Posted on by John Crane

Editor’s Note: Today’s Rick Ware Racing preview continues NASCAR.com’s countdown of team previews for the 2024 Cup Series season.

RICK WARE RACING

Manufacturer: Ford
Engine: Roush Yates Engines
Driver-crew chief pairings: Kaz Grala and others-Billy Plourde (No. 15), Justin Haley-Chris Lawson (No. 51)

Team outlook: Rick Ware Racing will have a new look to its driver operation in 2024, with Grala and Haley piloting the majority and the entirety of the season, respectively. The 2023 campaign saw a collection of a dozen drivers pilot RWR Fords, with the team tallying two top-10 finishes, both at superspeedways (Daytona International Speedway in February and Atlanta Motor Speedway in July). Haley and Grala will be two brand-new additions to the Ford team, with their combined Cup experience solely stemming from Chevrolet camps. Together, these two drivers, in conjunction with additional part-timers in the No. 15, will look to cash in on more superspeedway success in the future. And who knows, perhaps this success can branch into other track departments, too.

KAZ GRALA AND OTHERS, NO. 15 FORD

Experience: 7 starts in the NASCAR Cup Series (Grala)
2023 stats: 17th in final Xfinity Series standings; 0 wins, 2 top fives, 9 top 10s (Grala)
2024 championship odds (DraftKings): N/A

Outlook: If there’s one area Grala has excelled in, it’s in national series experience. Through the 2023 season, the 25-year-old has piloted 77 races in the NASCAR Xfinity Series — including a full-time season with Sam Hunt Racing in 2023 — and 51 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. This experience should pay dividends while racing under the RWR moniker in 2024, with Grala scheduled to drive in 25 races for the team. Grala’s most recent Cup participation came in 2022 when he drove the No. 50 Chevrolet for TMT Racing. His two best finishes in the series are sixth at Talladega Superspeedway in 2021 and seventh at the Daytona International Speedway road course in 2020.

The 25-race stint will be ample opportunity for Grala to get acclimated to consistent driving time in the Cup Series. With five of his seven career Cup races coming at Daytona, Talladega or Charlotte Motor Speedway, there is a touch of superspeedway experience he brings as well. His 2023 Xfinity stint with Sam Hunt Racing additionally saw Grala excel at short tracks and road courses, with top-10 finishes at Bristol Motor Speedway, Richmond Raceway and the Chicago Street Course, to name a few. Although this success came in a different car compared to the Next Gen model, this experience can’t hurt to have on file as he navigates a bigger Cup workload. Such experience could be something both Grala and his new team can use to build more upward momentum.

RELATED: Grala’s career NASCAR stats

JUSTIN HALEY, NO. 51 FORD

Experience: Two full-time seasons in the NASCAR Cup Series
2023 stats: 26th in final standings; 1 top five, 6 top 10s
2024 championship odds (DraftKings): 400-1

Outlook: 2024 will mark a transition of sorts for the 24-year-old, who will move from the bowtie to the blue oval. The Indiana native departs from Kaulig Racing, where, in two full-time Cup seasons, compiled four top fives, 10 top 10s and led 68 laps, with 23 of those circuits coming in a runner-up finish during the inaugural Chicago Street Race. This contest also doubled as Haley’s best Cup finish outside of his victory at Daytona with Spire Motorsports in 2018. In addition to his lone Cup win, Haley additionally boasts two Xfinity wins apiece at Daytona and Talladega.

A superspeedway acumen has followed Haley since his time in the Xfinity with Kaulig. With a touch more seasoning, Haley can perhaps take another upward trajectory there and in other track types, too. Every young Cup driver undertakes a learning curve, and in RWR’s case, they will look for this learning curve to vault Haley forward in terms of on-track consistency.

RELATED: Haley’s career NASCAR stats | Haley discusses move to RWR

BOLD PREDICTION: Haley matches his single-season top-five finish total (three in 2022) at the minimum in 2024. The saying goes that anything can, well, go at a superspeedway. Sometimes, being at the right place at the right time makes all the difference. Luckily for Haley, there is past superspeedway experience that could help the young driver find the right time to strike. Couple that with two career top-five finishes on road courses — including a runner-up result at Chicago last season — and there is a perfect storm for Haley to put together a successful debut season with RWR.

NASCAR.com 2024 team previews schedule

Jan. 15: Legacy Motor Club
Jan. 16: Spire Motorsports
Jan. 17: Kaulig Racing
Jan. 18: Wood Brothers Racing
Jan. 22: Rick Ware Racing
Jan. 23: Richard Childress Racing
Jan. 24: Stewart-Haas Racing
Jan. 25: Front Row Motorsports
Jan. 26: JTG Daugherty Racing
Jan. 29: Trackhouse Racing
Jan. 30: RFK Racing
Feb. 6: 23XI Racing
Feb. 7: Joe Gibbs Racing
Feb. 8: Hendrick Motorsports
Feb. 9: Team Penske

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

One year ago, Kole Raz fell just a few feet short of winning the Chilly Willy 150 at Tucson Speedway.

