ProMedia Events and Publishing, the parent company of the Holley NMRA Ford Nationals and NMCA Muscle Car Nationals, has announced Augustine Herrera as the new NMRA/NMCA National Tech Director. His duties include overseeing fair competition in both drag racing series and leading the on-site tech staff at all national events. 

“Augustine joined our team in 2019 and quickly learned the ins and outs of our categories and our competitor base. He has an extensive history in the sport from competing in Outlaw 10.5 and handling car chief duties on an NHRA Pro Modified team to currently owning his own motorcycle race shop that specializes in drag racing,” said Rollie Miller, National Event Director and General Manager for NMRA/NMCA. “We wish Roger Conley the best in his new endeavors and we are looking forward to Augustine taking over this position.” 

Herrera will be available in-person at the 2021 PRI Trade Show, December 9-11 in Indianapolis in the NMRA/NMCA Drag Racing Series Booth #1632. 

Herrera can be contacted through email at aherrera@promediapub.com. For more information, visit nmradigital.com and nmcadigital.com. 

The NASCAR Foundation has announced Louisville, Kentucky native Jeff Harmon as the winner of the 11th annual presentation of the Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award. The NASCAR Foundation awarded Harmon $100,000 to his choice of charity, Down Syndrome of Louisville.

“I’m so excited and humbled to win this award,” said Jeff Harmon. “The other three finalists were all deserving as well. I’m blessed, what an honor. The $100,000 will go a long way in helping Down Syndrome of Louisville grow and expand to help even more kids. Thank you to The NASCAR Foundation and all who voted!”

Harmon, who has served, supported, and uplifted Down Syndrome of Louisville and the surrounding communities for 18 years, earned the most online votes from a pool of volunteers. Harmon and the DSL plan to use the cash prize to help implement modern playground equipment and sensory room renovations, as well as launching satellite campuses to further support the Down Syndrome community.

Harmon has been a life-long fan of NASCAR racing, with his all-time favorite driver being Darrell Waltrip. He also grew up racing modified stock cars.

Additional volunteers up for nomination were Erin Collins of the Dallas Hearing Foundation, Jaeleen Davis of Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids of Michigan, and Beverly Hodson of Richie McFarland Children’s Center. Each of these organizations has earned a $25,000 donation from The NASCAR Foundation.

Throughout the 11 years of its existence, the Betty Jane France Award has highlighted 44 individuals who have served and uplifted children in their local communities. These heroes have touched at least 374,763 children’s lives overall, according to The NASCAR Foundation. 

For more information, visit nascarfoundation.com.

Toyota has unveiled its new race car for the 2022 NHRA season in Funny Car competition. 

For the first time, Toyota will campaign the GR Supra beginning with the season kickoff event in Pomona in February. Toyota has competed with the Camry in Funny Car competition dating back to 2012. Prior, the Toyota Celica and Toyota Solara were run.

With the new body on the Funny Car for 2022, it marks the most significant styling characteristics of any previous Funny Car, according to the automaker.

“After 10 years of fielding the Camry in NHRA Funny Car competition, it’s really exciting for us to be moving to the GR Supra and ultimately the next generation of Funny Cars for NHRA,” said Paul Doleshal, group manager of motorsports for Toyota Motor North America. 

Funny Car drivers J.R. Todd and Alexis DeJoria will pilot the new body for their respective teams in 2022. 

Safety enhancements include giving the driver more visibility while sitting behind the wheel and adding more room around their helmets, along with additional safety foam in the cockpit. 

“To be a part of the work to try to make these cars as safe as possible for us as drivers means a lot to me,” said Todd, who worked with TRD on the enhancements during the nearly two-year development process.

For more information, visit toyota.com/racing or nhra.com.

As part of PRI’s commitment to race tracks and race organizations, the 2021 PRI Trade Show will include an area dedicated to track operators, promoters, and sanctioning bodies. The new TOPS (Track Operators, Promoters, and Sanctioning Bodies) Workroom & Lounge is an exclusive area for visitors to connect during the three-day trade show taking place December 9-11 at the Indiana Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis.

