Five Icons Selected as 2018 NASCAR Hall of Fame Class

CHARLOTTE, NC – MAY 24: Robert Yates, Red Byron, Ray Evernham, Ken Squire and Ron Hornaday Jr. are announced to the Hall of Fame during the NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Day at NASCAR Hall of Fame on May 24, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

Byron, Evernham, Hornaday, Squier, Yates Comprise Hall’s Ninth Class

NASCAR announced today the inductees who will comprise the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018. The five-person group – the ninth since the inception of the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010 – consists of Red Byron, Ray Evernham, Ron Hornaday Jr., Ken Squier and Robert Yates. In addition, NASCAR announced that Jim France earned the Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Panel met today in a closed session at the Charlotte Convention Center to debate and vote upon the 20 nominees for the induction class of 2018 and the five nominees for the Landmark Award. Continue reading

Ryan Blaney Wins First Career Pole by a Whisker

Ryan Blaney, driver of the #21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford, signs a backdrop during qualifying for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway on May 12, 2017 in Kansas City, Kansas. Photo – Sean Gardner/Getty Images

Improving in each round of knockout qualifying in relation to other cars, Ryan Blaney won the pole for Saturday night’s Go Bowling 400 at Kansas Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on FS1), claiming his first career pole by a mere 0.009 seconds over Joey Logano.

During a Friday qualifying session in which 11 cars failed to make it to the grid because of inspection issues, Blaney toured the 1.5-mile speedway in 28.481 seconds (189.600 mph) in the final round to earn the first Coors Light Pole Award for the No. 21 Woods Brothers Ford since Ricky Rudd earned the top starting spot at Talladega in April 2004. Continue reading

Polls Open for NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018 Fan Vote

Aside

Polls are now open for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018 Fan Vote. Fans are asked to cast votes for up to five nominees for inclusion into the Class of 2018, and can vote up to 50 times per day. The five nominees who receive the most votes will count as one of the 54 votes cast by the Voting Panel on NASCAR Hall of Fame Voting Day on May 24. Continue reading

A $20 Car, a Couple of Great Breaks and Prolonged Excellence Sends Richard Childress to the NASCAR Hall of Fame

Richard Childress made 41 starts in the NASCAR Grand Touring/Grand American division between 1969 and 1971 before moving on to Cup racing. He finished 22 of those races in the top ten.
Photo – ISC Archives via Getty Images

Note: This is the first in a five-part series of features detailing the careers of the five inductees for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2017. The inductees, who will be officially enshrined on January 20th at 8 pm ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, are Richard Childress, Rick Hendrick, Mark Martin, Raymond Parks and Benny Parsons.

Journeyman stock car racer Richard Childress caught lightning in a bottle, not once but twice.

NASCAR’s only driver strike, on the eve of the 1969 inaugural race at Talladega Superspeedway, gave Childress the opportunity to earn enough money to build his first race shop and lay the foundation for Richard Childress Racing, the powerhouse Chevrolet organization which to date has claimed 11 owner titles across NASCAR’s three national series.

Nearly a decade later, the Winston-Salem, N.C. native met Dale Earnhardt. Together, the pair won six NASCAR premier series championships along with 67 races between 1984 and 2000.

Earnhardt entered the NASCAR Hall of Fame as a member of its 2010 inaugural class. Childress will be enshrined in the hall on January 20 in Charlotte, NC at 8 pm ET on NBCSN, along with Rick Hendrick, Mark Martin, Raymond Parks and Benny Parsons.

Childress, 71, grew up selling peanuts and popcorn at Winston-Salem’s legendary Bowman Gray Stadium.

Soon after, he bought a 1947 Plymouth for $20. Continue reading

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Toyota Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Preview

Aside

319313

In honor of Luke Wilson as honorary pace car driver for Sunday’s Toyota Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway, this week’s Sprint Cup preview celebrates some of the top quotes and moments from Wilson’s hit comedy, ‘Old School.’ Check it out, and bring your green hat.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams return this week to race 218.9 miles in 110 laps on the road course of Sonoma Raceway in the Toyota Save Mart 350 on Sunday, June 26th. FOX Sports 1 will begin their coverage at 1:30 pm ET with a green flag around 3 pm ET. Radio coverage is available on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

We’re Going Racing! NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Returns after Off Weekend

After having the weekend off, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads west to Sonoma Raceway for its first road-course race of the season – Sunday’s Toyota / Save Mart 350.

Kyle Busch is the defending winner of the event that has had ten different drivers visit Victory Lane the last 11 years it’s been held: Kyle Busch in 2015, Carl Edwards in 2014, Martin Truex Jr. in 2013, Clint Bowyer in 2012, Kurt Busch in 2011, Jimmie Johnson in 2010, Kasey Kahne in 2009, Kyle Busch in 2008, Juan Pablo Montoya in 2007, Jeff Gordon in 2006 and Tony Stewart in 2005. Continue reading