Johnson post-race reaction
Standings: 1st, 808 points

2. Kyle Busch       

Outlook: After a pair of heartbreakers in the last two races at Watkins Glen, Busch broke through for his first win at the track since 2008. The final laps of the race showed why Busch is one of the hardest drivers to pass in the series and why he, not Brad Keselowski, ended up in Victory Lane.
Related Video: Busch victory comments
Standings: 5th, 693 points

3. Clint Bowyer       

Outlook: In our poll that asks which winless driver in the top 10 could get his first victory at Michigan, Bowyer is getting crushed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski. It’s interesting, because last time out he finished seventh to Junior’s 37th and Keselowski’s 12th.
Standings: 2nd, 733 points

4. Matt Kenseth       

Outlook: When Kenseth picked up his fourth win of the season at Kentucky in June, it looked like he might be the only driver able to hang with Jimmie Johnson this season. Since then, however, Kenseth has been mired in a slump that has seen him average a finish of 18.4 in five races. He’s hardly in danger of missing the Chase, but he may be starting to lose some steam.
Standings: 7th, 659 points

5. Kevin Harvick       

Outlook: Since wrecking at Talladega and finishing 40th — one of just two finishes worse than 19th this year — Harvick has completed every lap but has had a pretty even mix of average and solid showings. Overall, Michigan has been an average track for him, but he’ll be looking to build off his runner-up finish in June to get things going again.
Standings: 4th, 707 points

6. Carl Edwards       

Outlook: Michigan was the spot where Edwards’ infamous ‘He ain’t out teammate’ comments regarding race-winner Greg Biffle came from in June, but it’s also where Edwards earned his only Coors Light Pole of the season. Needless to say, he’ll be motivated for this one.
Standings: 3rd, 728 points

7. Brad Keselowski       

Outlook: Keselowski rebounded from early trouble to manage a brilliant second-place finish and “right the ship”, if you will. He said in his post-race comments that he could have wrecked Kyle Busch so he could get the victory, but it just isn’t his style.
Related Video: Keselowski post-race presser
Standings: 8th, 634 points

8. Dale Earnhardt Jr.       

Outlook: Much like Kasey Kahne, Earnhardt Jr. was never in the running for a victory, but his wreck — also involving Kahne — certainly didn’t help his chances. He lost a spot in the standings and with no wins under his belt, Junior has to be feeling some pressure. Luckily, the series now heads to one of his best tracks in Michigan International Speedway, where he’ll be looking for redemption after blowing an engine in June.
Standings: 6th, 670 points

9. Kasey Kahne       

Outlook: Kahne, who wasn’t particularly fast all day, didn’t appear destined for back-to-back wins, but his chances were shot completely after a run-in with Dale Earnhardt Jr. that tore off his entire rear. Thanks to his two victories, Kahne currently holds onto the first of two Wild Card spots, but there are plenty of drivers hungry to overtake him.
Standings: 12th, 622 points

10. Martin Truex Jr.       

Outlook: Truex proved that his victory at Sonoma in June was no fluke, earning a top-three finish at Watkins Glen and making a statement that Michael Waltrip Racing might have the best road course program on the circuit.
Related Video: Truex post-race presser
Standings: 10th, 625 points

11. Kurt Busch       

Outlook: Busch was deemed  “ready to pounce” in this past week’s Wild Card Watch and while his ninth-place Watkins Glen showing isn’t a huge head-turner, it does put him higher in the points standings than Kasey Kahne, who has two wins to Busch’s zero. Kahne still holds the Wild Card over Busch, but conversely it speaks to the former champion’s consistency.
Standings: 11th, 623 points

12. Greg Biffle       

Outlook: Biffle earned a victory at Michigan close to two months ago, one that he’s been relying on heavily as he keeps himself in Chase contention. One thing’s for sure, Ford would like to see him add to its win total.
Standings: 9th, 627 points

13. Jeff Gordon       

Outlook: After wrecking just 14 laps into the race, Gordon was visibly frustrated during a post-crash interview — and rightly so. The Hendrick Motorsports driver needed a win badly and his disappointing finish has him in a vulnerable spot in the standings.
Standings: 13th, 610 points

14. Ryan Newman       

Outlook: It’s time to give Ryan Newman some credit. After learning that he wouldn’t be back in his No. 39 Chevrolet next year, he could have held a grudge against team owner and friend Tony Stewart. Instead, he’s shown hardly any ill will and even jumped to Stewart’s defense this week. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that his boss’s injury has allowed him to hold a Chase spot.
Standings: 14th, 605 points

