Jim France will unfurl flag for June 22 event, like brother Bill France Jr. did in 1976

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 22, 2013) — A month out from the 90th running of 24 Hours of Le Mans sports car endurance classic, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) today announced that GRAND-AM Road Racing founder and NASCAR Vice-Chairman Jim France will wave the French flag to start the race on Saturday, June 22.

This event is timely, as sports car racing in North America approaches 2014 and a new era under the leadership of France and Don Panoz, the founder of the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) presented by Tequila Patrón. Both France and Panoz are on the board of a new International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) organization which will sanction United SportsCar Racing (USCR), resulting from the ongoing merger of GRAND-AM and the ALMS. Last month the ACO officially endorsed the merger agreement.

Thirty-seven years after his brother, Bill France Jr., was accorded the same honor, Jim France will have the task of lowering the French flag to unleash a 56-car field in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Frances are the sons of Bill France Sr., founder of both NASCAR and IMSA.

The flag France will wave to start the race will be presented during a press conference at Le Mans on June 20 by Panoz and ACO President Pierre Fillon. This year will mark the first time in the 90-year history of the 24 Hours of Le Mans that the start will have been given by two members of the same family.

Said Fillon: "We are particularly honored that Jim France has accepted to give the start to the Le Mans 24 Hours in this very symbolic year, in which we’re celebrating the 90th anniversary of the greatest endurance race in the world. It proves just how close are the links between the club that created endurance racing and the authorities of North American motorsports."

Added France: "I will wave the flag to start next month’s 24 Hours of Le Mans on behalf of the entire North American sports car community. It demonstrates the universal interest in the consolidation of America’s two leading road racing organizations. The world-wide racing community is already anticipating the debut of United SportsCar Racing at the 2014 Rolex 24 At Daytona, with its close association to the ACO and link to the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

"On a personal note, it’s gratifying to serve in a role that my brother Bill performed in 1976. My dad Bill Sr. always appreciated the international appeal of sports car racing, which he felt was epitomized in the 24 Hours of Le Mans."

 

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Flock, Ingram, Jarrett, Petty and Roberts Comprise List Of New Inductees

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 22, 2013) – NASCAR announced today the inductees who will comprise the 2014 class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The five-person group – the fifth in NASCAR Hall of Fame history – consists of Tim Flock, Jack Ingram, Dale Jarrett, Maurice Petty and Fireball Roberts. Next year’s Induction Day is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014, broadcast on Fox Sports 1 from Charlotte, N.C.

WHAT: Hall of Fame Voting Day
WHERE: Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center
WHO VOTES: 21 members of Nominating Committee and 33 members of Voting Panel. In addition, one vote is generated by fan input.
WHO WAS CHOSEN: Tim Flock, Jack Ingram, Dale Jarrett, Maurice Petty and Fireball Roberts
WHEN THE 2014 INDUCTEES WILL BE INDUCTED: Wednesday, January 29, 2014 (Live television coverage provided by FOX Sports 1)

The 54-member NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel met today in a closed session in Charlotte, N.C., to vote on the induction class of 2014. NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France made the announcement this evening in the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s “Great Hall.”

Next year’s class was determined by votes cast by the Voting Panel, which included representatives from NASCAR, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, track owners from major facilities and historic short tracks, media members, manufacturer representatives, retired competitors (drivers, owners, crew chiefs), recognized industry leaders and a nationwide fan vote conducted through NASCAR.com – which counted for the 55th and final vote. The accounting firm of Ernst & Young presided over the tabulation of the votes.

Voting for next year’s class was as follows: Tim Flock (76%), Maurice Petty (67%), Dale Jarrett (56%), Jack Ingram (53%) and Fireball Roberts (51%).

The next top vote getters were Jerry Cook, Joe Weatherly and Wendell Scott.

Results for the NASCAR.com Fan Vote, in alphabetical order, were Richard Childress, Rick Hendrick, Dale Jarrett, Benny Parsons and Fireball Roberts.

The five inductees came from a group of 25 nominees that included:

Red Byron, Richard Childress, Jerry Cook, H. Clay Earles, Tim Flock, Ray Fox, Anne Bledsoe France, Rick Hendrick, Jack Ingram, Bobby Isaac, Dale Jarrett, Fred Lorenzen, Raymond Parks, Benny Parsons, Maurice Petty, Larry Phillips, Les Richter, Fireball Roberts, T. Wayne Robertson, Wendell Scott, Ralph Seagraves, O. Bruton Smith, Curtis Turner, Joe Weatherly and Rex White.