Owners, promoters, officials, and staff of motorsports facilities and sanctioning bodies will be able to relax while connecting with others who share common interests and concerns. In addition to the vast lounge area, the TOPS Workroom & Lounge will include dedicated meeting space, work stations, charging stations, and coffee and water service.

“The PRI Show is the best place for track operators and promoters to connect in person,” said PRI Trade Show Director Karin Davidson. “The exclusive TOPS Workroom & Lounge will ensure that attendees in this segment of the industry are able to meet and collaborate with one another.”

In addition to meetings with sanctioning bodies and motorsports coalitions, the TOPS Workroom & Lounge will include a Track Operator/Sanctioning Brews and BS Happy Hour on Friday, December 10, from 4 to 5 p.m. All qualifying Show participants are invited and encouraged to join the discussion in Room 130 (off the Yellow Hall Lobby, next to the all-new PRI Members Lounge).

“Race track operators, promoters, and sanctioning bodies share unique challenges and interests,” said PRI President Dr. Jamie Meyer. “The TOPS Workroom & Lounge and the Track Operator/Sanctioning Brews and BS Happy Hour will provide this audience with valuable networking and discussions. We will be addressing issues that are integral to the group’s future and share ideas to help grow the market.”

The 2021 PRI Show marks the motorsports industry’s first and largest in-person business gathering since the pandemic. Nearly 1,000 exhibitors will showcase the latest products, services, machinery, simulation and testing technologies, and trailers available for the racing industry in a single location. PRI encompasses all forms of motorsports and attracts attendees from all 50 states and all over the world, including professional race teams, retail shops, warehouse distributors, engine builders, fabricators, dealers, installers, jobbers, and media. To learn more about the TOPS Lounge or the PRI Show, visit performanceracing.com. To register for the 2021 PRI Show, visit pri2021.com/attend.

The acclaimed Featured Products Showcase will return for this year’s Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Trade Show, giving manufacturers unparalleled opportunities to promote their products and reach buyers and media before, during, and after the event on December 9–11 at the Indiana Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis.

As the epicenter of the motorsports industry, the PRI Show is where race teams, racers, resellers, buyers, and media go to see the industry’s top products and trends. The Featured Products Showcase is a dedicated area inside Lucas Oil Stadium containing scores of the newest and most popular motorsports products. Attendees visit the Showcase to discover products of interest and identify exhibitors to visit during the three-day event.

In addition to attracting buyers and media at the Show, participation in the Featured Products Showcase yields countless benefits to exhibitors, including:

• Professional photographs of all products in the Showcase are taken at no additional cost, with photos pushed out to media for editorial use.
• PRI Magazine features all products from the Showcase in upcoming issues, which are sent to tens of thousands of industry professionals, many with buying influence.
• Manufacturers have free access and are able to use the images of the products in their marketing campaigns.
• Products in the Showcase have the exclusive opportunity to win awards from the Featured Products Awards program. Winners are promoted by PRI and can be leveraged by manufacturers as well.
• Participating exhibitors will receive a complimentary promotional carpet ad in front of their booth to drive additional traffic during the Show.
• Participants receive a featured listing in the online exhibitor search and in the exhibitor’s floor plan listing.

“The Featured Products Showcase is a low-investment, high-return program focused solely on highlighting motorsports products,” said PRI Trade Show Director Karin Davidson. “It’s open only to PRI exhibitors, and is the single-best opportunity to increase product awareness.”

All 2021 PRI Show exhibitors are eligible to participate in the Featured Products Showcase, and exhibitors may enter multiple products. Accommodations may be made to help exhibitors who are not able to physically deliver their products to the Showcase. Submissions made before December 6 are $50 for the first product and $75 for additional products (five products maximum per exhibitor).

The 2021 PRI Show will feature nearly 1,000 exhibitors showcasing the latest products, services, machinery, simulation and testing technologies, and trailers for the racing industry in a single location. PRI encompasses all forms of motorsports and attracts attendees from all 50 states and all over the world, including professional race teams, retail shops, warehouse distributors, engine builders, fabricators, dealers, installers, jobbers, and media. 

