As if the ‘Crown Jewel’ known as the Brickyard 400 at historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway needed any added allure, the Wild Card wrinkle for entry into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and a rich incentive program from series sponsor Sprint make this one all-the-more fascinating.
Once a year since 1994, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to Indianapolis for one of the biggest events on the schedule. Indy, statistically, is the home of champions. Of the 17 races run at Indy, 14 have been won by past, reigning or future series champions. In eight of those seasons, the Brickyard winner went on to win that season’s championship.
Adding to the built-in prestige, this is also the first race in of the Sprint Summer Showdown presented by HTC EVO 3D. Any driver who wins between Indianapolis and Bristol (the next five races) will become a finalist for the Labor Day weekend race in Atlanta. If one of those eligible drivers wins the Atlanta race, then the driver, the driver’s charity and one lucky race fan each collect $1,000,000. Fans can enter for their shot at $1,000,000 each week at sprint.com/speed.
And of course, there’s the Chase to worry about. Only seven races remain between now and the NASCAR’s playoffs. After race No. 26 at Richmond, the top-10 drivers will be locked in the 12-driver Chase. Spots 11 and 12 will go to those drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, provided they are in the top 20. Currently, only one driver ranked 11-20 has a win (David Ragan), so there’s a very real possibility that a victory will turn into a playoff appearance.
Indianapolis – the city, not the Motor Speedway – hosts a couple other races this weekend, big ones.
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will run Friday at Lucas Oil Raceway, in the AAA Insurance 200.
NASCAR Nationwide Series action returns – and that word “action” fits perfectly. On Saturday night, X-Games star Travis Pastrana will make his series debut, in the Kroger 200 benefitting Riley Hospital for Children at Lucas Oil Raceway.
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