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Daytona Rising_062215_FINALDAYTONA BEACH, Fla.– International Speedway Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select Market: ISCA; OTC Bulletin Board: ISCB) (“ISC”) and Chevrolet today announced a multi-year partnership that will make Chevrolet a Founding Partner at Daytona International Speedway (DIS) as part of its DAYTONA Rising redevelopment project.

The historic $400 million DAYTONA Rising project, encompassing the Speedway’s nearly one-mile long frontstretch, will be complete by January 2016. DAYTONA Rising will transform DIS into the world’s first motorsports stadium, with premium amenities and attractions.

Beginning in 2016, the multi-year agreement will provide Chevrolet with naming rights for one of five fan injectors. The massive, new and redesigned entry includes over 20,000 square feet of Chevrolet new vehicle displays and a fan engagement experience that vertically spans four concourse levels. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

“Chevrolet has been an integral part of the ISC family for many years and we look forward to continuing our strong relationship,” said ISC Chief Executive Officer Lesa France Kennedy. “As part of their activation at DAYTONA Rising and other ISC facilities, Chevrolet will represent its iconic automotive brand through interactive experiences with fans.”

Chevrolet will also have branding rights for one of the “neighborhoods” located near its injector.
Each football field-sized neighborhood will be located throughout the new frontstretch and feature retail and dining areas, as well as dozens of video screens.

Additionally, Chevrolet will serve as an official partner of “The Great American Race,” the DAYTONA 500®, and receive official pace car rights in select years.

“Chevrolet’s commitment to racing originated more than a century ago with Louis Chevrolet and remains strong today as we solidify our presence at ‘The World Center of Racing’ by partnering with International Speedway Corporation, Daytona International Speedway and the DAYTONA Rising project,” said Alan Batey, president GM North America. “We look forward to enhancing the experience for race fans here in Daytona with the new Chevrolet injector entrance and neighborhood.”

In addition to the Founding Partner status with DAYTONA Rising, Chevrolet extended its pace car rights at several ISC facilities including Darlington Raceway®, Phoenix International Raceway® and Watkins Glen International® for various NASCAR and IMSA (International Motor Sports Association) events.

“We’re excited to showcase Chevrolet’s legendary brand at DIS as part of DAYTONA Rising,” said Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood III. “Their activation will elevate the race day experience at the new motorsports stadium, and continue to make them an integral part of the Speedway experience.”

About DAYTONA Rising
DAYTONA Rising is a $400 million reimagining of an American icon – Daytona International Speedway. Five expanded and redesigned entrances, or “injectors,” will lead fans to a series of escalators and elevators, transporting them to three different concourse levels. Each level features spacious social areas, or “neighborhoods,” along the nearly mile-long frontstretch. At the conclusion of the redevelopment, Daytona International Speedway will have approximately 101,000 permanent, wider and more comfortable seats, twice as many restrooms and three times as many concession stands. In addition, the Speedway will feature over 60 luxury suites with track side views and a completely revamped hospitality experience for corporate guests. DAYTONA Rising: Reimagining an American Icon, expected to create 6,300 jobs, $300 million in labor income and over $80 million in tax revenue, will be completed in time for the 2016 Rolex 24 At Daytona and DAYTONA 500. Construction of DAYTONA Rising was recently cited as a primary source of expected growth in the Deltona, Fla., MSA as part of ManpowerGroup’s Employment Outlook Survey.

Barton Malow is serving as the design-builder for the project. In addition to DAYTONA Rising, Barton Malow has renovated the University of Michigan “Big House” and the Rose Bowl.

ROSSETTI, an award-winning architectural design and planning firm for the past 40 years, which headed the design for Ford Field NFL Stadium, University of Notre Dame Compton Family Ice Arena and five Major League Soccer Stadiums, is leading the master planning of the DAYTONA Rising site.

Race fans can follow the progress of the DAYTONA Rising project by visiting http://www.DAYTONARising.com and connecting with Daytona International Speedway on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. Also, fans can see the construction project up close by taking one of the daily tours available at the Speedway on non-event days throughout the year. Visit http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com/tours or the Speedway Ticket and Tours Building for more information. For tickets and more information on Daytona International Speedway events, visit http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or call 1-800-PITSHOP.

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24C15_Axalta_Rainbow_Throwback_3Q-HighINSIDENEW YORK – After months of waiting, the moment finally came – Jeff Gordon revealed that he will once again drive a Chevrolet featuring the iconic rainbow paint scheme that kicked off his NASCAR Cup Series career.

The No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS will hit the track for the Aug. 22 night race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

“It is such an iconic paint scheme,” Gordon said while revealing the car on CBS This Morning. “It is when I got introduced to NASCAR with – now Axalta, used to be DuPont – they are the ones who came out with this bright-colored paint scheme and the fans love it.”

Gordon said he noticed right away that the scheme resonated with a certain segment of his fan base.

“Especially young fans, they were attracted to this car because it was so bright it always stood out,” he noted.

But fans of all ages were celebrating the return of the scheme – within minutes, #Rainbow24 was a trending topic throughout the United States on Twitter.

