JD Motorsports w/Gary Keller is even more ready for the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series season than they were in 2012.

In addition to resigning primary sponsor G&K Services for a multi-race deal, they have also added some horsepower and support in their shop. The team has entered into a six race agreement with the North American market leader in branded identity apparel programs and facility services. “We are excited that G&K Services has decided to come on board again for the 2013 racing season. Their organization sees a benefit in working with our team, and we are pleased to have them as part of our program.”

The two-car team will have Mike Wallace returning behind the wheel of the No. 01 Chevrolet. And, Danny Efland is driving a very large majority of races in the No. 4 Chevrolet. Each of them has a new crew chief for their respective teams.

Marc Browning takes over the No. 01 team for Wallace. His most recent employment was with Parker Kligerman for Team 42 Racing. He’s already impressed with what he’s seen in the JD Motorsports shop.

"I have never been in an atmosphere of such hard working guys, real racers, who want to show up and compete every week,” Browning said. “I look forward to working with Mike and the whole JD Motorsports team for 2013.

“Johnny Davis (owner) has given us the tools we need to succeed. Now, we just need to put the hard work from the guys in the shop to good use and get those great finishes.”

Dave Smith returns to the JD Motorsports team and will be calling the shots for Efland at the No. 4 Chevrolet team. His prior stint with the team included working with Eric McClure and Efland during his tenure at JD Motorsports. He was also with Eddie Sharp Racing.

“Being back here with the team is great,” Smith said. “Walking in the shop again was very comfortable and I appreciate the opportunity Johnny has given me with the team this year.

“Danny is a great person and good behind the wheel. We’ve worked together in the past, so I know we’ll be good to go this year.

“Just like Marc said. Johnny has the tools and things we need to be a good team, and this group of guys is one of the hardest working bunches you’ll ever find.”

While the team has signed G&K Services, there is still room for more marketing partners on both cars for the 2013 season.

JD Motorsports PR

Eddie Roche, International Speedway Corporation’s images and archives manager since 2003, will be honored with The National Russ Moyer Media Award, representing excellence in journalism.  The award will be presented by Ray Fox's Living Legends of Auto Racing Organization on Feb. 20 during the Living Legends of Auto Racing Organization’s annual banquet at The Shores Resort & Spa in Daytona Beach Shores, Fla.

Russ Moyer, NASCAR Vice President in the 1960’s and early 1970’s, exhibited talent and commitment to the media and motorsports throughout his career.  Prior to Moyer’s years as executive, he handled publicity for the inaugural stock car race on the Daytona Beach road course in 1936, worked as a sports writer for the Norristown (Pa.) Times-Herald, and was the sports editor for the East Stroudsburg (Pa.) Morning Sun. 

Inspired by Russ Moyer’s demeanor and legendary auto racing efforts, the Living Legends of Auto Racing Organization formed The National Russ Moyer Media Award.  The 600-member non-profit, Living Legends of Auto Racing Organization strongly supports and honors beach and stock racing legends. 

Donnie Allison, International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee who competed in NASCAR during the 1960s-1980s, will present the award on behalf of the Living Legends of Auto Racing Organization.

All previous Russ Moyer Media Award honorees demonstrate exquisite aptitude and dedication to journalism and motorsports.

Past acknowledgements include Jim Foster (retired Vice President of Communications for ISC; Assistant to the President, Bill France Sr.; Director NASCAR News Bureau; sports writer; Dodge racing rep), Larry McReynolds (former NASCAR crew chief, now TV race analyst for FOX Sports & Turner Sports), Jeff Hammond (former NASCAR crew chief, now FOX & SPEED-TV commentator), and Jim Hunter (NASCAR VP of Corporate Communications, book author, and sports writer for Atlanta Journal-Constitution, PR Director at Darlington Raceway).

“I’m finding it hard to believe that I’m on the same list with the other names,” Roche said. “I’ve always thought of those that are on the list as being sort of mentors to the work that I did. Above all, I think what makes it so special are the friends and colleagues reaching out to contact me about coming (to the ceremony).”