On Saturday night at the 3/8-mile oval, Raz made up for that defeat by holding off 2023 ARCA Menards Series West champion Sean Hingorani for his first victory in the prestigious, season-opening event.

Raz dominated the second half of the race, which was marred by more than a dozen yellows and multiple red flags. With 78 laps to go, he took the lead from Kyle Reid, who fell out of the race shortly after following a tire failure.

RELATED: Complete results from the 2024 Chilly Willy 150

Raz spent the rest of the race battling Hinograni for the lead. Hingorani challenged Raz for the lead during every restart, but each time, once Raz got a few laps under his belt, he pulled away.

The final caution flag waved with nine laps left, when Joe Paladenic made contact with the outside wall and subsequently slowed to a stop.

Hingorani gave it his all during the final nine-lap dash to the checkered flag and was able to get to Raz’s bumper with a few laps left, but he was unable to complete the pass. Raz held on for the victory to earn the $15,000 top prize.

“I love racing here; it’s so much fun. [It has] multi-lane abilities, and it just provides some great racing,” Raz said. “I’ve been wanting this one for a while.”

Kasey Kleyn finished third, with the father-son pairing of Bruce and Brett Yackey finishing fourth and fifth, respectively.

John Dillon, Zandar Peters, Rudy Vanderwal, Darrell Midgley and David Smith completed the top-10. Only eight of the 28 starters finished on the lead lap.

Posted on by Staff Report

11th annual Chilly Willy

Tucson Speedway

Unbroken

  • Race Results
Pos. Car No. Driver Difference
1 27 Kole Raz —
2 13H Sean Hingorani 0.609
3 1K Kasey Kleyn 2.508
4 12 Bruce Yackey 4.257
5 32 Brett Yackey 4.305
6 11 John Dillon 5.756
7 69P Zandar Peters 5.850
8 34 Rudy Vanderwal 7.937
9 81 Darrell Midgley 1 Lap
10 05 David Smith 4 Laps
11 63 Joe Paladenic 11 Laps
12 57 Jennifer Hall 23 Laps
13 22P Ryan Phipps 24 Laps
14 14C Brandon Carlson 24 Laps
15 52 Ryan Philpott 27 Laps
16 54 Jake Bollman 30 Laps
17 26 Dylan Jones 39 Laps
18 43 Kody Vanderwal 71 Laps
19 42 Kyle Reid 74 Laps
20 14 Vanessa Robinson 83 Laps
21 7 Zachary Riehl 84 Laps
22 3C Cassidy Hinds 93 Laps
23 80 Andre Prescott 93 Laps
24 1H Tyler Herzog 95 Laps
25 82 Michael Scott 114 Laps
26 5 Garret Archer 135 Laps
27 8 Mariah McGriff 135 Laps
28 36J Jeff Hillock 145 Laps
Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — “They were just honestly the best.”

There is perhaps no better, more succinct way to define newly minted NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus at their peak on the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team.

The numbers are absurd — and speak for themselves with a record-tying seven NASCAR Cup Series championships (including a record five straight), 83 wins and a slew of other statistics that prove the No. 48 was No. 1 for a decade and a half.

MORE: Analysis: Johnson sped past HOF contemporaries | Scenes from Friday’s induction ceremony

But on the red carpet on the night of the driver-crew chief duo’s enshrinement into stock-car racing’s eternal glory, NASCAR legends offered their own insight into what made Johnson and Knaus so tough to compete against as they charged toward record-setting careers.

That sufficient description of the No. 48 team’s success came Friday night courtesy of Matt Kenseth, a Class of 2023 inductee to the Hall himself. Kenseth’s day job today is serving as Competition Advisor at Legacy Motor Club, where Johnson serves as a team co-owner. But 20 years ago, Kenseth was driving the No. 17 Ford for Roush Racing, celebrating the 2003 Cup championship at the end of Johnson’s sophomore season.

In Johnson’s first two years in the Cup Series, both he and Kenseth won six races respectively. But Johnson’s ascension to the peak of NASCAR history came at his competition’s expense, including Kenseth.

“They were just honestly the best, which is a very obvious statement,” Kenseth admitted. “But they were the best at figuring things out before other people, figuring out ways around things to make their car faster until they change the rules where they couldn’t do it anymore. Like, they were usually the first to most of those things, and obviously Jimmie could drive the heck out of a race car, make great decisions, and always was there when it counted at the end. So they were just a team that was all but impossible to beat.”

Ray Evernham, inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2018, was crew chief of Jeff Gordon’s No. 24 team when Knaus showed up to Hendrick Motorsports in 1993. Knaus fibbed out of work at Stanley Smith’s race shop to drive from Birmingham, Alabama, to Concord, North Carolina for a job interview.

In their first meeting, Knaus didn’t mince words with Evernham and told him he wanted Evernham’s job. Eventually he got it — thanks to Evernham, who gave Knaus his first job as crew chief in 2000 with Evernham Motorsports for two races with Casey Atwood when Evernham fired up his own team. Fast forward to the success Knaus enjoyed with the No. 48 team at Hendrick, and Evernham was left with mixed emotions.

