Ford Championship Weekend
Encyclopedia
Ford Championship Weekend is the name given to the final race weekend of the NASCAR
season. All three of NASCAR's major series- the Camping World Truck Series, the Nationwide Series, and the Sprint Cup Series- end their seasons during this weekend, which is held at Homestead-Miami Speedway
in Homestead
, Florida
. Ford Motor Company
is the title sponsor of all three races, as well as the weekend in general.
NASCAR season came to an end, the organization decided to realign its three major series' schedules so all three of its series ended its season at the same track in the same weekend. Homestead-Miami Speedway had been on the NASCAR schedule since 1995, when the then-Busch Series added it to its schedule as its final race of the season. Between then and 2001, it was the only series that ended its season at the track. Traditionally, the Truck Series had ended its season in the western United States, with Las Vegas Motor Speedway
, Auto Club Speedway, and Phoenix International Raceway
serving as the location for the finale since the series began racing in 1995. Homestead was added to the schedule in 1996, often serving as an accompanying race to the Indy Racing League's early season stop at the track (the Truck Series and the IRL IndyCar Series have shared race weekends frequently since both series were founded in 1995, but it is not as common as it once was).
After four Busch Series races and three Truck Series races, NASCAR added a Cup Series race at Homestead for the 1999 season. The track was given the penultimate race of the season, which preceded the then-traditional series finale race, Atlanta Motor Speedway
's NAPA 500
. The Pennzoil 400, as the race was originally known, was run for three years as the scheduled second-to-last Winston Cup event (the 2001 race, where NASCAR was forced to run the New Hampshire 300
on Thanksgiving weekend due to 9/11
, was the only one that wasn't actually run as the second-to-last race of the year).
The weekend starts on Friday with the Ford 200
Truck race, then continues with the Ford 300
for the Nationwide series cars on Saturday afternoon. The Ford 400
, the last race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, is run on Sunday and is the final race of the NASCAR season. After each race, an official ceremony is conducted where the points leader in each series is given the trophy for winning the series championship. If a driver has already clinched the series championship entering the race weekend, an informal ceremony is conducted during the postrace festivities of the clinching race.
After Homestead installed lights after the 2004 season, the scheduling for the races changed. The Ford 200 Truck Series race was moved to Friday night from its Friday afternoon timeslot and has been run there ever since. The start times were adjusted for the Ford 300 and Ford 400 as well, as both races had their start times moved to late afternoon so they could finish under the lights. While the Ford 300 continues to be run in the late afternoon, NASCAR adopted uniform start times for its afternoon and evening Cup Series races for 2010 (except for the Coca-Cola 600
) and the start time for the Ford 400 was moved back to 1 PM. The 2011 Ford 400 returned to a late afternoon start.
In the history of Ford Championship Weekend, there have been four occasions where a series points leader has not been able to retain his lead following the race. The first two occurrences happened during the Ford 200 Truck Series race. In 2003, Brendan Gaughan
crashed out of the event late, finished 29th, and fell from first to fourth in the standings while Travis Kvapil
won the championship. In 2007, Ron Hornaday
and Mike Skinner
were separated by 29 points going into the race, but points leader Skinner had a problem with one of his truck's tires and axles and finished 35th. Hornaday finished seventh and won the title by 54 points. In 2010, 46 points separated first place Denny Hamlin
, second place Jimmie Johnson
, and third place Kevin Harvick
in the Sprint Cup standings. At various times in the Ford 400 each driver held the points lead, but in the end Johnson clinched his fifth consecutive Sprint Cup championship by finishing second in the race. Hamlin fell to second place, 39 points behind Johnson, with his 14th place finish. Harvick, who finished third, was two points behind Hamlin for third in the standings. In 2011 Tony Stewart
entered the race three points behind Carl Edwards
for the Sprint Cup lead. Stewart won the Ford 400 with Edwards finishing second and the points race ended in a tie. However, due to Stewart holding more victories than Edwards over the course of the season (Stewart's win gave him five while Edwards only won once), Stewart won the tiebreaker and became series champion for a third time.