Eddie Roche has been involved in the motorsports journalism world for more than 40 years. He was the Field Editor South for Stock Car Racing Magazine in the 1970s, Motor Sports Editor for the Scripps-Howard daily newspaper The Hollywood (FL) Sun, the author of Florida Motorsports Retrospective Pictorial Books Vol I & II, has been a freelance journalist for Goodyear, NASCAR Newsletter, Daytona 500 programs, and a consultant on numerous books such as: History of the American Speedway (Allan Brown), NASCAR Families (Herb Branham), and Sebring: The Official History (Ken Breslauer).

“I think the best part for me is that when I was in college, I didn’t know what I wanted to do or to be,” Roche said, “I knew that racing was my love in life, so I took up mass communications and turned it into a career based on my love for racing.”

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will kick off their 2013 season during Budweiser Speedweeks At Daytona with the Sprint Unlimited on Saturday, Feb. 16, under the lights at Daytona International Speedway.

DIS PR

Today, the “stock car” officially returns to NASCAR.

After more than two years of development, including extensive work by the Ford Design Center and Ford aerodynamic experts, the 2013 NASCAR Fusion will take to the race track as practice opens for the 54^th running of the Daytona 500.

“This is a day so many of us at Ford and Ford fans have been waiting for,” said Jamie Allison, director, Ford Racing. “When we first unveiled the 2013 NASCAR Fusion in Charlotte in January 2012, we said we wanted to help return the ‘stock car to NASCAR.’ Without question, with this car, we have.”

The new “Gen 6” NASCAR race cars being introduced this weekend return manufacturer identity to the sport. It continues the trend of NASCAR introducing more consumer relevance to the sport the past three years, including the use of alternate fuels, fuel injection, and now manufacturer identity.

“We are a car company. This is car racing,”said Allison. “This was a great opportunity to work with NASCAR on creating cars that people see on the race track that really look like what they have at home. The opportunity to bring back brand identity to these cars is something the fans have asked for, something NASCAR led, and something we as a manufacturer enabled.

“The small experiment that showed the scale of what this could be happened with the Nationwide series when we introduced the Mustang with more identity two years ago. We saw the exciting reaction from the fans, and even from people who didn’t follow NASCAR. We knew then we were on the right track.”

The process to get to the 2013 NASCAR Fusion started more than two years ago, with the series’ manufacturers first meeting, and deciding to go to NASCAR with a proposal that they would work hand-in-hand with the sanctioning body on the next generation vehicle. Ford Racing Operations Manager Andy Slankard and NASCAR Cup Program Manager Pat DiMarco would lead the Ford team developing the new car.

At Ford, the process started at the Ford Design Center, where a team of designers, led by Garen Nicoghosian, did the initial clay sculpting of the race car, sitting side-by-side with its production counterpart. It was the first time the Ford Design Center had been actively involved in the design of a NASCAR race car since the late 1960s.

The first full-size clay model race car was shown to NASCAR and Ford drivers and teams in June 2011, and was met with an enthusiastic reception.

From there, joint projects between the Ford Design Center and Ford aerodynamic experts led by Bernie Marcus began working to match NASCAR-mandated aero targets, while still maintaining the look and feel of the new 2013 production Fusion.

In January 2012, the world was introduced to the 2013 Ford Fusion at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, and two weeks later, Ford stunned the motorsport world with its unveiling and first on-track test of the 2013 NASCAR Fusion at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

NASCAR took each manufacturer to Homestead Miami Speedway at the end of January 2012 for the first joint test of the cars, and then development continued.

At Ford, development continued on aerodynamics, using both the wind tunnel and computational fluid dynamics, to start honing in on what the final car would be.

There was some re-design of the car’s front end, most noticeably in the grille area, where a full 3D version of the grille replaced what had originally only been a decal treatment.

By mid-summer, 2012, the stamping of sheet metal began in Michigan, and Roush Fenway Racing and eventually Penske Racing started building additional track testing cars.

