By Robert Walden - Kingsport Speedway Media/Public Relations

KINGSPORT, Tenn. — August race-week around East Tennessee means five straight days of racing action.

It all kicks off on Wednesday, Aug. 22 at Bristol Motor Speedway for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour doubleheader. The following night, Thursday, Aug. 23, will feature many of the country's top dirt late model competitors (such as Jimmy Owens, Scott Bloomquist, Don O'Neal, Steve Francis, Earl Pearson Jr. and many more) in action just down Interstate 81 in Bulls Gap at Volunteer Speedway for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series $10,000-to-win ninth annual Scorcher, where 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne will make his Super Late Model debut, with NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Ty Dillon also racing.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series races under the lights on Friday, Aug. 24 at BMS, with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series IRWIN Tools Night Race at Bristol on Saturday, Aug. 25. The Championship Auto Racing Series Rev-Oil Pro Cup Food Country USA 250 presented by Mahle Motorsport will wrap up the action-packed week of racing on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 26 at Kingsport Speedway.

JP Morgan of Ether, N.C., will lead the Rev-Oil Pro Cup competitors into battle at "The Concrete Jungle" in the Model City with a series-leading five victories in 2012, along with other race winners this season Allen Purkhiser of Moore, S.C.; Tyler Young of Midland, Texas., and Lucas Ransone of Madison, N.C.

The CARS Pro Cup Series would like to extend its thoughts and prayers to long time series fans Lou & Cheryl Lauer. Lou's mother is currently hospitalized in Pennsylvania. Everyone associated with the CARS Pro Cup Series wish the Lauer family well in their time of need.

The CARS Pro Cup Series would like to express it's condolences over the sudden loss of K.P. 'Hook' Harrell. Hook was a long time spotter for the Lamb & Robinson Racing Team and drivers Joe Gaita, Phil Warren, Bobby Gill, Clay Rogers and others. He passed away suddenly on Sunday June 24, 2012 at his home.

He was a lifelong Newport News area resident. He worked as a carpenter and roofer. He was an avid NASCAR, Green Bay Packer and N.Y. Yankee fan. He loved to play golf and worked for many professional race teams.

More information is available here - http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/dailypress/obituary.aspx?n=k-p-harrell&pid=158228094&fhid=4202

The CARS Pro Cup banquet was a success! We had a lot of teams and sponsors represented and enjoyed the chance to celebrate the season and award the Champions and teams. It was great to see so many people there. We're excited about the upcoming season. Here are a few tidbits of 2012 plans that were released at the banquet:

1.) The series will be switching to bias ply tires for 2012. An increase in the cost of radial tires forced us to look into ways to reduce costs for teams. Bias ply tires will save teams approximately $100 per tire or about $800 per race weekend. CARS Pro Cup will be conducting a tire test later this month to narrow down the tire provider.
2.) All CARS Pro Cup races will return to the traditional 250 lap length!
3.) The series will implement double-file restarts for the 2012 season!
4.) The race purse will be increased by about 10% (9.8) this coming season!
5.) The series will be establishing an end of season, championship points fund to reward drivers! It is one more step to try and reward the competitor and to create interest in the series. Further details will be coming out in the future.
6.) A tire voucher reward system will also be established to give something back to teams based on results from the previous race.

We will be adding photos from the event to the website in the next few days.

The CARS Pro Cup series has made a slight change to the 2012 race schedule. The event scheduled for March 31, 2012 at Anderson Motor Speedway has been bumped up one week and will now take place on March 24, 2012.

Pro Cup gets season #16 rolling one week early!

I would like to thank all Pro Cup Series team owners, drivers, crew members, vendors, sponsors and all supporters of this legendary Series. 2011 has been a trying year for all of us and without your support and loyalty to this Series we would not be moving forward with racing in 2012. As this new year approaches we will celebrate 15 years of Pro Cup racing and without those of you who are dedicated to this Series, that would not be possible. I want to wish all of you and your families a very Merry Christmas and the happiest of New Years!

May God continue to bless us all,

Jack McNelly
CARS Pro Cup President

If you are going to the Performance Racing Industry show in Orlando, Florida on December 1 - 3, stop by our booth and say hello. We will be located in booth # 4554, right across the isle from Roush/Yates Racing Engines.

Strictly for the racing trade, PRI connects manufacturers of racing products and technology with the all-important distribution pipeline of racing retailers, race engine builders, race car builders and warehouse distributors, in addition to thousands of professional race teams.

For more information on the PRI show, visit their website - http://www.performanceracing.com/

 

First-time Winner

“It makes me feel at home.”

That’s what the winner of the American 200, Bryan Silas, told media when asked how it felt to win at Rockingham. The Stuart, Florida native had just driven his #11 Rockingham Speedway sponsored Ford to Victory Lane for the first time in his 26 race Pro Cup career.

It was a very good day for Silas. He had earned the outside pole position for his best ever starting position and topped it off with a run through the field at the end of the race.  On route to the victory, he passed the 2011 CARS Pro Cup Champion, Jeff Agnew, for the win, and become another first-time winner in the series.

When the race began, Silas stayed in the top 5, biding his time. When the majority of the field took fresh tires, always a welcome feeling for drivers at The Rock, his team – Team 3 Racing - led by crew chief Cal Boprey made a strategy move which would prove to be the difference later in the race. They put a set of scuff tires back on, saving the ‘good stuff’ for another stop. It was a risky move that could have backfired it the race had a long green flag run in the next segment. Fortunately for Silas, a lap 104 caution flag allowed him the chance to come back to pit road.

Silas:  “About lap 80, everyone else put on sticker tires.  Our handling fell off a little bit. It was starting to get pretty bad loose from the center off.  So we came in, when the caution came out with 45-50 to go, and put on new set of tires.  The crew chief made a brilliant call.  I can’t thank these guys enough.  I was pretty nervous to be honest with you, in the middle of the race.  But once I saw what was going to happen with about 25 to go, I figured we were going to be okay.”