The final race of the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Championship season has a brand new name: The "MAVTV 500".

MAVTV President Bob Patison announced that MAVTV, the "American Real" national cable network, has signed an exclusive deal with International Speedway Corporation (ISC) to be the title sponsor for the final race of the 2012 IndyCar Championship Season.

The MAVTV 500-mile event will be run on the super-fast banks of Auto Club Speedway at Fontana in Southern California on September 15, where average lap speeds top 200 mph.

The 250-lap thriller looks destined to be the place where this year's points battle will finally be settled and the 2012 IndyCar champion crowned. Currently heading the IndyCar points championship are Will Power, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Helio Castroneves, with three-time (and reigning 2012 Indy 500 Champ) Dario Franchitti in contention.

The upcoming race is the first of a three-year event title sponsor agreement between MAVTV and ISC. Patison stated, "We couldn't be more pleased with this opportunity to promote our network's 'American Real' brand with a classic 500-mile IndyCar race at one of the most exciting superspeedways in the United States."

The primetime Saturday night "IZOD IndyCar MAVTV 500", presented by Lucas Oil, will air nationally at 5:00 p.m. PT (8:00 p.m. ET) September 15 on the NBC Sports Network.

The PRI team, including myself, have spent a lot of time on the road this year connecting with the dynamic racing industry throughout the US, and I wanted to share a quick note about our stop in the Indianapolis area late last month. We had a lot of fun catching up with industry friends at the PRI Reception at Harry & Izzy’s in downtown Indianapolis last July. We had about 75 in attendance, many of them local racing business people and several in town for the Brickyard 400. I was able to visit over a dozen racing businesses while I was in town, and I appreciate the honest and open sharing of information and insight into the racing industry today. Just wanted to thank you all. PRI delivers all the important business news and trends in the auto racing industry in its pages, and we can't do it without all the great conversations we have every month with hundreds of people in the industry.


Here's a view of the PRI Reception at Harry & Izzy's in downtown Indianapolis.

Engine & Performance Warehouse (EPWI) has named its 2011 "Vendor Of The Year" and "Representative Of The Year" at the company's Awards Dinner during its annual summer conference in Vail, Colorado, earlier this month.

Hastings Manufacturing Company was named EPWI’s Vendor of the Year, while Mike Katz of Bob Cook Sales was EPWI’s 2011 Representative of the Year.

Bob Kollar, CEO & Tom DeBlasis, Vice President of Domestic Aftermarket Sales, accepted the award for Hastings, a key supplier of replacement & racing piston rings. The annual Vendor of the Year award is presented to the supplier or manufacturer based on performance scores during the prior year in seven categories: distribution/sales policies, pricing policies, inventory, returns, labor claims, office support and shipping/packaging.

Past recipients of this award include S.A. Gear, Total Seal, Pioneer, B&P Rods, COMP Cams, Cylinder Head Center, Clevite Engine Parts, Dura-Bond Bearing Co., Damper Doctor, Melling Engine Parts, Joe Gibbs Racing, Howard Enterprises & SB International.

Katz, a sales representative for Bob Cook Sales, accepted his award during the dinner. He covers southern Texas & Louisiana, and represents many of EPWI's larger performance manufacturers. The Rep of the Year is selected annually, on a rotating basis by region, using combined votes based on performance scores during the prior year in three categories: sales support, distribution philosophies, and timely and accurate follow-through.

For more information, visit epwi.net.

Coxreels, a leading US manufacturer of industrial grade hose, cord, and cable reels and a major employer in Arizona, has moved to a larger, more modernized facility in Tempe, Arizona.

All departments have been re-located and are fully functional, and with nearly 50 percent more square footage, Coxreels can now accommodate the massive growth the company has experienced since 2005, as well as plan for continued advancement in manufacturing its industry-leading product lines.

With Coxreels’ commitment to “USA made” and “USA quality,” the new facility’s benefits and features are being fully embraced. The expanded manufacturing space, along with improved processes, has already increased productivity.  

