Speedway Digest Staff - Results from #53640

The summer is officially here and it is time to get ready for some hot ASA Racing action.  The ASA Pro Trucks Series will be in action this Saturday night.  Several ASA Member Tracks are hosting some great racing action.
    
    Here is the schedule for this weekend.  Please visit each series and track website for the latest updates as events are subject to change.
               
ASA PRO TRUCKS SERIES
Meridian Speedway (Meridian, ID)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Time: Gates open @ 4:30pm, Racing @ 6:30pm
    Admission: Adults $10, Senior/Military $7.50, Kids (7-11) $6, 6 & Under Free.
    
www.asa-pro-trucks.com     
    
ACE SPEEDWAY (Altamahaw, NC)
Twitter: @AceSpeedway
Friday, June 22, 2012
Divisions: Late Models, Modifieds, Mini Stocks, Street Stocks.
Time: Grandstands open at 5:30pm, Qualifying 5:30pm, Racing 8pm.
    Admission: Adults $12; Seniors (65 & Older), Students w/ID $8; Kids 6-12 $2, Kids 5 & Under FREE.
    
www.acespeedway.com       
    
BIG COUNTRY SPEEDWAY (Cheyenne, WY)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Late Models, Grand American Modifieds, Mod 4’s, Super Lite Trucks, Circle Track.
Time: Front gate opens 3:00pm, Racing 6:00pm.
    
www.warconline.com           
    
DESOTO SUPER SPEEDWAY (Bradenton, FL)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Open Wheel Modifieds, Bombers, Trophy Dash, Flyin 4’s, Magic 4’s, Mod Minis.
Time: 7:00pm SHARP!
Admission: $15 Adults, Kids 12 & Under FREE
    
www.desotosuperspeedway.com   
    
EAST BAY RACEWAY PARK (Tampa, FL)
Twitter: @EastBayRacePark
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Top Gun Sprints, Florida Mini Sprints, Open Wheel Modifieds, 4 Cylinder Bombers, Dirt Daubers, and Daytona Area Antique Racing Association.
Time: Racing starts at 6:30pm.
Admission: Adults $12; Seniors 55 & Up $10; Teens 13-17 $7.00 with ID; Kids 12 & Under FREE with paying adult.
    
www.eastbayracewaypark.com                  
    
HARTFORD MOTOR SPEEDAY (Hartford, MI)
Twitter: @HartfordMotorSP
Friday, June 22, 2012
Divisions: UMP Late Models, UMP Modifieds, B-Mods, UMP Pure Stocks.
Time: Grandstands Open 6pm, Racing 8:00pm
Admission: General Admission $15, Kids 10 & Under FREE with Paying Adult.
    
www.hartfordmotorspeedway.net
               
I-25 SPEEDWAY (Pueblo, CO)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Super Late Models, Grand American Modifieds, Street Stocks, CARC Mods, Hornets, Vintage Racers.
Time: Gates Open 3pm, Racing 6:00pm.
Admission: Adults $10, Ages 4-12 $5, Kids 4 & Under FREE.
    
www.i25speedway.com       
    
ILLIANA MOTOR SPEEDWAY (Schererville, IN)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Elmer Musgrave Memorial (Re-scheduled from last Saturday)
Divisions: Super Late Models, Legends, Pure Stocks, and Turbo Stox.
Time: Gates open at 4:00pm. Racing at 7:00pm.
Admission: Adults $15, Kids 8-12 $5.00, 7 and under FREE.
    
www.illianaspeedway.com  
    
LEBANON I-44 SPEEDWAY (Lebanon, MO)
Twitter: @i44speedway
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Late Models, Modifieds, Sportsman, Road Warriors, and Chargers.
Time: Gates Open at 5pm, Racing at 7:30pm.
Admission: Grandstand Adults $10, Military $7, Juniors (11-15) $4, Children 10 & Under FREE.  Tier Parking “Wild Side” Adults $15, Military Seniors $11, Juniors (11-15) $7, and Children 10 & Under FREE.
    