With his 2011 championship, Stewart also set several milestones. He became the second driver to win the Chase for the Cup multiple times, with the championship being his second since the Chase was founded in 2004. Stewart was also the first driver to win a title other than Johnson since 2005, ending his streak of five consecutive championships. In addition, he became the first driver in the Chase era to win the final race and the championship in the same weekend (Kyle Busch, who clinched the 2009 Nationwide Series championship and won the Ford 300, is the only other driver to do that). Stewart also won the first championship for an owner-driver since Alan Kulwicki
won the 1992 Winston Cup Championship driving for AK Racing
. (Stewart is majority owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, which he bought into in 2009 after leaving Joe Gibbs Racing
.)
Since the debut of Ford Championship Weekend, there have been six occasions where a series points championship was already clinched. Greg Biffle
was the first driver to enter the weekend after having clinched a championship, as he won the 2002 Busch Series championship prior to the Ford 300. Since then, four more Busch/Nationwide drivers (Martin Truex, Jr., Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards
), and Brad Keselowski
), one Cup driver (Matt Kenseth
), and two Truck Series drivers (Ron Hornaday
and Todd Bodine
) have clinched titles prior to the final race. 2010 will mark the first time since Ford Championship Weekend was launched that two of the three major series' championships were clinched prior to the weekend, by virtue of Brad Keselowski clinching his championship with two races to go in the Nationwide Series season and Todd Bodine clinching his with one race to go in the Truck Series season. Bodine's 2010 championship marks the first time in the history of Ford Championship Weekend that the Truck Series championship has been decided prior to the final race in two consecutive years; the Busch/Nationwide Series is the only other series to have that distinction as Kevin Harvick and Carl Edwards both clinched their respective series championships before the Ford 300 in 2006 and 2007.
Several drivers have won more than one race held during this weekend. Todd Bodine
, Greg Biffle
, Kyle Busch
, and Carl Edwards
are the only drivers to win the same event more than once, while Busch and Edwards are the only two drivers to win multiple races in the same weekend. Bodine won the Ford 200 truck race in 2005 and 2008, while Busch won the Ford 300 in 2009 and 2010, Biffle won the Ford 400 in 2004, 2005, and 2006, and Edwards won the Ford 400 in 2008 and 2010. Edwards won the Ford 300 and Ford 400 in 2008 and Busch won the Ford 200 and 300 in 2010. In his two wins Busch accomplished a rare feat in that he clinched multiple owners' championships with his wins. His victory in the Ford 200 won Busch the Truck Series owners' championship for his own team, Kyle Busch Motorsports
, while his 13th victory of the season in the #18 Joe Gibbs Racing
Nationwide Series car clinched the series' owners' championship for JGR.
Besides the drivers listed above, several others have won more than one event in Ford Championship Weekend during their racing careers. Kasey Kahne
won the 2003 Ford 300 and the 2004 Ford 200, Matt Kenseth
won the Ford 300 in 2006 and the Ford 400 in 200, and Kevin Harvick
won the 2004 Ford 300 and the 2009 Ford 200.
, NASCAR's principal radio carrier. For 2010, Speed Channel
will air the Ford 200, ESPN2
the Ford 300, and ESPN
the Ford 400. Prior to 2003, ESPN
aired the Ford 200 as part of its contractwith NASCAR to air the Truck Series. NBC
and TNT retained their rights to air the Ford 300 and Ford 400 until 2006, when the ESPN family of networks acquired the rights. ABC
aired the Ford 400 from 2007–2009, and ESPN
aired the Ford 300 during that same time.