The new location also features an updated lobby and reception area for visitors, and newly constructed, modernized office areas. An extensive product showroom has been designed and will be used for training and to display the Coxreels product lines.

Coxreels’ new facility has given the company the opportunity to expand its reach and continue moving forward well into the years ahead.

The company’s new physical address is 5865 S. Ash Ave, Tempe, AZ  85283; its P.O. Box remains the same: P.O. Box 11268 Tempe, AZ  85284.

For further information on the Coxreels product line, contact Customer Service at 800/269-7335 or visit www.coxreels.com.

JR Motorsports and Harris Auto Racing will again open their doors to drivers and fans in town for the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals. The area speed shops will be holding open houses during the week in Boone, Iowa.

JR Motorsports, located on-site at the pit entrance of the speedway, will open its doors and offer free food and drink compliments of GM High Performance during its Customer Appreciation Open House on Thursday, September 6, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

JR, which will soon be moving into a brand new 60,000-square-foot facility in Ankeny, is offering product discounts through Super Nationals week.

Harris Auto Racing, located at 1775 219th Lane in Boone, will hold its annual open house on Friday, September 7, from 9 a.m. to noon. The re-designed 2013 Modified and 2013 SportMod chassis will be featured, along with 2013 Terminator Stock Cars and Hobby Stocks.

Aero wheels and Hoosier tires will be on sale while quantities last during the open house at Harris.

NHRA Technical Department officials have announced that a cockpit canopy for Top Fuel dragsters has been approved for use beginning with this weekend’s Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd.

The cockpit canopy will be manufactured and distributed by Aerodine Composites Group and will be available for use by all Top Fuel teams. The equipment is an optional component, not mandatory.

“We were able to see the finished product...and give our final approval to the Aerodine representatives,” said Glen Gray, NHRA vice president of technical operations. “The product includes a fresh air system, fire bottle, and kick-out panels. The cockpit canopy will be available to any team that wants to use it starting this weekend in Brainerd.”

The Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals will be held August 16-19 at Brainerd International Raceway. It is the 16th of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and will be televised on ESPN2HD.

For tickets, call 218/824-RACE (7223) or log on to www.brainerdraceway.com.

The 7th annual Big O Tires presents the Don Schumacher Racing Open House will take place August 31; this year’s theme, 330-mph Art & Technology, is expected to attract another record crowd to team headquarters near Indianapolis, Indiana, during the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals presented by Auto-Plus.

The free event will raise money for the Riley Children’s Foundation that supports Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health and Camp Riley through a silent auction and other donations. Riley Hospital has served as Indiana’s only comprehensive children’s hospital since 1924. The annual open house and other DSR functions have raised more than $175,000 for Riley Hospital.

Auction items range from 60-inch and 32-inch HD flat-panel televisions provided by Aaron’s to the actual front end from Matt Hagan’s Aaron’s Funny Car that was shown worldwide on the Internet and television news programs after the car exploded earlier this season at Charlotte Motor Speedway’s zMAX Dragway. A complete and updated list of silent auction items soon will be posted at ShoeRacing.com and Facebook.com/ShoeRacing.

The open house, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., will feature DSR Professional drivers Tony Schumacher, Antron Brown, Spencer Massey, reigning NHRA Funny Car world champion Hagan, Ron Capps, Jack Beckman, and Johnny Gray.

In addition, new this year will be a motorsports art exhibit and displays of DSR’s metalworking technology.

Among the featured artists:


* Thomas Patsis, a full-time DSR metal fabricator, will display his unique and creative race-themed metalwork. During the five-hour open house, Patsis will create a special piece that will be auctioned that afternoon, with proceeds going to Riley Hospital. For examples of his work, log on to ColdHardArt.com.