“Chad actually was working for me when they offered him the job on the 48,” Evernham recalled Friday. “And he came in, he said, ‘I got a job offer.’ I said, ‘Well unless it’s Rick Hendrick, I don’t want to hear about it.’ He said, ‘It’s Rick Hendrick.’ I said, ‘Well, you gotta go then.’ But watching him and Jimmie mature together to where they came in as rookies and immediately became competitive, I was really proud on one hand, you know, having known Chad for so long. On the other hand, it was like damn it, we’re gonna get beat again.”

The frustration wasn’t limited to competition outside the doors of Hendrick Motorsports. Four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon served as co-owner of Johnson’s No. 48 team and was largely responsible for selecting its driver. All four of Gordon’s titles came before the little-known prodigy named stepped into the Cup Series. The No. 24 team’s winning ways never vanished, but they were immediately challenged by the young hotshot from El Cajon, California.

“I mean, in all seriousness, because I was friends with Jimmie, I wanted to see them succeed and I’m proud of them of everything that they’ve done,” Gordon said. “And I think that that overshadows some of the challenges that they brought for me. But I will say the intent was to bring them in and lift up all of the cars and the teams at Hendrick because we were working closer together and sharing more information. And they did. Unfortunately, they just kept stealing the show.

“I think 2007 was disappointing (for) me. We had them, I felt like. Had them behind us in points, won a couple of races in the Chase or whatever it was called then. And they just came back as they did many times and took it away from us.”

But what separated Johnson and Knaus from the pack was a tenacious determination that led them to every crevice of advantage they could find.

“We were just a few steps ahead,” Johnson said on the night of his induction. “And Chad was just tireless with his development of our race cars. We would test nonstop back before the testing rules. We were just always on the road — test, test, test test — and I was open to it. I was in a great place in life and can make all the time available to do it. And we got into this practice to where he wouldn’t even tell me what he was doing with the car. Occasionally, he’d said, ‘Hey, tiptoe into this one.’ Other times, he’s like, ‘No, this is going to be good.’

“And he just had this stuff kind of waiting. And at times we had so much stockpiled that we could actually take our time when we needed to release it and save it for the end of the year and save it for the championship battle. Because oftentimes when you take it to the garage area, you’re surrounded by a lot of very intelligent people. And everybody’s studying what we were doing. And if we showed up too early with our stuff, everybody around us would have it. So there was this way to manage the environment that he was so good at and I didn’t realize it at the time. But looking back on it, he had many more management skills than I wanted to admit at the time.”

The fervor by which Knaus and Johnson operated was seemingly unmatched, leading the No. 48 team to stunning success against other NASCAR greats — from legends like Mark Martin, Rusty Wallace and once-teammate Terry Labonte in the early 2000s to the modern-day stars of Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr. and everyone in between.

“We worked really hard,” Knaus said. “We were tenacious. We had a passion for the industry. We outworked most people. We did more testing — whether it be at the race track or in the lab or the wind tunnel or whatever it may have been. And we bought into one another. You know, Jimmie and I, we had a great vocabulary and a great communication style to where I was able to really understand what he was saying about the car and I can almost visualize it. So I think all of that was great.

“And then we had the resources. Mr. Hendrick never told me no. Now, he may have told me I was in trouble and I shouldn’t be doing this or shouldn’t be doing that. But if it was something that we needed to go out there and win races, it was there.”

And so they capitalized — 83 times on the race track, and with seven championships, unheard of in the modern era. It’s only fitting Johnson and Knaus went in together.

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

The cool temperatures in Arizona are going to get warmed up this weekend as Tucson Speedway kicks off the 2024 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series season with the 11th running of the Chilly Willy.

Super Late Models and Legends will take over the 0.375-mile paved oval from Friday and Saturday for a weekend full of action-packed racing that is sure to excite and entertain fans across the country.

RELATED: Watch the Chilly Willy live on FloRacing

The main event is the O’Reilly Chevrolet Super Late Model Chilly Willy 150, which serves as the finale. However, a full weekend schedule of racing, including features on Friday and Saturday, will precede Sunday’s main event.

All of the Chilly Willy racing action can be seen live on FloRacing. Below is the schedule and entry list for this year’s kickoff to the short-track racing season at Tucson Speedway.

What TV channel is the Chilly Willy on in 2024?

All racing action from the 2024 Chilly Willy at Tucson Speedway can be viewed live on FloRacing, the streaming home of all NASCAR Roots properties.

The Chilly Willy will not be shown on a traditional television network.

Below is the complete schedule for Chilly Willy coverage on FloRacing.

Date Start time How to watch
Friday, Jan. 19 8 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. MT FloRacing
Saturday, Jan. 20 6 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. MT FloRacing
Sunday, Jan. 21 Canceled due to weather forecast N/A
Action during the 2022 Chilly Willy at Tucson Speedway in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo: NASCAR)

2024 schedule

Not including Thursday’s practice day, the 2023 Chilly Willy at Tucson was originally scheduled to feature three days and nights of racing involving three divisions: Super Late Models, Legends (Semi Pro/Young Lion) and Legends (Pro/Master).