Following a Martinsville short track test in September with Roush Fenway, and a superspeedway test in October with Roush Fenway and Penske Racing, the final versions of the 2013 NASCAR Fusion were put in place for teams to start building their cars.

Finally, one year to the day after the race car was first shown to the public, 10 NASCAR Fusions roared through the streets of Uptown Charlotte in a lunchtime demonstration run that declared the Ford version of the Gen 6 car was ready to go.

This weekend, Ford teams from Roush Fenway Racing, Penske Racing, Wood Brothers Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, Germain Racing and Front Row Motorsports will debut their new Fusions, and, for fans, there will be little doubt that the sport has changed.

The Ford teams will look to continue a streak of success in NASCAR’s biggest race, where Fusions have won three of the past four events.

“We know nearly 40 percent of new car intenders are race fans, and of those fans, almost 84 percent of them follow NASCAR,” said Allison. “Racing helps drive our business. We know Ford race fans consider, shop and buy more Fords than the general public. So bringing back this kind of relevancy to NASCAR is the ‘X Factor.’ Fans may be at the races because they love cars, but then to add the relevancy of the cars we race looking like the cars they own, well, it just adds that emotional connection between us and the fans that we all seek.”

Ford Racing PR

While some teams say no big deal, others are scrambling as a result of yesterday's rain-shortened practice session, which was supposed to be four hours long. However, the 44 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards cars in the garage for the 50th running of the Lucas Oil 200 at Daytona Int'l Speedway only got about an hour and 20 minutes on track before the steady rain came down, ending the session way early. According to several teams, Saturday morning's (raceday) 45-minute final practice from 10:00-10:45 a.m. just got way more important.

Frank Kimmel - driver of the No. 44 Ansell-Menards Toyota: "We had a radiator split on us yesterday, and the guys did a great job taking one out of the backup car and getting it in our primary, but that happened right in the middle of practice, so we just ran out of time. We didn't do any mock qualifying runs either. Normally, the raceday morning final practice doesn't get too many takers because nobody wants to tear their cars up, but I think we're going to have a big crowd tomorrow."

Bobby Gerhart - driver of the No. 5 MAVTV American Real Chevrolet: "With our practice cut way short yesterday, it definitely makes tomorrow (final practice) more important. We're definitely going out. We've got more to accomplish before we line up and go race."

Paul Andrews - crew chief of the No. 77 Barbera's Autoland-Cunningham Motorsports Dodge: "It didn't scramble us too bad because we got to test here in December and last month at Talladega. We wanted to draft a lot more than we got to yesterday, to get the feel for what we've got. Normally, we might not go out in the final practice tomorrow, but that all changes now. I think it'll change for a lot of people."

Ed Pompa - driver of the No. 10 Milton CAT-Double H Ranch Chevrolet: "We only got a lap in before the motor blew. I was going through three and four, and all of a sudden we had a wicked vibration. I just shut it off. The crew worked really hard and changed the engine last night. But none of us are exactly sure what we've got. The crew chief will decide if we go out tomorrow."

Donnie Richeson - crew chief of the No. 52 Curb Records Chevrolet: "We didn't test in December, so we're not exactly sure what we've got. We at least want to know if the water temp will be ok. Yah, I'd say this puts a bigger importance on tomorrow."

Josh Williams - driver of the No. 02 Southwest Florida Cable Construction Ford: "We really didn't accomplish anything yesterday. The car started vibrating early in practice, then it lost 4-500 RPMs. I just shut it off. We've changed everything. Changed gears, changed the transmission, now we just changed motors this morning. So we don't know what we have for qualifying. I can't see us not going out in practice tomorrow. Normally, we probably wouldn't do that final practice because no one wants to tear anything up, but I can't see where we have a choice now."

Bill Kimmel - crew chief of the No. 68 Gary Yeomans-Clarksville Schwinn Ford: "It definitely set us back a little. We didn't get to test this particular car. We had some rubs on the fenders yesterday, and we're going to have to work our way through that. We hadn't planned on going out tomorrow, but we will now."

