THE QUARTET IS BACK FOR TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY’S INFIELD PARTY

The Big One on the Blvd – on Friday, Oct. 17, with New Twists

Bowyer, Harvick, Stenhouse, Jr. & Dillon Return for Tons of Fun Which Will Pay Competition Winner $1,000

TALLADEGA, AL – September 30, 2014 – NASCAR drivers Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and Austin Dillon had so much fun at Talladega Superspeedway’s first “Big One on the Blvd”  Parade in the track’s infamous infield in May that they are coming back for more during the track’s Oct. 17-19 weekend. And, this time, fans can expect even bigger and better from the wild side of NASCAR’s Party Capital.

Kevin Harvick

The quartet will oversee a new flurry of activities, which begins with the “Hallow-Dega” costume contest, on Friday, Oct. 17. The crowd, as well as the drivers, will play a key role in determining the fan that walks away with $1,000 in cash, not to mention a lifetime of bragging rights. The champion of the “The Big One on the Boulevard,” will have to win a series of competitions, which will include food and beverages used in unique, vicarious ways.

“This is what Talladega is all about – having clean fun and making sure everyone has a smile on their face, with both the racing and the social atmosphere,” exclaims Bowyer, who pilots the No.15 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing and is a two-time winner at Talladega. “I can’t wait. This is Talladega baby!”

“If fans weren’t a part of this event in May, they need to make plans to attend this one,” said Dillon, driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. “It’s going to be a blast.”

The parade gets rolling at 6:30 PM (CST) on Friday night at the north end of Talladega Blvd., Bowyer, Stenhouse Jr. and Dillon will be atop the lead float throwing out swag and welcoming fans to NASCAR’s version of Mardi Gras. The parade will make its way down the Blvd., building up excitement as it passes the most colorfully decorated campsites in all of NASCAR. At the south end of the Blvd. the parade will come to a halt, and Harvick will be anxiously waiting on the main staging area for the fan competitions.

“Talladega is a lot of fun,” said Harvick, who has gone to Victory Lane once at Talladega. And, Stenhouse, Jr.,  a regular visitor to Talladega Blvd. during the weekend, says “Talladega definitely knows how to throw a party for their fans. It is just awesome.”

Austin Dillon

On the track, Friday’s schedule at Talladega includes practice and qualifying for the fred’s 250 Powered by Coca-Cola NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race as well as practice for the GEICO 500 for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Saturday will see the drop of the green flag for the fred’s 250 event at high noon (CST), followed by the Food Land/Food Giant qualifying for the GEICO 500 at 3:40 p.m. (CST). Later in the evening, the Saturday Night Concert featuring Thomas Rhett will take place (Free admission with purchase of a Sunday GEICO 500 ticket). Sunday’s GEICO 500 gets underway at 1 p.m. (CST).

The track has many ticket options for fans of all ages, as well as hundreds of acres of FREE Camping. To find out more, call the Talladega ticket office at 1-877-Go-2-DEGA or visit www.talladegasuperspeedway.com.

 

WHO’S UP? FIRST TIME WINNERS WELCOME

Ty Dillon

June 27, 2014 – Of Kentucky Speedway’s 15 previous NASCAR Nationwide Series races, five were won by first-time winners, David Gilliland (2006), Stephen Leicht (2007), Joey Logano (2008), Austin Dillon (2012) and Ryan Blaney (2013). That begs the question: Which lucky hopeful will be number six?

Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate, Ty Dillon tops the list of possible first-time winners. Dillon has been consistent this season posting 10 top-10 finishes in 14 starts. Though this will be Dillon’s series debut at the track, his team’s experience at Kentucky might give him the edge. The No. 3 team swept both races in 2012 from the Coors Light pole, and has yet to finish worse than sixth at the 1.5-mile speedway.

Another Sunoco Rookie standout the cusp of victory is Chris Buescher. Despite missing the season-opener at Daytona, he is eighth in the series standings after posting five top-10 finishes this season including a runner-up finish at Talladega. Two of his five top 10s were on 1.5-mile speedways (ninth at Las Vegas and Charlotte). His average finish in 13 starts this season in 14.2.

Despite a slow start, Dylan Kwasniewski could surprise this weekend. A champion in both the K&N Pro Series East and West, Kwasniewski is currently 12th in the NNS standings with one pole and one top-10 finish.

NASCAR

 

RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING IS BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN

They’re back. Back to their old ways, back in the championship discussion, back in Victory Lane

Brendan Gaughan

June 26, 2014 – Richard Childress Racing’s mid-season push has them staring at a possible three-race win streak following Paul Menard’s victory at Michigan and Brendan Gaughan’s triumph last weekend at Road America.

“When I came to RCR, I told Richard (Childress) that all I wanted to do was prove I could still win races, and ever since then it has been the best racing of my life,” said Gaughan.

A three-peat win streak, while tough to pull off, is a real possibility considering RCR’s success at Kentucky.  The No. 3 team swept the 2012 Kentucky season at the 1.5-mile track, and finished runner-up last fall with driver Austin Dillon. This season Ty Dillon, who won at Kentucky in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series last season, commands the famed No. 3 Chevrolet and leads the RCR contingent to the blue-grass state.

