Brickyard 400

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Brickyard 400
2012 Crown Royal presents the Curtiss Shaver 400 logo.jpg
Venue Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Sponsor Big Machine Records, Crown Royal
First race 1994 (1994)
Distance 400 miles (643.737 km)
Laps 160
Previous names Brickyard 400 (1994–2004, 2010)
Allstate 400 at the Brickyard (2005–2009)
Brickyard 400 presented by BigMachineRecords.com (2011)
Crown Royal presents the Your Hero's Name Here 400 powered by Big Machine Records (2012-2014)
Crown Royal presents the Jeff Kyle at the Brickyard presented by Big Machine Records.com (2015)

Crown Royal Presents the 'Your Hero's Name Here' 400 at the Brickyard (formerly and commonly known as simply the Brickyard 400) is an annual 400-mile (640 km) NASCAR Sprint Cup points race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The inaugural race was held in 1994, and the 400 was the first race other than the Indianapolis 500 to be held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 1916. In its inaugural season, the Brickyard 400 became NASCAR's most-attended event, drawing an estimated crowd of more than 250,000 spectators in 1994. It also pays NASCAR's second-highest purse, second only to the Daytona 500.

The term "Brickyard" is a reference to the nickname historically used for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. When the race course opened in 1909, the track surface was crushed stone and tar. That surface was the cause of numerous and sometimes fatal accidents, so the track was repaved with 3.2 million bricks in time for the inaugural Indy 500 in 1911, giving rise to the name Brickyard. Over time the bricks have been covered with asphalt, and now only a one-yard strip of brick at the start/finish line remains exposed.

From 2005–2009, the race was known as the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, under a naming rights arrangement with Allstate Insurance.[1] From 2011-2014, Big Machine Records was the presenting sponsor.[2] Since 2011, Crown Royal has been the title sponsor of the race; [3][4] Under Crown Royal sponsorship, the race has also been part of Crown Royal's "Your Hero's Name Here" program, in which the race is named after a U.S. armed forces member or first responder nominated by fans.[3][5] Accordingly, the 2015 race was branded as Crown Royal Presents the Jeff Kyle 400 at the Brickyard.[6]

The names of the winners of the Brickyard 400 are inscribed on the PPG Trophy, which is permanently housed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum. Jeff Gordon won the inaugural Brickyard 400 on August 6, 1994. He is the most-successful driver in the history of the race, with a record five victories and three pole positions. Hendrick Motorsports has been the most successful team with nine total wins and five poles.

The race is currently part of the Super Weekend at the Brickyard, which features races for the Sprint Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and the United SportsCar Championship. The stock car races are on the oval, while the sports car events are conducted on the speedway's road course layout.

Race origins

Richard Petty during the Open Test in 1993.

In September 1991, A. J. Foyt filmed a commercial for Craftsman tools at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. While filming in the garage area, Foyt, and Speedway president Tony George decided to take Foyt's NASCAR Winston Cup car for a few laps around the track. Foyt was the first driver to do so, and later on, George himself took a few laps. The event was not planned, and had no implications, but caused some interest and speculation for the future.

On June 22–23, 1992, nine top NASCAR Winston Cup series teams were invited to Indy to participate in a Goodyear tire test. Over the weekend, the teams had raced in the Miller Genuine Draft 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Although no official announcements were made, it was in fact an unofficial compatibility test to see if stock cars would be competitive at the circuit. An estimated 10,000 spectators watched two days of history in the making. A. J. Foyt took a few laps around the track in Dale Earnhardt's car on the second day.[7]

Following the test, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway started an extensive improvement project. The outside retaining wall and catch fence were replaced. The new wall and fence were decidedly stronger, and could support the 3,500 pound NASCAR stock cars. The pit area was widened, and the individual pit stalls were replaced in concrete. This was done to better support the pneumatic jacks used by the Indy cars, and to handle the refuel spillage of gasoline from the NASCAR machines. The largest project, however, involved the removal of the track apron, and the construction of the new warm-up lane, similar to that built at Nazareth Speedway in 1987.

On April 14, 1993 Speedway President Tony George, and the president of NASCAR, Bill France, Jr. jointly announced the Inaugural Brickyard 400 would be held Saturday August 6, 1994. A new race logo was also unveiled.