www.i44speedway.net        
    
MARSHFIELD MOTOR SPEEDWAY (Marshfield, WI)
Twitter: MarshfieldMS
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisons: Yellow River Racing Series Super Late Models, CWSSA Super Stocks, CWMSA 4-Cylinders, and Bandits.
Time: 4:30pm, Qualifying 5pm, Racing 6:30pm.
Admission: Adults 15 & Up $12, Students 9-14 $8, Children 8 & Under FREE.
    
www.marshfieldspeedway.com      
    
NORWAY SPEEDWAY (Norway, MI)
Friday, June 22, 2012
Divisions: Late Models, Super Stocks, DQ Dogs Fab 4’s.
Time: Gates Open 5pm, Qualifying 6pm, Racing 7pm.
Admission: Adults $9, Seniors/Students (Ages 11-16) $7, Children (6-10) $3.
    
www.norwayspeedway.com           
    
ROCKY MOUNTAIN RACEWAYS (West Valley City, UT)
Twitter: @RMRSLC
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Sprint Cars, Midgets, Hornets, Mini Cups, Super Sixes.
Time: Gates open 4pm, Qualifying 4:45pm, Racing 6pm.
    
www.rmrracing.com
    
SKAGIT SPEEDWAY (Alger, WA)
Twitter: @skagitspeedway
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Modifieds, 360 Sprints, Sportsman Sprints, and Outlaw Hornets.
Time: Gates open at 5:00pm, Racing at 7:00pm each night.
Admission: Adults (18-64) $13; Juniors (7-17), Seniors (65+), Military $8, Child (6 & Under) FREE.
    
www.skagitspeedway.com  
    
SOUTHERN OREGON SPEEDWAY (Medford, OR)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Pro Mods, Dwarf Cars, Super 4’s, Mini Stocks, Street Stocks, Sponsor/Pitman Race.
Time: Racing 7:00pm.
    
www.sospeedway.com         
    
STATE PARK SPEEDWAY (Wausau, WI)
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Divisions: Super Late Models, Super Stocks, Pure Stocks, Mini Mods.
Time: Gates Open 4:30pm, Racing 7:30pm.
Admission: Adults (13 & Up) $12, Children (6-12) $5, Kids (5 & Under) FREE.
    
www.stateparkspeedway.com
    
VIRGINIA MOTOR SPEEDWAY (Jamaica, VA)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Late Models, Sportsman, Modifieds, Limited Stock Cars.
Time: On Track Action starts at 6:30pm.
Admission: Adults $12, Children 7-17 $10, Children 6 & Under FREE.
    
www.vamotorspeedway.com                      
    
YAKIMA SPEEDWAY (Yakima, WA)
Twitter: @YakimaSpeedway1
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Divisions: Late Model Sportsman, Sportsman, Pure Stocks, Mini Stocks, Hornets, and Bump-to-Pass.
Time: Gates Open 4pm, Racing 6pm.
    
www.yakimaspeedway.us

ASA Racing PR

Roush Fenway Racing’s Matt Kenseth takes the Sprint Cup point lead into Sonoma this weekend, as NASCAR heads west for its first road course test of the season. For Roush Fenway it has become a familiar place atop the standings.

“It is always nice to be leading in points I guess at this time of year,” said Kenseth, who led virtually the entire 2003 season en route to the
Sprint Cup title. “You want to be as far ahead of 10th as you can be and as we all know it gets ranked by wins in the Chase.

“We would really like to be picking up a few more wins but are happy where we are in the points. Hopefully we get a couple more wins and stay
where we are at in points and get into the Chase.”

RFR has led the standings after all but one of the 15 Sprint Cup races in 2012. Kenseth led the first week via his dramatic win in the storied
Daytona 500. RFR teammate Greg Biffle took over the lead after the third race at Las Vegas and held it until Kenseth reclaimed it at Pocono.

The race for RFR supremacy has morphed into the battle for NASCAR’s top position.

