Motorsports
Dover, Watkins Glen Moves Will Test NASCAR Risk-Taking
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Dover as the All-Star Race? Watkins Glen in May?
Those were the two somewhat startling reveals of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule. In fact, some might be scratching their heads asking, “what are they thinking?”
Speedway Motorsports has the All-Star Race and wanted North Wilkesboro to have a points race on the 30th anniversary of the last points race at the track. Nothing wrong with that.
But of all its tracks, it chose Dover, a track that doesn’t have lights. So most likely, this will be a daytime race.
Now, where temperatures are concerned, Dover in May is likely going to be cooler than Dover in hot July. And it is a short track, at one mile in length. It will be an intriguing All-Star Race — one that fans should want to watch since it will be unique.
But what about Nashville?
Maybe the idea was to wait to see if the Fairgrounds deal could be pushed through and then bring the All-Star Race there. Or Bristol? That has some of the same challenges as Dover, but it would also differentiate the two Bristol events.
“We worked with Speedway Motorsports on the shift there,” NASCAR Executive Vice President Ben Kennedy said. “Part of it was taking into consideration whether moving them into May felt like it was a better time of year from at least a heat perspective, and we considered a handful of other tracks as well. We felt like that one was the best.
NASCAR Executive Ben Kennedy speaks during the NASCAR Awards and Champion Celebration at the Charlotte Convention Center in Nov. 2024
“A number of considerations just as we think about each one of these moves, and Dover was the best option that we had for ’26.”
If the All-Star Race went to Bristol, that would mean adding another track in the early months of the schedule. And the decision to move Watkins Glen shows there are limited options.
Richmond had enough success with a recent Saturday night summer race that it appears a summer Saturday night works best for its one event.
Could Iowa have moved to May? Possibly, although then it would likely be within a week or two of the Kansas race. Maybe St. Louis? Sonoma?
So, yes, it is a little bit of a challenge. But camping in August at Watkins Glen seems like the perfect time.
NASCAR’s Jusan Hamlin, who is managing director for racing operations and handles much of the schedule issues, is from that area of New York and is hopeful the new date will work.
“The cool thing about having the race take place that time of year, school is still in session. The population of central New York is much higher that time of year, so you have the opportunity to potentially reach a fan demographic up there that’s typically not around during the summer,” Hamlin said.
Cup Series drivers race at Watkins Glen in Aug. 2025
“As far as weather goes, we look at a lot of data at all our venues, and weather is always certainly a consideration. You look at that time of the year. It says on average lower 70s during the day, chance of rain is relatively low even compared to August.”
Whether upstate New York will be recovering from a spring snow remains to be seen, but it is nothing that NASCAR hasn’t dealt with in March and April at some venues.
There’s lots to like in the 2026 Cup schedule.
Homestead as the finale and the addition of points races at San Diego (Naval Base Coronado), Chicagoland and North Wilkesboro should all generate excitement.
But as a series generates excitement, it often generates questions. We’ll see how these two work out.
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
Motorsports
Junior Late Model Combine at Madera Speedway Announced for January 23-24 – Speedway Digest
Nascimento Motorsports, a championship winning race team in Northern California, has announced the Jr. Late Model Combine to take place at Madera Speedway on January 23-24, 2026. Drivers ages 10-16 years old are invited to apply for consideration for the combine. On-track action on the one-third mile asphalt speedway includes Legends testing on Friday January 23 and Jr. Late Model testing on Saturday January 24.
The combine features driver coaching and evaluation from Nascimento Motorsports. The weekend also includes media, marketing, crew, and spotter modules. Drivers and their families will have opportunities to learn from sponsorship and media pros and from championship winning drivers and crew chiefs.
What’s at stake? The top performing driver will earn a fully paid race weekend in the 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model Series on national TV at Madera Speedway. Second prize is a half-priced race weekend. The third best driver earns a fully paid Legends race weekend.
