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Sometimes we're asked how some of us at AMS got into racing. The truth is, a portion of us were bitten by the racing bug at a young age...
When we're young, some experiences can have a deep, life-long impact on us. At times, they can shape our future desires. For some of us here at Atlanta Motor Speedway, being exposed to racing as youngsters spurred us on toward a career in motorsports.
It's the same for many fans we come across. One of the fun things about race weekend here at AMS is getting to visit with fans and learning a little bit about them - how long they've been coming to races in Atlanta, who their favorite drivers are and at times...who their least favorite drivers are. Like many of us working at the Speedway, many of you became race fans after getting bitten by the racing bug at a young age.
And that's what we love so much about the NASCAR Fans of Tomorrow ticket special for the Kobalt Tools race weekend, March 5-7, 2010. We had a great response to it this past September with the Nationwide Series Degree V12 300, and we're bringing it back for the Camping World Truck Series race, the Atlanta 200 in March 6. Kids 12 and under get in free with the purchase of an adult general admission ticket.
But not only are we bringing back the Fan of Tomorrow ticket special, we're expanding it! Kids 12 and under also get in free to Georgia Power Qualifying Night on March 5 with the purchase of an adult ticket!
For information about our ticket specials, you can go here or call 877-9-AMS-TIX!
Thanks to our NASCAR Fans of Tomorrow ticket special, you can introduce the youngsters in your family to racing. Or, if you've already got some budding race fans in your household, it's a great way to have a fun time as a family for an inexpensive price!
As always, be sure to stay plugged in so you'll receive information about all things Atlanta Motor Speedway by keeping up with us on Facebook and Twitter!
In racing, momentum is very important. A good finish or two in a row can get one race team on a string of success...
A couple of bad races in a row, however, can doom a team's hopes of accomplishing it's go als such as contending for a championship of qualifying for the Chase for the Championship.
And momentum can be especially key early in the season. For some teams, the way the first four-to-five races of a year go can set the tone for the rest of the season.
That is where the Kobalt Tools 500 race weekend, March 5-7, 2010, comes into play. It'll be the fourth Sprint Cup Series race of the season. A good run at AMS could set some teams up nicely for the rest of the season.
Let's take Kurt Busch, for example. After his dominant win at Atlanta this past March, he noted that the success gave his team a good boost moving forward into the rest of the season.
We'll be qualifying under the lights on Friday, March 5 with Sprint Cup Series drivers taking to the track in Georgia Power Qualifying Night.
On Saturday, March 6 we'll have Sprint Cup practice followed by the Camping World Truck Series race. If you're into the truck series or a fan of guys like Ron Hornaday Jr. or Mike Skinner, then this will be right up your alley!
And then on Sunday, it's the Kobalt Tools 500! Can Kurt Busch repeat as the race winner? Perhaps Jimmie Johnson will collect another victory. Or maybe we'll see a first-time winner visit Victory Lane. You never know what'll happen. Be sure to get your tickets to be here in person to see it first-hand!
Make plans to be at Atlanta Motor Speedway for another exciting weekend of racing! Tickets start at $39, student tickets are $19 and frontstretch tickets are $59 - while supplies last!
Be sure to follow us on Twitter and be a fan of Atlanta Motor Speedway on Facebook to get the latest updates, interact with fans and have a chance to win prizes!
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) announced the inaugural class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame Oct. 14.
The inductees include Dale Earnhardt, Bill France Sr., Bill France Jr., Junior Johnson and Richard Petty.
The NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel, consisting of members of the Nominating Committee along with 29 others representing NASCAR, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, major race track ownership groups, retired drivers, owners and crew chiefs along with motorsports media representatives, met in a closed session in Charlotte, N.C. to vote on the induction class of 2010.
The class was determined by the 51 votes cast by the panel and the nationwide fan vote conducted through NASCAR.COM. The accounting firm of Ernst & Young presided over the tabulation of the votes.
The Class of 2010 will be officially inducted in a ceremony on May 23, 2010 at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte.
The results of the voting for the final five chosen in this inaugural class proved competitive. Also receiving votes were David Pearson, Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison.
As part of the inclusive voting process, more than 670,000 NASCAR fans submitted votes online at NASCAR.COM as part of the fan voting process. This remarkable fan feedback once again demonstrates fans' passion and knowledge of the sport and its heritage. The fans voted Petty, Earnhardt, Bill France Sr., Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison as their top five.
