Thursday, January 18, 2018

NASCAR Greats and Current Drivers to Appear at the Ninth Annual NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

NASCAR Greats and Current Drivers to Appear at the Ninth Annual NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony An exciting weekend is in store for NASCAR fans beginning on Friday, Jan. 19 in Charlotte, North Carolina, featuring the stars of today and the legends of yesteryear.



The weekend will be filled with activities starting on Friday evening with the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018 Induction Ceremony. The star-studded event will be followed by NASCAR Fan Appreciation Day on Saturday, Jan. 20 at the NASCAR Hall of Fame and will include a one-of-a-kind experience for fans.

On Friday, Jan. 19 (8 p.m. ET on NBCSN and MRN), NASCAR icons Red Byron, Ray Evernham, Ron Hornaday Jr., Ken Squier and Robert Yates will be honored and inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame as the Class of 2018. As part of the Induction Ceremony, Jim France will receive the Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR and Norma Brandel will receive the Squier-Hall Award for NASCAR Media Excellence.

When people talk about legacy, I don't know. You think about what do you want to be known as, known for. I think, from my side of things, as much as I feel like I'm a decent business guy. I thought I was okay. I just really want to be known as a good mechanic that loved racing. Because of that, racing allowed me to do things that I would never have been able to do in my life had I not met the people and been involved in cars. Ray Evernham explained about what he wishes his legacy to be.

When you say 'legacy', I'd like to be known as a hard working, innovative crew chief that cared about the sport. I'd like to tell you I'd like to be known as a driver, but I didn't have the talent for that. I was okay as a car owner, okay at TV, but I felt like as a crew chief, that was my niche. The fact I brought more of a team perspective, a professional sports team perspective to NASCAR, from the crew chief and the team side, I'm proud of that.



Ron Hornaday Jr. is the first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver to be elected into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. So who does Hornaday Jr. consider the toughest driver to race against in the Truck Series?

The funniest was Jack Sprague. When you run into the back of him, his eyes always got so big. I think Joe Ruttman had to have been the toughest. He was the elderly spokesman out of us. I was probably the second. When you tried to rough up Joe, he always had something new for you. You learned so much racing against him.

I was at Phoenix Racing, he shows up, qualifying is going on, cars are in line. He gets in a car and jumps back out, takes his shoes off, gets back in and goes out and qualifies on the pole. He was rough and tough. Would race anything you ever could.

I don't know, if you go back and look at it. It's not just one of them, whoever qualified for those races in the Truck Series. I mean, it was tough. Back then, it was gung-ho. You have to move people out of the way, have to learn their names later when you're all done racing them.

As in previous years, NASCAR legends and current drivers will be in attendance as the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018 is inducted. Scheduled to make an appearance are reigning 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Dale Jarrett, Ben Kennedy and Brad Keselowski.



Red Byron won the very first race at the now historic Martinsville Speedway



Red Byron won the very first race at the now historic Martinsville Speedway on September 7, 1947 in Martinsville, Virginia. Byron won $500 of the $2,000 purse. The track was brand new, and created a dusty atmosphere for the sunny afternoon of racing.

About the NASCAR Hall of Fame

Conveniently located in Uptown Charlotte, North Carolina, the NASCAR Hall of Fame is an interactive, entertainment attraction honoring the history and heritage of NASCAR. The high-tech venue, designed to educate and entertain race fans and non-fans alike, opened May 11, 2010, and includes artifacts, hands-on exhibits, a 278-person state-of-the-art theater, Hall of Honor, Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant, NASCAR Hall of Fame Gear Shop and NASCAR Productions-operated broadcast studio. The NASCAR Hall of Fame is open daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. from April 1 through Oct. 31 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Nov. 1 through March 31. An attached parking garage is available on Brevard Street. The 5-acre site also includes a privately developed 19-story office tower and 102,000-square-foot expansion to the Charlotte Convention Center, highlighted by a 40,000-square-foot ballroom. The NASCAR Hall of Fame is owned by the City of Charlotte, licensed by NASCAR and operated by the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority.

For more information, visit nascarhall.com

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