* Bruce Tatman is a native of Dayton, Ohio, and an Indianapolis resident. The graduate of the Central Academy of Commercial Art in Cincinnati is noted for realistic illustrations of race cars. He will complete an illustration during the open house and donate it for auction.

* Todd Myers, a 41-year-old native of Paris, Tenn., is an award-winning multimedia artist whose creations have been seen in fine-art galleries from Tennessee to Michigan. Myers, who studied fine art and graphic design at Union University in Jackson, Tennessee, has worked as the public relations representative and creative director for Kalitta Motorsports for 11 years. Motorsports, in particular drag racing, influences can be seen in his art.

The technology aspect of the open house will allow visitors for the first time to tour the DSR machine shop, which includes high-tech machinery used to manufacture more than 200 components used on DSR Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars.

The DSR 8,000-horsepower supercharger dynometer also will be operated at various times throughout the day.

It was the primary home of the Indianapolis Indians for six decades, played host to Pan American Games competition in 1987, was a casting double for Wrigley Field for the feature film “Eight Men Out,” housed a dirt track for Midget racing and – in its most inglorious moment – housed automobiles as part of the government’s “Cash for Clunkers” program.

Bush Stadium in Indianapolis (named for Donie Bush, who served as president of the Triple-A baseball team for 15 years) now is being revitalized in its 81st year.

Redevelopment is well under way at the 16th Street site, with loft apartments within the stadium’s shell and mixed commercial use being constructed. The wide-ranging urban renewal plan, with the stadium at its center, calls for a technology and life sciences corridor within the next few years.

IZOD IndyCar Series team owner/driver Ed Carpenter raced at facility that was leased by Tony George in 1997 and appropriately named 16th Street Speedway.

The racing venue was preceded by another 16th Street Speedway – across from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The quarter-mile paved oval played host to races, including the annual Night Before the 500 Midget race from 1946 until 1959.

Winners include Indianapolis 500 competitors Duane Carter (winner of the first Midget race at the track on May 29, 1946), Johnnie Parsons, Eddie Sachs, Len Sutton, Gene Hartley, Mike Nazaruk, Manuel Ayulo, Johnny McDowell, Johnnie Tolan, Art Cross and Shorty Templeman, Eddie Sachs and Len Sutton.

The track was demolished to make room for a shopping center, and today the IndyCar corporate offices are located in the complex.

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and the World Racing Group have announced that Goodyear will not continue as the official tire supplier of the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series beyond the 2012 season.

“Goodyear has been a tremendous supporter of sprint car racing both financially and in terms of product development,” said Ben Geisler, Chief Marketing Officer for the World of Outlaws. “After three great seasons, though, we have both decided that it is in our best interest to pursue other opportunities for the 2013 season and beyond.”

Goodyear employs about 73,000 people at manufacturing plants and facilities in 22 nations. Based in Akron, Ohio, it is among the largest tire makers in the world. For more information about Goodyear’s racing efforts, visit www.racegoodyear.com.

The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, which was founded in 1978 and is owned by the World Racing Group based in Concord, North Carolina, campaigns 82 races across 24 states and three Canadian provinces. For more information, visit www.worldofoutlaws.com.

Lucas Oil Products has signed a three year merchandise partnership with Indianapolis, Indiana-based MainGate, Inc., which has developed an e-commerce website, LucasOilGear.com, that will offer a full merchandise line of Lucas Oil apparel and novelties.



The new merchandise includes T-shirts, headwear, novelties and outerwear for the numerous affiliates under the Lucas Oil umbrella.

LucasOilGear.com will offer merchandise for Lucas Oil Stadium, the Lucas Oil brand, MAVTV, and the Lucas Oil Racing Series, as well as other affiliates.

MainGate officially launched LucasOilGear.com on August 6, 2012, and continues to expand the merchandise line. 



"The e-commerce website will help reach fans that support our grassroots efforts in all forms of motorsports,” said Forrest Lucas, Owner & Founder of Lucas Oil Products. “We know that MainGate understands our vision for our brand."