Class of 2014 Inductees:

Tim Flock

A two-time NASCAR premier series champion, Flock was one of the sport’s first dominant drivers. In 187 starts, Flock had 39 victories, a total that still ranks 18th on the all-time wins list. Flock won his first series title in 1952 while driving Ted Chester’s Hudson Hornet, and his second in 1955 driving Carl Kiekhaefer’s Chrysler. He dominated that season, posting 18 wins, 32 top fives and 18 poles in 39 races. Flock’s 18 wins stood as a single-season victory record until Richard Petty surpassed it with 27 wins in 1967.

Jack Ingram

The NASCAR Nationwide Series has had a variety of incarnations through the years but when considered collectively, an argument can be made that Jack Ingram is the series’ all-time greatest driver. Before the formation of the series, Ingram won three consecutive championships, from 1972-74, in its precursor – the Late Model Sportsman Division. When the NASCAR Busch Series was formed, he won the inaugural title in 1982 and again in ’85. In his 10 years of competition in what was called the NASCAR Busch Series, Ingram had 31 wins, a record that stood until Mark Martin broke it in 1997. All but two of Ingram’s 31 wins came on short tracks.

Dale Jarrett

Dale Jarrett personified big-stage performances. A three-time Daytona 500 winner and two-time winner of the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Jarrett excelled under NASCAR’s brightest spotlights. His 32 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victories – 21st all-time – also include the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Jarrett won the 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship, and recorded six additional top-five championship finishes. With father Ned, the Jarretts are only the second father-son combination with NASCAR premier series championships after NASCAR Hall of Famers Lee and Richard Petty. Ned Jarrett was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in May 2011. Ned and Dale Jarrett become the third father-son duo selected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame, following Bill France Sr. and Bill France Jr., and Lee and Richard Petty.

Maurice Petty

The chief engine builder at Petty Enterprises, Maurice Petty becomes the fourth member of the dynasty to be chosen for membership in the NASCAR Hall of Fame – following his older brother Richard, father Lee and his cousin Dale Inman. The man simply called “Chief” supplied the horsepower that propelled Richard Petty to a majority of his record 200 NASCAR victories, plus his seven NASCAR premier series championships and seven Daytona 500 victories. Lee Petty, Buddy Baker, Jim Paschal and Pete Hamilton were also among those who won with his engines. Petty had a brief driving career – 26 premier series races with seven top-five and 16 top-10 finishes between 1960 and 1964 – but was satisfied to work behind the scenes as one of the top engine builders ever seen in the sport.

Fireball Roberts

Glenn Roberts, who got his legendary nickname from his days as a hard-throwing pitcher in high school, is perhaps the greatest driver never to win a NASCAR title. He was arguably stock car racing’s first superstar, an immensely popular prototype for some of today’s competitors who are stars on and off the track. During his career he often came up big in the biggest events, winning the Daytona 500 in 1962 and the Southern 500 in 1958 and ’63. Overall, he won seven races at Daytona International Speedway, starting with the Firecracker 250 in the summer of 1959 – the year the speedway opened.

About NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States. NASCAR consists of three national series (the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series), four regional series, one local grassroots series, three international series and GRAND-AM Road Racing and the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón, both known for competition on road courses. Based in Daytona Beach, Fla., with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information, visit www.nascar.com and follow NASCAR at www.facebook.com/NASCAR and Twitter: @NASCAR.

About the NASCAR Hall of Fame

Conveniently located in Uptown Charlotte, N.C., the 150,000-square-foot NASCAR Hall of Fame is an interactive, entertainment attraction honoring the history and heritage of NASCAR. The high-tech venue, designed to educate and entertain race fans and non-fans alike, opened May 11, 2010, and includes artifacts, hands-on exhibits, 278-person state-of-the-art theater, Hall of Honor, Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant, NASCAR Hall of Fame Gear Shop and NASCAR Media Group-operated broadcast studio. The venue is open 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. seven days a week and has an attached parking garage on Brevard Street. The five-acre site also includes a privately developed 19-story office tower and 102,000-square-foot expansion to the Charlotte Convention Center, highlighted by a 40,000 square-foot ballroom. The NASCAR Hall of Fame is owned by the City of Charlotte, licensed by NASCAR and operated by the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority. www.nascarhall.com

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Follow here live as  NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2014 is announced

Live stream of announcement | NASCAR Hall of Fame hub page

6:15 p.m. ET: The inductees will be honored on January 29, 2014.