51FIFTY Jr. Late Models has been the proving ground for many of the top young stock car drivers in the nation including 2025 XFINITY Series champion Jesse Love, two-time ARCA Menards Series, West champion Sean Hingorani, ARCA West winners such as Tanner and Tyler Reif, and Madera Short Track Shootout winners Kyle Keller and Ethan Nascimento among many others. Jr. Late Models utilize the GM 602 crate engine producing approximately 350 horsepower before being restricted for junior competition. An 8” Hoosier 970 tire controls the pace and adds additional challenges as well.
Event details and registration can be found at www.NascimentoMotorsports.comQuestions can be directed to Eric Nascimento at (209) 993-6457
Madera Speedway PR
Maurizio Leschiutta is set to step down as Lamborghini’s head of motorsport at the end of the calendar year.
Leschiutta (pictured above) will depart the Italian manufacturer after a short stint. He was originally appointed in mid-January to succeed Giorgio Sanna and oversee its GT and prototype efforts (although the SC63 program was paused after its partial season campaign in IMSA GTP), following his time spent at BMW working as project leader for its M Hybrid V8 LMDh program.
Rouven Mohr, the chief technical officer at Lamborghini, will assume the role of head of motorsport once again until the position is filled.
“During his tenure, Maurizio made a significant contribution to the sporting success of Lamborghini Squadra Corse during the 2025 season,” a statement from Lamborghini read. “Among the highlights, the team celebrated a historic overall victory in the 24 Hours of Spa, achieved together with Grasser Racing Team and Lamborghini factory drivers Mirko Bortolotti, Luca Engstler and Jordan Pepper.
“Beyond on-track success, Leschiutta also led the development of the new Lamborghini Temerario GT3 and Temerario Super Trofeo cars. These important projects will see their respective debuts at the 12 Hours of Sebring in the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship in 2026, and in the European, North American and Asian Super Trofeo championships starting in 2027, respectively.
“Lamborghini would like to sincerely thank Maurizio Leschiutta for the commitment, professionalism and dedication shown during his year with Lamborghini Squadra Corse. Lamborghini wishes him all the best for his future professional endeavors.”
The SCCA Foundation is embarking on an initiative in an effort to guarantee that future generations will be able to enjoy the thrill of amateur motorsports. That’s why Bob Crawford, chairman of SCCA’s Board of Directors (BoD), announced the appointment of Clay Turner as the new SCCA Foundation Executive Director. He and Foundation Chairman Jeff Jacobs are now charged with driving the non-profit’s bold mission of making opportunities in amateur motorsports accessible to all, now and for generations to come.
Turner, a 25-year member of the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and current member of SCCA’s BoD, brings extensive leadership experience and business acumen to this pivotal role, as well as a deep passion for motorsports. A seasoned competitor, he was elected to SCCA’s 13-member BoD in 2021 as the Area 8 representative after previously holding several leadership positions at SCCA’s Regional level.
“SCCA Foundation can play a larger role in preserving, protecting and expanding amateur motorsports,” Turner said. “We envision a vibrant future–one where the thrill of competition, the spirit of community, and the legacy of excellence are passed on to the next generation of drivers, volunteers and leaders. As a Club, SCCA is uniquely positioned to pass along a legacy of excellence built by racing legends, ensuring the thrill of competition and spirit of community continues to inspire future generations to experience the rush of auto racing competition.”
Created in 1986, SCCA Foundation’s original signatories included Paul Newman, Carl Haas and former ACCUS-FIA President Nick Craw. As an SCCA support organization, the non-profit Foundation has nearly four decades of service to the Club through its education, training and development efforts.
For more information or to support the Foundation’s endeavors, visit sccafoundation.org.
For more on the SCCA, visit scca.com.