“It’s unfortunate that we gave up the points lead with a mechanical issue at Pocono,” said Biffle, who is currently third in the standings.
“Matt is going to be tough to get back in front of. He runs good here and all these places. We will see.”

Going back to last season, Roush Fenway had led the Sprint Cup point standings after 20 of the last 22 races. Carl Edwards led the standings
for the final seven races of 2011; finishing tied in points atop the standings with Tony Stewart.

Edwards currently sits at 11th in the Sprint Cup point standings; only two points outside the top 10 and the final Chase spot. The 2011
runner-up knows RFR is once again in prime condition to make a run for the championship and that it might very well be Kenseth leading the
charge.

“Everyone in the garage knows that he is a very tough competitor and doesn’t make a lot of mistakes,” said Edwards of Kenseth. “I would say
anytime he has a chance to win that everyone else, including myself, we look at him as a threat. He is very, very good. He seems like he has
worked on the weaknesses that he and his team have had lately. They qualify really well and he is really aggressive when they need to be. He
is really, really good right now.”

However down the stretch all three of Roush Fenway’s Cup drivers will look to make their own charge.

“We (RFR) are fast and we have a shot to win almost every weekend,” added Edwards. “I feel like we are going to be a force in this
championship. It is a good time to be a part of Roush Fenway Racing.”

RFR PR

NASCAR drivers spend most of their career turning left every weekend, so when they are forced to make right-hand turns it can be somewhat of a learning curve.  Carl Edwards was no exception when he made his first road course start at Sonoma back in 2005.

“Road course racing was one of the hardest things for me to figure out how to do when I came to NASCAR,” Edwards said.  “I was terrible.  Boris Said and Max Papis have both helped me a ton and now it’s something I really look forward to doing.  We’re fortunate to have Marcos Ambrose in the Ford camp since he’s someone I’ve been leaning on the last year or so, and hopefully we can go out there and compete with those guys.  It’s about as much fun as you can have in these stock cars.  You slide around, go up and down hills, bounce over curbs, shifting gears; it’s really pretty exciting.”

Since his introduction to road course racing in 2005, Edwards has stepped-up the level of competition.  In 14 Sprint Cup starts he has earned four top-five and eight top-10 finishes, one pole and led 14 laps.  In the Nationwide Series he has made 17 starts and notched wins at Road America and Montreal, in addition to earning seven top fives, 10 top 10s, one pole and led 98 laps.

“I think our Roush Fenway Fords are good enough,” Edwards continued.  “It’s always a different race there.  To me it seems like that what worked last year doesn’t ever seem to work the next year, so hopefully we get something good this year.  Our road course program is good enough for Marcos to win so we need to step it up as drivers and drive as well as him.  He’s spectacular and I think he’s one of the best road course racers on Earth, I’d put him up against anyone.  He’s shown us how good our equipment can be.”

RFR PR

After coming off its first win of the season, Rev Racing is looking forward to this weekend at Langley Speedway, in Hampton, VA.  The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East heads to the oldest consecutively running short track in the country this Saturday, June 23, for the Visit Hampton, VA 175.

Last season Rev Racing saw former Drive for Diversity team member, Sergio Peña, pick up a win at Langley.  With that in mind, and carrying momentum from the win at Gresham Motorsports Park, with 2012 rookie, Kyle Larson, the team is more than ready to get back to the track this weekend.

As the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East reaches its halfway point in the 2012 season this Saturday, Rev Racing's Larson finds himself only three points out of the Series lead and seven points ahead of teammate, Bryan Ortiz, in the Rookie of the Year standings.

“I am looking forward to jumping back into the No. 6 Rev Racing and L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting, Inc. Toyota Camry this Saturday,” said Larson.  “While the points battle is exciting, I am more interested in putting the No. 6 back in victory lane this weekend.”

Following his best finish at Bowman Gray Stadium recently, Ortiz said that he is looking forward to racing at this .395-mile flat track.  

“I am ready to get back in the driver's seat this weekend and have a great run for myself, my family, my crew, including my spotter who is originally from this area, and partners, including Toyota and Rev Racing.”  

