Posted on by Brandon White

The path to Victory Lane for three-time Langley Speedway track champion Brenden Queen in the South Carolina 400 at Florence Motor Speedway came down to a matter of survival.

An evening dominated by tire conservation, intense racing and heated rivalries culminated with Queen holding off Carson Kvapil for a crown jewel victory in his debut race with Lee Pulliam Performance.

Queen admitted Saturday’s triumph in the South Carolina 400 served as major validation for him by proving to the entire short track community that he can win at any facility on the East Coast.

“I finally win away from [my home track of] Langley,” Queen said. “Everybody questioned if I was a one-track wonder, but we proved [on Saturday] we can get it done down South. We’re taking [this] trophy back to Virginia.”

After carefully conserving his equipment during the first two stages, the opportunity for Queen to pounce on the lead came with 20 laps remaining.

Mason Diaz, who had worked vigorously to get back to the front following an earlier spin, found himself battling South Carolina short track veteran and 2007 Myrtle Beach 400 winner Sam Yarbrough for the win over a handful of late restarts.

As Diaz tried to clear Yarbrough off Turn 2, the latter was forced off track before miraculously saving his car in front of oncoming traffic. Yarbrough was not pleased with Diaz’s aggressive maneuver but was allowed to maintain his spot on the front row.

Yarbrough retaliated against Diaz on the following restart in Turn 4, which prompted Diaz to retire from the race by climbing out of his car in Florence’s frontstretch Victory Lane and doing a mock celebration with his crew.

With two of the fastest cars eliminated from contention, Queen and Kvapil were left to settle the South Carolina 400 amongst themselves during the closing laps. Queen perfectly executed all his restarts to keep plenty of distance between himself and Kvapil.

Fresh off another second-place finish in the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway, Kvapil wanted to end his stellar rookie season with JR Motorsports by earning a crown jewel victory while competing alongside his boss Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Despite the disappointment, Kvapil admitted he was relieved to avoid the chaos that broke out between Diaz and Yarbrough.

“I honestly didn’t know if we were going to wreck out,” Kvapil said. “It was getting pretty sketchy with [Diaz and Yarbrough]. They were beating and banging pretty good before they decided to wreck each other. It was a battle just to finish, but once those guys cleared themselves out, we were focused on winning.”

Saturday’s performance highlighted Kvapil’s efficiency at Florence in his limited starts, as he finished second to Ty Majeski in last year’s South Carolina 400 after leading 38 laps.

Kvapil’s trips to Florence have taught him many valuable lessons regarding patience behind the wheel. He is confident he can one day utilize that knowledge by parking his Late Model Stock in Victory Lane.

“It’s basically been a letdown for us with every race [at Florence],” Kvapil said. “This one doesn’t hurt as bad knowing we didn’t have the best car. We had the best car in last year’s race, but luck didn’t favor us. There’s always next year.”

Rounding out the top three finishers in Saturday’s South Carolina 400 was Isabella Robusto, who was thrilled to put together a strong performance in the physically demanding event.

Robusto’s goal for the weekend was to simply gain valuable experience in tire conservation at Florence. As the carnage started to unfold during the final stage, Robusto methodically picked off her competition to provide herself a much-needed confidence boost heading into the offseason.

“We started 30th in this race and just wanted a Top 10 finish,” Robusto said. “I was able to keep the nose clean for the first 150 laps, and then I knew we had to go 110 percent with the new tires on. Next thing I knew, I was restarting fourth with three laps to go.”

Queen also enters the winter with plenty of high expectations following his first outing with Lee Pulliam Performance.

Piloting a car for a successful driver like Pulliam, whose accomplishments include four NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series, was something Queen knew would carry plenty of significance when he first signed the deal, which is why he wanted to make a strong first impression in the South Carolina 400.

Queen responded by adding his name to the list of South Carolina 400 winners that include Pulliam, Josh Berry, Timothy Peters and Scott Riggs, a feat Queen said is very close to his Hampton Heat triumph he obtained at Langley in 2020.

“This might be the biggest win of all with how everything played out,” Queen said. “Luckily, I didn’t wreck anybody to win it, but I did use her up a little bit. She had enough left in her to get the job done.”

Now that he knows the potential he and Pulliam possess as a combination, Queen is eager to keep working with the Late Model Stock legend and continue to bolster his growing resume in the discipline.

