Homestead- Miami Speedway Engine Blog

Fan favortie Mark Martin was gracious in defeat but won over more fans with his sense of humor during the Jimmie Johnson Charity Roast (photo courtesy: Chris Trotman, Getty Images Sport)

Homestead- Miami Speedway Engine Blog

NASCAR: Ford Championship Weekend - Nov. 19-21 at Homestead-Miami Speedway

► Homestead-Miami Heralded
► Jimmie Roasted
► 2010 Season Handicapped
► Sprint Cup Awards Banquet Reviewed

Homestead-Miami Speedway made motorsports history in 2009 as the first venue ever to host all of North America’s premier motorsports championships—IndyCar, Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car and NASCAR—and a recent media report details why Homestead-Miami Speedway has earned the moniker of THE Championship Tracksm.

The 2009 season that culminated at Homestead-Miami Speedway was chock full of tantalizing stories, and NASCAR Scene Daily runs down its Top 10 stories from the season just completed, which include Dale Jr.’s struggles, Mark Martin’s bid for a first NASCAR title  and, of course, Jimmie Johnson’s quest for NASCAR immortality.

After claiming an unprecedented fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship in Miami, Johnson and the Top 10 finishers headed to Las Vegas for year-end festivities, where the driver of the No. 48 was roasted by his colleagues and comedian Kevin Burke. Nothing was off limits, including Jimmie’s hairline, his perceived “vanilla” personality and some sage counsel from Mark Martin on, shall we say, “off the track” pursuits.

While Johnson and the No. 48 crew eye a fifth consecutive title—to be crowned at Homestead-Miami Speedway Nov. 21, 2010—his fellow competitors are salivating at the thought of unseating the four-time defending NASCAR Champion. Check out how one expert handicaps the 2010 field here.

Martin figures to provide some of Johnson’s stiffest competition in 2010. With five victories in ’09—second only to Johnson’s seven—the 50-year-old veteran and crew chief Alan Gustafson will return to the No. 5 car in 2010 for a second season together. Even with a runner-up finish, Martin stole some spotlight at the awards ceremony in Vegas, winning over even more fans in the process.

All three of NASCAR’s premier racing series—the Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series—again will crown Champion during Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway (Nov. 19-21). For ticket information, stay tuned to THEChampionshipTrack.com or call toll free (866) 409-RACE.

IndyCar: Championship Weekend - Oct. 1-2 at Homestead-Miami Speedway

► Double the Danica—IndyCar and NASCAR--at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2010?
► Comcast/NBC Deal Likely to Benefit IndyCar Series Exposure
► Miami’s Meira on the Rebound; Competes for First Time since Indy 500 Accident

The worst-kept secret in racing has become official reality: Danica Patrick will drive a limited NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule in 2010 for JR Motorsports. One of the most marketable and popular drivers in the IZOD IndyCar Series, she joins forces with a team co-owned by NASCAR’s most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Will it be double the Danica at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2010? Patrick’s NASCAR schedule is yet to be determined, but speculation is that most of her NASCAR run will take place before and after the IndyCar Series season, which begins March 14 in Brazil and culminates Oct. 2 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. With NASCAR again crowning Champions in Miami Nov. 19-21 in all three series—Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Trucks—could it be two Miami Championship finales inside of two months for Danica?

South Florida resident Juan Pablo Montoya is one with first-hand knowledge of making the transition from open-wheel cars to stock car racing. The former Indianapolis 500 champion left Formula One three years ago to pursue a career in NASCAR and struggled early on before making a run for the 2009 Sprint Cup title in 2009.

After this year qualifying for the Chase and recording Top 5 finishes in five of the first six Chase races, he finished eighth in the Sprint Cup standings and is considered among the front runners to contend for the 2010 Championship, to be crowned at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 21.

"Danica, I think she's got the talent and everything, but I don't think she knows what she's getting into," Montoya said prior to Patrick’s official announcement. More here.

While the addition of Danica is likely to boost NASCAR ratings in 2010, the IZOD IndyCar Series may get a boost of its own with Comcast’s proposed buyout of NBC likely to help the exposure of the IZOD IndyCar Series: The deal figures to pave the way for cross-promotion of programming on the Comcast-owned Versus network—including IndyCar racing—to the other NBC networks. Although the deal has been approved by the companies' boards, it still is subject to regulatory approval, which the New York Times reports could take up to 18 months.

The IZOD IndyCar Series again will crown its Champion at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2010, and the series recently announced its broadcast schedule: Five races will run on ABC and 12 on Versus, including the Oct. 2 Championship finale in Miami.

One driver who missed the 2009 IndyCar Championship in Miami is Vitor Meira, who recently flanked 7-time Formula One champion Michael Schumacher on the podium as Schumacher celebrated winning the Desafio Internacional das Estrelas.

A Miami resident, Meira finished third in the annual invitational charity karting event, with Brazilian Felipe Massa taking second place. The weekend event marked the first competition for Meira since breaking his back in a season-ending accident with fellow Brazilian and Miami resident Raphael Matos at the 2009 Indianapolis 500.

“It definitely feels good to do my first race since my accident and to have a good result,” Meira said. “I’d like to think of it as a sign of things to come for myself and for A.J.’s ABC Supply team. I am really looking forward to getting back into the IndyCar Series next year. After the rain comes the sunshine, and I hope the sun keeps shining.”

Vitor Meira will return to the cockpit of the No. 14 ABC Supply Dallara/Honda when the team begins testing early 2010 in preparation for the IZOD IndyCar Series, which will culminate at Homestead-Miami Speedway Oct. 1-2, 2010. For ticket information, stay tuned to THEChampionshipTrack.com or call toll free (866) 409-RACE.

Grand-Am: The Grand Prix of Miami - March 6-7 at Homestead-Miami Speedway

► Jimmie Johnson Joins Grand-Am Champs to Prep for 2010
► SPEED to Televise Grand Prix of Miami
► Miami Resident Joins American team for Charity in Brazil

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Jimmie Johnson will return to Daytona for January’s Rolex 24 and join Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty and Jimmy Vasser in driving for GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, which won the 2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype championship in October at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Johnson—who in November clinched a record fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup title at Homestead-Miami Speedway—has raced in five of the last six Rolex 24 races, including the last two with the Stallings team. He will return to South Florida Nov. 19-21 to defend his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series crown during Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

“I’ve really enjoyed running with Bob and the GAINSCO team the past couple of years,” Johnson said. “Anyone who knows Bob knows that he’s very passionate about racing, and it shows in his team and his ability to bring out the best in everyone. Jon and Alex are two of the best, and I really enjoyed being teammates with them and Jimmy Vasser in the last two Rolex 24-hour events.”

South Florida resident Ozz Negri isn’t waiting for the 24-hour race to get going for 2010; he recently joined fellow Grand-Am drivers for a charity karting event in Brazil. And when Grand-Am storms South Florida this spring, the race will be televised live on SPEED. To enjoy the festivities live—including a pre-race fan walk and driver autograph—mark the calendar for the March 6-7 Grand Prix of Miami weekend.

"I was amazed at the fan response this past season," said Mike Johnson, team manager for Stevenson Motorsports. "This year has been the largest single improvement I've seen in 10 years of Grand-Am, in what they're doing to get people to the race track. This year, with everything Grand-Am has done with the pit walk and the schedule of the weekends, has been great. Everywhere we go we feel like we're part of a major event; everyone's having a great time.”

For ticket information, stay tuned to THEChampionshipTrack.com or call toll free (866) 409-RACE.