15. Joey Logano       

Outlook: Logano enjoyed a nice finish at Watkins Glen and, truth be told, has really been quite good this season. He’s just had a few rough days that stand out (Kansas, Talladega, New Hampshire, Daytona in July) and a penalty to overcome that may have set him back more than he can handle.
Standings: 16th, 598 points

16. Jamie McMurray       

Outlook: McMurray is in a tough spot. He could force his way into Chase talks with a victory, but none of the tracks left have been too kind to him.
Standings: 15th, 600 points

17. Aric Almirola       

Outlook: It’s tough to tell if Almirola lost control of his No. 43 Ford because of his blown left-front, or if he’s near-sighted and just wanted a closer look. Either way, he went nose-first into a huge pile of tires.
Standings: 18th, 561 points

18. Juan Pablo Montoya       

Outlook: Unsurprisingly, the road course veteran Montoya had a solid day at Watkins Glen, finishing fifth. He’s had a lot of bad luck this season, but he’ll need more than just good luck over the next four races if he still plans on making the Chase.
Standings: 22nd, 516 points

19. Tony Stewart       

Outlook: Max Papis filled in admirably, sure, but I have a feeling keeping the No. 14 car in the running for the owners standings is just a small consolation for seeing his name drop down the drivers standings. These next few weeks as the Race for the Chase winds down will be hard for Stewart to swallow as he recovers from his broken leg.
Related Content: Full Stewart coverage
Standings: 17th, 594 points

20. Paul Menard       

Outlook: To his credit, Menard has only not finished one race this season, four less than current Wild Card holder Ryan Newman. Unfortunately, plenty of those finishes were far from the top.
Standings: 19th, 559 points

In the rearview

Note: These rankings have been determined by a poll that included writers Kenny Bruce, Holly Cain, David Caraviello and Zack Albert, and video host Alan Cavanna.

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Aaron’s also on board for every Sprint Cup race through 2015

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Brian Vickers will drive the No. 55 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing full-time for the next two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series seasons beginning in 2014, the team announced Tuesday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

The two-year deal for Vickers comes with a two-year renewal from Aaron’s, which will be the car’s primary sponsor for every Sprint Cup race through the end of the 2015 season. The Atlanta-based retailer has been a backer of Waltrip’s car owner efforts on at least a part-time basis since 2000.

“I can’t put into words how this makes me feel,” Vickers said. “I’ve really found my home at MWR over the past few years, and I’ve enjoyed getting to know the Aaron’s associates and customers. I am honored that Aaron’s is welcoming me into their family full-time. Knowing that I have a top-notch team and a dedicated sponsor for a full season is a really great feeling every driver dreams about, and like everyone else, I want to win races and win a championship. Michael and co-owner Rob Kauffman are really building something special at MWR and are giving me the tools to accomplish those goals.”

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Vickers has competed as an alternate driver in Waltrip’s No. 55 the past two seasons, filling in the gaps on the part-time schedule for primary driver Mark Martin, who has yet to announce his 2014 plans.

The highlight of Vickers’ part-time tenure was a victory this season at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 14, a win that snapped a 75-race Sprint Cup drought dating back to August 2009. The victory came during a key point in MWR’s renewal talks with Aaron’s, a fact that likely helped negotiations.

Waltrip has maintained a partnership with Aaron’s since his team launched in 2000.

“The relationship with Aaron’s is very personal to me because they helped place Michael Waltrip Racing on the map in 2000 when I was running a half dozen Nationwide Series races from a small garage in my backyard," Waltrip said. "Now they are enabling MWR to continue its growth as we will have three drivers racing for the NASCAR Sprint Cup championship in 2014 and beyond. So much of this confidence comes from the NASCAR fans who continue to support the sponsors of our teams. I want to sincerely thank the NASCAR fans who are Aaron’s customers because you make this all happen."

The 29-year-old Vickers began his Sprint Cup career from 2004-06 in Hendrick Motorsports No. 25 Chevy, which became the No. 88 team in 2008 for driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. Ironically, Vickers scored his only Cup victory for Hendrick by bumping teammate Jimmie Johnson into Earnhardt in a last-lap battle for the lead at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2006.

Vickers joined the Red Bull Racing team in conjunction with Toyota’s Sprint Cup debut in 2007. In a five-season span, he collected seven Coors Light Pole Awards and one victory (Michigan, August 2009) before the team folded in 2011.

Vickers competed in just 11 Sprint Cup races in 2010, when life-threatening blood clots in his legs and lungs sidelined him. He returned in 2011, scoring just three top-five finishes. Vickers also drew criticism for his involvement in five of the 18 caution periods in a wreck-filled race that October at Martinsville Speedway.