6:14 p.m. ET: So there you have it, folks. The NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2014 is Tim Flock, Maurice Petty, Dale Jarrett, Jack Ingram, and Fireball Roberts.

6:12 p.m. ET: And finally, the final member of the 2014 class is Fireball Roberts, owner of 33 NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series wins, including the 1962 Daytona 500. Read more about him and see his career statistics here.

6:11 p.m. ET: Our penultimate member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2014 is Jack Ingram, a two-time NASCAR Busch (now Nationwide) Series champion and three-time Late Model Sportsman champion. Read more about him and see his career stats here.

6:10 p.m. ET: Dale Jarrett joins his father Ned in the Hall.

6:09 p.m. ET: Our third NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee is Dale Jarrett, the 1999 NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion and three-time Daytona 500 winner. Read more about him and see some of his stats here.

6:07 p.m ET: The next inductee is "one of the finest men to ever turn a wrench", Maurice Petty. Petty is a brother to Richard Petty and chief engine builder for Petty Enterprises. Read more about the younger brother of “The King” here.

6:06 p.m. ET: France unveils the first member of the 2014 class: Tim Flock. Flock is a two-time NASCAR premier (now Sprint Cup) series champion. Read more about him and see his career stats here.

6:05 p.m. ET: NASCAR chairman Brian France takes the stage to announce the inductees.

6:04 p.m. ET: Jewkes: "Only one vote was required this year."

6:02 p.m. ET: NASCAR VP Brett Jewkes gets us started, addressing the Charlotte crowd.

6 p.m. ET: What he said.

Alan Cavanna @CopaCavanna
Here we go. Log on to NASCAR.com for the live stream of the @NASCARHall inductees.

5:53 p.m. ET: An interesting outfit choice for a potential future Hall of famer.

David Caraviello ‏@dcaraviello 3m
The King and the Chief — Richard Petty his brother Maurice — have arrived. So has Dale Jarrett, rocking the Hawaiian shirt causal look.

5:50 p.m. ET: The stage.
David Caraviello ‏@dcaraviello 4m
We are moments away from revealing the next five members of the #NASCAR Hall of Fame. https://instagram.com/p/ZoSr8NsqqS/

Photo by dcaraviello

5:48 p.m. ET: Yes, that’s Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace signing autographs ahead of the announcement of who will be joining him in NASCAR history.

Alan Cavanna ‏@CopaCavanna 7m
A lot of recognizable faces here @nascarhall, including inductee @rustywallace pic.twitter.com/YqjM3mWDjd

Media preview

 

5:43 p.m. ET: NASCAR.com’s Alan Cavanna has his votes in. Do you?

Alan Cavanna ‏@CopaCavanna 34m
I’ve written my picks on a napkin and sealed it in envelope. If I’m right, i’ll boast forever. If not, forget I sent this tweet. @NASCARHall

5:39 p.m. ET: As a reminder, you can watch a live stream of the Class of 2014 announcement via NASCAR.com here.

5:37 p.m ET: Thanks for joining the Hall of Fame edition of minute-by-minute. Let’s get things started by announcing that there were no ties this year in voting for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2014, courtesy of NASCAR.com’s Kenny Bruce.

Kenny Bruce ‏@kennybruce 22m
In case you’re wondering, no ties this year in @NASCARHall voting. 2014 class to be revealed 6 p.m. Streamed live https://NASCAR.com .

 

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Vital stats for Charlotte Coca-Cola 600 weekend

Related: Complete Charlotte coverage

Track: Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. 1.5 miles, paved asphalt surface, 24-degree banking in all four turns. Five-degree banking in front and backstretches. Frontstretch is 1,980 feet and backstretch is 1,500 feet.
Time/TV: The Coca-Cola 600 (400 laps),  6 p.m. ET, Sunday, May 26. TV: FOX (coverage starts at 5:30 p.m. ET), Radio: PRN

Trailblazers:  The first Sprint Cup Series race at Charlotte was held on June 19, 1960 and won by Joe Lee Johnson. NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty leads the series with 31 top-five finishes at Charlotte.

0.027 seconds was the closest margin of victory since the advent of electronic scoring at Charlotte Motor Speedway, when Jimmie Johnson beat Bobby Labonte on May 29, 2005.

1 green-white-checkerd finish in the history of the Coca-Cola 600, which came in 2011.

4  active drivers have posted their first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Jeff Gordon (10/10/93), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (5/28/00), Ryan Newman (5/27/01) and Aric Almirola (5/27/12). Almirola’s pole last season was the first time since May 22, 1966 that the No. 43 car had won the Coors Light pole at CMS.