However, with bad weather in the forecast for Sunday, officials made the call Friday night to condense the Chilly Willy schedule. The $15,000-to-win Super Late Models Chilly Willy 150 is now scheduled to take place Saturday night.

Below is the complete track schedule for the 2024 Chilly Willy at Tucson Speedway.

  • Friday, Jan. 19
Time Event
8 a.m. Registration/Pit Gates Open (SLM NASCAR Driver Membership Required)
8:30 a.m. Tech & Tire Barn Open
10 a.m. Legends Mandatory Drivers & Spotters Meeting
10:30 a.m. Super Late Model Mandatory Drivers & Spotters Meeting
11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Rotating Practice
4 p.m. Qualifying – Super Late Models / Legends
5:55 p.m. Opening Ceremonies
6 p.m. Heat Races & Main Events – 50 Lap Super Late Feature(s) / 30 Lap Legends Feature (Semi Pro/Young Lion) / 35 Lap Legends Feature (Pro/Master)

(All times MT)

  • Saturday, Jan. 20
Time Event
8 a.m. Registration/Pit Gates Open
8:30 a.m. Tech & Tire Barn Open
9 a.m. Legends Mandatory Drivers & Spotters Meeting
9:30 a.m. Super Late Model Mandatory Drivers & Spotters Meeting
10 a.m. – noon Scheduled Practice
1 p.m. Front gates open
1:30 p.m. Super Late Model Scuff
2 – 2:30 p.m. Qualifying (Legends, Super Late Model)
4 p.m. Racing begins

(All times MT)

Brett Yackey makes a turn in the O’Reilly Chevrolet Super Late Model Chilly Willy 150 during the Chilly Willy at Tucson Speedway in Tucson, Arizona, on Jan. 23, 2022. (Photo: Rebecca Noble/NASCAR)

2024 entry list

(Entry list as of Jan. 15)

  • Super Late Models
Car No. Driver Hometown
1 Tyler Herzog Madera, California
1k Kasey Kleyn Quincy, Washington
3 Cassidy Hinds Arvada, Colorado
05 John Lashley Tucson, Arizona
05s David Smith Sidney, British Columbia (Canada)
5 Garrett Archer Maple Valley, Washington
7 Zach Riehl Troutdale, Oregon
8 Mariah O’Neil Vail, Arizona
11 John Dillon Eagle, Idaho
12 Bruce Yackey Greeley, Colorado
13 Sean Hingorani Newport Beach, California
14 Vanessa Robinson Las Cruces, New Mexico
14c Brandon Carlson Victoria, British Columbia (Canada)
22 Ryan Phipps Burley, Idaho
27 Kole Raz Lake Oswego, Oregon
28 David Levitt Sierra Vista, Arizona
32 Brett Yackey Greeley, Colorado
34 Rudy Vanderwal LaSalle, Colorado
36 Jeff Hillock Cedar Hills, Utah
42 Kyle Reid Fort McMurray, Alberta (Canada)
43 Kody Vanderwal LaSalle, Colorado
52 Ryan Philpott Livermore, Colorado
57 Jen Hall Tucson, Arizona
63 Joe Paladenic Sierra Vista, Arizona
69 Zander Peters Graham, Washington
80 Andre Prescott Mesa, Arizona
81 Darrell Midgley Sidney, British Columbia (Canada)
82 Michael Scott Hillsdale, Wyoming
100 Weston Marthaler Glenwood, Minnesota
  • Legends
Car No Driver Hometown
2b Stephen Brucker Alpine, California
3 Nina Lynn Kik Hermiston, Oregon
3 Darrell Stewart Arvada, California
4 Tanner Reif Henderson, Nevada
4d Rodney Dowless Jr. Dix Hills, New York
4 Cole Brown Ukiah, California
5d Jerry Davis Emmett, Idaho
5 Robert Cuzb Huntington Beach, California
6 Tyler Hicks Encinitas, California
9 Tyler Reif Las Vegas, Nevada
11 Andrew Riehl Troutdale, Oregon
12 Byranne Bruce Wheatland, Wyoming
12a Aaron Brockhouse Shakopee, Minnesota
12d Deeahmee Malone Sparks, Nevada
13m Ben Mack Fisherville, Kentucky
13h Andy Hulcy Piano, Texas
13 Tim Brockhouse Shakopee, Minnesota
15d Davis Jacobson Bonney Lake, Washington
15m Mikey Lovell Willits, California
15x Kai Lovell Willits, California
17 David Mayhew Bakersfield, California
17m Taylor Mayhew Bakersfield, California
18m Keller Meechudhone Las Vegas, Nevada
19 Brenden Ruzbarsky Tracy, California
19w Brandon White Eureka, California
20a Ashton Williams Yucapa, California
21 Madilyn Lange Wheatland, Wyoming
22c Chase Burgeson Yucapa, California
24c Cole Dasenbrook Deer Park, Idaho
25 Dustin Meier Lakeport, California
25b Brandon Giannini Henderson, Nevada
28 Tryson Meyer Bisbee, Arizona
32 Scott Anderson Austin, Texas
33 Brent Schmich Tucson, Arizona
37 Bryant Dawson Surprise, Arizona
40 Samantha Schwarz Mercer Island, Washington
42 Stephen Bazen Saugus, California
43 Dylan Wolf Auburn, Washington
43b Christian Bazen Saugus, California
47 Michael Vanderlip Carlsbad, California
55 Justin Johnson Willits, California
55j Johnethan Davis Emmett, Idaho
63x Jacob Perkins Tucson, Arizona
68 Wyatt Dent Brighton, Colorado
71 Jake Bollman Huntington Beach, California
75 Mike Doss Upperlake, California
78 Bryceton Meyer Bisbee, Arizona
78c Colton Crocker Brighton, Colorado
84 Mike Weber Tonopah, Arizona
88 Cade Fox Wellington, Colorado
88m Max Reaves Trinity, North Carolina
88x Cody Brown Las Vegas, Nevada
97 Jake Baker Eagan, Minnesota
99 Brody Whitbeck Golden Valley, Arizona
99j Jovon Fox Las Vegas, Nevada
99t Tessa Marine Littleton, Colorado