The nominees included many of the sport's legendary names:
Bobby Allison, Buck Baker, Red Byron, Richard Childress, Dale Earnhardt, Richie Evans, Tim Flock, Bill France Jr., Bill France Sr., Rick Hendrick, Ned Jarrett, Junior Johnson, Bud Moore, Raymond Parks, Benny Parsons, David Pearson, Lee Petty, Richard Petty, Fireball Roberts, Herb Thomas, Curtis Turner, Darrell Waltrip, Joe Weatherly, Glen Wood and Cale Yarborough.
The NASCAR Hall of Fame broke ground in Charlotte on Jan. 25, 2007 and will open May 11, 2010. The facility honors the history and heritage of NASCAR and the many who have contributed to the success of NASCAR.
Highlighting the Class of 2010:
Dale Earnhardt
Earnhardt co-holds the record for most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championships (seven) with Richard Petty. In only his second full season, 1980, Earnhardt nabbed his first championship. He won consecutive titles on three separate occasions (1986-87, '90-91 and '93-94). Earnhardt's 76 victories rank seventh all-time.
He is the all-time leader in race victories at Daytona International Speedway with 34, though the most prominent of them was a while in the making.
In 1998, Earnhardt won his most coveted race - the Daytona 500. The scene was a memorable one, forever etched in the minds of race fans. As Earnhardt's black No. 3 rolled down pit road, a Daytona 500 winner at last, every crew member from every team lined up to congratulate one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history.
Bill France Sr.
Called "Big Bill," only partly because of his 6-foot-5 stature, France spearheaded NASCAR from its beginning and directed it to its present status as the world's largest stock-car racing organization. In 1936, he helped lay out the first beach/road course in Daytona Beach; in the first race on the course he finished fifth. Starting in 1938, he helped promote races on the sands of Daytona Beach. In 1947, France became the driving force behind the establishment of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing. NASCAR, it was called, resulting from a famous meeting at the Streamline Hotel on State Road A1A in Daytona Beach - a structure that stands to this day, as a racing landmark. "Big Bill" France passed away in June 1992. He left behind a lasting legacy.
Bill France Jr.
William Clifton France is remembered - and revered - as the man who followed his visionary father at NASCAR's helm, in the process becoming a visionary himself, as he guided NASCAR to unprecedented levels of popularity.
France became NASCAR's president in January 1972, replacing his father and becoming only the second president of the world's largest auto racing sanctioning body. His emergence coincided with the sport's emergence, and its eventual ascent to become America's No. 1 form of motorsports and the nation's second-most popular sport overall.
France, often referred to as "Bill Jr.," remained president until November 2000. At that time, France announced the formation of a NASCAR Board of Directors on which he served as chairman and CEO until October 2003 when he was replaced by his son, Brian Z. France. After that, he continued to serve the sport for the remainder of his life as NASCAR Vice Chairman.
Junior Johnson
Robert Glenn "Junior" Johnson is unique in NASCAR history, with tremendous success both as a driver and a car owner.
Johnson won the second annual Daytona 500 in 1960 and in the process, became credited with the discovery of "drafting" on the massive superspeedways. He won 50 races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series then surprised many people by retiring from driving to become an owner. As an owner, Johnson never missed a beat; through the years, his drivers won 132 races. There also were six series championships produced with Cale Yarborough (1976-78) and Darrell Waltrip (1981-82, '85).
Named one of NASCAR's "50 Greatest Drivers" in 1998, Johnson resides in Wilkesboro, N.C., and remains one of the sport's most enduring - and endearing - personalities, at the age of 78.
Richard Petty
Known as "the King", Richard Petty's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series records are staggering: Most wins (200), most poles (123), tied for most championships (seven), most wins in a season (27), most Daytona 500 wins (seven), most consecutive wins (10) and most starts (1,185).
Petty's success continued even after his retirement from driving in 1992. He would still hold the top spot in the family business - Petty Enterprises, and now, Richard Petty Motorsports. In all, Petty Enterprises totaled 268 victories before merging with Gillett Evernham Motorsports for the 2009 season to become Richard Petty Motorsports.
- Courtesy of NASCAR
Tired of wondering what time the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race starts each week? Well, that wait is now over.
NASCAR has announced consistent and earlier starting times for all of next season's races. With the exception of the Coca-Cola 600, all races will start at either 1 p.m., 3 p.m. or 7:30 p.m. That means that the Kobalt Tools 500 on March 7, 2010 will start at 1 p.m. with the Labor Day weekend Cup race starting at 7:30 p.m.
The invocation will be at the scheduled start time for each race with the green flag dropping approximately 15-to-20 minutes later. For example, the green flag for a 1 p.m. start time would drop at 1:20 p.m.