Motorsports
NASCAR’s tragic ties to aviation crashes stretch back decades before Greg Biffle’s death
Aviation crashes have taken the lives of some of NASCAR’s most notable drivers, including Alan Kulwicki and Davey Allison.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR icon Greg Biffle was killed in a plane crash at the Statesville Regional Airport on Thursday, along with his wife, two children, and three others.
Biffle was a 19-time NASCAR Cup Series race winner and was the first driver to win a championship in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (2002) and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (2000).
NASCAR drivers spend their careers racing at speeds sometimes in excess of 200 mph, pushing their cars to the limit in dangerous conditions. The sport has dramatically increased safety standards in recent years, with zero deaths in NASCAR’s top three series since Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s death in 2001, but the risks still remain.
In a sport highlighted by breakneck speeds and death-defying crashes, aviation crashes away from the race track have seemed all too common over the years.
Biffle’s death is the latest plane crash to shake the NASCAR community, but it is far from the first.
RELATED: ‘More than a champion’ | NASCAR issues statement following Greg Biffle’s plane crash death
Hendrick Motorsports disaster (2004)
Ten people connected to Hendrick Motorsports were killed in a Virginia plane crash on Oct. 24, 2004. The plane was headed for Martinsville Speedway when it crashed into a mountain due to foggy conditions.
Four of team-owner Rick Hendrick’s family members were killed in the crash, including his son Ricky Hendrick, brother John Hendrick, and nieces Kimberly and Jennifer. Engine-builder Randy Dorton, team executive Jeff Turner, DuPont executive Joe Jackson, pilots Elizabeth Morrison and Richard Tracey, and Scott Latham, one of Tony Stewart’s pilots, also died in the crash.
Alan Kulwicki (1993)
1992 NASCAR Cup Series champion Alan Kulwicki died when his plane lost power on April 1, 1993, in Tennessee while headed to Bristol Motor Speedway.
Kulwicki, along with Hooters executives Mark Brooks and Dan Duncan, and the pilot Charles Campbell, died in the crash.
Kulwicki won five NASCAR Cup Series races and captured the 1992 title as an owner-driver in an epic underdog story.
Kulwicki was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2019.
Davey Allison (1993)
Just three months after Kulwicki’s death, Davey Allison died in a helicopter crash on July 12, 1993, near Talladega Superspeedway.
Allison was attempting to land the helicopter when it crashed. Red Farmer, a NASCAR Hall of Fame member, was also on board but survived the crash.
Allison narrowly lost the 1992 championship and was one of the sport’s brightest young drivers at the time of his death. He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2019.
Curtis Turner (1970)
Curtis Turner, one of NASCAR’s earliest stars, was killed in a crash on Oct. 4, 1970, in Pennsylvania. Turner was piloting the small plane when it crashed shortly after takeoff. Golfer Clarence King was also killed in the crash.
Turner competed in the first NASCAR Cup Series race in 1949, which was held in Charlotte. He raced until the late 1960s, winning 17 races in the series.
Turner and Bruton Smith teamed up to build Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1959.
He was scheduled for a one-off race in the National 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, which happened days after his death.
RELATED: At least two pilots were on Greg Biffle’s plane that crashed in Statesville, records show
Mike Stefanik (2019)
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour legend Mike Stefanik died in a Connecticut plane crash on Sept. 15, 2019.
Stefanik was flying alone from Rhode Island when the plane suffered mechanical problems and crashed.
Stefanik won the Modified Tour championship seven times and is one of the series’ greatest drivers.
In 2022, Stefanik was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. He was listed as one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers in 2023.
Ted Christopher (2017)
Another modified icon lost their life in a plane crash. Ted Christopher died in a New York crash on Sept. 16, 2017.
Christopher was headed for a race at Riverhead Raceway when the plane he was in suffered fuel starvation, causing it to crash. Christopher and the plane’s pilot were killed in the crash.
Christopher won the 2008 Modified Tour championship and 42 races in the series.
