Midtown Manhattan traffic got a new look on Wednesday morning, when 10 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series cars rumbled through the streets for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Victory Lap presented by Sprint. The promotion featured a parade of the top 10 cars, with their drivers in full uniforms. The Victory Lap began at Rockefeller Center, where the drivers were interviewed on NBCs The Today Show. The drivers passed through Times Square and a few side streets before finishing at 375 Park Avenue, the site of NASCARs New York office. The Victory Lap was a highlight of NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Champions Week presented by Sprint, which celebrates the 2005 season and concludes Friday with the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series awards banquet at the historic Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. With a police escort, the drivers navigated the route in about 20 minutes. Fan viewing areas were staged along the streets and the drivers were welcomed at the finish by a large gathering of fans and media.
Among the top 10 drivers was veteran Rusty Wallace (#2 Miller Lite Dodge), who finished eighth in the Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup standings for his best finish in the point standings since 2002. When Wallace won the 1989 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup title, the banquet was held in New York but a procession of race cars through the streets was unheard of. Its the last awards banquet for me as a driver, said Wallace Its kind of bittersweet. It feels good to be in the top 10 in the last year Im going to run. Its been a great career. According to NASCAR Vice President of Corporate Marketing Steve Phelps, who oversees the sanctioning bodys New York office, the event signified NASCARs ever-growing presence in New York. “NASCAR has been celebrating our champion in New York City for 25 years, said Phelps. We’ve had our corporate marketing headquarters here since 1998. On any given weekend, New York is one of NASCAR’s biggest markets, with fans as passionate as anywhere. The sport’s fans in New York deserve a special treat and we’re grateful to Sprint Nextel and our top 10 Chasers, the New York City Sports Commission, the City’s Department of Transportation, and New York’s Finest for helping to bring these loyal fans another unforgettable Victory Lap.” NOTE: Kurt Busch drove the #97 Irwin Tools Ford and was in an Irwin Tools drivers suit.(PR)(12-1-2005)
