Check back for more updates as the days wind down to events at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March 2015. During Race Weekend, look for more updates posted daily.
The superspeedway’s NASCAR weekend will begin with Stratosphere Pole Day on Friday, March 6 – highlighted by NASCAR Sprint Cup Series qualifying at 4:45 p.m. The Xfinity Series Boyd Gaming 300 will be the featured event on Saturday, March 7 at 1 p.m., while the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Kobalt 400 caps off the weekend on Sunday, March 8 at 12:30 p.m.
For more information or to purchase tickets today, call the Las Vegas Motor Speedway ticket office 800-644-4444 or visit www.lvms.com.
New app to bring race fans closer to the action at LVMS
Race fans attending this weekend’s NASCAR events at Las Vegas Motor Speedway will be able to stay up to date on every aspect of the weekend with the speedway’s new app for iPhone and Android users.
Las Vegas Motor Speedway has partnered with Sporting Innovations, the industry leader in sports technology to bring a platform that will provide users exclusive content as well as personalized offers and experiences. The app will be updated real-time with schedules, driver appearances, ticket upgrade information, maps, directions, traffic tips, as well as live audio.
“This is the next generation of apps,” said LVMS president Chris Powell. “This all-new mobile experience will allow us to personalize the messaging based on the ticket buyer or a race fan’s particular interest. We strongly recommend that all of our fans download the app before they get to the speedway to ensure an even better race experience.”
The app is available on Google Play and iTunes stores by searching Las Vegas Motor Speedway or LVMS. Fans need to register in the application to gain access to the full feature set and communications.
“LVMS has a tremendous vision for how they want to engage with the modern fan, particularly through digital channels,” said Robb Heineman, CEO of Sporting Innovations. “This app is the ideal solution as we work together to provide new and compelling experiences for race fans through the FAN360 platform .”
The NASCAR weekend will begin with Stratosphere Pole Day on Friday — highlighted by NASCAR Sprint Cup Series qualifying at 4:45 p.m. The Xfinity Series Boyd Gaming 300 will be the featured event on Saturday at 1 p.m., while the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Kobalt 400 caps off the weekend on Sunday. The extended race weekend begins on Wednesday with two nights of World of Outlaws Sprint Cars on Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s half-mile dirt oval.
Dale Jr, Hamlin headline drivers pulling double duty this weekend
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin and nine others will be trying to pull off a feat accomplished only twice in Las Vegas Motor Speedway history – sweep both the Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series races at LVMS.
Earnhardt, Hamlin, Aric Almirola, Austin Dillon and Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan highlight the drivers pulling double duty this weekend. These five make up part of the 48 cars entered in Sunday’s Kobalt 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race as well as the 42 drivers entered in Saturday’s Boyd Gaming 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race. Other racers pulling double duty are Ryan Blaney, Landon Cassill, J.J. Yeley, Mike Bliss, Ty Dillon and Regan Smith. Smith us subbing for suspended Kurt Busch in the Sprint Cup event.
If one of these drivers pulls off the sweep he would join Jeff Burton in 1999 and Brad Keselowski last year as the only drivers to sweep the weekend.
Headlining the entries for the Kobalt 400 are Jeff Gordon, who will make his final Sprint Cup start at LVMS, defending race winner Keselowski, four-time Vegas winner Jimmie Johnson as well as previous Kobalt 400 winners Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards. Gordon will be the only driver to have started all 18 Sprint Cup events at LVMS.
Among the non-Sprint Cup drivers in the Boyd Gaming 300 are reigning series champion Chase Elliott, Mexico’s Daniel Suarez and last year’s Las Vegas Camping World Truck Series race winner Erik Jones.
LVMS expecting smooth vehicle flow for NASCAR Weekend
Las Vegas Motor Speedway officials again have worked with state and local agencies to make vehicle flow into and out of the 1.5-mile superspeedway an easier and more efficient process. The upcoming NASCAR weekend should put that on full display, as the speedway prepares to welcome more than 100,000 rabid fans to Sunday’s Kobalt 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
Speedway officials recommend fans head to the track early and also remember that daylight savings time returns on Saturday night. Clocks are to be moved ahead one hour.