On August 16–17 the same year, thirty-five NASCAR teams took part in an open test at the Speedway. It was held as the teams returned from the second race at Michigan, the Champion Spark Plug 400. The top 35 teams in NASCAR points received invitations. Hosting the test in August mimicked the weather conditions expected for the race in 1994. Several thousand spectators attended, and many announcements were made. NASCAR legend Richard Petty, who had retired from competition the previous November, took a few fast laps himself, then donated his car to the Speedway museum.

Race details

For its first running in 1994, the race was slotted for a Saturday afternoon at 12:15 pm EST (1:15 pm EDT), on August 6. At the time the first weekend of August was open on the NASCAR schedule. Since the race was not being held on a holiday weekend, track officials decided to reserve Sunday as a make-up date in case of rain on Saturday. In 1994, practice and pole qualifying was held on Thursday. Practice, second round qualifying, and "Happy Hour" final practice were scheduled for Friday. In addition, during the first year, a special "pacing" practice was held where the field followed behind the pace car to measure pit road speed.

Starting in 1995, an additional practice session was scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Pole qualifying was still held Thursday, and second round qualifying was held Friday. This schedule continued through 2000.

From 1998–2003, an IROC event was situated in the schedule. The IROC race would be held the day before the Brickyard 400.

Starting in 2001, the race was moved to Sunday. In addition, NASCAR eliminated second-round qualification. The schedule was compressed so practice was held Friday, and the single pole qualifying round was held Saturday. "Happy hour" final practice was also held Saturday. This schedule differed from typical NASCAR weekend schedules, which normally saw practice and pole qualification on Fridays. Moving the pole qualification to Saturday allowed for a potential larger audience, and also opened the schedule up for the Kroger 200 held at nearby Indianapolis Raceway Park.

In 2007, coinciding with ESPN taking over NASCAR television rights, the race swapped dates with Pocono. The Brickyard 400 moved to the last weekend in July, and Pocono to the first weekend in August.

Starting in 2012, the Brickyard 400 became part of Super Weekend at The Brickyard, consisting of three races over four days on both the oval and the road course. The Xfinity Series left IRP and moved to the Speedway for the Indiana 250. The United SportsCar Championship (formerly Grand Am) utilized the road course on Friday for the Brickyard Grand Prix along with a shorter Continental Sports Car Challenge Race beforehand. The road course races were removed from the schedule for 2015, Starting in 2015, the race will return to NBC Sports, as NBC will broadcast the final 20 races of the season(4 of 20) races as part of NBC Sports.

Race recaps

1994–1999

Jeff Gordon (#24) following Rick Mast (#1) at the 1994 Brickyard 400.

1994: The first running of the Brickyard 400 in 1994 saw the largest crowd to date to witness a NASCAR event, and the single largest race purse to date. Rick Mast won the pole position, and became the first stock car driver to lead a lap at Indy. Young second-year driver Jeff Gordon took the lead late in the race after Ernie Irvan suffered a flat tire. Gordon drove on to a historic win in NASCAR's debut at Indy. In an effort to attract more entries, the event was concurrently included on the NASCAR Winston West schedule. No Winston West competitors qualified on speed, but point leader Mike Chase made the field via a Winston West provisional. Gordon's inaugural Brickyard 400 winning car (nicknamed "Booger"[8]) is on display at the Hendrick Motorsports museum.[9]

1995: Second-round qualification was rained out on Friday, and only a short "happy hour" practice followed. On Saturday, rain delayed the start of the race until late in the afternoon. Dale Earnhardt cruised to victory, in a race that was slowed only once for four laps under yellow. Rusty Wallace and Dale Jarrett battled close over the final 20 laps for second, with Wallace holding off the challenge.

1996: Dale Jarrett and his Robert Yates Racing crew began the tradition of the winning driver and crew kissing the row of bricks at the start-finish line,[10] which has carried over to the Indianapolis 500. The race saw several blown tires after the speedway removed some rumble strips from the apron of the corners; Kyle Petty was injured when he blew a tire, slammed into the outside and inside wall off turn four, and was T-boned by Sterling Marlin. Johnny Benson led the most laps (70), but faded to 8th at the finish. Jarrett became the first driver to win both the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 in the same year. After injuries suffered at Talladega, defending race winner Dale Earnhardt was relieved by Mike Skinner on lap 7, who drove to a 15th place finish.