“This gives us such huge momentum,” Queen said. “We really feel we can win every race we show up to. When you have confidence in yourself to win, the sky is the limit.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

In a unique stroke of rooming accommodations, Greg Ives experienced a first, sleeping above the Garage 56 Le Mans test car that hit the track for the first time earlier this week.

Ives drew pole position on the lodging list for the rooms overlooking the pit lane at Virginia International Raceway. Just below Room 1 was Garage 1 on the ground level of VIR’s north paddock, where the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 tester made its home for two days of on-track duty.

“No, I’ve slept under my car. I’ve slept in my car,” said Ives, making a strong nod to the tireless days he spent racing and wrenching on the Late Model circuit before reaching NASCAR’s national-series level. “Never had that nice of accommodations above my car, that’s for sure. Yeah, growing up as a racer, you put yourself in a lot of situations that prepare you for times like this, especially a new project and new parts, pieces, people, and learning every lap.

“So it’s been a fun experience so far, but for sure, sleeping around a race car is nothing new to me.”

RELATED: Garage 56 VIR test recap

Ives was in a familiar place with his headset back on in testing sessions Monday and Tuesday for the Garage 56 project, a collaborative effort among NASCAR, Hendrick Motorsports, Goodyear, Chevrolet and others. The longtime crew chief had just completed his tenure with Hendrick’s No. 48 Chevy team in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway on Nov. 6. After returning to Charlotte the next day, his transition to Garage 56 began.

“Got home from Phoenix about 5 or so and went in to work and, you know, started thrashing on seeing how I can contribute and help make the project a little more successful,” Ives said.

The Garage 56 test car is guided back into the first stall at Virginia International Raceway.
Zack Albert | NASCAR Studios

The Garage 56 initiative was announced March 17 with the intent of competing in the 2023 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 10-11. The proposed entry is based on the Next Gen car that debuted this season in the NASCAR Cup Series. The modified Camaro test car that road-racing ace Mike Rockenfeller drove Monday and Tuesday on VIR’s 3.27-mile full-course configuration is said to closely resemble what the final version will be for its planned trip to Le Mans.

Ives indicated Aug. 26 that he would retire from his role as a full-time crew chief after eight seasons at the Cup Series level. At the time of his announcement, Ives said that he would remain with the organization to work closely with VP of competition Chad Knaus, the Garage 56 project lead, and would take direction from executive leaders Jeff Gordon and Jeff Andrews.

Monday and Tuesday depicted the first illustration of that next phase, with Ives getting up to speed with the personnel who have been involved with the project since the first blast of fanfare last March. By design, his new role shared a resemblance with his former duties on the No. 48 team.

“That’s my official role on here is crew chief, but ultimately we have a lot of smart people on this team that collectively, if we can work together and come up with a common solution, I feel it’s gonna be a better program,” Ives said. “But yeah, I think you have to have those people in place to have the titles and have where the responsibility lies, but I feel like everybody on this team contributes at a high level. And this is one of the first of many tests that we’re going to have going to Le Mans, and we’re going to kind of figure out what our roles are as we go and try to understand each other. I think a lot of different personalities and dynamics we have to work through, but that’s ultimately where it’s going to lie.”

MORE: Garage 56 test days at VIR in photos

Ives found himself meshing with the Garage 56 team early on at VIR, getting hands-on and in the trenches to sort through a Monday morning electrical issue and then maximizing the learnings from the test car’s on-track time. The group made adjustments to the car’s balance and aerodynamics, and squeezed in some wet-weather runs after the already cold weather turned damp Tuesday morning.

“We’ve been through a lot of trials here, and I think we’ve been able to fix about every one of them, so a lot of experience there,” Ives said during a midday break Tuesday. “Obviously, we want more laps on track, but if the downtime here and trying to fix and understand what the problems are helps us when we get to Le Mans in June, it’s going to pay off big time. We’re going to know right where to look, understand where the issue is, what’s causing it, and be able to remedy it quickly.

“That all comes from experience and track testing allows you to gain that experience without failures. So, we’re going to come out of this test with a lot of successes.”

Ives also assisted in keeping team owner Rick Hendrick apprised of all the developments by phone and text during the two-day test. Ives says he’s been on the other end of those types of phone calls, when other obligations have kept him from his son’s go-karting events.