Ortiz also hopes that this finish will put him back in contention for the Rookie of the Year points battle against teammate, Larson.  

“My crew works so hard and deserves to be in the front contending for a great battle with my teammate, Larson.”

After finishing outside of the top 20 last year at Langley Speedway, Rev Racing driver, Ryan Gifford, said that he is looking forward to ending this Saturday night's race on a much higher note. 

“We had a tough time here last year, but this team has continued to work hard and improve this season and I feel good about a stronger finish this weekend.”

Rev Racing PR

The Tony Stewart who streaked to a third NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title in 2011 appears back in 2012.

Stewart, who won a record five races in last year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup to clinch the championship in an epic battle with Carl Edwards, is poised for another hot streak as the summer solstice begins. The driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet for Stewart-Haas Racing comes into Sunday’s Sprint Cup race at the road course in Sonoma, Calif., with the momentum of consecutive podium finishes at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway and Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn.

After back-to-back 25th-place finishes in the races beforehand – May 27 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway and June 3 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway – Stewart has roared back to championship form with a third-place effort June 10 at Pocono and a second-place run last Sunday at Michigan.

Now Stewart comes to Sonoma, the first road-course stop on the Sprint Cup tour. The other is Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, which welcomes the Sprint Cup Series in mid-August.

Both tracks force drivers to turn left and right, and both have suited Stewart very well. Seven of his 46 career Sprint Cup victories have come on road courses – two at Sonoma and five at Watkins Glen. 

One could argue that Stewart is king of the road, for in addition to his seven wins, the three-time Sprint Cup champion has 11 top-twos, 18 top-10s and has led a total of 307 laps in 26 career road course starts. In fact, with only four finishes outside the top-15, Stewart’s average road-course finish is 9.3. At Sonoma alone, Stewart’s two wins (2001 and 2005) are augmented by one pole (2002), two second-place finishes, four top-fives and eight top-10s.

Finishing up front has come in large part from Stewart starting up front. In his 26 road course races, Stewart has started within the first two rows 10 times, and he has qualified in the top-10 16 times.

Proving true the racing adage of, “To finish first, you must first finish,” Stewart has recorded only one DNF (Did Not Finish) in all his road-course starts, which came in last year’s race at Sonoma. There, a dustup with Brian Vickers with less than 25 laps to go sent Stewart from a seemingly surefire second-place result to a career-worst 39th-place road-course finish.

It was a rare blemish on what has become an impressive road-course resume that isn’t limited to Sprint Cup. Outside of NASCAR’s elite series, Stewart scored a road-course win in IROC. He won Round 3 of IROC XXX on the Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway road course en route to the series championship in 2006. Stewart has also competed in the prestigious Rolex 24 Hours At Daytona five times, with a best finish of third in 2005. 

So, if you’re looking for a candidate this weekend who embraces both the left and right turns of Sonoma, look no further than Stewart.

TSC

The Sixth Annual Jimmie Johnson Foundation Golf Tournament and Dinner Auction presented by Lowe’s raised more than $650,000, setting a new event record. Proceeds from the tournament will be distributed to schools in need through the Jimmie Johnson Foundation/Lowe’s Toolbox for Education Champions Grants program.

“This is an incredible event,” said Johnson, who grew up in El Cajon, Calif.  “I love coming back to southern California and being able to connect with our sponsors, partners and friends, while raising money to fund incredible school projects.”

Johnson and his wife Chandra hosted 120 golfers at The Grand Del Mar in San Diego for Wednesday’s golf tournament, including NASCAR drivers Brian Vickers and Juan Pablo Montoya, NHRA driver Ron Capps and seven-time Supercross champion Jeremy McGrath.   

A dinner and live auction were held Tuesday evening featuring students from Mission Bay High School and Marston Middle School.  In 2010, Mission Bay High School received a Champions Grant of nearly $40,000 to revamp their outdated computer lab and print shop.  The same year, Marston Middle School received a Champions Grant of nearly $50,000 to upgrade their 53-year-old woodshop. 

