April 24, 2012
- Verifone sponsoring Almirola at Talladega: VeriFone will join Richard Petty Motorsports as the primary sponsor on the #43 Ford for one of NASCAR’s wildest and most-watched races. The provider of secure electronic payment systems will be showcased on Aric Almirola’s Ford Fusion at Talladega Superspeedway for the May 6 Sprint Cup Series event. The appearance will be the first NASCAR sponsorship for VeriFone, a San Jose, Calif.-based company that provides merchant-operated, consumer-facing and self-service payment systems for the financial, retail, hospitality, petroleum, government and healthcare industries. The sponsorship is the first for the team in the software category and first for VeriFone in NASCAR.(Richard Petty Motorsports)(4-24-2012)
- Max Siegel named CEO of USA Track & Field: USA Track & Field’s board of directors has selected Max Siegel to serve as CEO, President and Chair Stephanie Hightower announced Monday. The board voted unanimously to hire Siegel after two CEO searches that took place over the course of 16 months. He will become the fourth CEO in the organization’s history when he assumes his duties on May 1 as part of a two-year contract. Chief Operating Officer Mike McNees had served as interim CEO since September, 2010. Working in various executive capacities in the sports and entertainment fields over the last 20 years, Siegel’s track record has consistently been that of financial growth and competitive success. The owner of Rev Racing, Siegel took NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program and advanced it from a fledging effort to add diversity to the sport into a competitive juggernaut on the racetrack. In 2011, his team’s drivers won 50 percent of all races on the K&N; Pro Series East circuit, NASCAR’s top developmental circuit. Siegel is a former director on the boards of USA Track & Field and the USA Swimming Foundation with more than 20 years as a high-profile executive and attorney in the sports, entertainment and media industries. The first African-American to graduate with honors from Notre Dame law school, Siegel is a native of Indianapolis and resides in the city.(USATF.org)
NASCAR Statement: “Our Drive for Diversity (D4D) program continues to enjoy great success, evidenced by the fact that just this season we have several drivers from the program performing well across several NASCAR series. Max Siegel, an integral part of D4D through his role as owner of Rev Racing, has done an excellent job fostering the talent of these young drivers and so many more. He also has been dedicated to helping to attract more diversity to our sport across all entry points. We are confident in the leadership at Rev Racing, and we’re excited for Max personally as he adds duties to his role with USATF. We look forward to his continued leadership at Rev Racing, and we’ll continue to build on the success of the Drive for Diversity program.”(NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)(4-24-2012) - Give Kids A Smile scheme for Biffle at RIR: The American Dental Association’s (ADA) Give Kids A Smile program, ADA Foundation, Henry Schein, Inc., and 3M ESPE Dental are teaming up with #16-Greg Biffle again in 2012 to put good oral health on the fast track for young fans of NASCAR. Across the country, Biffle, driver of the #16 3M Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, will help deliver the message to children about healthy habits like brushing, flossing, visiting the dentist and making smart food choices. Unfortunately for millions of children in this country, these healthy habits aren’t a routine practice.
Biffle also will take the important oral health message to Richmond International Raceway during the NASCAR weekend April 27-28 for a special Give Kids A Smile dental health screening and education event. A team of sponsors will host a dental health screening event at the Richmond International Raceway Midway on Friday. Volunteer dentists and other dental team members organized through the Virginia Dental Association will provide underserved children free dental evaluations, fluoride treatments and, if needed, dental sealants at this unique event. On Saturday, young fans and their families can participate in fun activities and education about healthy dental habits. In honor of this special oral health program, NASCAR driver Greg Biffle’s #16 3M car will sport a special Give Kids A Smile paint scheme during the 58th Annual Richmond 400. The event also is part of the yearlong celebration of the Give Kids A Smile program’s 10th anniversary in 2012. Fans can follow Give Kids A Smile on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GiveKidsASmile. nationwide program expansion activities to help children in need of dental care.(Victory Management Group PR), see an image of the scheme on my #16 Team Schemes page.(4-24-2012) - Facts and Notes about Richmond International Raceway:
� Originally known as the Atlantic Rural Exposition Fairgrounds, Richmond International Raceway held its first race in 1946 as a half-mile dirt track.
� The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was April 19, 1953.
� The spring 1964 race was run on a Tuesday night under temporary lighting.
� The track name changed to Virginia State Fairgrounds in 1967.
� The track surface was changed from dirt to asphalt between races in 1968.
� The track name changed to Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway in 1969.
� The track was re-measured to .542-mile for 1970.
� The track was rebuilt as a three-quarters-mile D-shaped oval following the Feb. 21, 1988 race.
� The first race under permanent lights was Sept. 7, 1991.
� The first season with both races as night races was 1999.
Notebook
� There have been 111 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Richmond since the track opened in 1953.
� The current 400-lap race length was established on the .542-mile measurement in March 1976.
� Buck Baker won the pole in 1953.
� Lee Petty won the first race in April 1953.
� There have been 50 different pole winners, led by Bobby Allison and Richard Petty (eight).
� Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with five poles.
� 47 different drivers have posted victories at Richmond, led by Richard Petty (13).
� Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch, Terry Labonte and Jimmie Johnson (three) lead active race winners.
� Petty Enterprises has won 15 races at Richmond, more than any other team.
� 63 of 111 races have been won from the top five starting positions, including 22 from the pole.
� The last driver to win from the pole was Kyle Busch in 2010.
� The furthest back in the field a race winner has started was 31st, by Clint Bowyer in the 2008 spring race.
� Kyle Busch (5.0) and Denny Hamlin (7.5) are the only active drivers with an average finish in the top 10.
� Kyle Petty became the first third-generation NASCAR race winner when he won his first race at Richmond, on Feb. 23, 1986. Richard Petty posted his first Richmond victory in 1961 and Lee Petty won the very first Richmond race in 1953.
� Three of the last four races have had a margin of victory less than one second.(NASCAR)(4-24-2012) - Ross Kenseth Gets His First PASS South Win: Ross Kenseth [son of Matt Kenseth] took his first major Southern Super Late Model victory Saturday night in the PASS South Orange Blossom Special at Orange County Speedway (NC). The victory made Ross Kenseth the second driver to win Super Late Model events in three of the country’s top series, the Pro All Star Series, ARCA/CRA Super Series and the ASA Midwest Tour. The other driver was Kyle Busch who complete the task last July in Oxford, Maine.(51 Sports PR, more at rosskenseth.net)(4-24-2012)
- Driver sues NASCAR, “too Caucasian’? UPDATE An aspiring stock-car driver is suing NASCAR, claiming he was denied the opportunity to compete in NASCAR’s diversity program because he looks “too Caucasian.” NASCAR argues that in trying to change the “face” of the sport, it has the right to select drivers for its diversity program based on skin color, attorneys for the sanctioning body and its former diversity program administrators have told a U.S. District court. Michael Rodriguez, a driver from Pennsylvania, says in his complaint filed in U.S. District Court that he was denied the opportunity to compete in the 2005 and 2006 Drive For Diversity combines. Rodriguez is suing NASCAR and Access Communications, which operated NASCAR’s diversity program from its inception in 2004 until 2008 and conducted the combines that are designed for teams in NASCAR’s regional series to scout minority drivers. NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program was created to develop minority drivers and crewmen and help them advance through the NASCAR ranks with the goal of reaching the sport’s top series. Since 2004, the program has included 41 drivers, with most being selected multiple times. There currently are six drivers in the program racing in various NASCAR regional series.(full article at the Sporting News)(4-20-2012)
UPDATE: A federal judge has denied NASCAR’s request to throw out a lawsuit by an aspiring driver who was invited to its 2005 Drive For Diversity combine but claims he was discriminated against when he never made it onto the track. Michael Rodriguez, who is of Puerto Rican descent, filed the lawsuit in January 2010 claiming NASCAR and Access Communications, which operated the diversity program, violated his civil rights. He is asking for unspecified damages.(more at the Sporting News)(4-24-2012) - Victory Junction asks Pattie Petty to take a back seat UPDATE: If the planned Victory Junction Midwest becomes a reality, it likely will be without the help of Pattie Petty, the driving force who created the original NASCAR-themed camp in North Carolina for children with chronic diseases. The Victory Junction board of directors has informed Petty, wife of former NASCAR driver Kyle Petty and daughter-in-law of Hall of Famer Richard Petty, that she will no longer be part of the day-to-day operations of the camp. The board has offered her emeritus status, but she is balking at serving in a purely ceremonial role. “They don’t want anything to do with me,” said Pattie Petty, who has been living in Kansas City part time while raising funds for the camp in Wyandotte County. “They gave me not one reason. They said they wanted to make a change. & I’m not sure what I did wrong, but the word came back to me I was making irrational decisions. Two board members who wanted me to leave gave me an ultimatum & never go to the camp, not talk to anybody with the camp. & It was probably the most hurtful thing that’s ever happened to me in my life.” John McKee, president of Victory Junction and who was hired by Pattie Petty, said he has been instructed by the board not to have any comment “because there is an ongoing employment negotiation.”(see full story and more quotes at the Kansas City Star)(4-22-2012)
UPDATE: Statement by Victory Junction’s Chief Operating Officer, Austin Petty in Response to Founder, Pattie Petty Transitioning to Emeritus Status:
“Victory Junction has extremely high ethical standards and only decisions that benefit the sustainability and longevity of camp are made by our well-respected Board Of Directors. I can confirm my mom accepted a goodwill ambassador position as Chairwoman Emeritus from our Board, but that is all I can confirm at this point, given that this involves ongoing negotiations between an employee and employer. While public figures are involved, this situation is no different from a regulatory perspective and personnel matters are private and confidential per the law and human resource policies. Because of this, we will not have any further comment on this or any other personnel issues at this time. Seriously ill children are the motivation of Victory Junction and we are as committed as ever to enriching the lives of chronically ill kids at our existing facility in Randleman, NC, as well as pushing forward the successes of a second camp serving the Midwest.”