All three of RCR’s drivers are in the top 10 in the series points standings; including two in the top five – Dillon (fourth) and Brian Scott (fifth). Gaughan (seventh) is five points back from Trevor Bayne in sixth.

Gaughan’s good luck could linger this weekend; he has the eighth best pre-race Driver Rating (105.9) in the NNS at Kentucky in part by finishing third there in 2012.

NASCAR

 

SPRINT CUP CONTINGENT TO RUN WITH K&N WEST AT SONOMA

Austin Dillon

June 19, 2014 – The 34th running of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West at Sonoma Raceway on Saturday will have a star-studded field expected to include a handful of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers. As of Monday, the Sprint Cup representation includes Michael Annett, Austin Dillon, Kyle Larson and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. among the 33 entries for the Carneros 200. They’ll have to compete with season points leader Greg Pursley, who has posted five road-course wins during his career. The last two Sprint Cup competitors to win at Sonoma in a K&N West car were Joey Logano in 2011 and David Gilliland in 2012.

The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East will be in action on the opposite coast Saturday with the Visit Hampton VA 175 at famed Langley Speedway. Each of the series’ three previous trips to the Hampton, Va. oval has featured different winners, including current NASCAR Nationwide Series rookie Dylan Kwasniewski a year ago.

Saturday’s NASCAR regional touring series slate also includes the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Waterford Speedbowl for the Mr. Rooter 161. The Connecticut shoreline short track has produced a different winner in 15 of the 19 all-time events there, including NASCAR Next driver Ryan Preece last year. The 161 scheduled laps is a tribute to the late Hall of Fame member Richie Evans, who drove a No. 61 modified throughout his career.

 

2014 SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE YEAR BATTLE HEATS UP

Kyle Larson

March 22, 2014 – Kyle Larson and Austin Dillon completed their first 500-lap race at Bristol Motor Speedway, finishing 10th and 11th, respectively; with Larson taking Sunoco Rookie Of The Race honors for the second time this year.

Though Dillon leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings, his lead is shrinking. He currently holds a six-point lead over Larson, down from eight after Las Vegas – his largest cushion of the season.

Larson’s strong performance at Bristol put the rest of the field on high alert – though it’s his first season, he’s for real.
Larson contended for the win in final 100 laps at Bristol, scoring a driver rating (104.5) that ranked fourth best. Can he back up this strong performance in his home state of California?

Auto Club Speedway has been a site for big name first-time winners in the past. California native Jimmie Johnson scored his first Sprint Cup win as a ROY contender in his first start at Auto Club Speedway in 2002. Kyle Busch won his first NSCS Coors Light Pole Award and his first NSCS race at Auto Club Speedway as a ROY contender in 2005.

None of this year’s ROY contenders have started a NSCS race at Auto Club Speedway. Dillon, Larson and Parker Kligerman are the only rookie contenders to post top-10 finishes at Auto Club Speedway in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Larson, a native of Elk Grove, Calif., posted a sixth-place finish in his only NNS start at what he considers to be his home track. Dillon finished fifth in each of his two NNS starts at Auto Club Speedway.

 

DILLON, LARSON HEAD SUNOCO ROOKIE STANDINGS

Kyle Larson

March 13, 2014 – Most predicted Austin Dillon and Kyle Larson to duke it out at the top of the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings.

It took three weeks, but that’s exactly what is currently happening. Dillon has sat atop the rookie standings since the first race in Daytona. Alex Bowman and Cole Whitt swapped the second spot after Daytona and Phoenix, respectively. But after a second-consecutive top-20 finish, Larson climbed into second-place after Las Vegas.

Dillon’s 16th-place finish and Larson’s 19th at Vegas marked the first time this season that two members of this year’s large – and talented – rookie class finished in the top 20 in the same race.

This weekend at Bristol could be more of the same. Dillon finished in the top five of two of the last three Bristol race in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Larson, memorably, finished second in last year’s NNS spring Bristol race to go along with a fifth-place finish in the summer night race. Larson battled door-to-door with Kyle Busch in that runner-up finish.

 

ROOKIE AUSTIN DILLON LEADS THE WAY FOR TEAM CHEVY IN NEW QUALIFYING PROCEDURE AT LAS VEGAS

Austin Dillon

LAS VEGAS March 08, 2014 – Rookie Austin Dillon led the way Friday for Team Chevy in qualifying for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with a fourth-place time of 28.026 (192.678 mph) in his No. 3 Cheerios Chevrolet SS.

The session marked the debut of a new knockout-style qualifying format for a 1.5 mile track where all 48 entrants had a 25-minute session to make a lap before the field was cut to the fastest 24 cars.  Those 24 cars moved to round two and were given 10 minutes to post another fast lap.  The fastest 12 drivers then moved on to the third and final session which consisted of five minutes where the fastest single laps determined the pole winner and starting lineup.