To learn more about the Featured Products Showcase or the PRI Show, visit performanceracing.com. To register for the 2021 PRI Show, visit pri2021.com/attend.

The 2021 PRI Show Student Program will give participating exhibitors and students more quality connections and value than ever before.

Through the PRI Student Program Industry Networking Breakfast, Friday, December 10, from 7:30–9:00 a.m., exhibitors will host a networking table where they will engage in quality, intimate conversations with a limited number of students. Host companies will build connections by sharing their expertise, helping students explore career opportunities, and inspiring students in their career paths.

“The focus on the Student Networking Breakfast is on quality connections, rather than quantity connections,” said Byron Bergmann, PRI project manager, member services. “Whether companies are hiring or not, members have a vast amount of knowledge to share and can be a great source for students.” 

Exhibiting companies are encouraged to participate in the program. Participation, which is free to exhibiting companies, simply requires one-and-a-half hours from one company representative. No set-up time or marketing materials are required.

Click here to register your company.

BorgWarner has appointed Sara Greenstein to its Board of Directors.

Greenstein was the president, CEO and board member of Lydall, a global manufacturer of value-added engineered materials and specialty filtration solutions. Prior, Greenstein served as senior vice president of United States Steel Corporation, where she managed the company’s $4 billion consumer solutions business unit. 

“We are pleased to welcome Sara to BorgWarner’s Board of Directors,” said Alexis P. Michas, non-executive chairman of the board of BorgWarner. “Sara’s breadth of leadership experience in the production and manufacturing space makes her a strong complement to our board.”

For more information, visit borgwarner.com.

Legendary American race car driver Bob Bondurant has passed away at 88 years old. 

Bondurant was introduced to racing by his father, John Roper Bondurant, at the age of 8. He began his racing career piloting flat track vehicles as a teenager.

At 23, he began racing in Morgan Plus Fours before moving on to Corvettes and later the legendary Shelby Daytona Coupe, in which he won the World SportsCar Championship’s 24 Hours of Le Mans with Dan Gurney in 1964.

Bondurant also raced in Formula 1 for Ferrari before moving to Can-Am with Peter Revson in the Lola T70 Mark II. 

Following a crash at Watkins Glen in New York, Bondurant opened the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving in 1968. Since then, the school has taught the copyrighted “Bondurant Method” with its lineup of instructors. 

Over 500,000 students have graduated from the school, overseen by the company president and CEO, and Bondurant’s wife, Pat Bondurant. 

ETS Racing Fuels—the provider of purpose-engineered performance racing fuels with facilities in France, UK, Germany, and the US—has announced Kyle Moose as its North American race fuel manager.  

Moose has 15 years of experience in the motorsports industry with seven years dedicated to racing fuels. He has held stints with off-road racing’s Varner Motorsports followed by off-road motorcycle manufacturer Hinson Clutch Components. After, he joined VP Racing Fuels as the West Coast race fuel manager before joining Amber Resources’ petroleum distribution company.  

“I couldn’t be happier for the opportunity to help strengthen the ETS brand in North America. ETS is recognized globally and now diving deeper into the North American markets providing top-level products and customer service to racers and enthusiasts,” Moose stated. 

Moose is an amateur motocross racer and enjoys spending time at the track with his wife, family, and friends. 

For more information, visit etsracingfuels.com. 

Saudi Automobile & Motorcycle Federation (SAMF) has launched the Saudi Motorsport Company, a commercial entity that will promote race events in Saudi Arabia. 

The first of its kind in the kingdom, Saudi Motorsport Company will also aim to “improve operations, optimize spending, and generate commercial revenues across the international motorsports calendar.”

The announcement comes ahead of the inaugural Formula 1 STC Saudi Arabian Grand Prix set for December 3–5 and follows other major motorsports events including the Formula E Diriyah ePrix (since 2018), the Dakar Rally (since 2020), and the Extreme E series’ Desert X Prix (April 3–4, 2021). These races align with the Saudia Arabia campaign called “Vision 2030,” designed to expand the kingdom’s business interests.  

For more information, visit samf.gov.sa/ar.