AAA Texas 500 Pre-Race Entertainment & Other Announcements From Gilley’s Dallas

Texas Motor Speedway is bringing top-tier entertainment to its Nov. 6 AAA Texas 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event with the AXE Salute Our Troops Pre-Race Show Featuring Trace Adkins.

Adkins, a Grammy-nominated artist, will perform a 45-minute concert showcasing his hit songs on the frontstretch stage beginning at 12:30 p.m. CT. Adkins’ concert will be the feature act of the 2½-hour pre-race show leading up to the 2 p.m. CT green flag of the AAA Texas 500, the eighth race in the 10-event Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

Texas Motor Speedway President Eddie Gossage made the announcement Tuesday evening during the speedway’s 2012 Schedule Announcement Party at Gilley’s Dallas.

“We do it big at Texas Motor Speedway and having one of country music’s greatest entertainers perform during the AAA Texas 500 pre-race show is proof of that,” Gossage said. “We have a lot of country music fans in the NASCAR community so I know Trace is going to be a crowd pleaser.”

In celebration of Veteran’s Day on Nov. 11, AXE Hair and Unilever also are going to play host to approximately 5,000 military members and their families at the AAA Texas 500. The military contingent will be treated to frontstretch seats to the AAA Texas 500 as well as have the opportunity to watch the concert by Adkins and pre-race introductions stage-side.

Adkins produced one of modern-day country’s rowdiest classics, “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk,” and one of its most touching, “You’re Gonna Miss This,” which earned two of his four Grammy nominations. The latter song also became his third chart-topping hit and was named the ACM’s Single of the Year. He is equally convincing across a musical spectrum that stretches from “Hot Mama” to “Songs About Me,” from “(This Ain’t No) Thinkin’ Thing” to “Then They Do.”

Adkins, a native of Sarepta, La., worked as a pipe fitter on an offshore drilling rig and spent time in a gospel quartet before making a name for himself in the honky tonks of Texas and Louisiana. His first album, the platinum Dreamin’ Out Loud, produced three top-three hits, including his first No. 1, “Thinkin’ Thing.” More than 20 of his singles would hit the Top 20.

Also, his music videos have been fan-voted Top Video of the Year three times on GAC, and “Honky-Tonk Badonkadonk” was voted No. 2 Video of the Decade by CMT.

Adkins’ latest album, Cowboy’s Back In Town, was released in August 2010 and features hits such as “Still Love You,” “I Can Do That,” and “Hold My Beer.”

Fans that have purchased AAA Texas 500 grandstand tickets can get exclusive front-stage access for the concert, driver introductions and all pre-race festivities with the addition of a $79 “mosh pit” ticket. A “mosh pit” ticket must be accompanied by a AAA Texas 500 race ticket. Tickets for the AAA Texas 500 race as well as the pre-race show can be purchased by calling (817) 215-8500 or visiting www.texasmotorspeedway.com.

• Fans Asked To Help Select The Next ‘Great American Sweetheart!’

The search for Texas Motor Speedway’s next “Great American Sweetheart!” is one step closer as a field of more than 120 applicants has been narrowed down to 65 semifinalists. The opportunity to join Texas Motor Speedway’s recognizable spokeswomen – Becky, Brittany and Stephanie – will now be turned over to the fans as they can vote for their favorite semifinalists.

Each semifinalist will be featured with photos, a bio and Q&A on www.texasmotorspeedway.com, where fans cast their vote for their favorite candidate. Voting begins this evening and continues through Friday, Sept. 9.

Semifinalists will be selected to advance to the finals, where they will be tested with an interview process with representatives from Texas Motor Speedway and Dallas’ modeling agency The Campbell Agency; a photo shoot and video interview; and a mock trial with radio and television commercials.

Fans will once again have their voice heard with voting online for their favorite candidate. The lucky winner will receive an $8,000 contract with Texas Motor Speedway, two-year modeling contract with The Campbell Agency, suite tickets to each of the major race weekends at the speedway, and more. The winner will be revealed on Friday, Oct. 7, on www.texasmotorspeedway.com.

• New TexasMotorSpeedway.com Brings More Content In Less Clicks

TexasMotorSpeedway.com has been revamped to give fans a richer experience when inquiring about all things Texas Motor Speedway with faster, easy accessible information.

The new TexasMotorSpeedway.com has an abundance of new features for fans to benefit from including simplified seat-buying procedures, an all-new Texas Motor Speedway Fan Club section, social networking integration with Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, and a breaking news ticker flashing with the latest Texas Motor Speedway news.

Texas Motor Speedway evaluated consumer demand for the site’s content and based the redesign on its research and findings. Fans now have a streamlined path to the content they want the most.

Texas Motor Speedway PR