Kwik Trip 250
 | |
 | |
| NASCAR Cup Series | |
|---|---|
| Venue | Road America |
| Location | Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin |
| Corporate sponsor | Kwik Trip (title sponsor) Jockey International (presenting sponsor) |
| First race | 1956 |
| Last race | 2022 |
| Distance | 250.48 miles (403.11 km) |
| Laps | 62 Stage 1: 14 Stage 2: 15 Final stage: 33 |
| Previous names | International Stock Car Road Race (1956) Jockey Made in America 250 presented by Kwik Trip (2021) |
| Most wins (manufacturer) | Chevrolet (2) |
| Circuit information | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 4.048 mi (6.515 km) |
| Turns | 14 |
The Kwik Trip 250 presented by Jockey Made in America was a NASCAR Cup Series race at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. The series first raced on the 4.048 mi (6.515 km) road course in 1956, but it did not return to the schedule until 2021 as part of Independence Day weekend. The race returned for another year in 2022 before being removed again in favor of a street race in Chicago.[1][2]
The NASCAR Xfinity Series' Henry 180, which had previously been on that series' schedule as a standalone race, served as a support event to the race.
History
[edit]
The first, and prior to 2021 only, NASCAR Cup Series race at Road America was a 250-mile event held in 1956, when the series was known as the Grand National Series. The race, promoted as "America's First International Stock Car Road Race",[3] was officially sanctioned by NASCAR but the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) provided support for the event and foreign cars were allowed entry.[4][5] The FIA's Commission Sportive Internationale secretary Hubert Schroeder served as race overseer. As road racing was rare for the series at the time, speculation among fans revolved around American cars' ability to maneuver the course; the field featured 25 American vehicles, a Jaguar Mark VII, and four Renaults.[6] The race was run on August 12; although Speedy Thompson took the lead as the leaders went through pit stops,[6] an engine failure forced him to retire from the race and Tim Flock led the final ten laps to win.[7] After the race, Flock remarked that "road racing is all right."[6]
Road America began hosting NASCAR again in 2010 with the NASCAR Nationwide Series, which replaced the series' race at the Milwaukee Mile.[8]
In June 2020, it was reported that Road America was in negotiations to host the Cup Series in 2021.[9] When NASCAR revealed the 2021 Cup Series schedule on September 30, 2020, Road America was included on the Fourth of July weekend.[10] Following the late addition of the O'Reilly Auto Parts 253 at Daytona International Speedway, Road America became one of seven road courses on the 2021 Cup calendar, the most in series history.[11] Wisconsin-based Kwik Trip was announced as the presenting sponsor for the race on April 13, 2021, and the race would be called the "Road America 250 presented by Kwik Trip".[12] However, on May 12, 2021, the clothing company Jockey, also headquartered in Wisconsin, was announced as the title sponsor for the race, which would be known as the "Jockey Made in America 250 presented by Kwik Trip."[13]
On September 15, 2021, the track announced that Jockey and Kwik Trip would switch places in the race's sponsorship, with Kwik Trip becoming the title sponsor and Jockey becoming the presenting sponsor.[14]
On June 17, Adam Stern from Sports Business Journal suggested that a Chicago street race could replace Road America on the 2023 Cup Series schedule as any street race added to the Cup Series schedule would likely replace one of the road course races and Road America did not have a contract to have a Cup Series race in 2023.[15] On July 19, NASCAR officially announced both the Chicago street race and the fact that it would replace Road America on the Cup Series schedule.[1][2] A day later, it was announced that Road America would not return to the Cup Series schedule in 2023.
Past winners
[edit]| Year | Date | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Sponsor | Race distance | Race time | Average speed (mph) | Report | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laps | Miles (km) | |||||||||||
| 1956 | August 12 | 15 | Tim Flock | Bill Stroppe | Mercury | Mercury | 63 | 252 (405.555) | 3:29:50 | 73.858 | Report | [7] |
| 1957 – 2020 | Not held | |||||||||||
| 2021 | July 4 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | NAPA Auto Parts | 62 | 250.48 (403.131) | 2:54:33 | 86.271 | Report | [16] |
| 2022 | July 3 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 3CHI | 62 | 250.48 (403.131) | 2:35:51 | 96.622 | Report | [17] |
Manufacturer wins
[edit]| # Wins | Manufacturer | Years Won |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Chevrolet | 2021, 2022 |
| 1 | Mercury | 1956 |
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Chicago to host first-ever NASCAR Cup Series street race in 2023". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. July 19, 2022.
- ^ a b "(Twitter post)". Twitter. Bob Pockrass. July 19, 2022.
NASCAR's Ben Kennedy says Road America won't be on the Cup schedule in 2023.
- ^ "America's First International Stock Car Road Race". The Sheboygan Press. August 9, 1956. Retrieved January 18, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Driver Showdown Expected At Road America Next Week". The Sheboygan Press. August 3, 1956. Retrieved January 18, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Stock Cars Test Road America Course First Time Aug. 12". Green Bay Press-Gazette. July 28, 1956. Retrieved January 18, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "They laughed when NASCAR's stock cars took to the road at Elkhart Lake, but Tim Flock gave the show a Detroit surprise". Sports Illustrated. August 20, 1956. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
- ^ a b "1956-37". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
- ^ Mejia, Diego (December 22, 2009). "Nationwide to race at Road America". Autosport. Archived from the original on February 1, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
- ^ Stern, Adam (June 17, 2020). "Road America Talking To NASCAR About Landing Cup Series Race". Sports Business Daily. Archived from the original on August 7, 2020. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
- ^ Long, Dustin (September 30, 2020). "Road America to host 2021 Cup race on July 4". NBC Sports. Archived from the original on January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
- ^ Nguyen, Justin (December 8, 2020). "NASCAR's road course love story continues with Daytona RC addition to create Florida tripleheader, Fontana removed". The Checkered Flag. Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
- ^ "Kwik Trip named presenting sponsor for NASCAR Cup Series race at Road America July 4". Road America (Press release). April 13, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
- ^ "Cup race at Road America to be the Jockey Made in America 250". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. May 12, 2021.
- ^ "Kwik Trip becomes title sponsor of Cup Series race at Road America". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. September 15, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
- ^ Stern, Adam (June 17, 2022). "Sources: NASCAR close to bringing street race to Chicago". Sports Business Journal. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
- ^ "2021 Jockey Made in America 250 Presented by Kwik Trip". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ "2022 Kwik Trip 250". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
External links
[edit]- Road America race results at Racing-Reference