“I know they love it,” Gordon smiled. “The reason why we are bringing it out is because Twitter, Facebook and social media — they want this car out on the track.

“So it is exciting for them, exciting for us and for me to get to drive it again – it has been a long time, since 2000.”

CIvym3tW8AA9fzRGordon won three of his Cup championships driving the rainbow paint scheme, and now in his final full-time Sprint Cup season with the car making a triumphant return, he wouldn’t mind going out on top once again.

“I want to go out still being competitive,” he said. “I’d like to be a little more competitive than we’ve been this year, but we still have a lot of races left to go and I feel confident we’ve got a team that we can end on top.”

“Thank you for letting us unveil this car to the fans,” Gordon said. “I know they are thrilled about it.”

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​Rainbow returns for Jeff Gordon
BY GRAY CALDWELL

NEW YORK – It’s back.

At long last, thanks to Axalta, Jeff Gordon’s No. 24 Chevrolet SS will once again sport the iconic rainbow paint scheme.

gordon_rainbowTuesday on “CBS This Morning,” Gordon broke the news, unveiling the Axalta Chevrolet SS in New York.

He will race the special Axalta car at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 22.

To celebrate the scheme’s return, let’s take a look at the rainbow Chevy – which Gordon drove from his very first start in 1992 through the 2000 season — by the numbers.

1: Rookie of the Year trophy

1: All-Star Race victory

3: Cup Series championships

17: Different tracks where Gordon earned at least one win in the rainbow scheme

33: Pole positions earned

52: Trips to Victory Lane

129: Top-five finishes

166: Top-10s recorded

10,708: Total laps led

1,000,000: Dollars earned for winning the Daytona 500, Charlotte 600 and Southern 500 in 1997.

With the scheme revealed, we’re less than two months until the #Rainbow24 returns to the track one final time.

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Four-Time NASCAR Cup Series Champion Jeff Gordon is continuing his farewell tour by trading his racing car in for his very own double decker sightseeing bus. To recognize Jeff for all of his contributions to NASCAR and philanthropy, the Ride of Fame (a continuing worldwide series of mobile monuments dedicated to public figures highlighting and promoting their respective cities with their business and personal endeavors) is immortalizing Jeff with his very own double-decker bus to honor his final full-time season with NASCAR.

PHOTO CREDIT: DAVE KAUFMAN – UNITED STATIONS RADIO NETWORKS

Jeff Gordon 2015 NYC Ride of Fame – Photos by Dave Kaufman
Jeff Gordon 2015 NYC Ride of Fame – Photos by Dave Kaufman
Jeff Gordon 2015 NYC Ride of Fame – Photos by Dave Kaufman
Jeff Gordon 2015 NYC Ride of Fame – Photos by Dave Kaufman
Jeff Gordon 2015 NYC Ride of Fame – Photos by Dave Kaufman

The ceremony includes the unveiling of a permanent decal bearing his image on the front of the bus, a personalized message from Jeff to the world on his very own permanent seat and interacting with fans in attendance cheering him on. Other star athletes inducted into the Ride of Fame include Yankees Legend Mariano Rivera, Washington Capitals Superstar Alex Ovechkin and Rangers Goalie Henrik Lundqvist. Jeff is also the first professional racecar driver to be inducted into the Ride of Fame.

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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race – Toyota/Save Mart 350
Sonoma Raceway
Sonoma, California
Sunday, June 28, 2015

1. (11) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 110, $315481.
2. (2) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 110, $222630.
3. (6) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 110, $191988.
4. (17) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 110, $183230.
5. (19) Joey Logano, Ford, 110, $166638.
6. (13) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 110, $162406.
7. (20) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 110, $122995.
8. (26) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 110, $118895.
9. (16) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 110, $135420.
10. (24) Sam Hornish Jr., Ford, 110, $132065.
11. (18) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 110, $129976.
12. (7) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 110, $126674.
13. (32) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 110, $106060.
14. (25) Aric Almirola, Ford, 110, $133846.
15. (4) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 110, $124618.
16. (5) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 110, $139846.
17. (37) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 110, $131271.
18. (15) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 110, $108485.
19. (10) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 110, $137901.
20. (40) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 110, $101135.
21. (3) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 110, $129421.
22. (29) Cole Whitt, Ford, 110, $109493.
23. (31) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 110, $131885.
24. (21) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 110, $98160.
25. (36) Alex Kennedy #, Chevrolet, 110, $107193.
26. (33) Boris Said(i), Ford, 110, $99868.
27. (22) Greg Biffle, Ford, 110, $119393.
28. (38) Josh Wise, Chevrolet, 109, $87685.
29. (30) Matt DiBenedetto #, Toyota, 109, $99118.
30. (35) Justin Marks(i), Ford, 109, $88810.
31. (41) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 109, $96182.
32. (43) Jeb Burton #, Toyota, 109, $83965.
33. (42) Michael Annett, Chevrolet, 109, $83855.
34. (23) Michael McDowell, Ford, 109, $83720.
35. (27) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 107, $91555.
36. (39) Landon Cassill(i), Chevrolet, 99, $83470.
37. (1) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 98, $113795.
38. (8) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, Rear Axle, 97, $85913.
39. (9) David Ragan, Toyota, Accident, 78, $101064.
40. (14) Carl Edwards, Toyota, Accident, 78, $69850.
41. (34) JJ Yeley(i), Toyota, Accident, 71, $65850.
42. (12) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet, Accident, 31, $88195.
43. (28) David Gilliland, Ford, Accident, 20, $66350.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 74.774 mph.
Time of Race: 02 Hrs, 55 Mins, 39 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.532 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 5 for 21 laps.
Lead Changes: 9 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders: A. Allmendinger 0; Kurt Busch 1-22; A. Allmendinger 23; C. Bowyer 24-27; Kyle Busch 28-39; Kurt Busch 40-52; J. Johnson 53-66; Kurt Busch 67-74; J. Johnson 75-105; Kyle Busch 106-110.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): J. Johnson 2 times for 45 laps; Kurt Busch 3 times for 43 laps; Kyle Busch 2 times for 17 laps; C. Bowyer 1 time for 4 laps; A. Allmendinger 1 time for 1 lap.
Top 16 in Points: K. Harvick – 616; M. Truex Jr. – 563; J. Logano – 559; J. Johnson – 546; D. Earnhardt Jr. – 545; B. Keselowski – 505; J. Mcmurray – 497; K. Kahne – 483; M. Kenseth – 479; Kurt Busch – 469; J. Gordon – 462; P. Menard – 452; D. Hamlin – 438; R. Newman – 435; A. Almirola – 431; C. Bowyer – 430.