In a fitting tribute to the work of the Jimmie Johnson Foundation, the City of San Diego declared June 19, Jimmie Johnson Foundation Day. 

The tournament, which in six years has raised more than $3 million, focuses on the Champions Grants program, a partnership between the Jimmie Johnson Foundation and Lowe’s Toolbox for Education. The grants range from $25,000-$100,000 and are distributed to K-12 educational programs in Chandra and Jimmie Johnson’s hometowns in Oklahoma and California, and where they currently reside in North Carolina.

TSC

Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but when the Design Center at FordMotor Company went about the task of making the 2013 NASCAR Fusion look likeits production counterpart, everyone looked at it the same way.

“Thereviews on this car were a bit more accelerated.  We had to go through this with a lot fasterpace than a production car because typically it takes us over a year-and-a-halfto two years to get through the design phase of a production car,” said GarenNicoghosian, design manager for specialty vehicles who headed up theproject.  

“Thisone was quite a bit quicker than that because obviously you have to make it toDaytona in 2013.  It was a morecut-and-dried project, but it went through the same people and approvalprocess.  We looked at it in thecourtyard and we looked at it on the computer. Our design scrutiny was strong on this car and we did what we couldwithin the realm of the project.”

Whilebrand identity has been the main focal point of the new generation stock carfor NASCAR’s top series, when the topic of unveiling the car to the public cameup, another issue arose – what was the paint scheme going to look like?

Fora fresh perspective, designer Jennifer Seely was tabbed with the assignment todevise something that would accentuate the Fusion body style.  

“When I think of NASCAR I think of big, boldcolors, and busy graphics almost to the point of visual overload. I wanted todesign something fresh, something that would stand out amongst the visualnoise, so I took the completely opposite approach and designed with minimalismin mind” she said.  “My graphic style isusually best described as “less is more”. When Garen presented the Fusion project to me, my first instinct was to emphasizethe body design and the actual fluid lines that he created.  I think he did a spectacular job with thecar, so it was easy to follow the fluid body of the vehicle.  Every single graphic on the car has meaningand the intent is to further enhance the lines and framework that he’s created,so we worked together to try to achieve that goal.”  

While to some it may look like just a bunchof random lines and stripes, there was a great deal of time and research thatwent into the final version.  Seely wentthrough hundreds of photos and looked at all of the historic cars that make upFord Racing’s 111-year history.

“I think a lot of the influences that I foundcame from research, watching older movies, and looking at older generations of theMustang and even Henry Ford’s first race car in 1901,” recalled Seely.  “Also drawing from what luxury Formula One racecars are looking like today.  So a blendof old and new influences, while letting the incredible design of the currentbody shine through. One of the unmistakable elements is the double offsetstripes that run along the top of the car. This feature kind of gives the car aEuropean twist.”

Seely was also responsible for creating thedesign for the race suits worn by Greg Biffle and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at thereveal presentation in Charlotte.

“The suit design was heavily influenced firstand foremost by the vehicle graphics. I personally was influenced by the 1960’sfilm Le Mans, which made a lasting impression with its 60’s minimalism andprimary color palette resulting in an unmistakable graphic statement.”

The result has been a one-of-a-kind paint schemethat made an immediate impact within the Ford Racing community.

“When we saw what the car looked like afterbeing painted and decaled we couldn’t believe our eyes,” said Jamie Allison,director, Ford Racing.  “The styling andintegration of past Ford vehicles is very evident, so we decided that wheneverwe unveil a new race car, regardless of series, it will have this design schemebecause it’s something unique to Ford.”

Ford Racing PR

NASCAR announced today the Charlotte Convention Center at the NASCAR Hall of Fame will again host the 2012 postseason championship celebrations for the NASCAR regional and touring series.

The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards will be held Friday, Dec. 7 and the NASCAR Night of Champions Awards for its seven touring series will be Saturday, Dec. 8.

