Sunday, July 26, 2015

RACE RECAP - Indianapolis Motor Speedway


Race Winner: Kyle Busch
Age: 30
Team : No. 18 - Skittles Toyota
Owner: Joe Gibbs
Crew Chief: Adam Stevens
Kyle Busch won the 22nd Annual Crown Royal presents the Jeff Kyle 400 at The Brickyard, his 33rd victory in 374 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his fourth victory and fifth top-10 finish in 2015. It was his third win in a row in 2015.
This is his first victory and ninth top-10 finish in 11 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Joey Logano (second) posted his fourth top-10 finish in seven races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  It is his 15th top-10 finish in 2015.
Kevin Harvick (third) posted his ninth top-10 finish in 15 races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Matt DiBenedetto (32nd) was the highest finishing rookie.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 69 points over Joey Logano.
This is the first win for Toyota at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The manufacturer now has a win at all active tracks.


Sunday, July 19, 2015

RACE RECAP - New Hampshire Motor Speedway





Race Winner: Kyle Busch
Age: 30
Team : No. 18 - Interstate Batteries Toyota
Owner: Joe Gibbs
Crew Chief: Adam Stevens

Kyle Busch won the 23rd Annual 5-hour ENERGY 301, his 32nd victory in 373 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his third victory and fourth top-10 finish in 2015.
This is his second victory and 11th top-10 finish in 21 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
 Brad Keselowski (second) posted his eighth top-10 finish in 12 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.  It is his 11th top-10 finish in 2015.
 Kevin Harvick (third) posted his 15th top-10 finish in 29 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Brett Moffitt (33rd) was the highest finishing rookie.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 69 points over Joey Logano.

Sunday, July 12, 2015

RACE RECAP - Kentucky Speedway


Race Winner: Kyle Busch
Age: 30
Team : No. 18 - M&M's Crispy Toyota
Owner: Joe Gibbs
Crew Chief: Adam Stevens
Kyle Busch won the 5th Annual Quaker State 400  presented by Advance Auto Parts, his 31st victory in 372 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his second victory and third top-10 finish in 2015.
This is his second victory and fifth top-10 finish in five races at Kentucky Speedway.
Joey Logano (second) posted his third top-10 finish in five races at Kentucky Speedway.  It is his 13th top-10 finish in 2015.
Denny Hamlin (third) posted his second top-10 finish in five races at Kentucky Speedway.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 68 points over Jimmie Johnson.
Kyle Busch, currently 35th in points, is now 87 points out of the top 30.

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Track Laps are Coming Soon




One of our favorite days of the year is the day we can open the gates of Pit Road and allow our community to come enjoy the track. In past years, we combined it with a car wash allowing the vehicles to be dried as they zoomed around the track. 

Let's face it: the cars didn't always stay clean. Going 70, 80, 90 miles around a 1.5-mile oval comes with the chance of dirt, bugs and water streaks on your car. 

So this year, we are going to un-wash it. No more car wash...just laps. 

Mark your calendars! The Homestead-Miami Speedway Un-Wash will be held on September 19. 

The details, times, charities, etc are still being worked out, but you can count on a whole lot of fun and a whole lot of speed. 


HMS Un-Wash: September 19, 2015

A word from our President: NASCAR's new aero package


While most of the NASCAR community had the weekend off for Father's Day, NASCAR officials and teams were busy, partly due to a new rules package that was announced early in June. One of the most unique things about NASCAR is the ability to make changes and adapt to the needs of drivers and crews, even if the changes come halfway through the season.

Throughout the first 17 races this season, it has been hard not to notice that there has been a decline in the amount of lead changes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. While there are several opinions as to why this is, many in the garage area attribute the decline to the rules package set in place for the 2015 season. After collaboration with the teams and crews, NASCAR made the decision to alter the aerodynamics setup on the cars for the race on July 11 at Kentucky Speedway.

The rules consist of lowering the rear spoiler to 3.5 inches, reducing the size of the radiator pan to 25-inches, and the splitter will have 1 ¾ inch less overhang. The tires will have more grip, but these will not be tires specifically built for this package because of time constraints.