“As soon as they get there, I want to see how it looks and what’s going on and how the car is going, if we’re performing on the race track and what issues we’re running into, and Mr. H. is kind of the same way,” Ives says. “So I love his enthusiasm in it. I can kind of look in the mirror and say, hey, that’s kind of me when my son’s away and I’m stuck doing something different. But it’s an interesting balance and dynamic in every level. No matter your level within racing, whether you’re an owner, a mechanic, a crew chief, an engineer, we all have to have the same passion and the same desire and the same concern — whether our car is capable of going faster or how the test is going or eventually how the race is going to go.”

Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The NASCAR Foundation announced Ralph Maccarone as the winner of the 12th annual Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award during a live-streamed announcement on NASCAR’s YouTube channel Thursday. As the award winner, Maccarone secured a $100,000 donation from The NASCAR Foundation to Who We Play For, a nationwide organization whose mission is to eliminate preventable sudden cardiac arrest in young people through affordable heart screenings.

“It’s a great honor to have won the Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award,” said Maccarone following the announcement. “The entire NASCAR organization and The NASCAR Foundation have been phenomenal to work with and we’re so excited to use these funds to help students and save lives.”

Maccarone, who co-founded Who We Play For after losing his 15-year-old son to sudden cardiac arrest, has served and supported the organization for more than a decade. He earned the most online votes from a pool of volunteers, including: Dan Majetich of Nick and Kelly Children’s Heart Fund, Tammy Garrett of Rapahope Children’s Retreat Foundation of Alabama and Tracy Williams of Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Foundation. Together, the group of finalists have impacted more than 100,000 children through their 81 combined years of service. Each of these organizations has earned a $25,000 donation from The NASCAR Foundation in recognition of their nominated volunteers’ achievements.

“Ralph has dedicated his life to ensuring young people receive the proper screenings that could one day save their lives,” said Nichole Krieger, Executive Director of The NASCAR Foundation. “He has spent countless hours volunteering at screenings, fundraising and advocating for change as Who We Play For has grown into a national organization that’s reaching more communities each year. His work and the work of all of our finalists exemplify the lasting legacy of Betty Jane France and the countless number of children The NASCAR Foundation continues to impact.”

Maccarone co-founded Who We Play For in 2012 with the vision to inspire and empower schools, sports clubs and communities to provide heart screenings for all student athletes and students. Through his work, Maccarone has helped bring Who We Play For to many regions across the country as he has advocated for sudden cardiac arrest legislation on the local, state and federal level. With the $100,000 award, Maccarone hopes to bring heart screening events to more NASCAR communities over the next two years.

Aside from his service, Maccarone has been a fan of NASCAR after first being introduced to the sport by his wife, Valerie. He and his son started following Ryan Newman after discovering the driver shared the same birthday as his son.

In its 12 years, The Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award has recognized 48 NASCAR fans who are dedicated volunteers working for children’s causes in communities nationwide. More than 475,000 children’s lives have been affected by the program with $2 million contributed to children’s charities.

To learn more about The NASCAR Foundation’s programs, including the Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award and Speediatrics Children’s Fund, please visit NASCARfoundation.org.

Posted on by Staff Report

Down in South Carolina on one of NASCAR’s most unique short tracks, Florence Motor Speedway, one of the biggest events of the year is set to take place — the South Carolina 400. Try your hand at some props for a chance to win points and prizes before Saturday’s star-studded showdown (7:45 p.m. ET on FloRacing).

RELATED: Entry list, event schedule | Where to watch






Posted on by John Crane

Heading into Championship Weekend, Ty Gibbs – and Joe Gibbs Racing, in particular – had their work cut out for them.

Of course, the work didn’t come much regarding a lack of talent or capability to win the title. The team in JGR and the driver in Gibbs certainly had the pedigree to win at Phoenix Raceway, and they inevitably did, ousting the trio of other contending playoff drivers en route to a win at the track and a title clinch in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

RELATED: 2022 Xfinity Series standings | 2022 drivers

Instead, the work cut out for JGR came from the team they were battling. After all, the three other Championship 4 drivers – Noah Gragson, Justin Allgaier and Josh Berry – called Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s co-owned JR Motorsports home. And while JGR might have prevailed over JRM when it was all said and done, the latter’s 2022 season could not be taken lightly. And who knows – even as drivers move up the league ladder, JRM’s breakout year could signify what JGR will have to contend with next season and beyond.