5 of the 108 races at Charlotte Motor Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was the 2009 Coca-Cola 600 won by David Reutimann and Michael Waltrip Racing. Four of the five races shortened were the 600-mile events (1968, 1997, 2003 and 2009).  

active NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers have posted their first career win at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Jeff Gordon (5/29/94), Bobby Labonte (5/28/95), Matt Kenseth (5/28/00), Jamie McMurray (10/13/02), Casey Mears (5/27/07) and David Reutimann (5/25/09).

times from seven different drivers has the winner of the NASCAR Sprint All-Star race gone on to win the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Darrell Waltrip (1985), Davey Allison (1991), Dale Earnhardt (1993), Jeff Gordon (1997), Jimmie Johnson (2003), Kasey Kahne (2008) and Kurt Busch (2010).

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8  different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Charlotte; led by Chevrolet with 40 victories; followed by Ford with 28.

drivers have posted consecutive wins at Charlotte Motor Speedway, including three consecutive by Fred Lorenzen (fall 1964 and both 1965) and four straight by Jimmie Johnson (both in 2004 and 2005).

12 drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Charlotte. David Pearson holds the record for most consecutive poles at Charlotte with 11; from the fall of 1973 through 1978.

14  of the 108 (12.9%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Charlotte have been won from the Coors Light pole; the two most recent were Jimmie Johnson in 2004 and 2009.

17  wins at Charlotte Motor Speedway for Hendrick Motorsports, the most wins at Charlotte in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 17: Jimmie Johnson (six), Jeff Gordon (five), Darrell Waltrip (two), Ken Schrader (one), Terry Labonte (one), Casey Mears (one) and Kasey Kahne (one). 

22 was the age of Jeff Gordon when he became the youngest pole winner at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1993. He was 22 years, 2 months, and 6 days.

31  of the 108 (28.7%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Charlotte have been won from the front row: 14 from the pole and 17 from second-place.

33  starts without a victory for Joe Nemechek, the most among active drivers. Dale Earnhardt Jr. follows him with 26.

36  attempts before his first win at Charlotte for Bobby Labonte, the most all-time among active drivers.

37th  was Jimmie Johnson’s winning position in the 2003 Coca-Cola 600, the deepest in the field a driver has won the race.
41
drivers have Coors Light poles at Charlotte, led by David Pearson with 14. Ryan Newman leads all active drivers in poles, with nine, followed by Jeff Gordon with eight.

45 different drivers have won at Charlotte Motor Speedway, led by Darrell Waltrip, Bobby Allison and Jimmie Johnson with six wins each.

49  was the age of Bobby Allison when he  became the oldest pole winner at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1987. He was 49 years, 10 months, and 8 days.

57 starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway by Terry Labonte, the most among active drivers. Mark Martin has 56.

64 starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway by NASCAR Hall of Hamer Richard Petty to lead the series.

83 of the 108 (76.8%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Charlotte have been won from a top-10 starting position.

108 points races have taken place at Charlotte Motor Speedway; two per year since the track opened in 1960.

133.904 is the winning pole speed of Fireball Roberts in the inaugural qualification at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

364 drivers have competed in more than one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points paying race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

517 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points paying race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

1,439 laps led at Charlotte for Jimmie Johnson to lead all active drivers.

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Logano logs the fastest lap during testing at CMS

Related: History 300 entry list and test results

CONCORD, N.C. — Joey Logano led the way on test day for the NASCAR Nationwide Series at Charlotte Motor Speedway, clocking a lap of 178.247 mph Wednesday in his second circuit around the 1.5-mile track.

Logano, driving a Penske Racing Ford, was just ahead of a trio of Toyotas on the speed chart in the four-hour session. Standout rookie Alex Bowman (178.071 mph) was second-fastest in a Robby Benton-owned Camry, just ahead of Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch (177.866) and Matt Kenseth (177.702).

"Yeah we were really happy with the Discount Tire car today. With four hours of practice and the ability to get data on these cars, you can try a lot of things and learn a lot about different ideas that you may have.

"We got the baseline setup pretty good and I feel that we were fast and have a really good car. Then we spent some time just trying different ideas to see what worked and what didn’t. That’s the good thing about these test days. You have plenty of time to try some things out that you might not have time for during regular practice. Now we will talk with our teammate and see what they thought and put our heads together to make these Penske cars the best out here. This 22 car is the defending winner, so I really want to repeat that."

Trevor Bayne was fifth-best in the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford.