1997: In the final twenty laps, Dale Jarrett, Jeff Gordon, and Mark Martin held the top three spots, but none of the three would be able to make it to the finish without one final pit stop for fuel. Jeff Burton and Ricky Rudd also were close on fuel. On lap 145, Robby Gordon brushed the wall, and Burton ran over debris. Burton was forced to pit under green, but as he was finishing his stop, the caution came out. Burton flew out of the pits to beat the leaders, and for a moment it appeared he was in the cat bird's seat with four fresh tires, and would be the leader after all other drivers cycled through their stops. However, he was penalized for speeding while exiting the pit lane, and dropped to 15th. Ricky Rudd was among a few drivers who stayed out, and his gamble put him in the lead. Rudd drove the final 46 laps without a pit stop to take the victory.

1998: Jeff Gordon became the first repeat winner, holding off Mark Martin for the win. Dale Jarrett dominated the second 100 miles of the race but lost his chance near the halfway point when he ran out of fuel, and coasted back to the pits; he lost four laps but made them up due to numerous cautions. Gordon's victory was the first in the Winston No Bull 5 program.

1999: Late in the race, Dale Jarrett leads, but fourth-place Bobby Labonte is the only car in the top five that can go the distance without pitting for fuel. A caution comes out with 17 laps to go, allowing the leaders to pit, foiling Labonte's chances to steal the win. As the leaders pitted, in an unexpected move, Dale Jarrett took on only two tires. Jeff Burton saw this and pulled away after taking only two tires. His pit crew, however, had already tried to loosen the lug nuts on the left side. Jarrett led the rest of the way, becomes the second two-time winner, and erases his heartbreak from 1998.

2000–2009

2000: Rusty Wallace led 114 laps, and was leading late in the race when Bobby Labonte charged down the backstretch. Labonte took the lead at the stripe, and pulled away for the win. The race was slowed by only 2 cautions for 7 laps.

2001: With 25 laps to go, Jeff Gordon passed Sterling Marlin on a restart, and pulled away for the win. Gordon became the first 3-time winner of the Brickyard 400.

2002: Kurt Busch and Jimmy Spencer, locked in a burgeoning feud dating back to Bristol, collided on lap 36. Busch hit the turn 3 wall. Veteran Bill Elliott added the Brickyard to his long resume, and Rusty Wallace finished second for the third time.

2003: With 16 laps to go, Kevin Harvick used lap traffic to get by Matt Kenseth on a restart. A huge pileup occurred in turn three, and Harvick held off over the final ten laps to become the first driver to win the race from the pole position.

2004: For the first time in Sprint Cup Series history, the Green-white-checker finish rule caused a race to be extended, in this case for one additional lap. On the extra lap, Casey Mears blew a tire, Ricky Rudd hit the wall, then Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. suffered tire failures. Jeff Gordon retained the lead to become the first four-time winner of the Brickyard.

2005: Hometown favorite Tony Stewart won his first race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and climbed the catch fence to celebrate, in the same fashion as Hélio Castroneves.

2006: After suffering a blown front left tire early in the race that caused some fender damage, Jimmie Johnson passed Dale Earnhardt Jr. with six laps left to win at Indy for the first time, and became only the second driver to win both the Daytona 500, and Brickyard 400 in the same year. The other was Dale Jarrett in 1996.

2007: Juan Pablo Montoya became the first (and, to date, only) driver to race in all three of the major events hosted by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Indy 500, Brickyard 400, and the U.S.G.P.). Montoya, a rookie in the Sprint Cup series, finished second to Tony Stewart. Stewart's 2007 winning car is owned and on rotating display at the Speedway museum.

2008: The Car of Tomorrow was used at Indy for the first time. The Goodyear tires suffered bad wear patterns, causing blowouts in some cases after only ten laps of green-flag racing. Lengthy competition cautions were put out at roughly 10-lap intervals for teams to change tires, which caused controversy and angered fans and media. Jimmie Johnson managed to tame the tire problems by winning for the second time in his career at Indy, holding off a mild challenge from Carl Edwards.

2009: Former Indy 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya dominated most of the race, leading 116 laps. However, with 35 laps to go, Montoya was penalized (not without protest and a heated rant) for speeding in the pits. The infraction left Jimmie Johnson holding off polesitter Mark Martin for the victory. Johnson became the second three-time winner, and the first back–to–back winner of the 400.

2010–present

2010: 2000 Indianapolis 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya dominated most of the race for the second year in a row, leading a total of 86 laps. However, he gave up the lead when he took 4 tires in a late pit stop. He would restart 7th with 18 laps to go and wasn't ever able to recover. Montoya crashed with 16 to go and before the caution came out, Kevin Harvick had passed Jamie McMurray for the lead. On the final restart, McMurray passed Harvick to go on to win the 400. This made him become the third driver to win the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400 during the same season, following Dale Jarrett in 1996 and Jimmie Johnson in 2006. McMurray's win also gave his team owner Chip Ganassi wins in the Daytona 500, the Indianapolis 500, and the Brickyard 400 all in the same season, making him the first team owner to do so.