Six-time Sprint Cup champion, Jimmie Johnson in his No. 48 KOBALT Tools Chevrolet SS, was fifth-fastest in the final session.   Jamie McMurray qualified seventh in his No. 1 Cessna/Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet and Ryan Newman posted the tenth-fastest time in his No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet SS.

Jimmie Johnson

Also among the top fifteen in the new qualifying procedure were four other Team Chevy drivers.  Martin Truex Jr., No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet SS was 12th and Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet SS, Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Mountain Dew Kickstart Chevrolet SS, and Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS were 13th, 14th and 15th respectively.  In all, Team Chevy occupies eight of the first 15 starting positions.

Joey Logano (Ford) won the pole position, Brad Keselowski (Ford) qualified second, and Clint Bowyer (Toyota) qualified third to round out the top five starters.

The Kobalt Tools 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race takes the green flag at 3:00 p.m. ET on Sunday and will air live on FOX.

 

REMEMBER THAT GUY JIMMIE JOHNSON?

Jimmie Johnson’s break from the spotlight just might end come Lap 267 in Sunday’s Kobalt 400

March 06, 2014 – Austin Dillon, driving the iconic No. 3, won the Coors Light Pole for the Daytona 500 – an unbelievably cool story. Then, Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Daytona 500, capturing everyone’s hearts and minds – and covers … in the case of Sports Illustrated.

Then, Kevin Harvick went out to Phoenix and blew the doors off the place.

Lots of storylines have swirled around the early goings of the 2014 season – almost none of which has revolved around the greatest driver of the last decade. Weird.

Well, Jimmie Johnson’s break from the spotlight just might end come Lap 267 in Sunday’s Kobalt 400 – an appropriate name for a brand that occasionally graces Johnson’s hood.

Johnson, one of only two drivers to average a top-10 finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, has a series-high four victories at the 1.5-mile track. He has finished in the top 10 in two of the last three races – leading double-digit laps in both. He has led laps in 10 of his 12 starts, which matches Matt Kenseth for most of any driver.

And it’s not like Johnson has struggled in the first two races. He scored top 10s in each, with two Driver Ratings over 100 points.

NASCAR

 

ROOKIES FACE TOUGH ASSIGNMENT IN REBOUND EFFORT; AUSTIN DILLON WAS THE HIGHEST-FINISHING ROOKIE WITH A NINTH-PLACE FINISH

February 26, 2014 – This season marks the largest class of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders since 1994, and because of this and their talent they were a hot topic throughout Speedweeks. They were hoping to get their rookie campaigns off to strong starts in the Daytona 500, but by the end of the 200-lap race five of the seven in the race had succumbed to accidents that ended their nights prematurely.

Austin Dillon was the highest-finishing rookie with a ninth-place finish. Alex Bowman was the only other rookie still running at the end of the night, finishing two laps down in 23rd.

They will be looking to bounce back this Saturday when the series heads west to Phoenix. The group of eight (Ryan Truex failed to qualify for the Daytona 500) has combined for only three series starts at the one-mile facility. Justin Allgaier started last season’s penultimate race and finished 31st, while Cole Whitt ran the fall races in 2011 and 2013, finishing 25th and 40th, respectively.

Credit: NASCAR

 

AUSTIN DILLON THE No.3 RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING TEAM EXTENDED TITLE CELEBRATION

Driver Champion And His Team Visited Nationwide Headquarters For Full Day Of Activities

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Dec. 19, 2013 – Austin Dillon, the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series driver champion, and his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Nationwide team – led by crew chief Danny Stockman, were honored with a full day – and evening – of activities, hosted by series sponsor Nationwide Insurance in its headquarters’ hometown of Columbus, Ohio.

This is the sixth consecutive year Nationwide Insurance has welcomed the series driver champion to its home turf, and the second time an RCR driver has been honored (Clint Bowyer, 2008).

“It was a big week,” said Dillon, who announced that he will drive the No. 3 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2014. “I’m thankful for Nationwide Insurance and everybody that has made it possible for us to race in such a great series. I’m looking forward to being at Champion’s Day in Columbus. It is an honor and a privilege to represent Nationwide as their champion today. I am excited to celebrate this championship with my team.”

The day began with a visit to Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Then Dillon and the No. 3 team received a tour of Nationwide’s corporate headquarters, participated in an exclusive Q&A session and signed autographs for Nationwide associates on site.

Following lunch, the driver champion team headed to The Ohio State University for a tour of the famed Woody Hayes Athletic Complex, home of the Ohio State Buckeyes’ football practice facility.

Late that afternoon and early evening, the team traveled to Nationwide Arena, home of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League, for a tour of the facility and a game of broomball on the Jackets’ home ice.

A unique experience followed as team members once again were introduced to a Columbus, Ohio original: Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream. Jeni’s was a garage favorite earlier this year at the inaugural Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio.

The day concluded with a short trip back to Nationwide Arena for “NASCAR Night” where the team enjoyed the 7 p.m. ET matchup between the Blue Jackets and the Winnipeg Jets and were recognized at the game.