Richie Panch (1985)
Richie Panch and three others died on Sept. 1, 1985, when their plane came apart mid-air during a heavy storm system in Fairfield County, South Carolina.
Panch made 47 NASCAR Cup Series starts, scoring 11 top 10s. He finished 14th in the 1974 season, his only full-time year. Panch was the son of 17-time Cup Series race winner Marvin Panch, who won the 1961 Daytona 500.
RELATED: ‘We are devastated’ | Families of Biffle, others killed in plane crash release joint statement
Non-fatal crashes
Some NASCAR personnel have miraculously survived aviation crashes.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2019)
Dale Earnhardt Jr., his wife Amy, and their daughter Isla survived after their private plane crashed near the Elizabeth Municipal Airport in Tennessee on Aug. 15, 2019.
The National Transportation Safety Board stated that the pilot’s inability to maintain proper airspeed, along with a decision to continue an unstable approach, led to the crash.
The plane went through a chain-link fence before coming to rest on the edge of Tennessee Highway 91. Unable to escape through an emergency exit door above the wing, Earnhardt and his family managed to get out through the main cabin door as the plane caught fire, according to witness statements.
Earnhardt won 26 NASCAR Cup Series races and was a two-time NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion. He won the NASCAR Most Popular Driver Award 15 times in the Cup Series, one shy of the all-time record. Earnhardt is the son of the late Dale Earnhardt Sr., one of NASCAR’s greatest drivers. Earnhardt Jr.
Jack Roush (2002, 2010)
The primary owner of Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, Jack Roush, survived two plane crashes.
The first one happened on April 19, 2002. Roush was piloting a single-seat plane that hit a power line and fell into a lake in Troy, Alabama. A witness saved Roush from the lake, pulling him from the lake and administering CPR. Roush suffered broken ribs, a shattered leg, and head injuries, but survived. The man who saved him suffered chemical burns during the rescue.
O July 27, 2010, Roush crashed a private jet he piloted. The NTSB said Roush did not advance the engines to takeoff power, causing an aerodynamic stall. Roush escaped alive but suffered a broken jaw, fractured back, and a loss of vision in his left eye.
Roush started RFK Racing in 1988 under the name Roush Racing. The team has been one of the sport’s most successful teams over the last three decades, winning two Cup Series championships and 143 races.
Rick Hendrick (2011)
Rick and Linda Hendrick suffered minor injuries after their private jet ran off the runway at the Key West International Airport on Nov. 1, 2011.
The aircraft had no brakes when it landed on the runway, leading to the crash.
Hendrick runs Hendrick Motorsports, the most successful team in NASCAR’s history. The team has won 15 Cup Series championships and 320 races, both of which are records.
Bill Elliott (1987)
A year before winning the NASCAR Cup Series championship, Bill Elliott nearly lost his life during a demonstration flight in a Georgia Air National Guard fighter.
Elliott was in an F-16 fighter jet after filming a promotional video for the Georgia National Guard. The jet collided with an F-15 fighter jet. The plane Elliott was on landed safely while heavily damaged. The pilot of the other plane safely ejected.
Elliott won the 1988 NASCAR Cup Series title, 44 races, and a record 16 Most Poular Driver awards.
Motorsports
Indian Supercross Racing League Team Indewheelers Motorsports onboards Apollo Techno Industries as Title Sponsor
Pune: Indewheelers Motorsports, one of the franchise teams competing in the Indian Supercross Racing League (ISRL), has announced Apollo Techno Industries Ltd. as its Title Sponsor for the upcoming season. Following this association, the team will now compete under the name Apollo Indewheelers Motorsports, marking a significant milestone in its journey within India’s premier Supercross championship.
The collaboration brings together two brands driven by a shared commitment to engineering excellence and performance. As the ISRL continues to evolve into a world-class motorsport property, the partnership strengthens Indewheelers Motorsports’ competitive positioning while providing Apollo Techno Industries with a high-impact platform to engage with India’s rapidly growing motorsport and two-wheeler enthusiast community.