Results

Created in 2014, the Chilly Willy has quickly become the biggest event of the season at Tucson Speedway. In the 10-year history of the race, only one driver has managed to win the event more than once.

That honor belongs to Preston Peltier, who won the event in 2020 and again in 2022 and 2023. He is not currently entered for the 2024 edition of the event.

Other previous winners include Dustin Ash, Tayler Riddle, Chuck Wares, Owen Riddle, Chris Eggleston, Michael Scott and Christian McGhee.

Year Winner
2014 Dustin Ash
2015 Tayler Riddle
2016 Chuck Wares
2017 Owen Riddle
2018 Chris Eggleston
2019 Michael Scott
2020 Preston Peltier
2021 Christian McGhee
2022 Preston Peltier
2023 Preston Peltier
Posted on by Brandon White

11th annual Chilly Willy

Tucson Speedway

Unbroken

  • Race 1
Pos.  Car No. Driver  Interval
1 27 Kole Raz
2 82 Michael Scott 1.639
3 42 Kyle Reid 3.713
4 3C Cassidy Hinds 5.862
5 1H Tyler Herzog 8.480
6 11 John Dillon 8.733
7 14C Brandon Carlson 11.911
8 81 Darrell Midgley 12.252
9 14 Vanessa Robinson 13.521
10 80 Andre Prescott -1 lap
11 57 Jennifer Hall -2 laps
12 05 John Lashley -2 laps
13 34 Rudy Vanderwal OUT
14 100 Weston Marthaler OUT
  • Race 2
Pos. Car No. Driver Interval
1 13H Sean Hingorani
2 1K Kasey Kleyn 4.760
3 5 Garret Archer 4.904
4 32 Brett Yackey 6.297
5 7 Zachary Riehl 7.800
6 43 Kody Vanderwal 12.590
7 22P Ryan Phipps 15.433
8 12 Bruce Yackey -1 lap
9 69P Zandar Peters -1 lap
10 28 David Levitt -1 lap
11 63 Joe Paladenic -2 laps
12 8 Mariah McGriff OUT
13 52 Ryan Philpott OUT
Posted on by Zack Albert

The story was recounted in The Tampa Tribune on July 5, 1970, the day after Donnie Allison drove to victory in the Firecracker 400 at Daytona. His fifth NASCAR Cup Series win came after Allison and team owner Banjo Matthews had overcome an arm’s-length list of weeklong tribulations and the weight of heavy expectations.

Lacking both a competitive new engine and any last-ditch prospects for securing one, the team filed a late entry for the race just four days earlier. “We were discouraged and ready to junk the whole thing,” Allison recalled after qualifying 15th in a 40-car field, well behind the front-runners. For good measure, he overslept and missed the drivers’ meeting, arriving at the 2.5-mile track at the last possible moment. But Allison awoke to a fresh Junior Johnson motor on loan and newly installed under the hood of his No. 27 Ford, and that was enough to outlast his Firecracker rivals.

Tribune sports editor Tom McEwen wrote that the Daytona 400-miler was another instance of Allison defying long odds, sharing one such story from his modest beginnings in Miami — years before the family settled in Alabama in 1962. His older brother, Bobby, had a 1955 stock car with proven speed, and Donnie’s asking for a turn behind the wheel turned into begging, then nagging after a series of rejections. Bobby finally relented, and Donnie promptly totaled the car on his first try.

Brotherly love turned to tough love and fast. “Give it up, kid,” Bobby said. “You’ll never be a race driver.”

Decades later, Donnie Allison no longer has to prove himself or live up to lofty expectations. A custom-tailored blue jacket and a prized NASCAR Hall of Fame ring can say that for him.

Allison was honored Friday evening with induction into stock-car racing’s shrine, joining seven-time champions Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus in the Class of 2024. The hard-nosed driver joined his brother Bobby, his nephew Davey and longtime family friend Red Farmer as Hall inductees from the vaunted “Alabama Gang.”