Now, if that all sounded like it was in a foreign language to you because you are not someone who works on NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars every weekend, you’re not alone.  To put it in laymen’s terms, a spoiler is a metal blade attached to the rear deck lid of the car that helps restrict airflow over the rear of the car, providing downforce and traction. The radiator pan is a metal plate that sits below the radiator and helps keep the air flowing freely under the car. A splitter is an aerodynamic device fitted to the front of the car that generates downforce and grip.

With that being said, what the new proposed package is designed to do is to reduce downforce, and could help produce more side-by-side competition, and therefore more green-flag lead changes.

For now, it appears as though the race at Kentucky will be the only one where this package is utilized. However, if it is deemed a success, we could be seeing a different rules package again later in the season. To help teams prepare for the single-race change, an extended practice session will be held at Kentucky Speedway on the Wednesday before the Saturday night race (July 11). After the checkered flag flies at Kentucky, NASCAR officials will take the information learned from the race and analyze it to see if there needs to be any more changes to races in the remaining 18 races of the 2015 season.

Initially, a version of this package that included lowering the spoiler height and changes to the splitter and splitter extension panel was scheduled to debut next year. But, with the rules package this year consisting of lower downforce and less horsepower, there was a continued increase in corner speeds and a decline in green-flag passes, which encouraged officials to release a potential new package early.

In a further effort to enhance the racing this season, NASCAR recently added an updated rules package, which will be implemented for races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (July 26), Michigan International Speedway (August 16), Darlington Raceway (September 6) and Richmond International Raceway (September 12).

This is precisely why this sport is so unique. In Major League Baseball, a new pitch clock system was tested at Spring Training to alert a pitcher of the amount of time he has before throwing a pitch, in order to control the length of games. However, that was tested during Spring Training, and still won’t roll out until the 2016 season at the earliest. A change like that could never be implemented in the middle of the season such as NASCAR is doing now.

While the new rules package is a change, it is always in the best interest of the fans and the drivers. NASCAR does a great job at communicating with stakeholders throughout the year to ensure everyone is satisfied, and is doing their part to provide fans a great show and a great weekend of racing when heading down to the racetrack.
The rules package could open the door for other changes this season, or it could be shelved until 2016. A tweak like this is in the middle of the season is just a reminder that the industry has the best interests in mind for everyone.

With the summer season of NASCAR coming up and our first road course of the season this weekend, the field will continue to be molded for the Chase, and before you know it, we will know who the 16 drivers will be competing for a championship here at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The best is yet to come!

-Matthew Becherer
President, Homestead-Miami Speedway

'Race to the Fourth' Independence Day Event at Homestead-Miami Speedway!

We hope everyone who came out to the annual 'Race to the Fourth' Independence Day event this past Saturday had a great evening with family and friends. Check out a couple of our favorite photos from this weekend!

Photo credit: Bob Richardson

Photo credit: Bob Richardson

Photo credit: Bob Richardson

Photo credit: Bob Richardson

Photo credit: James Fishman

Photo credit: James Fishman

Photo credit: James Fishman

Photo credit: R. Chaplin

Photo credit: R. Chaplin

Photo credit: R. Chaplin

Monday, July 6, 2015

RACE RECAP - Daytona International Speedway


Race Winner: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Age: 40
Team : No. 88 - Nationwide Stars and Stripes Chevrolet
Owner: Rick Hendrick
Crew Chief: Greg Ives

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the 57th Annual Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola , his 25th victory in 558 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.

This is his second victory and 11th top-10 finish in 2015.

This is his fourth victory and 19th top-10 finish in 32 races at Daytona International Speedway.

Jimmie Johnson (second) posted his 14th top-10 finish in 28 races at Daytona International Speedway.  It is his 12th top-10 finish in 2015.

Denny Hamlin (third) posted his sixth top-10 finish in 20 races at Daytona International Speedway.

Matt DiBenedetto (26th) was the highest finishing rookie.

Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 63 points over Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has one top-5 finish and two top-10 finishes in 15 starts at Homestead-Miami Speedway.