2011: The final caution came out on lap 121 with Brad Keselowski out in front. With 39 laps to go, it would be difficult for the leaders to make it to the finish on fuel if they pit under the yellow. Since race laps at Indy are in the 51-second range, and a pit stop (including entering and exiting the pit lane) takes upwards of 40–45 seconds, green flag pits stops are not necessarily discouraged, unlike other circuits. Among the drivers who pitted on lap 123 was Paul Menard. After the green came back out, Jeff Gordon pitted on lap 134. As the leaders shuffled through their final pit stops, Menard took over the lead on lap 145. Meanwhile, Gordon, with two new tires, dramatically began charging through the field and was quickly in the top ten before moving up to 2nd position on lap 158. With now less than two laps to go, Menard stretched his fuel and held off Gordon on the last lap to score his first career Cup victory. Menard is the only driver to-date to have scored his first career Cup Series win at the Brickyard.

2012: The final caution came out on lap 130 with Jimmie Johnson leading. Over the final 20 laps, Johnson held off Kyle Busch and Greg Biffle to tie Jeff Gordon with four Brickyard 400 victories.

2013: During his final pit stop, Jimmie Johnson took on four tires when a lug nut broke loose. His stop lasted 17.4 seconds. Ryan Newman pitted a lap later. Aware of Johnson's struggles, Newman elected to take on only two tires. Newman emerged with a 7-second lead over Johnson with 16 laps to go. Johnson closed to within 2 seconds, but fell short as Newman held on for the victory.

2014: With 17 laps to go, Jeff Gordon passed Kasey Kahne on a restart on the outside of turn one to take the lead for the final time. Twenty years after winning the inaugural Brickyard 400, Gordon won the race for a record 5th time.[11]

2015: Kyle Busch won his first Brickyard 400, holding off Joey Logano in a green–white–checker finish. Busch swept the weekend, winning also the Xfinity race on Saturday. Attention for the weekend was focused heavily on a new "high-drag" aerodynamic rules package implemented to improve competition. Jeff Gordon, racing for the final time at the Brickyard, was involved in a spin on lap 50, brushed the wall, and placed 42nd. With Logano's second place, Team Penske - still winless in the Brickyard 400 - finished 2nd for the fourth time.

Past winners

Year Date Driver Team Manufacturer Race Distance Race Time Average Speed
(mph)
Starting
Position
Report
Laps Miles (km)
1994 August 6 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 3:01:51 131.932 3rd Report
1995 August 5 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:34:38 155.218 13th Report
1996 August 3 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 160 400 (643.737) 2:52:02 139.508 24th Report
1997 August 2 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 160 400 (643.737) 3:03:28 130.828 7th Report
1998 August 1 Jeff Gordon (2) Hendrick Motorsports (2) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 3:09:19 126.77 3rd Report
1999 August 7 Dale Jarrett (2) Robert Yates Racing (2) Ford 160 400 (643.737) 2:41:57 148.288 4th Report
2000 August 5 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 160 400 (643.737) 2:33:56 155.918 3rd Report
2001 August 5 Jeff Gordon (3) Hendrick Motorsports (3) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 3:03:30 130.79 27th Report
2002 August 4 Bill Elliott Evernham Motorsports Dodge 160 400 (643.737) 3:11:57 125.033 2nd Report
2003 August 3 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing (2) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:58:22 134.548 1st Report
2004 August 8 Jeff Gordon (4) Hendrick Motorsports (4) Chevrolet 161* 402.5 (647.76) 3:29:56 115.037 11th Report
2005 August 7 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing (2) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 3:22:03 118.782 22nd Report
2006 August 6 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports (5) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:54:57 137.182 5th Report
2007 July 29 Tony Stewart (2) Joe Gibbs Racing (3) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 3:24:28 117.379 14th Report
2008 July 27 Jimmie Johnson (2) Hendrick Motorsports (6) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 3:28:29 115.117 1st Report
2009 July 26 Jimmie Johnson (3) Hendrick Motorsports (7) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:44:31 145.882 16th Report
2010 July 25 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:56:24 136.054 4th Report
2011 July 31 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing (3) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:52:18 140.766 15th Report
2012 July 29 Jimmie Johnson (4) Hendrick Motorsports (8) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:54:19 137.68 6th Report
2013 July 28 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:36:22 153.485 1st Report
2014 July 27 Jeff Gordon (5) Hendrick Motorsports (9) Chevrolet 160 400 (643.737) 2:39:41 150.297 2nd Report
2015 July 26 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing (4) Toyota 164* 410 (659.831) 3:06:51 131.656 9th Report