RELATED: Photos from Hall of Fame induction | Allison joins ‘Alabama Gang’ in Hall

Allison was a gracious recipient, awestruck as he took the stage to make his induction official: “All I can say is wow.”

Thankfully, Allison had much more to say than just “wow,” spinning yarns rich with racing history and offering thanks to his family and to so many fellow drivers, mechanics and car owners. He was a 10-time winner in the NASCAR Cup Series, prevailing with legendary teams run by Matthews, the all-powerful Wood Brothers and colorful character Hoss Ellington. But he was a winner many times over at the short tracks of the Southeast with his crew from the small Birmingham suburb of Hueytown.

“They knew we were there when we showed up,” Allison said, “and they really knew we were there when we left because we took all their damn money.”

But the appreciation was reciprocal for someone known for extracting the most from his equipment but also for giving back to the sport as a mentor to so many — both during and after his racing career.

Among those was a fellow inductee in Johnson, who fondly recalled testing at Talladega Superspeedway during his Xfinity Series days before his big break in NASCAR’s big leagues. Allison was a fixture at his home-state track, and he roamed the garage during the test session, offering pointers for navigating the 2.66-mile facility’s high banks.

“I remember it very vividly because I walked up in the garage area, and he was standing there, and he introduced himself to me,” Allison recalled. “And he said, ‘I’m Jimmie Johnson from El Cajon, California.’ And I said, ‘Well, what are you doing here?’ He says I’m gonna test the Busch car, Xfinity or whatever they called it at the time. And he said, ‘But I’m gonna run Cup.’ I said, ‘That’s the attitude you’ve got to have. You keep that, and you’ll make it.’ We talked a little bit, and I was impressed because he was very strict in the way he felt. He wasn’t talking with a question mark or anything else. He was sure where he was going.”

MORE: Donnie Allison through the years

Allison also offered help in an earlier era to future Hall of Famer Terry Labonte, albeit inadvertently. His assist came in the form of an impromptu test drive for team owner Billy Hagan in place of Skip Manning, the ’76 Cup Series Rookie of the Year, at Darlington Raceway in the spring of 1978.

“Billy Hagan had hired me, and I was gonna run like five races later in the year, and so he told me, just go to all the races with the team and, you know, kind of get a feel for things and see how everything’s done and this and that,” said Labonte, a member of the Hall’s Class of 2016. “So we’re at Darlington, in the springtime, and we’ve been out running, and we weren’t very good. And Tex Powell was our crew chief, and they’re only like three guys working for our team, you know. …

“We went out there and practiced and practiced, and all of a sudden, the car came in and the guy got out that was driving it, and Donnie’s standing there. Donnie talks to Tex, and he gets in the car and takes off. And he went out and ran his first lap by, he’s like almost a second faster than our car had been the whole time. Tex looked at me, and he said, ‘I think I figured out part of our problem.’ So I was telling Donnie, the next time we went to Darlington, I was driving the car, so he helped my career right there and didn’t even know it.”

MORE: Every NASCAR Hall of Fame member

Allison’s expertise and guidance were a boon to many in the NASCAR community, from generations gone by to contemporaries such as Joey Logano, who lauded the 84-year-old legend’s impact in his video introduction. For Allison, it was all part of the journey after surmounting long odds to get here, from those earliest days of tough, brotherly love in Miami with a ’55 stocker.

“We go back in history and in time to Donnie, who was for a lot of the time, he was the other member of the Alabama Gang,” said Class of 2014 inductee Dale Jarrett. “Donnie did everything that he could to make it in this sport, and it’s nice that people recognize what a good talent he was and the things that he was able to accomplish. It’s not always about winning to get here because he took a lot of teams and cars that weren’t capable of running where he put them and made them better. And then after his career, he was always available to help others, so I think that probably had as much to do with him being here, and it’s a well-deserved honor.”

Posted on by Reid Spencer

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Call them inseparable.

Despite a few rough patches in their 17-year working relationship, driver Jimmie Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus achieved a level of success at NASCAR’s highest level unparalleled in the current century.

Together, on Friday night in the Crown Ballroom at the Charlotte Convention Center, Johnson and Knaus reaped the rewards of their remarkable accomplishments –induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2024 in their first year of eligibility.

Johnson and Knaus entered the Hall along with Donnie Allison, elected to NASCAR’s highest honor from the Pioneer Ballot. An original member of the famed Alabama Gang, Allison helped elevate stock car racing’s visibility with both his driving skills and his fists.

RELATED: Members of the NASCAR Hall of Fame

Johnson earned high praise from Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon, who lobbied on Johnson’s behalf when team owner Rick Hendrick considered adding a fourth team in 2002.

“He’s the best driver I ever raced against,” Gordon said in a video introducing his teammate.

In his acceptance speech, Johnson demurred with typical modesty, opening his remarks with a story about the motorcycle he found under the Christmas tree in 1979.

“I realize how many people played a role in this Hall of Fame induction,” Johnson said later in the speech. “Thank you to my family, friends, fans — everyone at Jimmie Johnson Racing, former team members and teammates, everyone who has been part of this journey.