Vickers struggled to latch on to a full-time ride last season, but impressed as a super-sub for Martin. After leading 125 of 500 laps and finishing fifth at Bristol Motor Speedway in his MWR debut, Waltrip expanded his 2012 schedule from six to eight races.

This season, Vickers is on schedule to compete in nine Sprint Cup races for Waltrip’s team. He also filled in for three Sprint Cup races in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota, replacing Denny Hamlin after he suffered a back injury in a last-lap crash at Auto Club Speedway on March 24.

Martin is scheduled for 24 points-paying Sprint Cup races, plus the non-points Sprint Unlimited at Daytona and the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, in the No. 55 car this season. Waltrip, who has dialed back his driving duties since his last full-time season in 2009, is scheduled for three races behind the wheel.

Vickers has competed this season as a full-time driver of Gibbs’ No. 20 Toyota in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. He currently ranks fifth in the series standings, carrying a five-race streak of top-five finishes into this weekend’s inaugural Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 (Saturday, 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

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Posted on by Staff Report

Biffle, who won earlier this year at Michigan, has stats to back him up at track

If it seems like Greg Biffle is always in contention to win at Michigan International Speedway, it’s probably because he is. He has a Sprint Cup series-best average running position of 8.2 at the track, which has put him a good spot to win four times at MIS in his career.

 

 

Posted on by Staff Report

Check back often for the latest stories from this weekend’s NASCAR action

Sprint Cup Series

Pure Michigan 400, Michigan International Speedway, 1 p.m. ET, Sunday, ESPN, on air at noon ET. | ENTRY LIST | WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Featured Story

Logano wins at Michigan

Joey Logano started the race from Coors Light Pole position and ended the same way — running P1. The youngster passed veteran Mark Martin late after Martin ran out of fuel to shake up the Chase picture. | Read the full story

MORE NEWS:
— Johnson’s bad luck continues at Michigan
— Keselowski makes right — but difficult — call
— Highlight Hub: All that is Michigan in video
— Martin watches win pass by as fuel cell empties
— Logano wins Coors Light Pole Award
— Michigan good to Roush, not to Jimmie
— Johnson wrecks in final practice, goes to backup
— Mark Martin addresses rumors, future plans
— To Hamlin, back isn’t only thing that hurts
— Is Larson ready for a Sprint Cup ride?
— Future of Stewart’s No. 14 becoming more clear
— In uncertain future, Montoya just wants to win
— Kurt Busch a possibility for No. 42
— Wild Card Watch: Racing vs. wrecking
— Power Rankings: Hendrick cars take major hits
— Driver Reports: Champ readies for stretch run
— Paint Scheme Preview: Michigan

Nationwide Series

Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, 2:30 p.m. ET, Saturday, ESPN, on air at 2 p.m. ET. | ENTRY LIST | WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Featured Story

Wrecks, tempers abound

The NASCAR Nationwide Series’ first race at Mid-Ohio resulted in an event few will forget — especially the participants involved. There were wrecks, there were collisions and there were spin outs (including one after the checkered flag). And one driver sounded off on the so-called “road-course ringers.” | Read the full story

MORE NEWS:
— Allmendinger dominates at Mid-Ohio
— Runner-up finish bittersweet for McDowell
— ‘Dinger hoping to contend in 2014
— Vickers brings attention back to points race
— Hornish Jr., Vickers top pair of practices
— Hornish Jr. discusses why the time was right to leave Indy
— Paint Scheme Preview: Mid-Ohio
— Hornish eyeing home state win
— Pastranas prepare to welcome baby to their hectic world
— Entry list for Mid-Ohio Nationwide race
— Penske’s No. 22 has what it takes to win

Camping World Truck Series

Michigan National Guard 200, Michigan International Speedway, 12:30 p.m. ET, Saturday, FOX Sports 1, on air at noon ET. | ENTRY LIST | WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Featured Story

Buescher bests Busch

Kyle Busch looked to be headed to his third Camping World Truck Series victory this season at Michigan. Then James Buescher made a late pass, giving the defending series champion his first win of 2013. | Read the full story

MORE NEWS:
— Determined Dillon rallies for third-place finish
— Can Blaney continue success at Michigan?
— Paint Scheme Preview: Michigan
— Entry list for Michigan Truck race
— Gaughn preps to go up against Crafton at MI

MORE:

WATCH: Kyle Busch
Final Laps

VIEW: Full Watkins
Glen coverage

WATCH: Watkins Glen
video highlights

WATCH: What Drives
the 5?