Series points leader Regan Smith, the Nationwide series points leader, was 14th-fastest at 176.765 mph in a JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Sam Hornish Jr., his closest pursuer in the standings, was 18th out of 43 cars participating in the extra test session.

The History 300, the 10th race of the season for the Nationwide tour, is scheduled Saturday at 2:45 p.m. ET (ABC).

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Do-everything Meade has history with NASCAR, military

Robin Meade leads a busy life. The host of HLN’s “Morning Express with Robin Meade” is also a best-selling author and country music singer, with her second album scheduled to come out June 12.

She’s also become visible in the NASCAR world by singing the national anthem at multiple events — including at Daytona in 2012 and Talladega for the Aaron’s 499 this year — and hosting drivers on her television show.

Meade will sing the national anthem before the 54th running of the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. She’s a natural fit for the Memorial Day weekend race, which launches the “NASCAR: An American Salute” initiative, given her background of supporting the military.

I know you’re a NASCAR fan, you’ve been to a lot of different NASCAR races over the years, how excited were you to be at Talladega?

“It’s an iconic race track and it stands out as unique from many of the others. I was glad I came (a day early) and just got a peek of the grandstands because I think I would have had a heart attack had I just drove up underneath the tunnel and just saw how many stands are right there. There’s something about every track that is so different.”

Does singing the anthem in front of a bunch of people make you nervous?

"I’d like to say that no, it doesn’t make me nervous, but there’s always adrenaline flowing when you’re going to sing in front of so many people and, I don’t know, 7 or 8 million on FOX. But it’s an excitement that I really enjoy."

What situations do make you nervous?

"What does make me nervous? Jumping out of planes with former presidents (laughs). Every now and then, I don’t get nervous, but I do put a lot of pressure on myself to make sure I sing it the way people want to hear it."

I think you also had a guest, a reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, Brad Keselowski, on your show recently.

"Yeah, Brad Keselowski was on the show, and I played Mario Kart with him while questioning him. That was the whole thing, because I didn’t just want it to be talking heads on TV. I was impressed with Brad. When I saw him on the SPEED channel at the Sprint Cup awards, I thought ‘Oh boy, gosh, this is a tough thing for a young driver to have to get up and deliver a speech as the reigning Sprint Cup title holder.’ And I was really impressed with him."

What was he like on your show?

I wasn’t just going to give him softies. I asked him about his 25-point penalty, the rear-housing. He held his own. He communicates really well. I was impressed with him. One of our viewers asked a question while playing Mario Kart, and I was trying to distract him … but the viewer asked ‘Who’s your favorite driver, Kyle Busch or Carl Edwards?’, and he laughed.”

We also wanted to ask you about your “Salute the Troops” segment, how did that get going?

"Each hour (on the show), we do a salute to the troops where it’s really the family members who come on. I love it because it’s the family members of the people who serve. So many times I feel like the family members don’t get the credit that they deserve, because they hold down the fort when that person is away preserving our freedom.

"That started about seven years ago. I happened to hold up a cup on the air that was from an army base. Well if you know anything about the military, you don’t say one branch without saying the other two (laughs) … we just realized that was a segment of our demographic, our viewership, really felt need to recognize their loved ones who are serving.”

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A true pioneer of the sport, Flock’s legend continues to grow

RELATED: NASCAR Hall of Fame hub page

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Tim Flock had his good luck charm in the early days of stock-car racing. Six decades later at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Frances Flock had hers, too, paying homage to her late husband’s former racing primate sidekick.

Wearing a print dress adorned with tastefully illustrated monkeys, the 85-year-old widow of a true NASCAR pioneer heard her husband’s name called first on voting day as the top vote-getter in the 2014 class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame. With her son, Carl, beside her, the family didn’t have to wait long, yelping with a fist pump after the first envelope was opened Wednesday evening.

"I was very surprised and very shocked," Frances Flock said, moments after the presentation. "I’m still just shaking all over."

Tim Flock’s credentials established him as one of stock car racing’s earliest superstars, becoming just the second two-time champion in NASCAR’s premier series. His 39 wins still rank 18th on the all-time victory list, and his career winning percentage of 20.9% will likely never be seen again (for comparison’s sake, five-time champ Jimmie Johnson‘s career Sprint Cup winning percentage sits at 15.1%).

