Toledo Speedway has announced the Hemelgarn Racing/Super Fitness Triple Crown bonus, which offers $25,000 to a driver who can win the USAC Silver Crown, Auto Value Bumper To Bumper Super Sprint (AVBBSS) and King of the Wing Sprint Car Series main events in 2015 at Toledo Speedway.

“This is a significant development for pavement open wheel racing in the Toledo area, and for this region,” said longtime Toledo business owner and Indianapolis 500 winning car owner Ron Hemelgarn. “We wanted to create some excitement, while supporting Toledo Speedway and its rich heritage of open wheel racing. Hopefully this $25,000 bonus will serve as an incentive to drivers and team owners for more crossover participation in the USAC Silver Crown race and both winged sprint car races at Toledo Speedway in 2015.”

The USAC Silver Crown race is May 1, the AVBBSS race is June 12 and the King of the Wing race is June 26. All three races are scheduled for Friday nights at the Toledo Speedway half-mile paved oval, and all three events will feature additional open wheel racing content.

The May 1 event features all USAC sanctioned racing with the Silver Crown Series, HPD Midget Series and USAC Quarter Midgets in the 2nd annual Rollie Beale Classic. June 12 is the longest running and most successful open wheel race on Toledo’s schedule, billed as the All American Coach Fastest Short Track Show In The World and featuring the Adkins Glass MSA Super Modifieds alongside the AVBBSS winged sprints. The King of the Wing sprint race June 26 will be paired with the Top Speed Modified Series for the 2nd straight year. Collectively, the three racing programs comprise the Hemelgarn Racing/Super Fitness Triple Crown.

“Open wheel fans, drivers, team owners and sponsors have shown their strong support for our events at Toledo Speedway over the years,” said Toledo Speedway promoter Ron Drager. “When Ron Hemelgarn suggested we offer a big money bonus if a driver could win all three of these races it resulted in the creation of the Hemelgarn Racing/Super Fitness Triple Crown.”

Two of the chief racing officials from the series included in the Triple Crown—Andy Hillenburg of the USAC Silver Crown Series and Davey Hamilton of the King of the Wing Series—have driven at both Toledo Speedway and in the Indianapolis 500. Both Hillenburg and Hamilton have said the bonus will create a greater interest in all three events, and potentially will increase the number of drivers and teams entering the races.

“This is really exciting, for all three divisions now under the USAC banner to have this opportunity that Toledo Speedway, Ron Hemelgarn and Super Fitness have put together,” said Davey Hamilton, the creator of the King of the Wing and the recently announced Executive Director of USAC Racing. “It shows the growth of open-wheel racing and will ultimately benefit the fans and racers. It’s a great opportunity and a great promotion.”

Starting at this week's event, NASCAR drivers no longer will back out of pit stalls when qualifying begins.

Richard Buck, Sprint Cup Series director, told NASCAR Talk that the change comes at the request of drivers.

The rule will be for each of NASCAR’s three national series—Sprint Cup, Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series.

Sprint Cup and Xfinity teams race this week at Auto Club Speedway.

Concerns had been raised about so many vehicles backing up at the same time out of pit stalls when each round of qualifying began, particularly the opening round.

With the change, vehicles will be parked in the pits with the front of each car pointed toward the track so a competitor can drive away when qualifying begins. When a driver returns to the pits, they will back their vehicle into the stall.

An exception will be at Martinsville Speedway. Sprint Cup cars leave from their garage stall for qualifying since Camping World Truck teams use pit road as their work area. Cup teams already reposition their cars to drive out of their garage stall.

Buck also said Sunday that he received “pretty positive” comments from crew chiefs and drivers about the 2016 package tested last week at Charlotte Motor Speedway during a one-day Goodyear tire test.

Buck says he’s “cautiously optimistic” that the proposed 2016 rules package will be used by teams at the Sprint All-Star race in May.

Officials from the Automobile Racing Club of America announced that CBS Sports Network will televise at least three live events from the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards this summer.
 