“This success story of seven championships and 83 wins, and now this, is all about relationships. I’m truly grateful for the journey and the amazing relationships forged and the incredible companies I’ve represented like Lowe’s and Ally.

“Whether on two wheels or four, in SoCal or Charlotte, in the driver’s seat or up on top of the pit box, moonlighting as race car mechanic or driving a school bus (as his parents did), whether you’re looking up to your heroes, driving for them or competing against them … if you’re with us now or up in heaven, thank you for being a crucial part of this incredible run.

“This is beyond my wildest dreams — and I thought Christmas morning in 1979 was special.”

Johnson reserved special praise for his teammate and team owner.

“I’m forever grateful to Jeff Gordon and Rick Hendrick,” Johnson said after receiving the Hall of Fame ring from his wife Chandra. “You guys selected me for the No. 48 car, and I’m still not sure why.”

“Congrats, brother,” Johnson said to Knaus. “I’m so glad that we’re able to go in on the same ballot.”

After Tony Stewart won the 2005 series title, Johnson embarked on a remarkable run, claiming a record five straight championships from 2006 through 2010 — a streak broken only by Stewart’s unexpected third title in 2011.

The pairing of Johnson and Knaus almost ended before the streak began. At the end of the 2005 season, they were barely speaking, and team owner Rick Hendrick considered splitting them up.

Before making a decision, Hendrick invited Johnson and Knaus to a meeting and served them milk and cookies on Mickey Mouse plates.

“If you’re going to act like children, I’m going to treat you like children,” was Hendrick’s blunt message to his driver and crew chief.

Hendrick made his point, and with the ice broken, the pair became NASCAR’s version of the “Untouchables” for the next five years.

“That shift allowed us to become champions,” Knaus said.

The five straight Cup championships eclipsed NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough’s previous mark of three straight (1976-1978) and is one entry in the NASCAR record book that likely will remain unassailable. With two non-consecutive titles each, Kyle Busch and Joey Logano are the only active full-time Cup drivers with more than one.

Johnson added championships in 2013 and 2016, tying the record of seven held jointly by Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, both members of the inaugural NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2010. Johnson’s latest Cup win — a track-record 11th victory at Dover Motor Speedway — came on June 4, 2017, marking the 16th consecutive year he and Knaus had teamed to win at least two events.

That victory was Johnson’s 83rd, tying him with Yarborough for sixth on the career list. The book on Johnson’s career, however, is not quite closed. As co-owner of NASCAR Cup Series entry Legacy Motor Club, he will compete in select races this season, starting with the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 18.

Knaus’ wife Brooke presented the 2024 inductee ring to her husband.

“As I was growing up in the Midwest, my father taught me what it meant to have the best race cars,” Knaus said during his induction speech, “to have the proper maintenance schedule, to never settle for second and to continuously learn — and to always push the rules.”

Thanking his driver of 17 years, Knaus said, “Jimmie let me find out who I was by believing in me.”

A brilliant innovator dedicated to making Johnson’s No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets go faster, Knaus manned the pit box for 81 of Johnson’s 83 Cup wins, having been sidelined under suspension for the first two victories of 2006 for pushing the rules too far in trying to gain an aerodynamic advantage at Daytona.

After the Johnson/Knaus pairing ended following the 2018 season, Knaus served as crew chief for William Byron’s first career victory in the summer 2020 race at Daytona. In 2021, Knaus took on a management role as vice president of competition at Hendrick Motorsports.

From a career standpoint, Knaus’ seven championships as a crew chief are second only to NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Inman’s eight. His 82 victories are third all-time.

Allison and brother Bobby Allison accumulated the second-most Cup victories by two brothers (94), a number exceeded only by Kyle and Kurt Busch, who have accounted for 97 wins (with Kyle still active at 63).

Donnie Allison earned his greatest notoriety, however, after he had won the last of his 10 races (1978 at Atlanta). He and Yarborough were battling for the lead on the final lap of the 1979 Daytona 500, the first race featuring live flag-to-flag coverage on national network television, and after repeated contact between their cars, they both wrecked at the end of the backstretch.

The drivers climbed from their cars with anger in their eyes and started the fight that would captivate the television audience with its intensity. After Richard Petty inherited the victory, Bobby Allison parked his car nearby in Turn 3 and joined the fray, as the Alabama drivers ganged up on the South Carolinian.

The race and the fisticuffs that followed sparked interest in the sport of stock car racing and launched the sport’s steady growth over the next two decades.

Allison is the fourth member of the Alabama Gang to enter the NASCAR Hall of Fame, joining brother Bobby, nephew Davey Allison and Hueytown patriarch Red Farmer.

MORE: Scenes from the 2024 NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Asked what the induction meant to him, Donnie replied, “The closest thing was the feeling I got when I married my lovely wife Pat.”

Allison was the 1967 Cup rookie of the year. He also turned heads with a fourth-place finish in the 1970 Indianapolis 500, earning rookie-of-the-year honors for the race.