WHAT: Hall of Fame Voting Day
WHERE: Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center
WHO VOTES: 21 members of Nominating Committee and 33 members of Voting Panel. In addition, one vote is generated by fan input.
WHO WAS CHOSEN: Tim Flock, Jack Ingram, Dale Jarrett, Maurice Petty and Fireball Roberts
WHEN THE 2014 INDUCTEES WILL BE INDUCTED: Wednesday, January 29, 2014 (Live television coverage provided by FOX Sports 1)

For all the otherworldly stats, even more impressive is Frances Flock’s memory in reciting her husband’s numbers. She shrewdly highlighted his 18-win championship season of 1955, with 18 poles and 32 top-five finishes in just 39 races, driving a peerless Chrysler 300.

"He raced in every division — modified, Grand National, Strictly Stock," she says. "He still holds records that won’t be broken, so he was really a pioneer to racing."

The statistics weren’t lost on Richard Petty, an inaugural-class Hall of Famer and the owner of the roundest number in all of NASCAR — 200 career wins. Flock’s determination and savvy behind the wheel were enough to earn The King’s vote when final ballots were cast.

"I have never in my life seen a smoother driver than what Tim was," said Petty, who avidly followed Flock’s career as a teenager starting his racing career through the 1950s. "When I started along, I said look, he’s one of the guys that I want to be as good as, be as smooth as what he is. A lot of times he was in a race and you’d never know he was in it, until they threw the checkered flag and he’d won it."

Said Carl Flock: "Coming from the King, saying how smooth Daddy was? That’s a big honor."

Flock may have been as well known for his on-track accomplishments as his gimmick, a monkey named Jocko Flocko that joined him in the car for a handful of races in the early 1950s. Frances Flock lovingly told the story of her husband starting from the pole position and watching the second-place starter promptly wreck in the first turn after seeing a monkey riding shotgun on the passenger side.

Just for good luck, Frances Flock carried Jocko’s memory with her choice of attire Wednesday night.

Flock’s enshrinement, scheduled Jan. 29, 2014, will help his name resonate with a demographic that was never able to watch him race. Then again, Frances Flock has been doing her part in spreading the word for some time now, selling memorabilia that includes a biography, postcards, die-cast models and even some signed items. She continues to operate a small museum near her home of Indian Land, S.C., and will set up shop Thursday at a Concord, N.C., Walmart store near Charlotte Motor Speedway ahead of Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600.

"I still travel and go to the old car shows and memorabilia shows around when people invite me," Frances Flock said. "Tim’s stuff is still selling real well. I guess it’ll really go well now."

After Wednesday’s announcement, she’ll have to save some memorabilia for his exhibit next year in the building’s Hall of Honor.

"He kind of broke the ground for guys nowadays," Frances Flock said. "They didn’t have firesuits, didn’t have anything but a strap across his waist — no harnesses or anything that they have now. For him to have come through all the years that he races and wasn’t ever injured, it was a miracle. I think that all the drivers in the ’40s, ’50s and ’60s set the groundwork for the drivers today. It’s just a wonderful thrill for him to finally be in the Hall of Fame."

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Engine-builder was behind success of Petty drivers

RELATED: NASCAR Hall of Fame hub page

Maurice Petty watched in 2010 as his brother, Richard, was among the first five members enshrined in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
 
A year later, he spoke on behalf of the family’s father, Lee, when the Petty patriarch was welcomed into the hall.
 
In 2012, it was cousin Dale Inman, the eight-time championship-winning crew chief, whose name was called.
 
And now, Maurice Petty will join his legendary family members, as the man known as “Chief” will be one of five new inductees entering the hall in 2014.
 
“Never did. Didn’t then and don’t right now,” NASCAR’s most successful engine builder said when asked if he’d felt passed over in previous years.
 
“It really makes me happy, because that means I was part of all of them getting in. They’ve got all of us in now.”

WHAT: Hall of Fame Voting Day
WHERE: Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center
WHO VOTES: 21 members of Nominating Committee and 33 members of Voting Panel. In addition, one vote is generated by fan input.
WHO WAS CHOSEN: Tim Flock, Jack Ingram, Dale Jarrett, Maurice Petty and Fireball Roberts
WHEN THE 2014 INDUCTEES WILL BE INDUCTED: Wednesday, January 29, 2014 (Live television coverage provided by FOX Sports 1)

Petty said that, when his name was called out during the 6 p.m. ceremony in the Great Hall of the Hall of Fame, “the hair on the back of my neck just stood up. It really did."
 
“It’s great. Golly, it’s great. That’s all I can say.”
 
Petty built the engines that carried his brother to 198 of his NASCAR record 200 career wins. He also built engines that put drivers such as Buddy Baker, Pete Hamilton and Jim Paschal in victory lane.
 