The speedway also will place more emphasis on the exit of cars from all lots. Speedway officials will have three gates dedicated to the Lucky 7 Preferred Lot for the first hour following the races on Saturday and Sunday. All other fans parked in the Blue Lot can exit through the remaining gates until Lot 7 is cleared. Once Lot 7 is empty, all gates will be opened to those parked in the Blue Lot.
“We obviously want to do all that we can to create a smooth flow of vehicles in and out of our parking areas,” said LVMS president Chris Powell. “Little things such as arriving early, remembering to move clocks ahead one hour and patience when exiting are ways all race fans can help us achieve that goal. We also have a very strong responsibility to our fans who purchase parking passes to accelerate their ability to leave more quickly. Like last year, we recommend purchasing a Lot 7 pass or using mass transportation as alternatives.”
Traffic updates will be provided on Sunday, March 8 via the LVMS Twitter feed (@LVMotorSpeedway) and radio on KBAD AM-920.
Race Day Shuttles, which began service during the 2013 race season, is the preferred means of mass transportation from downtown and the Strip. To book this service, fans can log on to www.racedayshuttles.com or call (702) 362-0264.
For those wishing to take a private charter to the races, LVMS recommends Key Tours. Key Tours has been providing service to the speedway for several years. Key Tours can be contacted at www.keytourslv.com or (800) 261-2691. All buses and taxis will have dedicated exit lanes following the events.
Counterfeit handicapped placards have been an issue in the past, and speedway security will continue to monitor and examine the authenticity of such passes on every vehicle. Fans also will have the ability to use the speedway’s video assist feature, which shows preferred entry points and exits. The video can be found online at www.lvms.com.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Hauler Parade returns to Thursday night
NASCAR Hauler Parade will head down the world-famous Las Vegas Strip on the evening of Thursday, March 5, 2015 at 6 p.m. Chris Williams
Lights, haulers, action. The immensely popular NASCAR Hauler Parade, which signals the start of NASCAR Weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, will return to its traditional Thursday date this year.
Approximately 50 bright and colorful NASCAR haulers will roll through the vibrant lights of the world-famous Las Vegas Strip on the evening of March 5 starting at 6 p.m.
The parade route will stretch for nearly five miles, beginning at the historic Welcome to Las Vegas sign and heading north on Las Vegas Boulevard before ending at Sahara Avenue, where the haulers will jump onto Interstate 15 toward Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The parade, which is free of charge, will be visible for race fans on both sides of the Strip and from any of the hotels and casinos along Las Vegas Boulevard.
The extended race weekend begins on Wednesday, March 4 with two nights of World of Outlaws Sprint Cars on Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s half-mile dirt oval.
Jimmie Johnson ready to gamble for the win in Kobalt 400
Jimmie Johnson is no stranger to turning laps in Las Vegas, but Thursday’s experience – his first on the famed High Roller – was certainly unique for the four-time winner of Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s Kobalt 400.
Johnson, the six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, joined media and a select group of lucky fans for a few circuits around the world’s largest observation wheel to promote the upcoming Kobalt 400, which returns to Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 8.
“First trip on the High Roller; the lap speeds weren’t that high, but the altitude is certainly shocking,” Johnson said of the views, some 550 feet above the Las Vegas Strip. “You start looking around and you realize you’re really high up there.”
Despite four Kobalt 400 wins on his resumé – a record among all drivers – Johnson knows that adding a coveted Kobalt wrench to his trophy case will be no easy task. But win or lose, he said he always enjoys racing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
“The track makes you step it up,” he said. “(Turns) 3 and 4 sit in the sun all day, so it’s going to be slick. You have to be smart about lane selection in Turn 1. And then the billboards provide a bunch of shade and give you a lot of grip. I love the fact that the track throws these challenges at you and it’s not a cookie-cutter, chase-the-bottom, follow-the-leader track. You’ve got to show up and wheel it.”
