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Alex Bowman, left, Chase Elliott, center, and Denny Hamlin listen to the national anthem before the NASCAR Cup Series auto race Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020, in Bristol, Tenn. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Column: NASCAR's dizzying silly season will change landscape

By Jenna Fryer Sep. 21, 2020 09:34 PM EDT

FILE - Jimmy Johnson is at left in a 2019 file photo. Scott Dixon is at right in a 2020 file photo. Jimmie Johnson will transition from NASCAR to IndyCar with Chip Ganassi Racing in a partnership that could pair two of the most dominant drivers of this generation on one team. The seven-time NASCAR champion will work with the Ganassi organization to finalize sponsorship on a two-year program for Johnson to run the road and street course races on IndyCar's schedule. If funding is secured, Johnson would be teammates with five-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon. (AP Photo/File)
Jimmie Johnson teams with Ganassi on 2-year IndyCar program

By Jenna Fryer Sep. 09, 2020 10:45 AM EDT

FILE - Fans cheer and wave a flag as fireworks explode during the playing of the national anthem before the start the Xfinity series auto race at Daytona International Speedway, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015, in Daytona Beach, Fla. NASCAR has built itself around its traveling show, every weekend a super-charged event of concerts, camping and infield carousing that closes with a Cup race. The party has been canceled during the pandemic but the playoffs go on, starting Sunday, Sept. 6, 2020, without any of the pomp and circumstance. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)
NASCAR's playoffs move on without any pomp or circumstance

By Jenna Fryer Sep. 04, 2020 04:45 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 12, 2020, file photo, Bubba Wallace takes part in an interview during NASCAR Daytona 500 auto racing media day at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. Corporate interest in Bubba Wallace has picked up momentum and NASCAR’s only black full-time driver has signed a new sponsor that includes funding for his Richard Petty Motorports team. Columbia Sportswear signed a multiyear sponsorship with Wallace as a brand ambassador that will also put the company on the No. 43 at Dover later this month. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace adds another sponsorship deal

Aug. 14, 2020 12:22 PM EDT

Driver Bubba Wallace stands during the national anthem before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020, at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Bubba Wallace, Columbia Sportswear sign sponsorship deal

By Jenna Fryer Aug. 12, 2020 10:32 AM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 9, 2020, file photo, Ryan Newman stands on pit road after his run during NASCAR auto racing qualifying at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. Roush Fenway Racing announced a 12-race sponsorship deal Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2020, with Guaranteed Rate to fund Ryan Newman's car throughout the remainder of this season. (AP Photo/Terry Renna, File)
Roush Fenway signs 12-race sponsorship deal for Ryan Newman

By Jenna Fryer Aug. 12, 2020 09:48 AM EDT

In this photo provided by the NHRA, Pro Stock veteran Jason Line starts the day from the No. 1 spot then went on to pick up the win when he took out Jeg Coughlin at the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals in Indianapolis, Sunday, July 12, 2020. (Jerry Foss/NHRA via AP)
NHRA tries to find financial footing after COVID-19 shutdown

By Michael Marot Jul. 17, 2020 02:14 AM EDT

Ryan Blaney (12) celebrates after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega Ala., Monday, June 22, 2020. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
NASCAR hopes new fans join the sport in push for equality

By Dan Gelston Jun. 25, 2020 04:36 PM EDT

FedEx swaps NASCAR logos to spotlight Civil Rights Museum

By Jenna Fryer Jun. 21, 2020 03:23 PM EDT
Denny Hamlin's longtime sponsor FedEx replaced its logos for NASCAR's race at Talladega Superspeedway to instead feature the National Civil Rights Museum. ...