Ford 300
Ford 400
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
season. All three of NASCAR's major series- the Camping World Truck Series, the Nationwide Series, and the Sprint Cup Series- end their seasons during this weekend, which is held at Homestead-Miami Speedway
Homestead-Miami Speedway
Homestead-Miami Speedway is a race track in Homestead, Florida southwest of Miami.Since 2002 Homestead has hosted the final races of the season in all three of NASCAR's series: the Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series, and the Camping World Truck Series...
in Homestead
Homestead, Florida
Homestead is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States nestled between Biscayne National Park to the east and Everglades National Park to the west. Homestead is primarily a Miami suburb and a major agricultural area....
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
is the title sponsor of all three races, as well as the weekend in general.
History
After the 20012001 in NASCAR
The 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup season began on February 11 at the Daytona International Speedway and ended on November 23 at the New Hampshire International Speedway. Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports was crowned series champion for the fourth time in seven years. The season was marked by tragedy,...
NASCAR season came to an end, the organization decided to realign its three major series' schedules so all three of its series ended its season at the same track in the same weekend. Homestead-Miami Speedway had been on the NASCAR schedule since 1995, when the then-Busch Series added it to its schedule as its final race of the season. Between then and 2001, it was the only series that ended its season at the track. Traditionally, the Truck Series had ended its season in the western United States, with Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, located in Clark County, Nevada near Las Vegas, is a complex of multiple tracks for automobile racing. The complex is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., which is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.-History:...
, Auto Club Speedway, and Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...
serving as the location for the finale since the series began racing in 1995. Homestead was added to the schedule in 1996, often serving as an accompanying race to the Indy Racing League's early season stop at the track (the Truck Series and the IRL IndyCar Series have shared race weekends frequently since both series were founded in 1995, but it is not as common as it once was).
After four Busch Series races and three Truck Series races, NASCAR added a Cup Series race at Homestead for the 1999 season. The track was given the penultimate race of the season, which preceded the then-traditional series finale race, Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway is a track just outside Hampton, Georgia, twenty miles south of Atlanta. It is a quad-oval track with a seating capacity of over 125,000. It opened in 1960 as a standard oval. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track...
's NAPA 500
Emory Healthcare 500
The AdvoCare 500 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. Prior to its most recent rescheduling the fall Atlanta race was always run during the final stages of the NASCAR season, in either October or November, and was one of the ten races in...
. The Pennzoil 400, as the race was originally known, was run for three years as the scheduled second-to-last Winston Cup event (the 2001 race, where NASCAR was forced to run the New Hampshire 300
Sylvania 300
The Sylvania 300 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire.The Sylvania 300 has traditionally held in mid-September, however, the race has been rescheduled once in its history...
on Thanksgiving weekend due to 9/11
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
, was the only one that wasn't actually run as the second-to-last race of the year).
The weekend starts on Friday with the Ford 200
Ford 200
The Ford 200 is a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race that takes place at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The races of 1996-2001 were scheduled 250 miles.It has served as the final event of the season for the Truck Series since 2002.-Past winners:...
Truck race, then continues with the Ford 300
Ford 300
The Ford 300 is a NASCAR Nationwide Series race that takes place at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The race is part of the NASCAR Ford Championship Weekend, and is the final race of the season for the Nationwide Series....
for the Nationwide series cars on Saturday afternoon. The Ford 400
Ford 400
The Ford 400 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup stock car race held at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.The race is relatively new on the NASCAR circuit, first being run in 1999. Since 2002, the Ford 400 has been part of the Ford Championship Weekend, the last week of the NASCAR season. Starting...
, the last race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, is run on Sunday and is the final race of the NASCAR season. After each race, an official ceremony is conducted where the points leader in each series is given the trophy for winning the series championship. If a driver has already clinched the series championship entering the race weekend, an informal ceremony is conducted during the postrace festivities of the clinching race.
After Homestead installed lights after the 2004 season, the scheduling for the races changed. The Ford 200 Truck Series race was moved to Friday night from its Friday afternoon timeslot and has been run there ever since. The start times were adjusted for the Ford 300 and Ford 400 as well, as both races had their start times moved to late afternoon so they could finish under the lights. While the Ford 300 continues to be run in the late afternoon, NASCAR adopted uniform start times for its afternoon and evening Cup Series races for 2010 (except for the Coca-Cola 600
Coca-Cola 600
The Coca-Cola 600, formerly known as the World 600, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held each year at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina on Memorial Day weekend...