CBS Sports Network's coverage, part of its CBS Sports Spectacular programming, begins with the traditional spring ARCA event from Toledo Speedway in northwest Ohio, ARCA's home track, on Sunday, May 17. In addition, CBS Sports Network will televise races from Winchester (Ind.) Speedway on Sunday, June 28 and the Mile Dirt at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield (Ill.) on Sunday, August 23.
 
"We are pleased to once again make available live ARCA coverage on CBS Sports Network," said Mark Gundrum, ARCA Vice President for Business Development and Corporate Partnerships. "This package is great for the teams, sponsors and fans of the series."
 
CBS Sports Network's coverage will include some of the series' best short track races, designed to showcase ARCA's exciting action from the tour's "bullrings," which represent the newly announced ARCA Short Track Challenge.
 
"The ARCA Short Track Challenge is a championship series within the greater ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards," Gundrum said. "Adding Toledo, Winchester and Springfield to the broadcast package will now provide coverage to nearly half of the Short Track Challenge events, and we're excited to bring the side-by-side action to CBS Sports Network."
 
The ARCA Short Track Challenge, which kicks off this Saturday at Mobile International Speedway, is comprised of 11 race events at tracks one-mile or less in length. The newly formed championship series will also see two events (Iowa Speedway and Lucas Oil Raceway) broadcast live on FOX Sports 1.
 
CBS Sports Network is available across the country through local cable, video and telco providers and via satellite on DirecTV Channel 221 and Dish Network Channel 158. For more information, including a full programming schedule and how to get CBS Sports Network, go to www.cbssportsnetwork.com.

Bryan Herta Autosport (BHA) in partnership with Bowen Motorsports announce Bowers & Wilkins has expanded their role with the team to become primary sponsor for the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series. Bowers & Wilkins has been an associate partner of BHA since 2012 and was the team’s primary partner for the 2014 Honda Indy Toronto event.



Gabby Chaves, 2014 Indy Lights Champion, was announced last month as the driver for the #98 Bowers & Wilkins Dallara-Honda. Chaves will be a leading contender for the Sunoco Rookie of the Year title in the Verizon IndyCar Series. The livery of the car will be revealed at Indycar’s upcoming Spring Training at Barber Motorsports Park on March 16-17.



Bowers & Wilkins products are used as the standard in the most demanding recording studios around the world as well as in the homes of discerning sound enthusiasts everywhere. Additionally, Bowers & Wilkins offer a line of headphones and wireless music systems. Technology has always been at the forefront of Bowers & Wilkins business, and it’s that correlation that attracts them to the Verizon IndyCar Series. 



“We are very proud to represent the Bowers & Wilkins brand and are excited to extend our relationship into the primary position. Bowers & Wilkins are a global brand with many attributes that resonate with our team and the Verizon IndyCar Series such as teamwork, precision, performance, innovation, and technology,” said David Bowen.



Joe Atkins, Chairman & CEO of Bowers & Wilkins, added, “Bowers & Wilkins is thrilled to be again involved with Bryan and David in support of the BHA #98 entry for the upcoming IndyCar season. IndyCar provides a great opportunity for us to engage our national dealer network and expose the brand to our target demographic.”

Seals-it announced that they have become a contingency sponsor at Star Speedway in Epping, New Hampshire for the 2015 season. The program will involve the 350 Supermodified and Allen’s Outlaw Late Model divisions. It will reward the weekly winners in each of the noted divisions plus the winners of Star Speedways 350 Supermodifed Classic, Star Classic, 350 Supermodifed Champion and Allen’s Outlaw Late Model Champion.

Mark J. Hann, Director of Business Development for Seals-it stated that “our company is the leader in producing racing related products and we have been involved with racing at all levels for over 25 years and this program will give us the opportunity to support the efforts of those racing at the short track level."

Seals-it company owner and president Skip Matczak, had great success as a car owner in the Supermodifieds at Oswego Speedway (NY) winning several track championships and races. Matczak noted that “the Supermodifieds have always been a favorite of mine so being able to become involved with them at Star Speedway is very exciting for me.”

The sponsorship program kicks off with Star Speedways opening day on May 2nd.

