DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 26, 2012) — NASCAR and its stakeholders intend to build on the success of 2011 as the new season begins with the Feb. 26 Daytona 500 and other Speedweeks events at Daytona International Speedway.
In his State of NASCAR remarks delivered during the NASCAR Sprint Media Tour hosted by Charlotte Motor Speedway on Thursday, NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France said, “The sport is in a very good place and we’re going to work even harder to achieve the very best things for the sport of NASCAR well into the future.”
France pointed to initiatives begun a year ago – a simplified points structure in all three national series and a “Wild Card” twist in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup™ that placed a greater emphasis on race victories – which culminated in what France called “a championship battle that will be talked about for decades to come.”
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NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France (August 25, 2011)
“We are pleased Danica Patrick has chosen to race full time in NASCAR in 2012. She has demonstrated a strong desire to compete and NASCAR provides the best opportunity to race against the top drivers in the world with the largest and most loyal fan base in motorsports on a week-to-week basis. Danica has shown solid improvement in NASCAR and we believe her decision to run full time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, with additional races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, will be exciting for our fans and a great challenge for her.”
NASCAR on FOX analyst & Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip: “I’ve been waiting for Danica to make the commitment to NASCAR and now that she has, I believe she will surprise a lot of skeptics. She is a very focused driver and now without the distractions of another series she can put all her efforts into it. In a very short period of time and with very limited experience, she has shown me she has the talent to be very successful in NASCAR. Can she win? You bet you. There are tracks she will be very competitive on and with the experience of a crew chief like Tony Eury Jr. leading the team, she will have all the tools she needs to be a success. If she wins, the sport wins and the fans will love it!”
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