Adam Family Motorsports announced today it will field a Longhorn Chassis for Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., during Jan. 10-18’s Wild West Shootout at Central Arizona Raceway in Casa Grande, Ariz., which brings the miniseries to Thornton’s home state for the first time since 2021.

Daniel Adam, the son of team owner Joe Adam, will pilot the team’s Rocket XR1.2 Chassis alongside Thornton throughout the Southwest miniseries. The connection with Thornton and Adam Family Motorsports likely came together after the team recently announced the addition of sponsor Hoker Trucking, a long-time supporter of Thornton throughout his racing career.

Adam’s team also cited a longstanding friendship with Bobby Koehler of Koehler Motorsports, Thornton’s usual team owner who gave the temporary partnership his blessing, allowing Thornton’s Anthony Burroughs-led Koehler Motorsports team to focus on preparing for Georgia-Florida Speedweeks.

Thornton, 35, will begin his stint as Daniel Adam’s teammate in the Wild West Shootout’s $25,000-to-win opener on Sat., Jan. 10. Thornton is also entered in Jan. 12-17’s Chili Bowl Nationals, an indoor midget event at the Tulsa (Okla.) Expo Center where he will compete in at least one midweek qualifying night preliminary program and could end up missing Jan. 17’s Wild West Shootout show if he’s in position to make the same day’s Chili Bowl finale.

The six-race Wild West Shootout includes $10,000-to-win programs on Jan. 11,, Jan. 14, Jan. 16 and Jan. 17 before concluding with a second $25,000-to-win event on Jan. 18.

Both the Wild West Shootout and Chili Bowl Nationals will be live-streamed on FloRacing.

Legendary NASCAR driver Ryan Newman will see his 14-year-old daughter race at the Tulsa Shootout this weekend – an event at which many have looked to make a name for themselves.

The largest event for micro sprint racing in the world, the Tulsa Shootout begins this week with Brooklyn Newman set to be competing. Newman is not the only driver to see his kids race in the event this weekend, with Kyle Larson’s son and daugher both set to be behind the wheel.

A hectic and unforgiving race, a 13-year-old had a helmet thrown at him by a fellow driver this week after an ugly incident on the track.

Newman is all too knowing of the risks that come with the sport, but has trust in his daughter and allowed her to race in the event after making a deal with her.

The former Daytona 500 winner had spoken on why he’s allowing her to compete, stating that at the start of last year, she asked him: “Dad, I want to go Tulsa”.

Newman responded to his daughter: “We have a good year. I’ll take you to Tulsa, so here we are in Tulsa and it’s the end of the year. So we’ll see how we finish up.”

The 14-year-old is seen as an exciting prospect in motorsports, competing across multiple events including at the Winged Micro, Outlaw Dirt Intermediate and 602 Modified classes.

She impressed her father enough to enter her in the Tulsa Shootout this week, where she’ll be in Race 67 of the Outlaw micro sprint class.

Ahead of the race, she said: “We had a pretty fast car. I’m excited.”

Meanwhile, NASCAR Cup Series Championship winner Larson will see his son and daughter enter the same event this weekend.

Larson said on his children competing: “That’s what I’m most excited about is just getting to see the kids participate in a big event, have fun and, hopefully, do a good job.

“Audrey, she’s getting to run her first Shootout in the junior sprint—and she takes it very seriously. We’ve watched every lap of the 2024 Shootout, every lap of the Junior Sprint. So she’s been studying. Hopefully, she can do good.

“And then Owen, he has been doing a good job this year, but he’s going to be in a lot of tough divisions, so I don’t know what to expect there. Obviously, it takes a little bit of luck along the way.”

“Watkins Glen International is saddened by the passing of former President Michael Printup, who led the facility for 15 years.

During his tenure, Michael played a key role in the continued growth and success of Watkins Glen International, helping to strengthen its operations, partnerships, and standing within the motorsports industry while honoring the venue’s storied history.

