Talladega Superspeedway Holds Ties in the Success for Four of the Five 2018 NHOF Inductees

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The 2018 NASCAR Hall of Fame class, which was announced on Wednesday, made monumental contributions to stock car racing, and Talladega Superspeedway was the site of some that storied success for four of the five new members.

The five-person group – the ninth since the inception of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010 – consists of Robert Yates, Ray Evernham, Ron Hornaday Jr., Ken Squier and Red Byron. All but, Byron who won NASCAR’s first race and championship in 1948, have a connection with Talladega. NASCAR also announced its Landmark Award winner for 2018 – Jim France – the Chairman of International Speedway Corporation (parent company of Talladega Superspeedway).

  • Yates was a noted engine builder before becoming a winning team owner (won NASCAR championship with Dale Jarrett in 2000). His teams won four times at NASCAR’s Most Competitive track – Davey Allison in 1989 & ’92, along with Jarrett in ’95 & ’05 (both Jarrett and Yate’s final career win). He also supplied the power plants for Allison’s first career win (which came at Talladega in ’87) and two of Darrell Waltrip’s Talladega wins (’77, ’79) with DiGard Racing.
     
  • Evernham, who was crew chief for Jeff Gordon from 1993-1999, led the No. 24 team to its first of six Talladega victories, in 1996. Over that timespan with Hendrick Motorsports he captained Gordon in 14 cup starts at TSS, accumulating six top-5’s and top-10’s finishes. Under Evernham’s leadership, Gordon won three Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) titles (’95, ’97, ’98).
     
  • Hornaday has competed in all three of the top series at Talladega. The four-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) champion has nine NCWTS starts at Talladega, capturing a pole award in 2010, a pair of runner-up finishes, and four top-10’s. He has also competed four times in the NASCAR XFINITY Series with two top-5’s, along with three MENCS appearances.
     
  • Squier, who had a golden voice, helped create massive waves for the sport in broadcasting and also the co-founded of the Motor Racing Network (MRN). He announced Talladega’s first MRN race broadcast in 1970, and is remembered for many radio and televisions calls at TSS, including the final lap coverage of the 1981 Talladega 500 – one of the most exciting moments in the TV broadcast history when rookie Ron Bouchard pulled off a sweeping pass of both current NASCAR Hall of Famers Darrell Waltrip and Terry Labonte at the start finish line to win by inches.
     
  • France grew up in the early years of stock car racing, living and learning every detail of the sport from his own experiences as well as those provided by his parents Bill France, Sr. (the founder of Talladega Superspeedway) and Annie B. France, along with brother Bill France Jr. Joining ISC in 1959, France assumed a role in the family business from a young age working in all phases of operations including parking, ticketing, and gate operations.

France was elected to ISC’s Board of Directors in 1970 and has served as the Company’s Secretary, Assistant Treasurer, Vice President, and Executive Vice President before being named ISC’s President and Chief Operating Officer in 1987. France served as President until 2003, followed by Vice Chairman and CEO from 2003 to 2007, and Chairman and CEO from 2007 to 2009. France is currently ISC’s Chairman of the Board and has been a member of NASCAR’s Board of Directors since 2000.

“Jim deserves this honor as the epitome of what the Landmark Award represents,” stated ISC CEO Lesa France Kennedy.  “His unassuming yet steady, decisive leadership has been a significant contributor to the growth of the sport through the years. He has left a lasting mark on NASCAR’s legacy. For someone who never seeks the spotlight, I am so pleased to see it shined on him today.”

TSS PR

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