So, what exactly did JRM accomplish this season if they didn’t claim the title? Glad you asked. For starters, JRM led all 2022 teams in wins with 15, the fourth-most by an Xfinity Series team in a single season and the most since JGR won 16 in 2010, per Racing Insights. JRM’s 15 wins were additionally a team-high in a single season, lapping their nine wins during the 2014 campaign.

Spearheading JRM’s winning effort in 2022 was Noah Gragson, who found Victory Lane eight times. The 24-year-old acted as the ace and anchor for the team from start to finish, and a scorching start to the season certainly cemented this claim. According to Racing Insights, Gragson became the third driver to start the season with four consecutive top-three finishes. Collectively, Gragson led all drivers with eight wins, 21 top-five finishes and 16 stage wins. And just to add a cherry on top, Gragson’s four consecutive wins between Darlington Raceway (Sept. 3) and Texas Motor Speedway (Sept. 24) tied Sam Ard (1983) for most consecutive races won.

Now, the question is bound to arise. With Gragson’s transfer to the Cup Series as captain of the No. 42 Chevrolet under Petty-GMS starting in 2023, what will JRM do to offset the loss in production? If 2022 was any indicator, then JRM will remain in stable hands. When speaking of last season, Allgaier and Berry were tied for fourth in wins (three apiece). The pair combined for 27 top-five finishes (16 and 11, respectively) and individually ranked inside the top five in this category among all Xfinity Series drivers (Allgaier t-3rd and Berry t-5th).

Stage wins weren’t alien to the Allgaier-Berry duo, either, even when compared to Gragson’s total. Allgaier’s eight and Berry’s six stage wins in 2022 ranked third and fourth in the league, behind only Gragson and JGR’s Gibbs (10). And so, JRM’s success in winning stages only made it natural for the team to collectively break records in this category. JRM’s 33 stage wins were the most in a single season for a team, surpassing JGR’s 30 in 2019.

JRM’s Gragson-Allgaier-Berry trio undoubtedly put together strong seasons from start to finish, and while none of the three came away with the championship, all three put themselves in a position to fight for it. With their bids in the Championship 4, JRM added to their resume by being the only team to place three drivers in the Championship 4, doing so in 2022 and 2017.

RELATED: 2023 Xfinity Series schedule | Buy tickets for ‘23

A successful 2022 season from JRM sets the bar high for 2023. Challenge accepted. With Gragson’s departure comes Brandon Jones’ entrance, who will transition from JGR to JRM and take over Gragson’s No. 9 Chevy in 2023. Then, there is second-year driver Sam Mayer, who, in his first full-time season with JRM in the No. 1, tallied 11 top-five finishes and two stage wins.

No matter how JGR looks in 2023, the team will still be reeling off a victorious 2022 season that saw them net their second championship in as many years. However, if JRM has anything to say about it, then the former will continue to have their work cut out for them.

Stats provided by Racing Insights.

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

Editor’s note: NASCAR Roots will profile local drivers in advance of this weekend’s South Carolina 400 at Florence Motor Speedway, where Dale Earnhardt Jr. will compete. Click here to learn more about the track or watch Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on FloRacing.

—

There aren’t many drivers who can win a track championship in the top class at a NASCAR-sanctioned short track before their 18th birthday.

Kade Brown did it at 16.

Brown, driving a late model stock car prepared by AK Performance, was the driver to beat all season at Florence Motor Speedway in Timmonsville, South Carolina.

In 17 starts at the 0.4-mile asphalt oval, Brown won six times and finished outside the top 10 just once. If that weren’t impressive enough, 2022 was Brown’s first full season racing late model stock cars after he dabbled in the class last year.

RELATED: Watch the South Carolina 400 live on FloRacing

“I started in late model stocks at Florence in 2021,” said Brown, who also claimed the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series South Carolina state championship in addition to the Florence track championship. “I ran about half the season, and I had one or two top threes. We were OK. We went into the 2022 season with really no idea how we were going to do.”

Part of the uncertainty was because of some bad luck late in 2021 that saw Brown crash his team’s primary car during the South Carolina 400 at Florence. The team built a new car for the 2022 season following the crash, a decision that immediately paid dividends.

Kade Brown
Kade Brown pictured during practice for the Fall Brawl at Hickory Motor Speedway on Nov. 12, 2022. (Adam Fenwick/NASCAR)

In his first race in that new car during Florence’s IceBreaker in February, Brown drove to a third-place finish. It was at that point he knew he had a car capable of competing for the track championship.