Michael was a respected leader who left a lasting impact on the organization and those who worked alongside him. We extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.”

WGI PR

The long-running feud between NASCAR and two of its teams — 23XI Racing, Front Row Motorsports — finally came to an end on Dec. 11 when it was announced that the two teams had reached a settlement agreement in the antitrust lawsuit filed against the organization. And according to one litigator, NASCAR likely had to pay up big to bring the damaging suit to an end.

The lawsuit alleging “monopolistic” behaviour had been filed in October 2024, the month after they were the only teams to refuse to sign NASCAR’s new charter agreement, which was meant to align with the new seven-year $7.7 billion TV broadcasting rights deal.

Ultimately, the trial in Charlotte, North Carolina, lasted just eight days before a settlement was reached. During the course of the trial, both sides revealed less-than-flattering messages exchanged privately from their counterparts.

A prime example came from 23XI co-owner Michael Jordan calling Joe Gibbs Racing “f——” and the teams that signed the agreement “p——.”

As for NASCAR, it arguably emerged far worse off than its opponents, thanks in no small part to commissioner Steve Phelps, who was revealed to have called Hall of Fame team owner Richard Childress “an idiot” and a “stupid redneck” who he said should be “taken out back and flogged.”

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NASCAR CEO Jim France also didn’t fare well, having supposedly responded to Joe Gibbs’ plea for further negotiations by simply saying, “If I wake up and I have 20 charters, I have 20. If I have 30, I have 30.”

Thankfully, the sides were able to come to an amicable agreement in the end, halting the need for further embarrassment.

“This resolution reflects our shared commitment to maintaining a fair and equitable framework for long-term participation in America’s premier motorsport, one that supports teams, partners and stakeholders while ensuring fans enjoy uninterrupted access to the best racing in the world,” a joint statement said.

“The agreement allows all parties to move forward with a unified focus on advancing stock car racing and delivering exceptional competition for our fans.

“With this matter now resolved, all parties look forward to working together, alongside all chartered race teams, to deliver world-class events, dynamic sponsorship and partner activation opportunities, and continued growth for generations to come.”

While the terms of the agreement were not made public, barring the implementation of “evergreen” charters, antitrust litigator Meegan Hollywood told the Sports Business Journal, NASCAR may well have forked up around 10-25 percent of the $365 million in damages the teams were seeking, meaning anywhere from $36.5 to $91.25 million.

However, another antitrust lawyer, who opted to remain anonymous, believed the payment could have been at least 50 percent, or $182.5 million.

The trial was a costly one for all involved, with the combined attorney fees suspected by Hollywood to be in the region of $50 million, with the second lawyer suggesting this estimation could only be half of the true amount.

“I suspect also that this particular settlement allowed them to have a little bit more control in the changes that they made to the charter system,” Hollywood suggested, adding, “Because in addition to the sort of financial risk, NASCAR did run the risk of having court-mandated changes and then they sort of would have had to do that not on their own terms. This probably allowed them to make certain changes on their own terms and have some more internal control.”

Joey Logano sent his thoughts and prayers to Denny Hamlin and his family in the aftermath of a devastating housefire. 

On Sunday, the home where Denny Hamlin’s parents, Dennis and Mary Lou Hamlin, lived in North Carolina was destroyed in a massive blaze. On Monday, Dennis Hamlin, who already had been seriously ill, was confirmed to have died while Mary Lou Hamlin continued to recover from her injuries.

Now, Logano is the latest NASCAR star to reach out to the grieving Hamlin family amid their tragedy. The 35-year-old’s social media post comes just hours before Denny Hamlin broke his silence on the death of his father while simultaneously giving an update on his mother. 

“My thoughts and prayers go out to @dennyhamlin,” the three-time Cup Series champion posted on X. “Such a horrific situation. The Logano family will continue to think of and pray for everyone impacted, and we’ll pray for Mary Lou and hope the best for her full recovery.”