) and the start time for the Ford 400 was moved back to 1 PM. The 2011 Ford 400 returned to a late afternoon start.
In the history of Ford Championship Weekend, there have been four occasions where a series points leader has not been able to retain his lead following the race. The first two occurrences happened during the Ford 200 Truck Series race. In 2003, Brendan Gaughan
Brendan Gaughan
Brendan Gaughan is an American stock car driver. Gaughan is the grandson of Vegas gaming pioneer Jackie Gaughan and son of Michael Gaughan, a hotel and casino magnate. Gaughan currently drives the #62 South Point Hotel & Casino Toyota Tundra for Germain Racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck...
crashed out of the event late, finished 29th, and fell from first to fourth in the standings while Travis Kvapil
Travis Kvapil
Travis Kvapil is an American race car driver. He currently drives for Front Row Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.-Early career:...
won the championship. In 2007, Ron Hornaday
Ron Hornaday
Ronald Hornaday, Jr. is a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver. He is the father of former NASCAR driver Ronnie Hornaday, and son of the late Ron Hornaday, Sr., a two-time Winston West Champion. Adding on to the family legacy, Ron is a four-time champion in the Truck Series, his most recent...
and Mike Skinner
Mike Skinner (NASCAR)
Mike Skinner is an American driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He is the primary driver of the #60 Big Red Soda Toyota Camry for Germain Racing. He is the father of former NASCAR drivers Jamie and Dustin Skinner...
were separated by 29 points going into the race, but points leader Skinner had a problem with one of his truck's tires and axles and finished 35th. Hornaday finished seventh and won the title by 54 points. In 2010, 46 points separated first place Denny Hamlin
Denny Hamlin
James Dennis Alan "Denny" Hamlin is an American race car driver. Though originally born in Tampa, Florida, Hamlin was raised for most of his life in Chesterfield, Virginia. After racing in go-karts for a number of years, he worked his way up to Late Models by 2004 and signed a development contract...
, second place Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson is an American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car driver. He currently drives the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports....
, and third place Kevin Harvick
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick is an American stock car auto racing race car driver and car owner currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Richard Childress Racing, driving the No. 29 Budweiser/Jimmy John's/Rheem/Okuma/Realtree Outdoors/Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet Impala...
in the Sprint Cup standings. At various times in the Ford 400 each driver held the points lead, but in the end Johnson clinched his fifth consecutive Sprint Cup championship by finishing second in the race. Hamlin fell to second place, 39 points behind Johnson, with his 14th place finish. Harvick, who finished third, was two points behind Hamlin for third in the standings. In 2011 Tony Stewart
Tony Stewart
Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart...
entered the race three points behind Carl Edwards
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards, II is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #99 Fastenal/Aflac Ford Fusion in the Sprint Cup Series and the #60 Ford in the Nationwide Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
for the Sprint Cup lead. Stewart won the Ford 400 with Edwards finishing second and the points race ended in a tie. However, due to Stewart holding more victories than Edwards over the course of the season (Stewart's win gave him five while Edwards only won once), Stewart won the tiebreaker and became series champion for a third time.
With his 2011 championship, Stewart also set several milestones. He became the second driver to win the Chase for the Cup multiple times, with the championship being his second since the Chase was founded in 2004. Stewart was also the first driver to win a title other than Johnson since 2005, ending his streak of five consecutive championships. In addition, he became the first driver in the Chase era to win the final race and the championship in the same weekend (Kyle Busch, who clinched the 2009 Nationwide Series championship and won the Ford 300, is the only other driver to do that). Stewart also won the first championship for an owner-driver since Alan Kulwicki
Alan Kulwicki
Alan Dennis Kulwicki , nicknamed "Special K" and the "Polish Prince", was an American NASCAR Winston Cup Series racecar driver. He started racing at local short tracks in Wisconsin before moving up to regional stock car touring series...
won the 1992 Winston Cup Championship driving for AK Racing
Geoff Bodine Racing
Geoff Bodine Racing is a former NASCAR Winston Cup and Craftsman Truck Series team. It was owned and operated by former NASCAR driver Geoffrey Bodine following his purchase of the estate of Alan Kulwicki. He remained owner of the team until the 1998 season, when he sold the operation to Jim Mattei...