This is a huge boost for many of you fans of NASCAR. I still remember back when I first became a race fan and would want to hurry up and get home from church just in time to see the race start. You knew, back then, what time the race was each week for the most part. Knowing when the race starts will greatly simplify the racing, making it easier for fans to keep up with the races each week.
"It's become clear to us that traditional, early Sunday afternoon, start times are favored by NASCAR fans who both attend races and watch on television," said FOX Sports Chairman David Hill. "NASCAR, perhaps more than any other sport, belongs to the generations of fans who have passed on their passion, father to son, mother to daughter, so whatever we can do to make them feel better connected to the sport they love should be done."
A big tip of the hat has to go to other track owners, NASCAR and the TV networks for working this deal out and making racing better for the fans, which is what we always strive to do here at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
"NASCAR fans have been asking for earlier and more consistent start times, and we are making this change for our fans, beginning with the Daytona 500 next February," said NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France. "We are revisiting our sport's tradition of earlier green flags, and the added consistency will make it easier for fans to know exactly when the races are being televised. Additionally, the new start times will help track operators get fans in and out of the track earlier in the evening. Many fans heading home from the race earlier will be able to eliminate the costs of an extra travel day."
Here's the race start time schedule for all of next year's Sprint Cup Series races:
Date Day RaceSite Network Start Time
Feb 14 Sun. Daytona 500 FOX 1:00 PM
Feb 21 Sun. Auto Club Speedway FOX 3:00 PM
Feb 28 Sun. Las Vegas Motor Speedway FOX 3:00 PM
Mar 7 Sun. Atlanta Motor Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Mar 21 Sun. Bristol Motor Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Mar 28 Sun. Martinsville Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Apr 10 Sat. Phoenix International Raceway FOX 7:30 PM
Apr 18 Sun. Texas Motor Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
Apr 25 Sun. Talladega Superspeedway FOX 1:00 PM
May 1 Sat. Richmond International Raceway FOX 7:30 PM
May 8 Sat. Darlington Raceway FOX 7:30 PM
May 16 Sun. Dover International Speedway FOX 1:00 PM
May 30 Sun. Lowe's Motor Speedway FOX 5:45 PM
Jun 6 Sun. Pocono Raceway TNT 1:00 PM
Jun 13 Sun. Michigan International Speedway TNT 1:00 PM
Jun 20 Sun. Infineon Raceway TNT 3:00 PM
Jun 27 Sun. New Hampshire Motor Speedway TNT 1:00 PM
Jul 3 Sat. Daytona International Speedway TNT 7:30 PM
Jul 10 Sat. Chicagoland Speedway TNT 7:30 PM
Jul 25 Sun. Indianapolis Motor Speedway ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 1 Sun. Pocono Raceway ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 8 Sun. Watkins Glen International ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 15 Sun. Michigan International Speedway ESPN 1:00 PM
Aug 21 Sat. Bristol Motor Speedway ESPN 7:30 PM
Sep 5 Sun. Atlanta Motor Speedway ESPN 7:30 PM
Sep 11 Sat. Richmond International Raceway ABC 7:30 PM
Sep 19 Sun. New Hampshire Motor Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Sep 26 Sun. Dover International Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Oct 3 Sun. Kansas Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Oct 10 Sun. Auto Club Speedway ABC 3:00 PM
Oct 16 Sat. Lowe's Motor Speedway ABC 7:30 PM
Oct 24 Sun. Martinsville Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Oct 31 Sun. Talladega Superspeedway ABC 1:00 PM
Nov 7 Sun. Texas Motor Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
Nov 14 Sun. Phoenix International Raceway ABC 3:00 PM
Nov 21 Sun. Homestead-Miami Speedway ABC 1:00 PM
And don't forget, you can keep up with the latest news, interact with fans and have a chance to win prizes by following us on Facebook and Twitter!
We're just two races into The Chase for the Championship, but it could be shaping up to be a two-horse race...
Sure, there are 12 drivers in the Chase, but if the first two races in the 10-race playoff are an indicator, it's the Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson show.
Martin leads the points standings by 10 points ahead of Johnson with the next closest driver being Juan Pablo Montoya, 65 points off the lead. Unless Johnson or Martin have a bad day, the title is theirs to lose.
Throughout the season, Martin has been the feel-good story of the year for NASCAR as the wily veteran has been at times dominant and shown signs that he could finally, after all these years, win an elusive championship.
And then there's Jimmie Johnson. He and his team just know how to turn it on this time of year, just as they did last week at Dover with Johnson having one of, if not the best cars. But it's worth noting that finishing second behind Johnson on Sunday was none other than Martin.