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during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway on June 28, 2015 in Sonoma, California.
Kyle Busch Sonoma 2015

June 28, 2015

By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service

SONOMA, Calif. – Check the box. Kyle Busch has a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory.

That simple statement hardly plumbs the depth of emotion Kyle Busch was feeling after winning Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

In the first-ever 1-2 finish in the series by the Busch brothers, Kyle Busch beat Kurt Busch to the finish line by .532 seconds to win for the first time since returning from an 11-race absence because of a broken right leg and left foot sustained in a Feb. 21 accident at Daytona International Speedway.

“First Busch brothers 1-2, boys,” Kyle Busch exulted on his radio after taking the checkered flag. “Mom and Dad should be proud.”

On Lap 106 of 110, Kyle Busch muscled Jimmie Johnson out of the way and took the lead on the way to his second victory at the 1.99-mile road course and the 30th of his career. Johnson had stayed out on old tires while Busch joined a parade to pit road for new rubber after the left rear wheel assembly separated from Casey Mears Chevrolet to cause the fifth and final caution of the race on Lap 99.

Johnson led the field to a restart on Lap 104, but the cars with fresh tires soon asserted their superiority, with Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, reigning series champion Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano all following Kyle Busch in putting the six-time champion behind them.

Kyle Busch restarted seventh and got past Bowyer, the eventual third-place finisher, soon thereafter in heavy traffic at the top of the hill in Turn 2. Two laps later, he passed Johnson for the lead.

All told, 46 races had passed since Kyle Busch last went to Victory Lane in NASCAR’s premier series, including the 11 he missed because of the Daytona injuries. Busch last won at Fontana, Calif., on Mar. 23, 2014. The victory extends his streak of winning at least one race per year to 11 years.

More significant, the triumph gives Busch the first element he needs to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Busch also must finish in the top 30 in the series standings after 26 races in order to maintain his eligibility for NASCAR’s playoff.

With the win, Busch gained two positions in the standings to 37th, 136 points behind 30th-place Cole Whit with 10 races left in the regular season.

“Yeah, we have our work cut out for us,” he said. “We knew we did in the beginning (after returning to competition five races ago), and I knew we put us in the hole in points. It’s unfortunate that we’ve had a couple crashes (in recent events at Dover and Michigan).

“As much as I can do, that’s what we’re going to do. Adam Stevens, this is his first win as a Cup crew chief, so this is pretty special. My wife is here, she flew in this morning. So it’s awesome to have her with us today. Brexton (Busch’s newborn son) is at home, though. He didn’t want to fly six hours, so we let him stay at home this time. This is so cool.”

Kurt Busch led a race-high 43 laps but spent too much time getting past Bowyer in the closing laps to have a realistic chance to catch his brother. But his disappointment at finishing second was trumped by empathy for the ordeal Kyle has endured this season.

“It was emotional,” Kurt Busch acknowledged. “I know he’s been through quite a bit; to have your leg broken, your foot shattered, to never (before) be injured and out of the car … I don’t know what that feels like, but I do know that working with Tony Stewart and having him go through rehab, rehab is very difficult, and it is a mental challenge.

“And I’m very proud of Kyle for what he’s done to get back in the car as soon as he did get back in the car, and then to be competitive at a track with hard, hard braking and to use his left foot to drive to victory lane, I’m very proud of him.”

Then Kurt’s competitive juices took over, and he added, tongue-in-cheek, “I just wish I could have one more lap to get to his bumper, but I think he didn’t want to see an extra lap.”