Bob Bondurant, who was an integral part of the 1965 Shelby American FIA World Championship team, became the first recipient of the Carroll Shelby Spirit Award on March 7.

The award was presented by Carol Anne Conway, Carroll Shelby’s niece, during the eighth annual Shelby Bash in Las Vegas. The award honors the achievements of people who embody the same passion for performance as Carroll Shelby.

“Presenting the award to Bob Bondurant in the home of Carroll Shelby was a special moment,” said Joe Conway, Co-CEO of Carroll Shelby International and CEO of Shelby American. “We know Carroll would have wholeheartedly approved of honoring Bondurant with this award, as the two of them are cut from the same cloth. Both were racers, teachers, mentors and businessmen. We only wish Carroll were here to present it to his dear friend, himself.”

Bondurant joined the Shelby American racing team in 1963, which led to a season in Europe and competition for the FIA World Championship. Paired with Dan Gurney in 1964, Bondurant won the GT category and took fourth overall at the wheel of a Daytona Coupe at Le Mans. He scored valuable points in eleven races the next season when the Shelby American team became the only American manufacturer to capture the GT class FIA world championship.

Bondurant was forced to take a hiatus from racing after the steering arm broke during a race, launching his car into a dirt embankment and rolling eight times. Faced with the possibility of never being able to walk again, he decided to use his expertise in a new way. Today, he is the CEO of The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, where he instructs others on the passion he’s spent his whole life perfecting.

“Carroll Shelby was a renaissance man with interests in racing, aviation, auto manufacturing, philanthropy and even the food industry,” said Neil Cummings, Co-CEO of Carroll Shelby International and CEO of Carroll Shelby Licensing. “He believed that innovation, ambition, hard work and sacrifice would lead to success in every pursuit. The Carroll Shelby Spirit Award will go to those who share those traits and pour their hearts into their chosen purpose. Mr. Bondurant truly personifies that spirit.”

The Carroll Shelby Spirit Award was designed to kindle a desire for excellence by recognizing people who achieve. Working with organizers at events that cater to Mr. Shelby’s interests, it will always be awarded to someone who displays exuberance, character and most importantly, enjoys a high octane lifestyle. The 60 pound bronze statue of a stunning Shelby Cobra was designed by Rick Hadley. Carroll Shelby International plans to bestow the award annually.

ExxonMobil is expanding its technology partnership with the McLaren-Honda Formula One team to incorporate its retail fuels brands, Esso, Exxon and Mobil, alongside Mobil 1.

ExxonMobil has enjoyed a long association with the McLaren-Honda Formula One team, as an official technology partner providing high-performance race fuel and lubricants since 1995. In 2014, the Esso logo was featured on the car during select races in celebration of ExxonMobil and McLaren’s 20-year relationship. The 2015 season will see ExxonMobil fuels branding showcased on the MP4-30 car throughout the season.

ExxonMobil’s decision to showcase its fuels follows a recent regulatory change in Grand Prix racing. Introduced in 2014, the new fuel-limited formula means that fuel will play an even more critical role in car performance. The technical team responsible for the development of this season’s fuel has been working closely with Honda to optimize product performance for the MP4-30 since late 2013.

ExxonMobil race fuel is developed in the same technology center in Paulsboro, New Jersey, as the company’s advanced retail fuels formulations, and shares similar properties. It is this culture of leading innovation from race to road that continues to help deliver better fuel economy to customers, now and in the future.

“We are proud to have been official technology partners to the McLaren Formula 1 team for more than two decades,” said Alan Kelly, president, ExxonMobil Fuels and Lubricants Company. “In addition to providing full-time laboratory and trackside engineering support, we have been the exclusive fuel supplier since the beginning of the relationship.

“With Honda on-board as the new engine partner for 2015, and highly-experienced world champions Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso at the wheel, capably supported by test and reserve driver Kevin Magnussen, we are all focused on winning races. The addition of our fuels brands will provide us an opportunity to promote our Esso-, Exxon- and Mobil-branded fuel offerings to consumers this coming year,” he added.