It wasn’t just Logano that sent his thoughts and prayers to Hamlin and his family; A large majority of the NASCAR community sent their condolences to the 45-year-old. 23XI Racing, the team he co-owns with Michael Jordan, posted a statement on social media regarding the tragedy. 

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“Everyone at 23XI Racing is deeply saddened by the tragic news concerning the Hamlin family. We extend our deepest condolences to Denny and the entire Hamlin family during this difficult time. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the family and his mom,” the statement read. 

Kyle Larson, who defeated Hamlin at Phoenix to win his second Cup Series championship, also sent his thoughts and prayers to the star, as did Kaden Honeycutt and Rodney Childers, a crew chief for JR Motorsports. NASCAR also released a statement on social media, offering its condolences to the Hamlin family after it was confirmed that Dennis Hamlin had died. 

“NASCAR extends its deepest condolences to Denny Hamlin and the entire Hamlin family,” the statement began. 

“Dennis Hamlin instilled a love of racing in his son, and sacrificed greatly to develop Denny into a world-class talent in the sport. We also continue to offer our thoughts and prayers to Denny’s mother, Mary Lou, and hope for her full recovery.”

On Wednesday, Denny Hamlin broke his silence and took to social media to express his gratitude for the outpouring of support he’s received in the days following the fire and his father’s death. 

The NASCAR star wrote: “Thank you to everyone who has reached out with condolences on my father’s passing. My mother continues to improve, and our family truly appreciates the outpouring of support and the respect for our privacy during this time.”

Former NASCAR driver Kenny Wallace joined in on the ongoing debate regarding the value fans receive for the price of their tickets to attend races.

Speaking on his ‘Coffee with Kenny’ segment on X, Wallace detailed his frustrations with NASCAR’s ticketing strategy in recent years, which has prevented fans from enjoying a full and affordable experience at the racetrack and caused a decline in attendance.

Through the introduction of the one-ticket-for-everything bundle, which prohibits fans from buying a ticket to just the race or practice, many fans’ interest in attending live races has deteriorated, Wallace claimed.

“People say that the price of the ticket is relatively cheap when you consider inflation, people aren’t complaining about the price to get in the race track,” Wallace said, detailing a phone call he had with a NASCAR track owner.

“Here’s what they’re complaining about… what I’m hearing through a NASCAR track owner is that the fans are upset there’s nothing going on at the racetrack.”

Entry level tickets at low-end races fall within the $40 to $60 range, but most tracks have increased general admission and basic grandstand seats closer to $100. Single tickets to higher profile events, such as the Daytona 500, can cost $350 or more.

But that is just the base level. Camping, VIP passes, infield access and other experiences add to those costs significantly, sometimes exceeding four figures for one individual, much less a family. 

Most fans’ gripes, Wallace said, come from the lack of action around the grounds for what a multi-day ticket costs. Track owners want to pack the campgrounds and encourage fans to come on Thursday night and stay through Sunday’s race, but there just isn’t enough exposure to Cup Series action throughout the weekend.

In recent seasons, the Cup Series moved most practice and qualifying activity into tight windows on Saturday afternoon, giving fans eager to see the stars of the sport little reason to show up as early as Thursday night.

“Back in the day, say, I don’t know, 15 years ago, when you went to the racetrack you had a reason to get there on Thursday night,” Wallace said.

“My track owner says that’s why the camping grounds are not packed anymore because Cup practice is at 4:30 on Saturday night right now. And the times change for everything, nothing is consistent. Nobody knows what the f— is going on.”

Wallace then sent a plea to NASCAR president Steve O’Donnell to enact change.

“Steve O’Donnell, my dear friend, if you’re listening to this, ‘You are the president of NASCAR. Let’s get some practice in on Friday and Saturday. Let’s do some things. Let’s give, let’s give these, these fans a reason to get to the racetrack early.”