Engine Changes: There were two engine changes in the ARCA garage after yesterday's rain-shortened practice session. Both Ed Pompa (No. 10 Milton Cat-Double H Ranch Chevrolet) and Josh Williams (No. 02 Southwest Florida Cable Construction Ford) changed engines in time for today's Menards Pole Award Qualifying presented by Ansell.

There were no on-track incidents in yesterday's practice session.

Menards Pole Award Qualifying presented by Ansell gets underway at 2:00 p.m. today.

ARCAracing.com will feature live timing and scoring of all the on-track activity, including qualifying, final practice Saturday and the race to follow.

The 50th Anniversary Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAVTV American Real at Daytona is live on SPEED Saturday at 4:30.

ARCA Racing PR

Austin Wayne Self will begin his 2013 season as part of a new tradition during the UNOH Battle at the Beach on Feb 18-19, the preview to the Daytona Speedweeks.

On Monday, Self re-joins his team from the 2012 season, Sellers Racing, for an exciting 150-lap, 60-mile NASCAR Whelen All-American Series race. Self will drive the #07 Chevrolet during the debut of Daytona’s new 0.4-mile short-track oval.

“It was nice to have a short break back in Texas with my friends and family. But I’m ready to get back to racing! It will be fun to work with the Sellers team again. I’m familiar with the car and the crew and I just can’t wait to be in Daytona during the beginning of Speedweeks. This has always been one of my dreams,” says Self.

As if Monday wasn’t exciting enough, on Tuesday Self will run his inaugural NASCAR K&N Pro East Series race with Cunningham Race Team in the #77 Dodge. It will be another 150-lap, 60-mile race on the 0.4-mile short-track oval.

“2012 was about training for the next level of competition. We wanted to experience as many tracks as we could and just drive against the country’s top Late Model talent. Monday will give me a great opportunity to get back behind the wheel for some experience on this new track. Then we will put everything we worked on since last season to the test on Tuesday night in the K&N race.”

“I’m also looking forward to our first race with the Cunningham team. It’s all I’ve been able to think about since my last race in November. We got the new K&N car out for the very first time in Rockingham last week for a shakedown. The race car handled better than anything I have ever driven. Daytona will be the first K&N Race for the Cunningham Team as well as me. Paul is a great Crew Chief and smart guy so I feel really good about this race. I’m prepared to learn a lot.”

AWS PR

ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards practice was cut short today at Daytona Int'l Speedway because of rain, but not before John Wes Townley, in the No. 15 Zaxby's Toyota, positioned himself atop the leader board.

Townley, in a Venturini Motorsports (VMS) entry, circled the 2.5-mile superspeedway in 49.288 seconds, an average speed of 182.600 mph.

"We have an excellent shot at this; the car is really, really good," said Townley. "I think we're better off than we were at the test, and we were really good then. The Venturinis have so much experience in ARCA. This is such a great opportunity for us to go out there and get a win."

Townley's career-best ARCA finishes, a third and a fifth, came at Daytona.

"I think it's a lot of luck, more than anything on the speedways. But I love this place. The speedways are a lot of fun for me, and I think that helps. There are obviously a lot of variables that go into it. It's a gamble any way you look it, but I sure like our chances."

Venturini Motorsports grabbed the top four positions overall.

Milka Duno, in the No. 35 Cantv-Milka Way Toyota, was second fastest overall at 181.848 mph with VMS teammates Justin Boston and Darrell Wallace trailing in third and fourth, respectively. In all, 43 drivers posted time and speed today.

The ARCA garage opens at 7:00am ET Friday morning with Menards Pole Award Qualifying presented by Ansell following at 2:00pm.

ARCAracing.com will feature live timing and scoring of all the on-track activity, including qualifying, final practice Saturday and the race to follow.

The 50th Anniversary Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAVTV American Real is live on SPEED Saturday at 4:30pm ET.

Venturini Motorsports PR

Six additional properties have joined the Bristol Motor Speedway’s Fan-Friendly Lodging Program, giving BMS guests more options when choosing where to stay for the Food City 500 weekend next month.