The recent night race at Atlanta Motor Speedway is still creating a buzz...
During his media availability on Friday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Jeff Gordon praised the fans at the Pep Boys Auto 500 for their support of NASCAR and specifically, Atlanta Motor Speedway. Gordon went on to point out that the races in Atlanta are some of the best races that NASCAR has each year.
The Labor Day weekend race was the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series night race at AMS and hosted a near-capacity crowd that saw what some fans have since referred to as one of better races at the track in quite some time.
"Atlanta was pretty eye-opening to a lot of us. We've seen a lot of empty seats at Atlanta in the past and to see the schedule change and go to the night race there and have that kind of a crowd at Atlanta was fantastic," Gordon said. "That, to me, is a crowd that track deserves. I think it's one of the best races that we have. And to race there at night and to be in the south I would just think that it would be filled up like that. It was nice to see that."
After 26 races, it's time to the determine NASCAR's 2009 champion through the Chase for the Championship...
This year's Chase could be the most compelling edition since the format's inception.
You have to first start with three-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson. He'll be going for his fourth championship in a row. Johnson is kind of like one of those wild card teams in the NFL or Major League Baseball playoffs. They may not have had the best record throughout the season, but you sure as heck don't want to face them in the postseason, because they know what to do when the pressure is on at the most important moments.
Then you've got Tony Stewart. He's been the class of the Sprint Cup Series this season, leading the points standings most of the way. Now he has the challenge of replicating that performance for the final 10 races. History has shown that at times, a dominant first 26 races doesn't always translate to a championship. Stewart, starts the Chase in second place, 10 points out of the lead.
The sentimental favorite is, by far, Mark Martin. He'll enter the Chase as the points leader and this year could be his best shot at a title. Sure, he has qualified for the Chase in the past, but he's much more than a contender to have a shot at the championship - he's one of the drivers that will have to be beaten in order to win the 2009 title.
And then there's Brian Vickers, who got into the Chase by the skin of a toothbrush. If anyone is riding a strong burst of momentum into the Chase right now, it has to be Vickers. Vickers had to scratch and claw just to get into the Chase. If he can keep up that performance, the fight for the championship could be very interesting.
As we put the first weekend of night racing at Atlanta Motor Speedway, there is one thing that needs to be said to all of you fans - thank you!
The Pep Boys Auto 500 weekend turned out to be a rousing success thanks in a very large part to many of you fans! On Sunday, a near-capacity crowd came out to see night racing from the Sprint Cup Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway. We hope that you had as much fun seeing night racing and enjoying the atmosphere as we did! It was great to see many of you at the racetrack and also meet some of you. It's you fans that make this sport so great, and we have you to thank for a sucessful race weekend.
This weekend was a new experience for many of us here at AMS with it being our first night race. That's where you all come in. We'll be coming up with a way in the future for you to tell us about your experience at AMS, whether it be good or bad. Hearing feedback from you helps us put on as good of show as possible for fans!
Be sure to join us for both race weekends next year - March 5-7 and again on Labor Day weekend. This March, we'll have Sprint Cup qualifying on Friday, the Camping World Truck Series on Saturday and the Kobalt Tools 500 on Sunday. It'll be hear before you know it!
Records are being shattered here at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and it's not even race weekend yet!
If there were any doubts about the Pep Boys Auto 500, the first night race at Atlanta Motor Speedway being an exciting affair, those doubts have begun to be stripped away with the news of Atlanta Motor Speedway's ticket office having its largest single day of ticket sales on Monday, Aug. 31.
Without a doubt, the Pep Boys Auto 500 is gearing up to be an exciting race. You've got night racing, NASCAR returning to racing in the Southeast on Labor Day weekend, a pre-race concert with Diamond Rio and special guest Jason Michael Carroll and just the pure excitement of racing in Atlanta. Plus, you also have the Chase for the Championship positions at stake, including Kyle Busch trying to claw his way into the top 12 in the next two races.
This much is certain - the Degree V12 300 and Pep Boys Auto 500 will present an exciting weekend of racing in Atlanta, and we can't wait to have all of you fans here to enjoy it with us!
In case you missed them, here are the green egg location clues from the first two days. Be sure to watch our Facebook and Twitter pages for the remaining clues as we post them! For more info on the contest, go here!
Location One
Bound on either side by purple and red
A good place to rest and be Irish
Location Two
The metal man is here
Big man, pretty girl is where you need to be.
Location Three
Where charity is king
Everyone's a winner