“ExxonMobil technology and expertise has proven vital to race-winning performance throughout our relationship,” said Ron Dennis, chairman and CEO, McLaren Technology Group. The team has worked extremely hard to optimize fuel and lubricant products around the Honda power unit. Extracting more power and fuel efficiency is a key focus, we are delighted to recognize ExxonMobil’s fuels technology contributions during the past two decades by welcoming the fuels side of the business as an official partner. Fans will now be able to appreciate that contribution too with both ExxonMobil’s lubricants brand – Mobil 1, and its retail fuels brands – Exxon, Mobil and Esso – on show.”

Memphis International Raceway broke ground Wednesday to commemorate the start of the construction of its new 3/10-mile dirt track.

“This is a day that a lot of fans in the Mid-South have been waiting for,” MIR’s VP and GM Pam Kendrick said. “We’re finally starting construction on this new, state-of-the-art facility. If the weather holds and building goes along as planned, we’ll be racing before the summer is over. This will be a fan friendly, racer friendly, versatile facility.”

MIR has already announced that once the track is operational, will host weekly 305 and 360 Winged Sprint Cars, Super Late Models, Crate Late Models, Street Stocks, Open Wheel Modifieds, and the 600cc Mini Sprints.

IRG Sports + Entertainment President and CEO Jason Rittenberry said that when completed, the dirt track will be one of the most entertaining, versatile outdoor facilities in the Mid-South.

“It’s going to be built to exceed the standards set by the major touring series,” Rittenberry said. “We want this facility to attract the most exciting racing out there. It’s something that the fans around Memphis and the Mid-South have been asking for and MIR will do its best to deliver.

“There will be no obstructions in the infield, so that allows the facility to stage a variety of motorsports events.”

The ceremony took place at the site of the Start/Finish Line of the new track and was attended by Kevin Kane, CEO of the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau, Millington Mayor Terry Jones and Dianne Baker of the Millington Chamber of Commerce.

“We can’t wait to give fans and the community a first look at what we have in store for this track,” said Bobby Sides, MIR’s Director of Dirt Track and Special Events. “We’re confident this new facility is going to be loved by fans and racers alike.”

Following the completion of the February race events, Daytona International Speedway, working closely with NASCAR and International Speedway Corporation (ISC), performed an extensive review of the facility and developed a significant plan for additional safety initiatives.

Prior to the July NASCAR weekend, the following safety initiatives will be completed:

• Additional 20,000 square feet of asphalt in turn one

• Realignment of a portion of the inside retaining wall from infield road course exit to

• Installation of SAFER barrier (Steel and Foam Energy Reduction) on realigned retaining wall and existing retaining wall in turn one

• Installation of SAFER barrier on retaining wall at pit road exit

• Installation of SAFER barrier between the exit of turn four to pit road entry.

Heintz Performance, a respected name in the automotive performance world in the Southeast and beyond, has signed an agreement with the PDRA to participate as a performance partner for the upcoming 2015 season.

Heintz Performance has its roots in the mid-1970s when brothers Steve and Mike Heintz pursued their love of competition and all things automotive by building a drag car that they raced at tracks near their North Carolina home.

As racers, Mike and Steve were always well prepared, carrying extra parts to each race. The word soon spread through the pits, and before long fellow competitors were calling on the brothers to see if they had any parts they could use as well. Recognizing a need and an opportunity, Mike and Steve began bringing a supply of parts just to sell at the track. From this, the idea of opening a small parts business in the corner of their garage became a reality, and Heintz Brothers Automotive was off and running.

Steve handled the parts aspects of the company, and Mike focused on engine building and repair, and the business quickly grew. In fact, by the early 1980s, the small corner of their garage devoted to the business was not large enough to handle customer demand, so the
brothers built an addition to their facility in order to meet the needs of their racing clientele.

Mike and Steve became well known to racers across the Carolinas and the Southeast, and before long parts manufacturers became acquainted with the Heintz name as well. In fact, many of the top companies in the performance parts industry contacted the Heintz brothers, asking them to carry their products.