Memphis Motorsports Park celebrates another milestone this season – 10 Years of NASCAR in Memphis!
On September 13, 1998, Memphis Motorsports Park hosted its first NASCAR race – the first in the city’s history. The response from race fans in the Mid-South was remarkable. Here in the heart of the NASCAR Nation, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series ‘Memphis 200’ took the green flag in front of a sold-out crowd and a national television audience.
This week, the O’Reilly 200 takes center stage June 29-30, and like they have for the last 10 years, NASCAR fans, families, RV’s, teams, sponsors and drivers are returning to Memphis. For the third year in a row, those drivers will be racing for the sport’s most distinctive trophy – the ‘Elvis’ – while the fans will again enjoy the sparks, spectacle and short-track, side-by-side racing of NASCAR “under the lights” – one of the country’s greatest live sporting events.
Racing for Dale Earnhardt Inc. in 1998, Ron Hornaday raised the first Memphis trophy and went on to win the series championship. Two championships (1996 & 1998) and ten years later, he will be back in Memphis with a legitimate shot at a third series championship, this one for Kevin Harvick Inc. In fact, five of this track’s champions will be back: Jack Sprague (2006 & 2000), Ted Musgrave (2003), Travis Kvapil (2002), Dennis Setzer (2001) and Hornaday.
Missing from the lineup this year are Greg Biffle (1999), who competes full-time in the Nextel Cup Series; Brandon Whitt (2005), who is currently without a ride; and Bobby Hamilton (2004), who died earlier this year of complications from cancer. This 10th anniversary race is dedicated to Hamilton, the Memphis and national series champion just three seasons ago. In celebration of his life, his Tennessee roots and his commitment to the sport, the Bobby Hamilton Racing team – including his wife Lori and crew members of both the No. 4 and No. 18 trucks – will be honored and recognized as Grand Marshals of the race.
The race week schedule also includes a driver autograph session Friday night in the infield for season ticket holders, plus the Coca-Cola Fan Walk to the infield on Saturday – another exclusive benefit to season ticket holders.
The family fun of the Sonic Kids Zone will be again open to everyone when the gates open on race day. The 101st Airborne Division “Screaming Eagles” Parachute Demonstration Team will deliver the green flag. And multi-platinum country music star Neal McCoy will sing the National Anthem and headline the post-race party and concert.
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