“We knew we were good,” Brown said. “From there on out we kept getting better and better each time we were out there and learning. We ended up with six wins.

“We were confident enough to where we could go race for a championship after those first few races and how they played out.”

Brown is not a South Carolina native; he moved to the region two years ago from Fulshear, Texas. The move was the result of his father’s employer transferring him to the East Coast.

When it came time to pick exactly where in he region the family would land, Brown said they chose Denver, North Carolina, because of its proximity to the motorsports industry.

Brown had taken an interest in motorsports long before the move to North Carolina. His father, a former motocross racer, didn’t want his son to follow in his footsteps as a motorcycle racer. That’s when Brown, then just 5, got his first go kart.

He’s been off to the races – literally – ever since.

Kade Brown
Kade Brown (right) helps his crew push his car at Florence Motor Speedway earlier this year. (Photo courtesy of Kade Brown)

“I raced that go kart until I was 7,” Brown said. “Then I got a Bandolero and raced that until I was 12. Then I got in a legend car, raced it for two years, and I’m still in and out of that. Then I got in a late model when I turned 14.”

While the regular season at Florence may be over, one big event remains on the schedule. The South Carolina 400, scheduled for this Saturday evening, is expected to attract one of the biggest late model stock car fields of the year.

Brown, as the reigning track champion, will be one of more than 50 drivers looking to qualify for the race. He’s looking forward to the challenge, which would include battling NASCAR Hall of Fame Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is returning to race to Florence for the first time since his formative years in racing.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” Brown said about competing in the South Carolina 400. “I’ve never been this excited for a race. I’m a little nervous because I really want to do good. I know it’s going to be a stacked field. Dale Jr. is going to be racing. I just want to do the best I can, and however it plays out is how it goes.

“It’s going to be the best of the best there. You can’t get any better. I’m really looking forward to it. These guys are the best there is. I’m hoping we can stack up well against them.”

Posted on by Official NASCAR Release

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR today announced the creation of NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race, the sanctioning body’s fourth international series and first in South America. The series, which will begin competition in 2023, is a partnership between NASCAR and the GT Sprint Race series in Brazil.

NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race joins the NASCAR Mexico Series, NASCAR Pinty’s Series (Canada) and NASCAR Whelen Euro Series as the fourth international series racing under the NASCAR banner. In 2023, NASCAR racing will take place in 12 different countries on three continents.

“Brazil is a vibrant country, rich in motorsports culture and community, and the perfect location for our first series in South America,” said Chad Seigler, NASCAR Vice President of International. “NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race will allow us to showcase the exciting side-by-side racing that defines NASCAR while giving Brazilian race fans a series to which they feel connected. It is our hope and intention that this series also opens more pathways for the country’s best drivers, mechanics and engineers to advance to NASCAR’s national series in the United States, the worldwide pinnacle of stock car racing.”

“NASCAR is an iconic American sport, and we are honored to join forces to create NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race,” said Carlos Col, General Partner, NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race. “GT Sprint Race has delivered exciting racing to fans since 2012 and this partnership will help take it to the next level with the introduction of more NASCAR-style racing, including future races on oval tracks. This is an historic day for motorsports in Brazil, and one that will benefit race fans across the country.”

GT Sprint Race was founded in 2012 by Thiago Marques, a former standout stock car driver in Brazil, with the goal of balancing high levels of competition, performance and safety.  The 2022 schedule included 18 sprint races over nine weekends at road courses across Brazil, including Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace (Interlagos) in São Paulo. The 2023 schedule will be released at a future date.

Brazil’s strong motorsports culture has extended to NASCAR over the past 20 years. Three Brazilian-born drivers have competed in NASCAR in the United States – Christian Fittipaldi made 15 Cup Series starts in 2003, Nelson Piquet Jr. started 83 races across NASCAR’s three national series from 2010-16 winning three times, and Miguel Paludo has 81 starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, including three this past season.

Through a partnership with Bandeirantes, all NASCAR Cup Series races and select Xfinity Series and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series races are shown on Band Sports. NASCAR is currently broadcast in 195 countries and territories, reaching over 500 million households.

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

Steve O’Donnell, the latest guest to join the “Stacking Pennies” podcast with Corey LaJoie, had plenty to share.

O’Donnell, the sport’s COO, offered candor on a multitude of pressing topics surrounding the sport at the forefront of the offseason, including potential upcoming changes to the Next Gen car, possible international events and ongoing discussions with manufacturers.

