Sunday, August 23, 2015

RACE RECAP - Bristol Motor Speedway


Race Winner: Joey Logano
Age: 25
Team : No. 22 - Shell Pennzoil Ford
Owner: Walter Czarnecki
Crew Chief: Todd Gordon
Joey Logano won the 55th Annual IRWIN Tools Night Race, his 11th victory in 243 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his third victory and 18th top-10 finish in 2015.
This is his second victory and fourth top-10 finish in 14 races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Kevin Harvick (second) posted his 13th top-10 finish in 30 races at Bristol Motor Speedway.  It is his 21st top-10 finish in 2015.
Denny Hamlin (third) posted his ninth top-10 finish in 20 races at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Brett Moffitt (30th) was the highest finishing rookie.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 43 points over Joey Logano.
Joey Logano has one top-10 finish and one pole (2012) in six races at Homestead-Miami Speedway.


Monday, August 17, 2015

Testing 1, 2, 3!


Get ready, Homestead-Miami Speedway fans - NASCAR Testing is back!

On August 26, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will descend upon South Florida and Homestead-Miami Speedway for a day of testing at the 1.5-mile track.

The best part? YOU can come watch! 

Open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., fans can watch the test session from the Speedway Club on the 4th floor in the main administration building, or from the Pit Road Cabanas in the infield. When you arrive on-site, park in the parking lot on SW 336th Street and 137th Ave and take the tram to the infield.

Here's the rundown:

WHO: **ALL DRIVERS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE**
Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Ford Fusion, Penske Racing
Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet SS, Hendrick Motorsports
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 42 Chevrolet SS, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Chevrolet SS, Stewart-Haas Racing
Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 15 Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing
Martin Truex Jr., driver of the No. 78 Chevrolet SS, Furniture Row Racing
Trevor Bayne, driver of the No. 6 Ford Fusion, Roush Fenway Racing
Ty Dillon, driver of the No. 31 Chevrolet SS, Richard Childress Racing
Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Ryan Blaney, driver of the No. 21 Ford Fusion, Wood Brothers Racing

WHAT: One car/one driver will be testing a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car to try different setups and handling in preparation of the Ford EcoBoost 400 in November.

WHEN: August 26, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

WHERE: Homestead-Miami Speedway, 1 Ralph Sanchez Speedway Blvd, Homestead, FL 33035

DIRECTIONS:
From the north: 
Florida's Turnpike South to Ralph Sanchez Speedway Blvd (Exit 6)
Left on to Ralph Sanchez Speedway Blvd
Left on SW 336th Street
Left into parking lot (walk to Gate #4)

From the south:
US1 North to SW 344th Street (Palm Drive)
Right on to SW 344th Street (Palm Drive)
SW 344th Street (Palm Drive) to Ralph Sanchez Speedway Blvd
Right on to SW 336th Street
Left into parking lot (walk to Gate #4)

Sunday, August 16, 2015

RACE RECAP - Michigan International Speedway


Race Winner: Matt Kenseth
Age: 43
Team: No. 20 - Dollar General Toyota
Owner: Joe Gibbs
Crew Chief: Jason Ratcliff
Matt Kenseth won the 46th Annual Pure Michigan 400 , his 34th victory in 567 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
With the victory, Kenseth takes sole possession of 20th on the all-time series wins list.
This is his third victory and 15th top-10 finish in 2015.
This is his third victory and 20th top-10 finish in 33 races at Michigan International Speedway.
Kevin Harvick (second) posted his 13th top-10 finish in 30 races at Michigan International Speedway.  It is his 20th top-10 finish in 2015.
Martin Truex Jr. (third) posted his seventh top-10 finish in 20 races at Michigan International Speedway.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 48 points over Joey Logano.

Matt Kenseth is the 2014 Ford EcoBoost 300 NASCAR XFINITY Series race winner at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He has one win (2007 Ford 400), four top-5 finishes, seven top-10 finishes, and one pole (2013 Ford EcoBoost 400) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Friday, August 14, 2015

Track Laps for a Cause - September 19




Frequently Asked Questions:

Can I bring my truck? 
Sure! All street-legal vehicles are welcome on the track.

Can I participate with my motorcycle?
Yes. Motorcycles are welcome! We do require that all drivers and/or passengers wear a helmet.

How fast can I go?
The lap(s) will be paced by our Official Pace Car. He will allow you to exceed regular road speed limits, depending on weather and track conditions.

What if it rains?
Track laps will take place rain or shine!

How old do you have to be to participate?
All drivers must show a Valid Driver’s License, but passengers of all ages are permitted. 

Where do I get tickets?
There are no advance tickets. You can simply pay when you enter our facility.

How are donations being accepted?
Cash or credit cards will be accepted. Please, no personal checks.

Where are the laps taking place?
The Victory laps will be taking place on the oval. Not the road course.

