Kroger Super Weekend at the Brickyard was a series of auto races held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in late July, surrounding the annual Brickyard 400. The weekend of events included the following races:
The naming rights are owned by grocery chain Kroger.
The NASCAR Winston Cup Series debuted at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1994. At the time, no official support races were part of the schedule. The Busch Series, however, did hold the Kroger 200 at Indianapolis Raceway Park in nearby Clermont, Indiana the same weekend. From 1995–2011, the Truck Series also held a race at IRP.
On September 3, 2009, Grand-Am tested on the combined road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as a potential future venue. A total of nine cars, representing both the Daytona Prototype and GT classes, participated. Laps were run in a clockwise direction (like Formula 1 at this track, and unlike MotoGP). For most of the test, the southwest turn of the oval was used (as it had been with Formula 1). A brief period in the middle of the day (approximately 20 minutes) was spent turning laps that included the southwest MotoGP road course section. [1]
On July 6, 2011, at a press conference held at the start-finish line, officials with the speedway, NASCAR, and the Grand American Road Racing Association announced the new Super Weekend at the Brickyard taking place July 26–29, 2012. The NASCAR Nationwide Series moved from Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis to the Brickyard to run a Saturday race while both the Rolex Sports Car Series and the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge would now run races on Friday. Further, the Rolex race is the conclusion of the new North American Endurance Challenge, a triple crown event along with the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 6 Hours of Watkins Glen. The 2012 race weekend was the first time in speedway history that races took place on the 2.5-mile oval and 2.534-mile Grand Prix road course during the same weekend. The move has been done to counter declining attendance during the Brickyard 400. Some Cup series regulars took part in the Rolex Sports Car Series races. [2] The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Lucas Oil Raceway was also discontinued.
The move of the Nationwide Series race from Lucas Oil Raceway to the Brickyard came with much criticism. Lucas Oil Raceway sold out every race in the 28 years it held a Busch Series/Nationwide Series race while offering exciting short track racing on the track, while many fans consider racing at the Brickyard "boring." [3]
The sports car endurance race was put on hiatus after 2014. Track and series officials noted very low attendance for the Friday afternoon event, and considered moving the sports cars to their own stand-alone event. As of 2017, the sports cars have not returned. As a result, use of the "Super Weekend" moniker has since diminished.
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 and formerly the home of the United States Grand Prix and Indianapolis motorcycle Grand Prix. It is located six miles (9.7 km) west of Downtown Indianapolis.
The Brickyard 400 is an annual NASCAR Cup Series points race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The inaugural race was held in 1994 and was the first race other than the Indianapolis 500 to be held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 1916. In its inaugural running, the Brickyard 400 became NASCAR's most-attended event, drawing an estimated crowd of more than 250,000 spectators. The race also paid one of NASCAR's highest purses. From 1994 to 2020, the race was held on the 2.5-mile oval, for a distance of 400 miles. The race was put on hiatus for three years (2021–2023) in favor of the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard which was run on a combined road course and run a distance of 200-mile (321.869 km). However, the race will return to the oval for the 2024 season.
Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park is an auto racing facility in Brownsburg, Indiana, about 10 miles (16 km) northwest of downtown Indianapolis. It includes a 0.686 mi (1.104 km) oval track, a 2.500 mi (4.023 km) road course, and a 4,400-foot (1,300 m) drag strip which is among the premier drag racing venues in the world. The complex receives about 500,000 visitors annually.
"NASCAR realignment" refers to changes in the schedule of the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
Motor Racing Network (MRN) is a U.S. radio network that syndicates broadcasts of auto racing events, particularly NASCAR. MRN was founded in 1970 by NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr. and broadcaster Ken Squier, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of NASCAR. Its first broadcast was the 1970 Daytona 500.
The Kroger 200 was a race for the NASCAR Xfinity Series which took place at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis in Clermont, Indiana.
Milka Duno is a Venezuelan race car driver who competed in the IndyCar Series and ARCA Racing Series. She is best known for holding the record of highest finish for a female driver in the 24 Hours of Daytona. She entered the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2014.
Historic and prestigious races in NASCAR are often called Crown Jewels. Most commonly these races are the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600, and Southern 500. NASCAR also recognizes the Brickyard 400 as a Crown Jewel. During the Winston Million program, the Winston 500 at Talledega was included, but most modern sources do not include it as a Crown Jewel race. Winning all Crown Jewel races in a single year is sometimes referred to as a Grand Slam.
The 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series was the sixteenth season of the third highest stock car racing series in the United States. Beginning at Daytona International Speedway, the season included twenty-five races, which ended with the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. During the 2009 off season, NASCAR announced few calendar changes, returning to Darlington Raceway for the first time in six years. Kyle Busch Motorsports won the owners' championship in their inaugural season, while Todd Bodine won the drivers' championship during the Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix International Raceway, one race before the final. Toyota won the manufacturers' championship with 193 points.
Joshua Wise is an American former professional stock car racing and dirt track racing driver and athletic trainer. He is currently a trainer for Chevrolet's development program for upcoming drivers and oversees driver development for Pinnacle Racing Group.
Fain Skinner is an American professional stock car racing driver who last competed in what is now the NASCAR Xfinity Series part-time in 2012. He has also made starts in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and the ARCA Racing Series.
The Pennzoil 250 is a NASCAR Xfinity Series auto race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 2012. It takes place the Saturday of Kroger Super Weekend. This race replaced the Kroger 200, which had been held at the nearby Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis, formerly known as Indianapolis Raceway Park, for the previous 30 years. Brad Keselowski won the inaugural event.
The 2012 Crown Royal Presents the Curtiss Shaver 400 at the Brickyard powered by BigMachineRecords.com, the 19th running of the event, was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on July 29, 2012 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. Contested over 160 laps, was the twentieth race of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Jimmie Johnson, of the Hendrick Motorsports racing team, won his third race of the season ahead of Kyle Busch in second. Greg Biffle finished in the third position.
The 1995 Brickyard 400, the 2nd running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race held on August 5, 1995. It was the 19th race of the 1995 NASCAR Winston Cup Series. The race, contested over 160 laps, was won by Dale Earnhardt driving for Richard Childress. Rusty Wallace driving for Roger Penske finished second and Dale Jarrett driving for Robert Yates finished third.
Motor sports are widely popular in the United States, but Americans generally ignore major international series, such as Formula One and MotoGP, in favor of home-grown racing series.
Until 2001, race tracks struck individual agreements with networks to broadcast races, but NASCAR wanted to capitalize on the growing popularity of the sport and announced in 1999 that television contracts would now be centralized; that is, instead of making agreements with individual tracks, networks would now negotiate directly with NASCAR for the rights to air a package of races.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused disruption to motorsport across the world, mirroring its impact across all sports. Across the world and to varying degrees, events and competitions were cancelled or postponed.
The Verizon 200 at the Brickyard was an annual NASCAR Cup Series points race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The inaugural race was held in 2021, replacing the Brickyard 400 which was run on a 2.5-mile oval from 1994 to 2020. The race takes place on the combined road course and run a distance of 200-mile (321.869 km). The layout utilized is the newer, modified layout of the circuit previously used for the Formula One U.S. Grand Prix, and currently used for the IndyCar GMR Grand Prix.
The Tirerack.com Battle on the Bricks is an IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship event held on the combined road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana.