Fans lined the red carpet on Fremont Street to get autographs and pictures from their favorite 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chase drivers on Wednesday to kick off Champions Week in Las Vegas.
The highlight of the event was the Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader game show hosted by Las Vegas comedian Kevin Burke. The twelve Chase drivers tested their elementary school knowledge as they played to win some big prizes for the lucky fans teamed-up with them. The drivers were paired in twos as they answered questions alongside six Lomie Heard Elementary School fifth graders to see who was TRULY smarter than a fifth grader.
In the end, it was Tony Stewart and 2012 Champion Brad Keselowski who took the win at the Fremont Street Experience.
For photos from the event, click HERE.
Tickets are on sale now for the 2013 NASCAR Weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. You can purchase your tickets by clicking HERE.
With the summer heating up, the Bullring and The Strip at LVMS are taking a break in July and will return in August with some action-packed events that you won’t want to miss.
August 17: Dodge Midnight Mayhem Presented By Tony Rowe Enterprises Operation Street Legal
Midnight Mayhem is The Strip at LVMS’ safe alternative to illegal street racing. Instead of street racing illegally on the roads ofLas VegasandClarkCounty, The Strip at LVMS encourages enthusiasts to race each other on the safer confines of its NHRA-sanctioned drag strip. Dodge Midnight Mayhem is open to any street-legal vehicle and any licensed driver.
August 18: NASCAR Whelen All-American Series late-night special
The Bullring will host a night full of racing including the Lucas Oil Modified Series, NASCAR Super Late Models, NASCAR Super Stocks, NASCAR Bombers, USLCI American Band Legend Cars, Silver Star Plumbing Bandolero Bandits and Outlaws, USLCI Roadsters and much more!
August 24-25: Formula Drift
Formula DRIFT and the world’s best drivers will return to The Strip for the sixth (and next-to-last) round of the 2012 season. Qualifying is set for Friday, Aug. 24 with eliminations on Saturday, Aug. 25. General admission tickets are good for both days. The event also will include a car show, manufacturers’ midway, DJs and bikini contest.
For tickets to any of these events, check out our tickets page HERE or call 1-800-644-4444. Stay cool out there, race fans and we’ll see you at the races!
That’s right, LVMS is going to the dogs! Who says NASCAR is just for humans? This weekend, the Fly’N Aces, a competitive dog team will host their Need4Speed flyball tournament inside the Nationwide garage at LVMS.
What is flyball you ask? Flyball is a sport in which dogs race against each other from a start/finish line, over a line of hurdles, to a box that releases a tennis ball to be caught when the dog presses the spring loaded pad, then back to their handlers while carrying the ball.
On Saturday and Sunday starting at 7:45 a.m. each morning, more than 300 dogs will compete in the competition that is not only a great sport for canines, but benefits a great cause. All proceeds from the event will go to the Greg Biffle Foundation, founded by Greg and Nicole Biffle to create awareness and serve as advocates to improve the well-being of animals by engaging the power and passion of the motor sports industry.
Want to come check out these active canines compete at the speedway? This event is free and open to the public, so bring the whole family out for a day of dog-gone fun.
More info: www.flynaces.com.
This weekend will be all about science at the speedway as hundreds of students and parents participate in the annual Las Vegas Science Festival.
The superspeedway will participate in the Science is Everywhere Day this Sunday and we can’t wait to host an exciting day of learning!
Participants will get an up-close-and-personal look at the science and physics that go on in racing. Families will get some hands-on experience inside the famous Neon Garage and will learn how their favorite drivers make it all happen.
Want to learn what it means when a NASCAR driver says a car is "loose?" How about what it takes to make sure a car is balanced for the race track? Students will learn all of this and more this Sunday inside the Neon Garage at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Want more information on this exciting event? Check out the Las Vegas Science Festival’s website at www.lasvegassciencefestival.com.
NHRA Weekend comes to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend. Check out all of the special events going on throughout the weekend.
Thursday, Oct. 27 - Speedway Children's Charities "Cards for Kids" Poker Tournament
The stars of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series will kick off the eleventh annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway by participating in the Speedway Children's Charities poker tournament at the Stratosphere Hotel & Casino on Thursday, Oct. 27.
Drivers entered in the Speedway Children's Charities' seventh annual "Cards for Kids" Texas Hold'em Poker Tournament include: Brandon Bernstein, Jack Beckman and many more.
Thursday, Oct. 27 - Big O Tires NHRA Nationals Driver Autograph Session - Fremont Street Experience
Some of the biggest names in professional drag racing are expected to participate in a free autograph session and fan fest at Las Vegas' Fremont Street Experience on Thursday, Oct. 27, from 5-7 p.m.
Drivers scheduled to participate include: Del Worsham, Larry Dixon, Doug Kalitta, Brandon Bernstein, Shawn Langdon, Morgan Lucas, David Grubnic, T.J. Zizzo, Terry McMillen, Dominick Lagana, Jack Beckman, Bob Tasca III, Jeff Arend, Tim Wilkerson, Melanie Troxel, Steve Torrence, Bob Bode, Alexis DeJoria, Johnny Gray, Allen Johnson, Jason Line, Greg Anderson, Erica Enders, Larry Morgan, Shane Gray, L.E. Tonglet, Hector Arana, Hector Arana Jr., Karen Stoffer and Leah Pruitt.
NHRA announcer Bob Frey will interview the drivers during the session and fans will have the opportunity to win free race tickets. Johnny Gray’s Funny Car will be on display.
Thursday, Oct. 27 - Big O Tires NHRA Nationals Driver Autograph Session - New York New York Hotel and Casino
Some of the biggest names in professional drag racing are expected to participate in a free autograph session at New York New York Hotel and Casino on Thursday, Oct. 27, from 7-9 p.m.
All Don Schumacher Racing drivers will participate, including Tony Schumacher, Jack Beckman, Antron Brown, Ron Capps, Johnny Gray, Matt Hagan and Spencer Massey.
-Kids Trick-or-Treating, Friday, Oct. 28
Kids are invited to trick-or-treat for candy Friday at the race teams' haulers in the pits between the first and second Nitro Qualifying Sessions.
We have now wrapped up the very first Chasers for Charity Fanfest here at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and we would like to thank all of the fans for making the event such a great success.
The Neon Garage hosted some great entertainers and guests throughout the day including Tabor Dame, ESPN's Jamie Little, NASCAR legend Dale Jarrett and much more. Fans lined the red carpet winding through the entire garage as all twelve drivers made their way through the crowd, signing autographs and taking photos. The top four 2009 finishers, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson, stopped for an interview on stage and then headed to the media center to prepare for the roast of the 2009 NASCAR Chase Champion, Jimmie Johnson.
At the roast, the jokes began right away as Las Vegas comedian and roast host, Kevin Burke took to the stage in front of more than 200 fans on the third floor of the LVMS media center. All speedway guests were able to watch the roast, which lasted over an hour, on televisions located inside the Neon Garage. The eleven drivers were given the chance to roast Jimmie Johnson and they did not disappoint.
After each driver took to the stage for their chance to roast, it was Jimmie Johnson who had the last word and he used it to thank the fans and everyone involved for making the inaugural Chasers for Charity Fanfest such a success.
Again, we here at Las Vegas Motor Speedway would like to thank all of the fans for coming out and making this a great event benefiting a great cause. All proceeds from the Chasers for Charity Fanfest will go to Speedway Children's Charities to help children of Southern Nevada.
Make sure to check out www.lvms.com for photos, news and more on the fanfest as well as information on all of the exciting events coming to LVMS in 2010!
The gates opened at 10 a.m. and the Neon Garage is already full of fans! Every guest that comes through the gate is receiving a complimentary poster and full access to the Neon Garage.
Country group Tabor Dame has already taken to the stage and is getting the crowd pumped up for a day full of events. For more information on Tabor Dame, visit http://www.myspace.com/tabordame.
Fans have a special opportunity to win tickets to the roast of Jimmie Johnson, being held this afternoon in the Blackjack Club, by buying raffle tickets from the Speedway Children's Charities booth near the Neon Garage entrance. This is the only way to win tickets to this inaugural event, so stop by the booth to purchase your raffle tickets today.
Richard Petty Driving Experience is heating up the track and offering 3-lap ride-alongs for only $109. RPDE is donating a portion of all of today's sales to Speedway Children's Charities. Come out and take a one-of-a-kind, high-speed ride on the 1.5-mile superspeedway to benefit SCC.
As the Neon Garage fills up, anticipation of the afternoon arrival of our Chase drivers continues to build. Stay following on Twitter (@LVMotorspeedway) and check out www.lvms.com for the most up-to-date information on what's going on here at the speedway.
Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway! We are excited to host the inaugural Chasers for Charity Fanfest today and are looking forward to a great day here at LVMS.