“All I can say is wow!” Allison said during his induction speech, during which, with tongue in cheek, he disputed the characterization of his altercation with Yarborough in 1979. “Fought? I never fought … I never touched that man. He never touched me …”

During the ceremony, pioneering driver Janet Guthrie was honored as the recipient of the Landmark Award for outstanding contributions to NASCAR. An accomplished sports car racer, Guthrie finished 15th in her NASCAR Cup debut in the 1976 Coca-Cola 600 and went on to compete in 33 Cup races, with a best finish of sixth at Bristol.

NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace received the Buddy Shuman Award for his charitable endeavors. Also recognized at the ceremony were two titans of the sport who passed away in 2023 — broadcaster Ken Squier, co-founder of the Motor Racing Network, and Yarborough.

It was Squier, providing play-by-play for the 1979 Daytona 500 for CBS, who called the fight against Yarborough that Allison insists never really happened.

Squier’s legacy also extends to the Squier-Hall Award of Media Excellence, conferred on the late Shav Glick of the Los Angeles Times this year.

SHOP: Celebrate the 2024 Hall of Fame class

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

Rusty Wallace, NASCAR Hall of Famer, champion and philanthropist, has been awarded the 2023 Buddy Shuman Award, NASCAR announced Friday.

Wallace, inducted into the Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2013, receives the prestigious award in recognition of efforts and contributions made to advance the sport.

MORE: Rusty Wallace through the years | Look back on 2023 Rusty Wallace Charity Ride

The 1989 NASCAR Cup Series champion Wallace’s numbers on the track speak for themselves, with 55 victories, 202 top fives and 349 top 10s in 706 starts across more than 20 years behind the wheel.

What may not be as well-known — Wallace’s philanthropic work behind the scenes. The dynamic Wallace has served on the board of The NASCAR Foundation since 2006, the year after he retired from Cup Series racing.

“(The NASCAR Foundation) has been something very, very special in my heart, and it all started back in 2006 when I got a phone call from the late Betty Jane France,” Wallace told NASCAR.com in August. “And she says, ‘Well, Rusty, I want to start a foundation, and I want you to be on the board. And I said, ‘Why me?’ And she laughed and said, ‘Well, now you’re not controversial because you’re not driving any longer.’”

Additionally, Wallace has overseen the Buffalo Chip’s Rusty Wallace Charity Ride since 2019. Last year marked the fifth edition of the motorcycle ride, a featured addition of the famed Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota.

The now-annual ride benefits The NASCAR Foundation and the Rapid City (SD) Special Olympics, which evenly split the proceeds. The 2023 edition was the most productive yet with more than $160,000 raised.

“One of the things I really love as far as having fun is the motorcycles, and Mike Helton is the one that actually started that,” Wallace said in August, noting former NASCAR President and current Senior Advisor Helton’s involvement in the ride. “Mike started bringing a lot of the NASCAR drivers out to Sturgis for the motorcycle rally almost 20 years ago, and I just really got hooked on it. I just love Sturgis and all the people we get to meet, and my wife started coming out with me about the last six or seven years, and she just loves it and the family, too.”

RELATED: Wallace speaks on The NASCAR Foundation

Wallace joins a list of notable honorees to receive the Buddy Shuman Award. Goodyear’s Stu Grant was awarded the honor in 2021; former Atlanta Motor Speedway president Ed Clark in 2020; and former Dover Motorsports Inc. president and CEO Denis McGlynn in 2019.

Posted on by Press Release

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Tommy Baldwin Racing (TBR) announced today that six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby will pilot the No. 7NY for select Tour events in 2024.

The team will begin the season at New Smyrna Speedway for the World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing and the Whelen Modified Tour opener on Saturday, February 10.

The team plans to run seven of the 16 Whelen Modified Tour events.

TBR will compete at Richmond Raceway on Friday, March 29, Riverhead Raceway on May 18 and New Hampshire Motor Speedway as part of NASCAR’s National Series weekend on June 22. The combination will return to the track on Wednesday, August 14 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, Saturday, October 5 at North Wilkesboro Speedway and Saturday, October 26 at Martinsville Speedway.

Doug Coby driver of the #7 Mayhew Tools Troyer car reacts with crew chief Tommy Baldwin after winning the Duel at the Dog 200 for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Monadnock Speedway in Winchester, New Hampshire on May 6, 2023. (Nick Grace/NASCAR)

“Tommy has a deep racing history in the Modified community and when you drive for him, you know he’s going to bring fast cars to the track,” Coby said. “Having the opportunity to work with them again in 2024 to simply try to win races is something I’m really excited for.”

Coby and Baldwin first paired together in 2022 and won events at Riverhead Raceway and Lee USA Speedway in their first two races together. They also picked up a victory at Langley Speedway that season – one that saw Tommy Baldwin Racing seal the Whelen Modified Tour owner’s championship with multiple different drivers. Coby drove the No. 7NY in 13 events last season with one victory and six top-five finishes.

“Doug is a proven winner and champion and we’re happy he’s back with us for 2024,” Tommy Baldwin Jr. said. “We’ve selected a great list of events to compete on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at some of their biggest races. We’re looking forward to having Doug back in the seat and it will be all about trying to get trophies.”