Rascal Flatts to perform national anthem for Kobalt 400
Rascal Flatts will perform the national anthem prior to the Kobalt 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race March 8 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Award-winning country group Rascal Flatts will sing the national anthem at the Kobalt 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday, March 8 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The performance will take place in the midst of the band’s first-ever, nine-show residency, Rascal Flatts Vegas Riot!, at The Joint inside Hard Rock Hotel & Casino from Wednesday, Feb. 25 to Saturday, March 14.
Rascal Flatts will sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” in front of more than 100,000 race fans to kick off Nevada’s largest sports event. With eight consecutive studio albums debuting at No. 1, the trio remains the most-awarded country music group of the past decade. Since its musical debut in 2000, the group has sold more than 22.9 million albums, 30 million digital downloads and has earned more than 40 trophies from the American Country Awards, Academy of Country Music Awards, American Music Awards and Country Music Association Awards. In 2012, the band reached a new milestone with more than 7 million concert tickets sold.
“We’re pleased to have one of the top country music groups of the 21st century perform the national anthem for the Kobalt 400,” said Las Vegas Motor Speedway President Chris Powell. “Rascal Flatts joins a long list of A-list celebrities who’ve participated in our NASCAR Weekend over the years. We look forward to the band’s upcoming residency at The Joint inside Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, and we can’t wait to hear Rascal Flatts perform the anthem here at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 8.”
The 18th annual Kobalt 400 headlines a race weekend that includes Stratosphere Pole Day on Friday, March 6 and the Boyd Gaming 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series event on Saturday, March 7. For more tickets and information on the Kobalt 400 or Las Vegas Motor Speedway, please visit www.lvms.com or call 1.800.644.4444.
The Rascal Flatts Vegas Riot! residency marks The Joint’s first country residency since creating the concept years ago. Tickets to the shows start at $39.50 (plus applicable service fees) and can be purchased at the Hard Rock Hotel Box Office, online at www.axs.com/rascalflattsvegas or by calling 1.888.9.AXS.TIX.
Craig Wayne Boyd to perform before Kobalt 400 at LVMS
Craig Wayne Boyd will put a smile on race fans’ faces prior to the start of the Kobalt 400 on March 8 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The most recent winner of The Voice, Boyd will perform during pre-race festivities for the 18th annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at LVMS.
“Holy wow! Getting to be a part of the Kobalt 400 is going to be something I’ll never forget,” Boyd said. “There’s nothing like being at a NASCAR race… the smell of the fuel, the excitement of the crowd, rooting for your favorite driver, and now to be able to stand in the middle of it all and perform to such a loyal NASCAR audience is more than I can ask for! I am truly blessed.”
Boyd, who recently made his debut at the Grand Ole Opry, will play a 15-minute set, including his hit single “My Baby’s Got a Smile on Her Face” just prior to driver introductions.
“Craig Wayne Boyd is an up-and-coming star in Nashville, and we’re looking forward to having him on our stage before the Kobalt 400,” said LVMS president Chris Powell. “It takes a special talent to win a fierce competition like The Voice, and we’re just excited to hear Craig do his thing here at LVMS.”
Boyd is making his mark in Las Vegas as he is also opening for the nine-show Rascal Flatts Vegas Riot! residency, which runs from February 25-March 14 at The Joint inside Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Rascal Flatts will perform the national anthem prior to the start of the Kobalt 400.
The Kobalt 400 is the main event of a packed racing weekend that kicks off with two nights of World of Outlaws racing at the Dirt Track on Wednesday, March 4 and Thursday, March 5. Stratosphere Pole Day follows on Friday, March 6 and the Boyd Gaming 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race is Saturday, March 7. Tickets for all events remain available. Fans also may purchase driver introduction passes, which will allow them closer access to all pre-race activities, including the performance by Craig Wayne Boyd.