Multiple winners (drivers)

The winner of the Brickyard 400 is presented with the PPG Trophy in victory lane.
# Wins Driver Years Won
5 Jeff Gordon 1994, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2014
4 Jimmie Johnson 2006, 2008, 2009, 2012
2 Dale Jarrett 1996, 1999
Tony Stewart 2005, 2007

Multiple winners (teams)

# Wins Team Years Won
9 Hendrick Motorsports 1994, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2014
4 Joe Gibbs Racing 2000, 2005, 2007, 2015
3 Richard Childress Racing 1995, 2003, 2011
2 Robert Yates Racing 1996, 1999

Manufacturer wins

# Wins Manufacturer Years Won
16 Chevrolet 1994, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
3 Ford 1996, 1997, 1999
1 Pontiac 2000
Dodge 2002
Toyota 2015

Crown Royal Your Name Here 400 Sweepstakes Winner

Year Winner
2012 Curtiss Shaver
2013 Samuel Deeds
2014 John Wayne Walding
2015 Jeff Kyle

Pole position winners

Year Driver Car Make Entrant Speed
1994 Rick Mast Ford Jackson Bros. Motorsports 172.414 mph
1995 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 172.536 mph
1996 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 176.419 mph
1997 Ernie Irvan Ford Robert Yates Racing 177.736 mph
1998 Ernie Irvan Pontiac MB2 Motorsports 179.394 mph
1999 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 179.612 mph
2000 Ricky Rudd Ford Robert Yates Racing 181.068 mph
  Brett Bodine Ford Brett Bodine Racing 181.072 mph (FQ)
2001 Jimmy Spencer Ford Haas-Carter Motorsports 179.666 mph
2002 Tony Stewart Pontiac Joe Gibbs Racing 182.960 mph
2003 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Richard Childress Racing 184.343 mph
2004 Casey Mears Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing 186.293 mph
2005 Elliott Sadler Ford Robert Yates Racing 184.116 mph
2006 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Richard Childress Racing 182.778 mph
2007 Reed Sorensen Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing 184.207 mph
2008 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 181.763 mph
2009 Mark Martin Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 182.054 mph
2010 Juan Pablo Montoya Chevrolet Earnhardt Ganassi Racing 182.278 mph
2011 David Ragan Ford Roush Fenway Racing 182.994 mph
2012 Denny Hamlin Toyota Joe Gibbs Racing 182.763 mph
2013 Ryan Newman Chevrolet Stewart-Haas Racing 187.531 mph
2014 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Stewart-Haas Racing 188.470 mph (TR)
2015 Carl Edwards Toyota Joe Gibbs Racing 183.464 mph
  • (FQ) – Denotes fastest qualifier; was accomplished in second-round qualifying
  • (TR) – Denotes one-lap stock car track record

Statistics

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series records

(As of 7/27/14)

Most Wins 5 Jeff Gordon
Most Top 5's 12 Jeff Gordon
Most Top 10's 17 Jeff Gordon
Starts 22 Jeff Gordon
Poles 3 Jeff Gordon
Most Laps Completed 3239 Jeff Gordon
Most Laps Led 528 Jeff Gordon
Avg. Start* 6.6 Juan Pablo Montoya
Avg. Finish* 8.4 Jeff Gordon

* from minimum 5 starts.

Daytona 500 & Brickyard 400

Three drivers have won the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400 in the same season:

Five other drivers (Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Bill Elliott, Kevin Harvick, and Ryan Newman) have won both the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 in their respective careers, although not in the same season.

Brickyard 400 and Sprint Cup champions

The winner of the Brickyard 400 has notably gone on to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup championship in the same season 9 times out of 22 runnings from 1994 to 2015. Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are only drivers to have done it more than one time.

Brickyard 400 & Indy 500

Through 2014, a total of 18 drivers have competed in both the Brickyard 400 and Indianapolis 500. An additional twelve drivers have attempted to qualify for both, but failed to qualify at one or the other, or both races. Juan Pablo Montoya and Jacques Villeneuve are the only two drivers to compete at the Indy 500, Brickyard 400, and USGP at Indy. Montoya holds the highest finish between the two races, with a win in the 500 and a second place in the 400. Larry Foyt was the first driver to compete in both events after having competed in the 400 first; all other participants except A. J. Allmendinger and Kurt Busch had competed in the 500 prior to racing in the 400.