MORE: Tune in to the “Stacking Pennies” podcast

The 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season saw the Next Gen vehicle debut and bring with it plenty of upside – 19 different winners, compelling racing and more parity. But criticism remained around the on-track product at both short tracks and road courses. O’Donnell conceded those areas need work and will be addressed ahead of the 2023 season.

“I agree with the fans,” O’Donnell told LaJoie and Co. “Small body of work, right? We didn’t have that many races [on short tracks]. But you take Martinsville, for instance, and the thing that caught my eye – and you heard this from BJ [McLeod], a good race car driver, right? But he’s a lap down, and he’s able to hold off the leader, I think, for what, 50 laps, right? Just kind of shifting and getting off the gas. And that’s a problem for us.

“So if you’ve got a good car and you’re out there and you’re able to pass guys, you should be able to do that. And so we’ve looked at what’s happening in short tracks. You look at the brakes on the road courses, they’re so good. So this car is different for sure. But it presents some challenges on both short tracks and road courses. So we’re looking at a lot of things around the aero. Certainly looking at some things around the tires, but you know that’s going to be our big focus in the offseason is both road courses and short tracks for sure.”

Some of that work has already begun, thanks in part to NASCAR’s partnership with Hendrick Motorsports as the team fields a Garage 56 entry for the 2023 running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The company’s first test car hit the track Monday at Virginia International Raceway, and some of that data is already proving notable as NASCAR officials work to improve the Next Gen product on the sanctioning body’s traditional circuit.

MORE: ‘Huge milestone’ reached for G56 at VIR

“There’s a lot of things we’ve looked at in the wind tunnel that we found on that car that I think we can try for [a] fairly inexpensive way to go about it, particularly on the short tracks,” O’Donnell said. “So you’ll see us most likely go test something up in Richmond. … But I think there’s gonna be some good things. At least from what we’ve seen already in the wind tunnel and a lot of the sim data, it looks really good in terms of getting rid of some of the challenges as we’ve seen, particularly on the short tracks.

“And then, ultimately, we’ve got to look at shifting. Do we want to eliminate that? How can we work with the engine builders to improve upon that also?”

Power components also remain a hot-button topic as manufacturers consider moving further toward electric or other power sources for their vehicles. NASCAR continues to look at those options, O’Donnell said, but all factors must make sense too.

“For us, we’ve got to be all things to all people. And at the end of the day, we got to be entertaining,” O’Donnell said. “And people want to show up, and they want to go to an event, and they want to have fun. And what I’ve seen at least around [electric vehicle] racing so far, there’s maybe some fun off-track, but the racing is not that. And so we’ve got a lot of work to do if we’re going to be in that space. How do we do it? What’s the look and feel of the car?

“So we’re building kind of a mule car, so to speak, and we’ll beat it up a little bit, see what we can learn. But we’re also going to be looking at hydrogen space, alternative fuels, all kinds of things because we’ve got to be on the forefront of that and not just put all our eggs in one basket.”

NASCAR has not seen a new manufacturer enter the sport since Toyota joined the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2004, eventually leaping to Cup in 2007. O’Donnell stressed talks are ongoing and have gotten close, but added it remains difficult to say whether a new manufacturer will join in the next five years.

“I think there’s certainly interest,” O’Donnell said. “We are having conversations right now with an OEM, so I’d like to say likely, but it’s tough. … But again, when you go back to looking at how soon is electrification going to come? Or where do you want to be? And at the end of the day, for us, it’s great if you want to be in the electric space, but we want to be entertaining, right? We’re a sport. We want to make sure our fans come out there and love what they see, and we’ve got to balance that.”

RELATED: Clash tickets, event information

Interest is also stemming from cities around the continent that don’t yet have Cup racing on its doorstep. The NASCAR Xfinity Series’ inaugural visit to Portland (Oregon) International Raceway in June — highlighted by full grandstands despite considerable rain — emphasized an appetite for racing in America’s Northwest region. But calls are also being made from across both sides of the United States’ borders.

”We haven’t necessarily brought the Cup Series to Canada or the Cup Series to Mexico,” O’Donnell said, “so there’s a lot of interest from both those places — Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, they’re all talking to us. Montreal, Toronto. So there’s a lot of interest.

“I think the key for us is going to be how do we balance this? I mean, you grew up on short tracks. Our fans love short tracks. So we don’t want to turn it into a 30-race road-course schedule, right? So we’ve got to balance where we’re going to take a race and what kind of race track we’re going to migrate that to.”