Checkered flags line a street outside Darlington Raceway Sunday, May 17, 2020, in Darlington, S.C. NASCAR, which has been idle since March 8 because of the coronavirus pandemic, makes its return with the Real Heroes 400 Nascar Cup Series auto race Sunday. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Harvick wins at Darlington as NASCAR returns to racing

By Jenna Fryer May. 17, 2020 11:02 AM EDT

FILE - In this March 24, 2020, file photo, the Olympic Flame burns during a ceremony in Fukushima City, Japan. The Tokyo Olympics were postponed a month ago. But there are still more questions than answers about the new opening on July 23, 2021 and what form those games will take.(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
The Latest: Japan's medical head says vaccine needed quickly

By The Associated Press Apr. 27, 2020 04:12 AM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 13, 2020, file photo, William Byron celebrates after winning the second of the two NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying auto races at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. Byron won his second consecutive NASCAR virtual race Sunday, April 19, 2020, by holding off Timmy Hill — the driver who moved him out of the way to win an earlier iRacing event — in a race finally low on dramatics. (AP Photo/Terry Renna, File)
Byron wins 2nd NASCAR virtual race in a drama-free event

By Jenna Fryer Apr. 19, 2020 03:40 PM EDT

FILE - In this July 20, 2018, file photo, NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson signs an autograph for a fan wearing a Martin Truex Jr. shirt before auto racing practice at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H. Kyle Larson was fired Tuesday, April 14, 2020, by Chip Ganassi Racing, a day after nearly every one of his sponsors dropped the star driver for using a racial slur during a live stream of a virtual race. Larson, in his seventh Cup season with Ganassi and considered the top free agent in NASCAR mere weeks ago, is now stunningly out of a job in what could ultimately be an eight-figure blunder by the star. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm, File)
NASCAR's Larson fired after sponsors walk over N-word slur

By Jenna Fryer Apr. 14, 2020 11:15 AM EDT

FILE - In this June 10, 2019, file photo, drivers race at the NASCAR cup series auto race at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Mich. IndyCar will race Saturday, April 11, 2020, at Michigan International Speedway, one of the most beloved tracks that long ago fell off the open-wheel racing schedule. The race will be aired on NBC Sports with Dale Earnhardt Jr., just announced as a NASCAR Hall of Fame nominee and a driving force in the success of the iRacing phenomenon, making his IndyCar virtual debut. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)
Virtual racing brings success, complications for sponsors

By Jenna Fryer Apr. 10, 2020 04:11 PM EDT

FILE - In this May 18, 2019, file photo, jockey Tyler Gaffalione, right, reacts aboard War of Will, as they crosses the finish line first to win the Preakness Stakes horse race at Pimlico Race Course, in Baltimore. A measure in Maryland to redevelop Pimlico Race Course to keep the second leg of horse racing's Triple Crown in Baltimore is scheduled for a hearing before state lawmakers. The “Racing and Community Development Act of 2020” is set for a hearing before the House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
The Latest: NCAA suspends infraction hearings, arguments

By The Associated Press Apr. 03, 2020 04:09 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sept. 28, 2019, file photo Chase Briscoe (98) leads the field of cars to start the NASCAR Xfinity Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. General Motors is planning to open a new technical center for performance and auto racing near the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The center will focus on transferring auto racing knowledge into engineering for vehicles that are sold to the public. (AP Photo/Mike McCarn, File)
GM to open racing tech center near Charlotte Motor Speedway

Jan. 23, 2020 09:54 AM EST

Kimball scores full IndyCar season with AJ Foyt Racing

Jenna Fryer Jan. 22, 2020 11:19 AM EST
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Charlie Kimball and his longtime sponsor will move to AJ Foyt Racing for the upcoming IndyCar season. Kimball is the only driver so far...

FILE - In this Oct. 16, 2009, file photo, former NASCAR driver and owner Junior Johnson smiles as he speaks to media about being named to the NASCAR Hall of Fame during a news conference at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. Johnson, who won 50 NASCAR Cup Series races as a driver and 132 as an owner and was part of the inaugural class inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2010, has died at 88. (AP Photo/Bob Jordan, File)
Junior Johnson, "The Last American Hero," dies at 88

Jenna Fryer Dec. 20, 2019 07:04 PM EST

NASCAR signs 4 premier partners to sponsor Cup Series

By Jenna Fryer Dec. 05, 2019 08:50 AM EST
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — NASCAR has signed Busch Beer, Coca-Cola, Geico and Xfinity as its “premier partners" in a change to its traditional sponsorship model. ...

Martin Truex Jr. drives on the front stretch during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race on Sunday, Nov. 17, 2019, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Fla. Truex is one of four drivers running for the championship. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
The Latest: Kyle Busch wins NASCAR’s Cup Series championship

Nov. 17, 2019 02:07 PM EST