From Small Beginnings, Rick Hendrick Reached Pinnacle of Success in Business and NASCAR

HOMESTEAD, FL – NOVEMBER 17: Jimmie Johnson (C), driver of the #48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet, poses with team owner Rick Hendrick (L) and crew chief Chad Knaus (R) in Champions Victory Lane with their six trophies after the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17, 2013 in Homestead, Florida. Photo – Robert Laberge/Getty Images

It’s said reaching the top is the easy part; staying there is more difficult.

For Rick Hendrick, the climb up the mountain required a decade of hard work culminating in Hendrick Motorsports capturing its first NASCAR premier series championship in 1995.

Two decades later, Hendrick’s Chevrolet team remains stock car racing’s platinum standard: a record 12 NASCAR premier series titles – including Jimmie Johnson’s record-matching seventh crown in 2016 – and 245 victories with 16 different drivers.

“It just seems like yesterday we didn’t think we’d even make it through our first year (1984) and now we’ve won 12 of these things, and it’s hard to do,” said Hendrick following Johnson’s title-winning victory last November at Homestead-Miami Speedway in south Florida.

The 67-year-old Hendrick will reach yet another career milestone on Friday when he’s inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame (8 p.m. ET on NBCSN). The Class of 2017 includes fellow team owner Richard Childress, former Hendrick Motorsports drivers Mark Martin and Benny Parsons and pioneer car owner Raymond Parks. Continue reading

FOX Sports and NASCAR Productions Collaborate on Second Season of ‘Beyond the Wheel’

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Documentary Series Returns to NASCAR RACE HUB for More of the Sport’s Most Iconic Moments and Traditions 

FS1 and NASCAR Productions will present the second season of the acclaimed documentary series Beyond the Wheel as part of FS1’s NASCAR RACE HUB. Created to depict the sport’s most pivotal moments and compelling narratives, the short films focus on influential characters – both past and present – and the unique stories that have shaped NASCAR as a sport since its inception. The first film premieres on Wednesday, Oct. 26 at 6 p.m. ET during NASCAR RACE HUB on FS1. Continue reading

2016 NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Honors Five of Sports Greatest

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Portrait of the 2016 NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductees, Bruton Smith, Jerry Cook and Terry Labonte following the induction ceremony at The NASCAR Hall of Fame, Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016 Photo - Scott K. Brown/Pixel Factory

Portrait of the 2016 NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductees, Bruton Smith, Jerry Cook and Terry Labonte following the induction ceremony at The NASCAR Hall of Fame, Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016 Photo – Scott K. Brown/Pixel Factory

2016 NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Honors Five of Sport’s Greatest

Cook, Isaac, Labonte, Smith, Turner Officially Enshrined

Five of NASCAR’s iconic figures – four drivers and one motorsports entrepreneur – were enshrined into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, North Carolina this afternoon during the Induction Ceremony held in the Crown Ball Room at the Charlotte Convention Center.

Those who added their names to the list of now 35 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees, included: Jerry Cook, Bobby Isaac, Terry Labonte, O. Bruton Smith and Curtis Turner. Continue reading

2016 NASCAR Hall Of Fame Class Announced

Photo - NASCAR IMC

Photo – NASCAR IMC

Cook, Isaac, Labonte, Smith, Turner Comprise Hall’s Seventh Class

NASCAR announced today the inductees who will comprise the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2016. The five-person group – the seventh in NASCAR Hall of Fame history – consists of Jerry Cook, Bobby Isaac, Terry Labonte, O. Bruton Smith and Curtis Turner. In addition, NASCAR announced that Harold Brasington won the Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR. Next year’s Induction Ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Jan. 22, 2016, broadcast on NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, live from Charlotte, N.C. Continue reading

Throwback Thursday – A Big Day at Bristol in 1969

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Where were you the day that man first stepped foot on the moon?

If you were Richard Petty, you were helping rival David Pearson drive the No. 17 Ford to victory lane at Bristol Motor Speedway – then called Bristol International Speedway.

The 1969 Volunteer 500 on July 20, was just hours before ‘one small step’ captivated mankind. It was the first Bristol race on the new, high-banked configuration put in by track owner Larry Carrier, who wanted the fastest half-mile track in the world.  Continue reading