AND Kyle Petty doesn’t believe the removal of his wife, Pattie, as chief executive officer of Victory Junction Gang Camp will negatively impact the camp the couple founded in memory of their son Adam. “It doesn’t impact anything, it really doesn’t,” Kyle Petty, a former NASCAR star, said Monday. “Basically, the board had decided to ask Pattie to take an emeritus role and just be a spokesperson. & I have no concerns with the direction of the camp at all. Period. We’re always going to be involved in the camp,” said Kyle, the son of seven-time Cup champion Richard Petty and a driver from 1979 to 2008. “The camp was founded in memory of Adam, and we have worked incredibly hard to build the camp. But the camp is about the kids that come, and it’s all about what’s best for the kids.” Kyle Petty, who is vice chairman of the board, said Pattie, who was chairman and CEO, was primarily running the fund-raising efforts for the Kansas City camp. He said Austin and Victory Junction president John McKee handled the day-to-day operations of the North Carolina camp. The North Carolina and Kansas City camps have separate board of directors that meet quarterly to make decisions on how the camps operate. Kyle continues to serve on the board of directors for the camp and conducts a charity motorcycle ride across the United States to raise funds. Kyle said he and Richard Petty, who also is on the board, did not participate in discussions about the role for Pattie, who is battling Parkinson’s Disease. Pattie Petty, 60, wasn’t immediately available for comment. “It’s a bigger story because she’s Pattie and the work she put in the camp and founding the camp and stuff,” Kyle Petty said.(in part from the Sporting News)(4-24-2012) - “Virginia is for Lovers” and Richmond team up for Sprint Cup race sponsorship: One of the most storied tracks in NASCAR is teaming up with one of the most well-known tourism brands in the country this weekend for the Saturday, April 28, Capital City 400 Presented by Virginia is for Lovers NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. Richmond International Raceway, celebrating 60 Years of NASCAR this season, has hosted Sprint Cup races since 1953 – third longest among tracks on the circuit. The Capital City 400 name pays homage to the track’s days of yore, when RIR hosted NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races that included the “Capital City” name annually from 1962 to 1980. Virginia is for Lovers is the longest-running state tourism slogan in the country and stands for love, pure and simple. The Virginia Tourism Corporation promotes Virginia to potential travelers from throughout the world who are looking to completely connect with loved ones on a great Virginia vacation.(RIR)(4-24-2012)
- Train to Perform Pre-Race Concert for the Coke Zero 400: Train front-man Pat Monahan and the rest of the three-time Grammy-winning band will return to Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, July 7 for the 54th annual Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. From the legendary pit road in the tri-oval area of the “World Center of Racing,” Train will perform a 60-minute pre-race concert prior to the Independence Day holiday classic. All race fans that purchase a Pre-Race/Sprint FANZONE access pass for the Coke Zero 400 in addition to a race ticket will be able to view Train’s Coke Zero 400 Pre-Race Show as well as the driver introductions from the grass tri-oval area. Tickets for the Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola are available online at daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.(DIS)(4-24-2012)
- Pastrana committed to NASCAR: While pursuing his NASCAR aspirations, #99-Travis Pastrana realizes staying off a motorbike certainly won’t hurt him – literally or figuratively. After a broken ankle postponed his Nationwide Series debut for nearly nine months, the action sports superstar said he’s done with two wheels for a while. “I’m not going to say I’ll never ride a dirt bike or never compete again,” Pastrana told USA TODAY Sports. “But the next year for sure, or two to five years, dirt bikes are off my program.” Pastrana will make his Nationwide debut Friday at Richmond International Raceway amidst questions of how committed he is to NASCAR after scaling back his K&N; East Series schedule to accommodate a full season in Global RallyCross. The former Supercross and Rally America champion said rally is a way to stay in the car while trying to build a sponsorship base to run stock cars full time. “I’m doing what I have to do to race as many rounds of the NASCAR stuff as possible,” he said.(USA Today)(4-24-2012)
- Cobb launches PSA for Driven2Honor: Jennifer Jo Cobb, driver of the #10 Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing Dodge Ram in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS), is proud to take another step forward with her Driven2Honor program. Cobb has created a PSA for the program and is launching the announcement this week. The PSA will air on public broadcasting stations across the nation. The Driven2Honor program, which Cobb created in 2011, aims to accomplish three goals: to honor women in the U.S. Military, to inspire young women that the military is a viable option for their future and to empower female veterans post-duty.(Jennifer Jo Cobb PR)(4-24-2012)
- TV Ratings up at Kansas: According to Nielsen Media Research, SPEED coverage of last Saturday’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Kansas Speedway was up 21-percent (.86 vs. .71) when compared to last season’s equivalent race at Nashville and peaked at a .98. Ratings were up 37-percent with M35-54 (.86 vs. .63) and 113-percent with M18-49 (.51 vs. .24) over the Nashville event. Season-to-date, the NCWTS is pacing up seven percent with HH (1.11 vs. 1.04), 14-percent with M35-54 (1.16 vs. 1.02) and 49-percent among M18-49 (.67 vs. .45) compared to 2011. Next up for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series is the May 18 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. SPEED offers live coverage of the race beginning at 8:00pm/et; NCWTS Setup with Krista Voda airs at 7:30pm/et.(SPEED PR)(4-24-2012)
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