Juan Pablo Montoya has also competed in the Brickyard Grand Prix and Grand Prix of Indianapolis.

The names of drivers who have raced in both events in the same year are bolded.

Failed to qualify:

Pre-race ceremonies

Pre-race ceremonies in 1994.

At the onset of the Brickyard 400 in 1994, track officials were determined to not detract from the traditional nature of the Indianapolis 500, and establish "new traditions" for the Brickyard 400.

Several of the key fixtures of the Indy 500 pre-race traditions were dropped or tweaked. The Purdue band was omitted, in favor of other schools from the state (Indiana State and Indiana University). The song "Back Home Again in Indiana" was decidedly not included, however, Jim Nabors was invited in 1994 to sing the national anthem. Unlike the Indy 500, a ceremonial pace car driver is rarely used in NASCAR, and was not used for the first many years of the Brickyard 400. In more recent years a ceremonial pace car driver has been added. Chevrolet has been the exclusive provider of the pace car for all editions.

In a slight contrast to the Indy 500, many of the national anthem performers invited have been from country music, as a gesture to NASCAR's ties to the south. It also reflected the race's former presenting sponsor (Big Machine Records). Contemporary Christian singers have also been invited several times. Traditions that were kept include a balloon release, a flyby, and an invocation (The last two are part of most NASCAR events). Rev. Howard Brammer of Traders Point Christian Church has conducted the invocation for every Brickyard 400 from 1994–2015; differing from the Indy 500, where the Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis is normally invited.

In 1998, for the first time since 1954, a person gave the starting command at the track who was not a member of the Hulman-George family. The president of NASCAR, Bill France, Jr. gave the command, celebrating the 50th anniversary of NASCAR.

Year Pace Car Pace Car Driver National anthem Starting command NASCAR Starters Honorary starter
1994 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Z34 Elmo Langley Jim Nabors Mary F. Hulman Doyle Ford Stephen Goldsmith
1995 Chevrolet C/K 1500 Elmo Langley Steve Wariner Mary F. Hulman Doyle Ford
1996 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 Elmo Langley Rhett Akins Mary F. Hulman Doyle Ford
1997 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Z34 Buster Auton Tracy Byrd Mari Hulman George Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
Stephen Goldsmith
1998 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Z34 Buster Auton The Marching Hundred Bill France, Jr. Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
1999 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS Buster Auton Ricochet Mari Hulman George Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
2000 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS Buster Auton Melvin Carraway Mari Hulman George Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
2001 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS Jay Leno (start)
Buster Auton (race)
Straight No Chaser Mari Hulman George Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
Chuck Conaway
2002 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS Kurt Ridder (start)
Buster Auton (race)
Jimmy Ryser Mari Hulman George Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
John G. Middlebrook
2003 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Buster Auton Montgomery Gentry Mari Hulman George Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
Larry Rockwell
2004 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Brett Bodine Rascal Flatts Mari Hulman George Jimmy Howell
Rodney Wise
James Spencer
2005 Chevrolet SSR Brett Bodine Diamond Rio Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
Dennis Haysbert
2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Brett Bodine Kelly Rowland Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
Chris Noth
2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Brett Bodine Sgt. Byron Bartosh Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
James Denton
2008 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Brett Bodine Daniel Rodríguez Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
John C. McGinley
2009 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Brett Bodine Casey Jamerson
Kristen Santos (ASL)
Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
Tyler Hansbrough
2010 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Brett Bodine Steven Curtis Chapman Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
Dallas Clark
2011 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Hope Solo (start)
Brett Bodine (race)
Rascal Flatts Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
Scott Borchetta
2012 60th Anniversary Chevrolet Corvette Ron Howard (start)
Brett Bodine (race)
Raul Malo Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
2013 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Sage Steele (start)
Brett Bodine (race)
Cassadee Pope Mari Hulman George Rick Monroe
Rodney Wise
2014 Chevrolet SS Chris Pratt (start)
Brett Bodine (race)
Drake White Mari Hulman George
2015 Chevrolet SS Lauren Holiday (start)
Brett Bodine (race)
Kellie Pickler Mari Hulman George

Television and radio

ABC

From 1994 to 2000, the race was broadcast live on ABC Sports, who had televised the Indianapolis 500 since 1965. ESPN/ESPN2 carried live coverage of practice and qualifying. The race was scheduled for the first Saturday in August, at 12:15 pm EST (1:15 pm EDT). Saturday was chosen for the running of the race to allow for Sunday as a rain date. In the Indianapolis market, the race was blacked out, and aired in same-day tape delay later in the evening.