Sunday, August 9, 2015

RACE RECAP - Watkins Glen International


Race Winner: Joey Logano
Age: 25
Team: No. 22 - Shell Pennzoil Ford
Owner: Walter Czarnecki
Crew Chief: Todd Gordon
Joey Logano won the 30th Annual Cheez-It 355 at The Glen, his 10th victory in 241 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his second victory and 16th top-10 finish in 2015.
This is his first victory and fourth top-10 finish in seven races at Watkins Glen International.
Kyle Busch (second) posted his ninth top-10 finish in 11 races at Watkins Glen International.  It is his sixth top-10 finish in 2015. Busch is now 30th in the points and eligible for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. 
Kevin Harvick (third) posted his eighth top-10 finish in 15 races at Watkins Glen International.
Matt DiBenedetto (26th) was the highest finishing rookie.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 42 points over Joey Logano.
Joey Logano becomes the first driver to sweep both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and NASCAR XFINITY Series races at Watkins Glen International.

Joey Logano has one top-10 finish and one pole (2012) in six races at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

A Word from the President: Fanatics Tent is the Future


Times, they are a-changin’.

This past weekend at Pocono Raceway, if you were perusing the merchandise area looking for apparel from your favorite NASCAR driver, you may have noticed a slight difference in the way you shopped.

With the exception of a few NASCAR teams, the majority of the souvenir trailers that fans are used to see lining streets outside of NASCAR tracks are now transformed into a trackside superstore through a new partnership with NASCAR and Fanatics. While change can be scary for some, in most recent cases – the new Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoff format, for example – it can also be great for fans, drivers, and industry stakeholders.

Such is the case with the new Fanatics superstore. With 60,000 square feet, the store now allows fans to easily shop for their favorite merchandise, hold it, try it on and really make an educated decision on what they want to purchase.

Each of the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers has their own section filled with new and fun T-shirts, hats and other apparel waiting for the fans. If you have more than one favorite driver, you can simply walk next door and view their apparel. Bring all of your items to the front and you can purchase everything at one time and put it on before the race begins.

The store comes complete with new selection of souvenirs, such as a diecast car section loaded with 1,400 cars. There is also a section with 10,000 driver New Era hats. There are now women’s and children’s sections to give fans even more options for apparel. All of your favorite drivers gear is now in one place at one time and very accessible to all fans who need to touch things and try on different sizes before making a purchase.

Here's an example of the hat display in the new Fanatics tent. (Photo credit: Jeff Zelevansky, Getty Images)

Drivers such as Martin Truex Jr. would sometimes comment about how fans wouldn’t be able to find his merchandise because it may be tucked back in a corner among other haulers. Now, fans can easily find his section via a picture of him above the dedicated space and find a wider variety of other items to purchase besides hats and shirts.


NASCAR is so unique in that guests at our tracks may not be a fan of just one driver, as they would be a fan of one team in any other major sport. Many guests support multiple drivers, and Fanatics has now brought fans together in one place to support their driver or team.

Even drivers such as Michael McDowell and Landon Cassill, who did not have their own haulers before, have spaces in the new Fanatics tent.  NASCAR is one of the most sensory sports in that fans cheer on a driver because they feel they have an emotional connection to them, and the new superstore just adds to that feeling by giving fans of drivers such as Cassill a way to connect even more.

While several devotees may feel nostalgia for the old haulers, this change is the great step in the right direction for our sport. When it was announced in January that the haulers would be going away, many fans had questions about how the new tent would be received and what it would bring to the tracks. Being able to see it in person this past weekend I think changed the minds of a lot of fans, and also allowed them to bring home new items they may not have been able to get before.

Just to put it in perspective, at the June Pocono race, there was merchandise available for 33 drivers at 23 haulers. The new Fanatics tent brought apparel for 58 drivers, including a section for Dale Earnhardt Jr. that expanded 2,000 square feet.

To add to the new selection of apparel fans can find at the new superstore, by the end of the year, NASCAR and Fanatics hope to have on-site personal printing options where fans can put their names on their purchases. There are also plans to add the capability to print and sell race-winner merchandise to fans after a race.

Picture this: after the Ford EcoBoost 400 on November 22, when one of the Championship Four drivers claims the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship and you are celebrating with the driver on the frontstretch, you may have the capability to leave Homestead-Miami Speedway with championship merchandise and wear it on Monday morning.

As Martin Truex Jr. said at the opening of the new tent this past weekend, “Welcome to 2015.”




Matthew Becherer
President, Homestead-Miami Speedway

Sunday, August 2, 2015

RACE RECAP - POCONO RACEWAY


Race Winner: Matt Kenseth
Age: 43
Team : No. 20 - Dollar General Toyota
Owner: Joe Gibbs
Crew Chief: Jason Ratcliff
Matt Kenseth won the 42nd Annual Windows 10 400 , his 33rd victory in 565 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his second victory and 13th top-10 finish in 2015.
This is his first victory and 12th top-10 finish in 32 races at Pocono Raceway. Kenseth's previous best Pocono finish was third in June of 2003.
Brad Keselowski (second) posted his fifth top-10 finish in 12 races at Pocono Raceway.  It is his 13th top-10 finish in 2015.
Jeff Gordon (third) posted his 32nd top-10 finish in 46 races at Pocono Raceway.
Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 46 points over Joey Logano.

Matt Kenseth is the 2014 Ford EcoBoost 300 NASCAR XFINITY Series race winner at Homestead-Miami Speedway. 

He has one win (2007), four top-5 finishes, seven top-10 finishes, and one pole (2013) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Homestead-Miami Speedway.