A lodge in Linville Falls, N.C., two hotels in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., and two in Bristol, Tenn., have been added to the list, offering reduced rates and special discounts for race fans.

“We said last month when we announced the initial group of participants for 2013 that we expected more properties to join the program before race week and this is evidence of that,” said BMS General Manager Jerry Caldwell. “We now have about two dozen properties participating, offering more than 40 different pricing options. We would like to add a few more not only for March but August as well.”

Now in its third year, the Fan-Friendly Lodging Program identifies properties with reduced rates and nightly minimums to help ease the cost of attending events at Bristol Motor Speedway. It is just one of the more than half-dozen such programs established at BMS in the last three years aimed at adding value to the pilgrimage made by guests to the East Tennessee mountains.

Program participants range from chain and privately-owned hotels, cabins, lodges and even an historic Inn which has hosted three former U.S. Presidents. They range in distance from 20 miles to 100 in all different directions in three states to accommodate guests.

A full list Fan-Friendly Lodging partners may be found at:http://www.bristolmotorspeedway.com/news_media/news_releases/2013-fan-friendly-lodging.html

For guests looking for more than a place to stay, there are several ticket options.

March race weekend ticket packages, which include the Food City 500 and Jeff Foxworthy’s Grit Chips 300 Nationwide Series race and the K&N East Series 125 event, remain available, starting at $99. A package in the Wallace Tower for both Sprint Cup races also is available for $99, while packages for fans 15 and younger are available for the March races at half price. Lower-row seating for the Food City 500 is available with tickets starting at $65 for adults and $32 for children 15 and under.

Guests are encouraged to purchase in advance while the price is $5 less per grandstand ticket than the race-day cost for the same seat. Purchasing tickets to the Food City 500 enters the guest in the Bruton’s Big Bristol Giveaway in which 10 lucky fans win a new Ford Mustang.

BMS PR

What’s behind curtain number one? That’s what fans attending the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series New Hampshire 300 at the Magic Mile on July 14 will be asking. Today in the Expo Center at the Radisson Hotel, New Hampshire Motor Speedway officials unveiled the “Toyota Wheel and Deal Pre-Race Show,” which will transform this summer’s frontstretch and pre-race stage into the world’s largest game show.

A scaled-down version of “Wheel and Deal” was played today, where fans won cash prizes, various NASCAR gear and the ultimate door prize – an opportunity to be one of the 43 contestants to play for a chance to win 10 new Toyota cars on July 14.

In the past, fans have watched pre-race concerts, acts and various entertainment performers as part of the pre-race festivities. This year, fans will be part of the pre-race celebration. Not only do 43 select fans have a chance to drive away with a new car, but any fan on hand for the New Hampshire 300 will have the opportunity to take part in this historic Magic Mile event.

“Our goal is to make New Hampshire Motor Speedway the destination for ‘wow’ for our fans,” said Jerry Gappens, executive vice president and general manager for the speedway. “This interactive fan pre-race sweepstakes is unprecedented in professional sporting events. With more than $250,000 in cars and prizes to be given away to fans, it definitely adds the ‘wow factor’ to our ongoing ‘FansFirst’ initiative.”

Contestants will be playing for prizes worth more than $250,000, including a case of Miller Lite per month for a year, products from September race sponsor SYLVANIA, Team O’Neil Rally School driving opportunities, a quart of Gifford’s Ice Cream per week for a year, racing merchandise, passes to an exclusive driver’s meeting and much more. But certainly it will be the 10 sparkling new 2013 Toyotas that will have the fans’ undivided attention. The cars will be given away through a variety of different games that will be loosely based on popular TV game shows with a racing twist.

With media, speedway officials and even the honorable Ted Gatsas, Mayor of Manchester, looking on, fans were given a small taste of this summer’s pre-show event today. The Valentine’s Day show was hosted by Jose Castillo, who will channel his inner Bob Barker again in July.