Prior to the first running, ESPN covered the feasibility tests in both 1992 and 1993 through its SpeedWeek program. During the 1992 test, ESPN utilized on-board footage from inside Kyle Petty's car, captured from Petty's personal video camera. During the summer leading up to the 1994 race, ESPN broadcast a series of preview shows titled Road to the Brickyard.

In 1995, rain delayed the start until 4:25 EST (5:25 EDT). ABC had already signed off, and made the decision to air the race via tape delay on ESPN the following day. In the greater Indianapolis area, the race was shown tape delay that night at 7 pm on WRTV as planned. The 1995 race ran until 7:03 pm EST (8:03 pm EDT), which was believed to be the second-latest time of day cars have ever driven on the track.[12]

Year Network Lap-by-lap Color commentator(s) Pit reporters Ratings[13]
1994 ABC Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons Jack Arute
Jerry Punch
Gary Gerould
5.7
1995 ABC
ESPN
Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons Jack Arute
Jerry Punch
Gary Gerould
4.3 (ABC)
1996 ABC Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons
Danny Sullivan (turn 2)
Jack Arute
Jerry Punch
Gary Gerould
4.3
1997 ABC Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons Jack Arute
Jerry Punch
Bill Weber
5.3/18
1998 ABC Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons Jack Arute
Jerry Punch
Bill Weber
4.1/14
1999 ABC Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons Jerry Punch
Bill Weber
Ray Dunlap
4.6/15
2000 ABC Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons
Ray Evernham
Jerry Punch
Bill Weber
Ray Dunlap
3.7/10
  • Note: Paul Page served as pre-race host in 1994–1996.

NBC/TNT

From 2001–2006, the race was broadcast on NBC, as part of a new eight-year, $2.4-billion centralized television deal involving FOX/FX and NBC/TNT. The race was moved from Saturday to Sunday, and the start time was moved to 1:45 pm EST (2:45 pm EDT). In 2006, Indiana began observing Daylight Saving Time, and the race was scheduled for 2:45 pm EDT.

After switching to NBC and the centralized television contract, the local blackout policy was lifted. During this contract, TNT carried pole qualifying live. The final "Happy Hour" practice was carried live on CNN/SI in 2001, and on Speed from 2002-2006.

Year Network Host Lap-by-lap Color commentator(s) Pit reporters Ratings[13] Viewers[13]
2001 NBC Bill Weber Allen Bestwick Benny Parsons
Wally Dallenbach
Bill Weber
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Matt Yocum
6.2/16
2002 NBC Bill Weber Allen Bestwick Benny Parsons
Wally Dallenbach
Bill Weber
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Matt Yocum
6.3/16 10.2 million
2003 NBC Bill Weber Allen Bestwick Benny Parsons
Wally Dallenbach
Bill Weber
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Matt Yocum
6.0/15 9.7 million
2004 NBC Bill Weber Allen Bestwick Benny Parsons
Wally Dallenbach
Bill Weber
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Matt Yocum
6.1/15 9.3 million
2005 NBC Bill Weber Bill Weber Benny Parsons
Wally Dallenbach
Allen Bestwick
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Matt Yocum
6.2/15 9.5 million
2006 NBC Bill Weber Bill Weber Benny Parsons
Wally Dallenbach
Allen Bestwick
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Matt Yocum
5.5/13 8.645 million
  • Notes: Bill Weber served as pre-race host on the NBC "War Wagon" from 2001–2004, and in the booth in 2005–2006.

ESPN

From 2007–2014, under the terms of a new $4.48-billion contract, television rights will be held by ESPN. The race swapped dates with the Pennsylvania 500, and effectively moved up one weekend. The change was made so that ESPN/ABC could kick off their NASCAR coverage with the more-attractive telecast. The move to cable drew some mild controversy after thirteen years of having been on network television. The starting time was slightly earlier than in the past, at 2:30 pm EDT. Practice and qualifying are carried by ESPN, ESPN2, and Speed.