For more details on O’Donnell’s conversation with LaJoie, tune into this week’s episode of “Stacking Pennies.“

Posted on by Adam Fenwick

Dylan “Mamba” Smith is dusting off his driving shoes once again to compete in Saturday’s South Carolina 400 late model stock car event at Florence Motor Speedway in Timmonsville, South Carolina.

Smith, who made his ARCA Menards Series debut earlier this year at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, will drive a car fielded by Lee Faulk Racing with sponsorship from Dodge Direct Connection and @DodgeMoparMotorsports, the brand’s motorsports Instagram channel.

The 30-year-old from Randolph, Vermont, has worked with Dodge since 2019 as part of the Dodge Thrill Ride tour.

“In April 2019 I was offered a spot on the Dodge Thrill Ride tour, and since then I’ve grown within the brand from a support staff role to serving as a brand ambassador, Dodge product specialist, and now leading event activations and acting as a ‘hype man’ on the mic,” said Smith. “Without this opportunity on the Dodge Thrill Ride tour, I don’t think I’m doing what I’m doing with NASCAR. To carry Direct Connection and @DodgeMoparMotorsports colors on this car is a full-circle life experience — the people and the brand will always be home for me.”

Smith is one of more than 50 drivers entered to compete in the late model stock car portion of the South Carolina 400. He’ll be joined by NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr., who will drive a No. 3 late model stock car featuring a throwback wrap honoring his father’s Bass Pro Shops scheme from the 1998 NASCAR All-Star Race.

Complete coverage of the South Carolina 400 will be available on FloRacing starting Friday at 5:30 p.m. ET. Saturday’s coverage also begins at 5:30 p.m. ET.

Posted on by Staff Report

On Thursday, Nov. 17 at 1:30 p.m. ET, The NASCAR Foundation will reveal the winner of the 12th annual Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award live on NASCAR’s YouTube Channel.

THURSDAY’S STREAM: Live on NASCAR’s YouTube channel

The Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award, named in honor of the foundation’s late founder and chairwoman, Betty Jane France, recognizes NASCAR fans who volunteer for children’s causes in their racing communities. Each finalist receives a minimum $25,000 donation for their organization with the overall winner receiving a $100,000 donation from The NASCAR Foundation to further their efforts.

This year’s Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award finalists include:

  • Dan Majetich of Tempe, Arizona, a co-founder and volunteer with Nick and Kelly Children’s Heart Fund of Arizona, an organization that assists Arizona families of children with congenital heart disease and acquired heart disease. After losing their sons, Nick and Kelly, to congenital heart defects, Dan and his wife, Margaret, founded the Nick and Kelly Children’s Heart Fund in 1985. Since then, Dan has become a leading advocate for families of children with heart disease, helping to provide financial assistance and hosting annual camps for children to experience activities that normally may not be accessible to children with heart defects.
  • Ralph Maccarone of Pagosa Springs, Colorado, a co-founder and volunteer of Who We Play For, a nationwide organization whose mission is to eliminate preventable sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in young people through affordable heart screenings. After losing his 15-year-old son to SCA, Ralph helped to co-found Who We Play For and over the last decade has dedicated his time to volunteering at heart screening events, fundraising and advocating for policy changes and serving as the chairman of the Board of Directors.
  • Tammy Garrett of Mobile, Alabama, a volunteer with Rapahope Children’s Retreat Foundation of Alabama, a non-profit organization that provides opportunities to families on the childhood cancer journey through recreational support programs. A volunteer for 17 years, Tammy is involved in all aspects of Rapahope, including involvement on the organization’s fundraising and planning committees. She is also a regular attendee of the Camp Week, Sibling Weekend, Teen Weekend and Family Day programs, often volunteering her time to cooking meals and helping campers learn to fish.
  • Tracy Williams of Jacksonville, Florida, a volunteer with the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports families that are tackling childhood cancer. For the past 17 years, Tracy has played an integral role in delivering support and raising funds for families affected by childhood cancer. A chairperson to the organization’s signature fundraising event, The Celebrity Golf Classic, Tracy has helped raise over $7 million dollars, coordinating program content and logistics to assure the event’s success including its transition to a virtual environment during the pandemic.

To learn more about The NASCAR Foundation’s Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award and the 2022 finalists, visit NASCARfoundation.org/Award.