Commenting on the partnership, Vikram Dhar, Founder, Indewheelers Motorsports, said, “We are delighted to welcome Apollo as the Title Sponsor of our team. This partnership is a strong endorsement of what we are building at Indewheelers Motorsports, an organization driven by performance and a long-term vision for motorsports in India. With Apollo’s support, we are confident of elevating our on-track competitiveness while creating deeper fan engagement through the ISRL platform.”
Sharing his thoughts on the association, Parth Rashmikant Patel, MD, Apollo Techno Industries Ltd., said, “Motorsport is a true test of technology, endurance, and teamwork, and Indewheelers Motorsports embodies all of these elements. Partnering as the Title Sponsor aligns perfectly with Apollo’s vision of supporting high-performance platforms and inspiring the next generation of riders and racers. We are excited to see Apollo Indewheelers Motorsports compete and succeed across championships.”
Earlier this season, Indewheelers Motorsports also received backing from leading infrastructure brand Arabian Coast. Commenting on the development, Jacob Varghese, Director, Arabian Coast, said, “This partnership brings together two strong brands with a shared passion for motorsports and high performance. Indewheelers Motorsports has consistently demonstrated professionalism, competitive spirit, and strong brand value. Apollo’s association as Title Sponsor further elevates the team’s stature and opens up exciting opportunities for fan engagement, visibility, and long-term growth.”
The partnership reflects the growing confidence of leading Indian brands in ISRL’s franchise-based model, which combines elite international racing standards with high-energy fan experiences and strong regional team identities. As Apollo Indewheelers Motorsports gears up for the upcoming races, the collaboration is expected to unlock new avenues for fan engagement and sustained growth within India’s evolving motorsports ecosystem.
The ISRL now heads to Kozhikode, Kerala, for the Grand Finale on December 21, 2025, at the EMS Corporation Stadium, in the presence of superstar Salman Khan, promising the most intense championship showdown of the season.
Tickets for the ISRL Season Finale are available on BookMyShow. Fans can also follow the action live and on-demand on FanCode, watch broadcasts on Eurosport India, and tune in globally via the Indian Supercross Racing League’s official YouTube channel, while joining the conversation on social media using #FlirtWithDirt.
Updated Dec. 18, 2025, 5:26 p.m. ET
The motorsports world is mourning the tragic death of retired NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and his family on Thursday.
Biffle and three members of his family died on Thursday in a plane crash while the business jet they were flying in attempted to land in Statesville, North Carolina. Seven people died in the plane crash, including Biffle, his wife Cristina and his son and daughter. The three others on board were Dennis Dutton, his son Jack and Craig Wadsworth.
The families of the seven people killed released a statement on Thursday afternoon regarding the tragic plane crash:
We are devastated by the loss of our loved ones. This tragedy has left all of our families heartbroken beyond words.
Greg and Cristina were devoted parents and active philanthropists whose lives were centered around their young son Ryder and Greg’s daughter Emma (mother – Nicole Lunders).
Emma was a wonderful human being with a kind soul who was loved by many people. Ryder was an active, curious and infinitely joyful child.
Dennis Dutton and his son Jack were deeply loved as well, and their loss is felt by all who knew them.
Craig Wadsworth was beloved by many in the NASCAR community and will be missed by those who knew him.
Each of them meant everything to us, and their absence leaves an immeasurable void in our lives.
We ask for privacy, compassion and understanding as we grieve and begin to process this unimaginable loss. We are grateful for the kindness and support that has been extended to our families during this incredibly difficult time.
At this moment, our focus is on honoring their lives and supporting one another.
NASCAR also released its own statement regarding the death of Biffle and his family.
As the shocking news reverberated throughout the motorsports world, NASCAR drivers took to social media to mourn Biffle, his family and the others on board the tragic plane crash.
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