Contestants received everything from a personalized Valentine from Magic Mile mascot Milo the Moose to a New Hampshire Speedway T-shirt and hat to a tortoise. Tudor, a 15-year-old Sulcata Tortoise from the W.I.L.D. Center & Zoological Park of New England, was on hand, serving as a gag gift.

The big winner today, however, was Marlo McDaniel of Manchester, N.H. McDaniel was one of five contestants to join Castillo on stage to reveal their hidden prize. McDaniel uncovered a miniature Toyota car, signifying her inclusion as the first of 43 contestants to take part in July’s “Toyota Wheel and Deal Pre-Race Show.”

“This is just amazing, I’m so excited,” said McDaniel, who has attended every NASCAR race at NHMS for the last seven years. “I was looking forward to the race before, but now I can’t wait for it to get here. I need a car, too, so it works out perfect.”

The remaining 42 contestants will be chosen at random after the April 15 deadline. Fans that have already purchased tickets and those who buy tickets to the New Hampshire 300 between now and April 15 will be automatically entered. Non-purchase registration will also be available. A full list of the rules will be available on www.nhms.com.

NHMS

Walmart is putting race fans in the driver’s seat with the “Fan Driven 400” – an innovative, socially-driven program that gives fans a voice in branding the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on June 9 at the Pocono Raceway. Starting today through May 27, fans can submit ideas and vote via Walmart’s Local Facebook pages on details including the official race name, a signature concession and the pace car design.

In addition to the Fan Driven 400, Walmart will once again offer its $99 Walmart Family Track Pack, which includes four discounted race tickets, four hot dogs and four sodas– a savings of more than $100. Walmart will also be hosting in-store events with race car displays, racing simulator machines and special appearances by fan-favorite drivers in every NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race market.

Fan Driven 400

Beginning today through May 27, 2013, fans can vote online to customize the “Fan Driven 400” at walmarturl.com/FanDriven. The timeline for voting on various race components will be as follows:

• Race Name Submission (2/14 – 2/25): Customers can submit a name of their choice (32 character limit).
• Race Name Vote (3/11 – 4/8): Vote for one of the three race name options and see the Facebook user’s name and photo who developed each submission.
• Concession Item (4/8 – 5/6): Vote for one of three types of pierogies, sourced via The Pocono Fan Council.
• Pace Car Design (5/6 – 5/27): Vote on one of three designs for the Pace Car, sourced via The Pocono Raceway.

Walmart is also making the Pocono 400 race on June 9, 2013 more affordable by offering 16,000 Concourse Grandstand tickets at a discounted price of $25. Tickets can be purchased online starting Feb. 15 at Walmart.com/NASCAR or through Pocono Raceway at poconoraceway.com/.

Walmart Family Track Pack

The $99 Walmart Family Track Pack will be available online at Walmart.com/NASCAR and in select Walmart stores for the following races:

• Kobalt Tools 400, Las Vegas – March 10, 2013
• California Auto Club 400, Fontana – March 24, 2013
• Bojangles Southern 500, Darlington – May 11, 2013
• NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, Charlotte – May 18, 2013
• Coca–Cola 600, Charlotte – May 26, 2013
• Dover 400, Dover – June 2, 2013
• Quicken Loans 400, Michigan – June 16, 2013
• Coke Zero 400, Daytona – July 6, 2013
• Lenox Industrial Tools 301, New Hampshire – July 14, 2013
• Pennsylvania 400, Pocono – Aug. 4, 2013
• Cheez-it 355, Watkins Glen – Aug. 11, 2013
• Pure Michigan 400, Michigan – Aug. 18, 2013
• AdvoCare 500, Atlanta – Sept. 1, 2013
• Sylvania 300, New Hampshire – Sept. 22, 2013
• AAA 400, Dover – September 29, 2013
• Bank of America 500, Charlotte – Oct. 12, 2013
• Ford 400, Homestead – Nov. 17, 2013

Join the conversation on Twitter throughout the season with the hashtag #RaceTime, and follow us at @Walmart, @Walmartnewsroom, @NASCAR and @poconoraceway.

Pocono Raceway PR