In 2009—2014,[14] the race was advertised on ESPN as Brickyard 400 presented by Golden Corral. The different name is due to a standing policy by NASCAR to not mention the race's title sponsor on-air more than the required twice per hour unless an advertising premium is paid to the network.[15][16]

Year Network NASCAR
Countdown
Lap-by-lap Color commentator(s) Pit reporters Ratings
[13][17][18][19]
Viewers
[13][17][18][19]
2007 ESPN Brent Musburger
Suzy Kolber
Brad Daugherty
Jerry Punch Rusty Wallace
Andy Petree
Allen Bestwick
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Mike Massaro
4.2 (4.9 cable) 6.574 million
2008 ESPN Allen Bestwick
Rusty Wallace
Brad Daugherty
Jerry Punch Dale Jarrett
Andy Petree
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Mike Massaro
Shannon Spake
4.3 (5.1 cable) 6.668 million
2009 ESPN Allen Bestwick
Rusty Wallace
Brad Daugherty
Ray Evernham
Jerry Punch Dale Jarrett
Andy Petree
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Shannon Spake
Vince Welch
4.1 (4.8 cable) 6.487 million
2010 ESPN Allen Bestwick
Rusty Wallace
Brad Daugherty
Ray Evernham
Marty Reid Dale Jarrett
Andy Petree
Jerry Punch
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Vince Welch
3.6 (4.2 cable) 5.709 million
2011 ESPN Nicole Briscoe
Rusty Wallace
Brad Daugherty
Allen Bestwick Dale Jarrett
Andy Petree
Jerry Punch
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Vince Welch
4.0 (4.6 cable) 6.337 million
2012 ESPN Nicole Briscoe
Rusty Wallace
Brad Daugherty
Ray Evernham
Allen Bestwick Dale Jarrett
Andy Petree
Jerry Punch
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Vince Welch
3.3 5.1 million
2013 ESPN Nicole Briscoe
Rusty Wallace
Brad Daugherty
Ray Evernham
Allen Bestwick Dale Jarrett
Andy Petree
Jerry Punch
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Vince Welch
3.6 5.5 million
2014[20] ESPN Nicole Briscoe
Rusty Wallace
Brad Daugherty
Allen Bestwick Dale Jarrett
Andy Petree
Jerry Punch
Dave Burns
Jamie Little
Vince Welch
3.4 5.2 million

NBCSN/NBC

Under the terms of a new $2.7 billion television deal from 2015 to 2024, the race will be part of the NASCAR on NBC package. In 2015, the race will air live on NBCSN.

Also in 2015, the race is advertised on NBCSN as NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Racing from the Brickyard Presented by Golden Corral, with the Golden Corral sponsorship being carried over from ESPN. Crown Royal has never paid the advertising premiums required by NASCAR to be mentioned as title sponsor of the race, either to ESPN/ABC or to NBC.

Year Network Host Lap-by-lap Color commentator(s) Pit reporter(s) Ratings Viewers
2015 NBCSN Krista Voda
Kyle Petty
Dale Jarrett
Rick Allen Jeff Burton
Steve Letarte
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Mike Massaro
Kelli Stavast
3.0[21] 4.7 million
2016 NBCSN Krista Voda
Kyle Petty
Dale Jarrett
Rick Allen Jeff Burton
Steve Letarte
Dave Burns
Marty Snider
Mike Massaro
Kelli Stavast

Radio

All races have been broadcast on radio through the IMS Radio Network. Since 2004, Performance Racing Network has co-produced the race. Doug Rice, who is the chief announcer for PRN, currently anchors the broadcast. John Andretti is the current driver expert.

From 1994–1999, Mike Joy anchored the broadcast. From 2000–2003, Mike King served as chief announcer. In 2004, Doug Rice joined King as co-anchor. In 2007-2008, the co-anchors were Doug Rice and Bob Jenkins. In 2009, Jenkins moved to Versus, and as a result, Chris Denari took over as co-anchor with Doug Rice.

See also

References

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  9. [1] Archived May 5, 2010 at the Wayback Machine
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  11. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. 1968 Indianapolis 500 Autolite 500 Daily Trackside Summary, Volume III, No. 26; Sunday May 26, 1968: Rain delayed the start of practice for Bump Day, and the day was extended beyond the 6 pm close. "...the extension period which was held today from 7:31 pm to 7:54 p.m (EST) at which time official deemed the track unsafe to run due to darkness..."
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  20. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. Brickyard 400 Hits Record-Low, But Sets NBCSN Record High

External links


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5 Hour Energy 301
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Brickyard 400
Next race:
Pennsylvania 400