“I was one of the first (engine builders), so it makes you like a pioneer or something,” Petty said. “We had three or four guys helping out, but not the whole time. We did it the hard way.
 
“I came along and I have welded, swept the floors and I drove. I did it all up until a point — in 1964, that’s when I turned it all into building the engines.”
 
Petty earned seven top-five finishes in 26 starts as a driver.
 
Joining him in the class of 2014 are premier series champions Tim Flock and Dale Jarrett, two-time Busch (now Nationwide) Series champion Jack Ingram and Fireball Roberts, considered by many to be stock car racing’s first true superstar.
 
Petty, who was named on 67 percent of the ballots cast by the voting panel, said he wasn’t overly optimistic that his name would be called.
 
“It’s a 50-50 chance any way you look at it,” he said. “Like we always said when we came home from a race and we’d either blown up or crashed: there’s always another race next week.”
 
Richard Petty, who is two years older than Maurice, said that without his younger brother’s talents, “then there wouldn’t have been a Richard Petty or a Lee Petty or a Dale Inman accomplishing the things that (we) did accomplish.
 
“He is the engine man that everybody has to compete against.”
 
Leonard Wood, whose Wood Brothers Racing team often found itself going head to head with Petty Enterprises for supremacy in the sport, said Maurice “was doing just about everything right."
 
“A very tough competitor who took his job very seriously,” Wood, inducted into the Hall earlier this year, said.
 
“You’ve got all those people you know you have to beat each and every week, but you knew when you went out that if you could beat him, you could win the race.
 
“All those years he built all those engines for the Pettys, his engines always ran up front; just very hard to beat.”
 
Flock earned 76 percent of the vote, followed by Petty, Jarrett (56 percent), Ingram (53 percent) and Roberts (51 percent).
 
Among those outside the top five also receiving votes were six-time Modified champion Jerry Cook; two-time premier series champ Joe Weatherly and Wendell Scott.
 
Induction for the 2014 class is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2014.

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Driver known for his success in the former Nationwide Series

RELATED: NASCAR Hall of Fame hub page

If Jack Ingram attacks his duties as a member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame as tenaciously as he drove a race car, officials with the Hall may have their best ambassador yet.
 
Ingram, known as the Iron Man of NASCAR’s Busch (now Nationwide) Series, was one of five drivers chosen Wednesday for the class of 2014. He was joined by premier series champions Tim Flock and Dale Jarrett, legendary engine builder Maurice Petty, and Fireball Roberts, the first nationally recognized superstar in stock car racing.
 
“This is the finest thing,” a surprised Ingram said moments after his name had been called. “I’m not going to let this Hall of Fame or NASCAR down. I’m going to do everything I can to represent these people in the best kind of way, and will spend all my time doing that.”
 
Prior to the formation of the Busch Series in 1982, Ingram dominated the competition in what was then known as the Late Model Sportsman division, winning back-to-back-to-back championships in 1972, ’73 and ’74.

WHAT: Hall of Fame Voting Day
WHERE: Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center
WHO VOTES: 21 members of Nominating Committee and 33 members of Voting Panel. In addition, one vote is generated by fan input.
WHO WAS CHOSEN: Tim Flock, Jack Ingram, Dale Jarrett, Maurice Petty and Fireball Roberts
WHEN THE 2014 INDUCTEES WILL BE INDUCTED: Wednesday, January 29, 2014 (Live television coverage provided by FOX Sports 1)

He captured the inaugural Busch Series title in 1982, and then scored a second championship in the series in ’85.
 
During his 10 years in the series, he won 31 times, a record that stood until 1997.
 
“He was very dedicated to the sport,” 2011 Hall of Fame inductee Ned Jarrett said of Ingram. “He was one of the first to win a lot of championships; he dedicated his life to it and even after he quit driving he continued to help others along the way.”
 
Ingram’s short-track prowess was legendary, and 29 of his 31 career victories came on tracks under 1 mile in length. That the series’ schedule was dominated by the smaller venues at that time had much to do with that — only nine of the 27 races in ’85 were held on tracks one mile or longer.
 
His big-track wins were just as impressive — and just as memorable.
 
In 1975, he beat rookie Joe Millikan to earn the win at Daytona International Speedway in a 300-mile Sportsman affair.
 
“The first time I won Daytona, I came down that pit road and it was like you had turned on an air conditioner; everything got real cool and quiet,” Ingram said. “This is about equal to that (feeling).
 
“You never know. You just never know what’s going to happen (in the voting process). This is probably the best feeling I’ve had in a long time.”
 