“These two events mark the celebration of the best short-track drivers from throughout NASCAR – a spotlight on the sport’s top young talent and hometown heroes,” said George Silbermann, NASCAR vice president of regional and touring series. “And we’re excited to return to Charlotte to honor those drivers.”

In addition, NASCARHomeTracks.com will stream both nights live. The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Awards will be simulcast in English and Spanish, while the NASCAR Night of Champions Awards will be simulcast in English, Spanish and French.

The NASCAR Night of Champions Awards will celebrate the best of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour, NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, Mexico-based NASCAR Toyota Series, and, for the first time, the Euro-Racecar Series, a NASCAR touring series based in Europe.

NASCAR PR

Fourteen lucky race fans will win a once-in-a-lifetime experience at the 10th annual eBay Motors Charity Auction on Sunday, June 24, at the Toyota/Save Mart 350.

Race fans can bid on the chance to take a slow-speed lap with a top NASCAR driver, including Dale Earnhardt Jr., around the 10-turn, 1.99-mile road course during driver introductions. Both the driver and winner will be in the back of a Toyota Tundra. They will also get to watch a portion of pre-race ceremonies from the start/finish line.

The auction will take place at 10 a.m. (PDT) in the Wine Country Winner’s Circle, just two hours before the start of the Toyota/Save Mart 350.

Below is the list of drivers being auctioned off:

·        AJ Allmendinger
·        Marcos Ambrose
·        Greg Biffle
·        Clint Bowyer
·        Kyle Busch
·        Dale Earnhardt Jr.                                           
·        Carl Edwards
·        Jeff Gordon                 
·        Kevin Harvick
·        Denny Hamlin
·        Matt Kenseth
·        Joey Logano
·        Ryan Newman
·        Tony Stewart

In addition to the drivers, fans will also bid on a number of unique items from NASCAR drivers, as well as Bay Area sports teams, including a Jeff Gordon-signed fire suit; Dale Earnhardt Jr.-signed Wrangler jeans; a Jimmie Johnson-signed quarter panel; a Buster Posey-signed San Francisco Giants jersey; and a Patrick Willis-signed 49er jersey.

Fans must pre-register to be eligible to bid.  Registration is FREE and opens at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday in the Wine Country Winner’s Circle.

The best part is all proceeds from this event benefit qualified youth groups in Sonoma County through Speedway Children’s Charities. This event raised more than $31,000 in 2011 and the charity hopes to top that number this year.

Sonoma Raceway PR

Daytona International Speedway will host the UNOH Battle At The Beach on Feb. 18-19 during Budweiser Speedweeks 2013 and will select a local short track public address announcer to join the announcing team for the inaugural event at the “World Center of Racing.”

Daytona International Speedway is inviting short track fans around the country to nominate their local short track talent to be one of the announcers for the UNOH Battle At The Beach, which will feature two days of racing headlined by three non-points special events: the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, NASCAR Whelen Modified tours and the Late Model division of the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

Nominators need to provide their information, contact information for the announcer being nominated and a reason for the nomination. They will also need to provide the race(s) that this person announced at or will announce at in 2012, a link to the announcer’s bio, and at least one of the following: video file of the announcer, link to video of the announcer, link to a podcast or audio recording of the announcer, or a photo with MP3 file of the person being nominated.

All entries must be received by Monday, July 2. For an announcer to qualify, they must announce for at least one race in 2012 in the following series: NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Division 1, NASCAR Toyota Series, Euro Racecar NASCAR Touring Series, NASCAR K&N Pro West Series, NASCAR K&N Pro East Series, NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Series or NASCAR Whelen Modified Series.

Nominations will be narrowed down to 10 semifinalists who will be asked to submit a video audition tape. A committee of judges will select the top five announcers based on the video submissions and nominations to be the finalists. Race fans will be given the opportunity to vote online atwww.daytonainternationalspeedway.com between Aug. 10 and Sept. 30 for their favorite of the five nominees to be part of the UNOH Battle At The Beach announcing team. The winner will be announced at the NASCAR annual awards banquet in December.

DIS PR