Today's event will include a free-admission fanfest throughout the afternoon as well as a charity roast of 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson. The fanfest will kickoff NASCAR's inaugural Champion's Week here in Las Vegas. Gates open for the fanfest at 10 a.m. this morning and fans can enjoy car displays, live music and much more throughout the day.
News crews, Miss Sprint Cup and comedian Kevin Burke were on hand this morning for live hits on FOX 5 and KTNV Channel 13 news. The crews will be covering the event throughout the morning so make sure to tune in for features live from the Neon Garage and Pit Road.
For more information on all of the events going on today, including a schedule, please visit http://www.lvms.com/media/news/554485.html
We will be blogging from the infield here at LVMS all day so check back often for photos, up-to-date information and much more!
We'll see you at the fanfest!
Comments from Tony Schumacher, Top Fuel winner:
"Really, the team won today; I didn't do a great, great job driving. Last week I had a pretty special week and this week it was the team. They did just a heck of a job. Yesterday, I was a little gun shy. I went up there and red-lighted and had to get all that stuff out at some point.
"But that's what a team is all about. We put a good group of guys together and some days it's their days to shine and some days it's my day but at the end of the day we all shine together. It was a perfect, perfect run; that final was outstanding.
"Bernstein is an outstanding driver and has a great race team, but winning is about staging properly and getting a straight line down the track. I'm out there all the time and hammering down every time straight down the track."
"Most of the guys on my team haven't won two races in a row so that was so great for them and they did it today - they really did. I didn't drive flawlessly today ... I didn't do as good a job as I did last week. But that's what a team is all about."
Comments from Ronn Capps, Funny Car winner:
"I was asked several times by the media what was wrong and I just never worried. You need to get in your comfort zone. You'll find a lot of teams that seem like they may be struggling here the last few races. With four test dates for the whole year, there are a lot of teams testing things, including us, testing things that you have to try in qualifying once you get in the show and even on race day, believe it or not. It's tough to gauge how people are actually doing in their pit area. When we won that first round today and it was 4.21 and it wasn't that good, we got put over in the right lane and everybody thought we were doomed - and so did I - and it went right down there. It seems like when we don't have lane choice and Ace (McCulloch, crew chief) has got his back against the wall a little bit, he comes out swinging."
"As long as you know deep inside and your camp knows what you're doing, that's the thing. I got beat on a holeshot in Gainesville and there wasn't one thing said by anybody on the team - they know you're beating yourself up as it is. When you come back to the pit area and your guys, instead of saying, ‘Man, what happened?' they try to bring you back up right away and that's huge."
"Approaching the season, we had to step it up. The driver has to be on their game and on days like this, grind it out. It's going to be a fun year but we're really focusing on one race at a time."
Comments from Don Schumacher, owner of Team Schumacher:
"I am tremendously ecstatic about the runs today. Rookie Matt Hagan did a great job getting into the finals today. Having cars in all three classes come out on top is great and we couldn't be happier about that."
Comments from Jeg Coughlin, Pro Stock winner:
"We're used to having multiple rounds. The team had a ‘hurry up' offense this weekend. We had to hustle and really didn't catch our breath until the very final run. This is the second time we had a re-run and then came back to win the final. We had a tough day taking the top guy in pro-stock right now and running against Kurt."
"Here in this altitude weather, changes were made and problems were fixed. That's the name of the game to continue to improve and progress. We've had great luck, pro stocks are very difficult to turn a red light and the two red lights I had against me were very fortunate. Nothing to write home about, but when you're in the winner's circle drinking a cold one, it still feels pretty good with a win. There's a lot to be gained after a day like this and we're just trying every day to make these cars better and better. We're just trying to mix things up and stay on the offense during these competitions."
Las Vegas Local Justin Lamb, runner-up in Super Gas:
"I ran exactly what I needed in the final. We needed to go 10.05 and I ran 10.058 and (Seipel) was 10.07. He had a .003 (reaction time) and if I would have been .015 or .020 (instead of .055), I would have won. I just made a mistake and missed the tree. His son Kyle, when he races, races my car. His son has been racing for a really long time and when he does race, I always have an extra car so he drives my dragster, so it was actually very cool (to race Ted Seipel in the final). Obviously I wanted to win but if I didn't win, he'd be my next choice - it made losing not so bad. It's still a really good day - it's a great day. I now have a win and a runner-up in the first three national events so that's good for points."