In addition to his 31 wins, Ingram ended his Busch Series career with 122 top-five and 164 top-10 finishes in 275 starts.
 
Ingram received 53 percent of the vote cast by members of the Hall of Fame voting panel. Flock led the voting for the five-member class with 76 percent, while Petty was named on 67 percent of the ballots.
 
Jarrett was named on 56 percent while Roberts appeared on 51 percent.
 
Those receiving votes but failing to make the top five included six-time Modified champion Jerry Cook, Joe Weatherly and Wendell Scott.
 
A single vote included in the 55 total votes cast was determined by the NASCAR.com fan vote. Results of that poll were (in alphabetical order) Richard Childress, Rick Hendrick, Jarrett, Benny Parsons and Roberts.
 
The five new members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame will be officially inducted Jan. 29, 2014.

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NASCAR’s first superstar, modified legend on the cusp of making the Hall’s fifth class

NASCAR Hall of Fame hub page

Fireball Roberts, considered the first nationally recognized star to emerge in NASCAR, is one of the five names many expect to be called Wednesday evening when the 2014 NASCAR Hall of Fame class is announced.

And if the previous year’s voting results are any indication, the names of six-time Modified champion Jerry Cook and two-time premier series champ Tim Flock could be heard as well.

“You sit there and think, ‘Well, maybe this is it,’” Cook said May 21, “but you never know. It’ll work on you for sure.”

Roberts, Cook and Flock all garnered votes a year ago when the voting panel for the Hall of Fame met to select the five inductees for the class of 2013.

WHAT: Hall of Fame Voting Day
WHEN:
Wednesday, May 22 (1-4 p.m. ET)
WHERE: Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center
WHO VOTES: 21 members of Nominating Committee and 33 members of Voting Panel. In addition, one vote is generated by fan input.
HOW MANY ARE CHOSEN: Five
WHEN THE 2014 INDUCTEES WILL BE REVEALED: 6 p.m. ET (Streamed live on NASCAR.com; live television coverage provided by SPEED)

Roberts, a winner of 33 premier series races, including the Daytona 500 and two Southern 500s, actually tied with two-time series champ Buck Baker for the fifth and final spot.

A second vote featuring only the names of Baker and Roberts was taken, with Baker earning the nod for the hall’s fourth class.

Cook was No. 7 when the initial votes were tallied while Flock was No. 8 on the list.

In previous years, many of those who have earned votes but failed to be selected have been chosen the following year. That was the case for David Pearson and Bobby Allison in 2010, Cale Yarborough and Darrell Waltrip the following year, and Cotton Owens and Herb Thomas in 2012.

Will the numbers line up for Roberts, Cook and Flock this time?

Cook, a winner of an astounding 342 Modified races, knows there are no guarantees. Last year’s near miss wasn’t his first brush with hall of fame consideration. It was the second year he had garnered votes, but fallen just shy.

“It’s just one of those things,” Cook, competition administrator for the sanctioning body, said. “Fortunately, I’ve got enough going on to keep my mind off of it.

“I’m excited and hopeful. I’ve been close for two years now. But also being that I’m involved in it (as a member of the nominating committee), I know that a whole lot of folks on that list, and a whole lot of those who are not on it, are just as deserving."

He’s pleased that the voting panel has looked beyond those who left their mark in the Cup series. Fellow Modified standout Richie Evans was inducted in 2012, while two-time Busch (now Nationwide) champion and three-time Late Model Sportsman Division champ Jack Ingram has been on the ballot since 2011. Larry Phillips, a five-time champ in NASCAR’s Weekly Racing Series, was a new addition to the list of nominees for 2014.

“I’ve worked in everything from Street Stocks out in God only knows where to the Cup series, and it’s all NASCAR,” Cook said. “(The hall) isn’t just Cup.

“Whether it’s a Modified or the Weekly Racing Series … Larry was a big part in that weekly program. He was a hard racer, a real racer.

“I think it’s not looked at as Cup only, but it’s good to see those names to validate that.”

While his good looks and catchy nickname certainly helped his popularity, his success on the track enabled Roberts to quickly became an established star in the sport.

He won multiple races seven out of eight years between 1956-63, including a career best eight in 1957.

Flock, who won 39 times, and Joe Weatherly are the only two drivers with multiple titles at the Cup level that are not yet in the hall.

In 1955, Flock won an amazing 18 races in 39 starts for car owner Carl Kiekhaefer.

The five names chosen for the 2014 class will be announced at 6 p.m. today. The announcement will be streamed live on NASCAR.com while live television coverage will be provided by SPEED.

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