. (Stewart is majority owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, which he bought into in 2009 after leaving Joe Gibbs Racing
Joe Gibbs Racing
Joe Gibbs Racing is a group of NASCAR racing teams owned and operated by former Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, who first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991, and J. D. Gibbs, his son...
.)
Since the debut of Ford Championship Weekend, there have been six occasions where a series points championship was already clinched. Greg Biffle
Greg Biffle
Gregory Jack "Greg" Biffle is a NASCAR driver who drives the #16 3M Ford Fusion for Roush Fenway Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. After racing in the NASCAR Winter Heat Series in the mid-90s, he was recommended to Jack Roush by former announcer Benny Parsons...
was the first driver to enter the weekend after having clinched a championship, as he won the 2002 Busch Series championship prior to the Ford 300. Since then, four more Busch/Nationwide drivers (Martin Truex, Jr., Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards, II is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #99 Fastenal/Aflac Ford Fusion in the Sprint Cup Series and the #60 Ford in the Nationwide Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
), and Brad Keselowski
Brad Keselowski
Bradley Robert Keselowski is an American auto racing driver currently competing in the #2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger in the Sprint Cup Series and the #22 Discount Tire Company/Ruby Tuesday Dodge Challenger in the Nationwide Series for Penske Racing...
), one Cup driver (Matt Kenseth
Matt Kenseth
Matthew Roy "Matt" Kenseth is an American stock car driver. Kenseth currently drives the No. 17 Crown Royal Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
), and two Truck Series drivers (Ron Hornaday
Ron Hornaday
Ronald Hornaday, Jr. is a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver. He is the father of former NASCAR driver Ronnie Hornaday, and son of the late Ron Hornaday, Sr., a two-time Winston West Champion. Adding on to the family legacy, Ron is a four-time champion in the Truck Series, his most recent...
and Todd Bodine
Todd Bodine
Todd Bodine is a NASCAR driver. Todd is the younger brother of former racers Geoff Bodine and Brett Bodine. Bodine is known for his bald head, which has given him the nickname The Onion...
) have clinched titles prior to the final race. 2010 will mark the first time since Ford Championship Weekend was launched that two of the three major series' championships were clinched prior to the weekend, by virtue of Brad Keselowski clinching his championship with two races to go in the Nationwide Series season and Todd Bodine clinching his with one race to go in the Truck Series season. Bodine's 2010 championship marks the first time in the history of Ford Championship Weekend that the Truck Series championship has been decided prior to the final race in two consecutive years; the Busch/Nationwide Series is the only other series to have that distinction as Kevin Harvick and Carl Edwards both clinched their respective series championships before the Ford 300 in 2006 and 2007.
Several drivers have won more than one race held during this weekend. Todd Bodine
Todd Bodine
Todd Bodine is a NASCAR driver. Todd is the younger brother of former racers Geoff Bodine and Brett Bodine. Bodine is known for his bald head, which has given him the nickname The Onion...
, Greg Biffle
Greg Biffle
Gregory Jack "Greg" Biffle is a NASCAR driver who drives the #16 3M Ford Fusion for Roush Fenway Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. After racing in the NASCAR Winter Heat Series in the mid-90s, he was recommended to Jack Roush by former announcer Benny Parsons...
, Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch
Kyle Thomas Busch, is an American NASCAR driver and team owner. He currently drives the No. 18 Mars/Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Sprint Cup Series, the No. 18 Z-Line Designs/NOS Energy Drink Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs in the Nationwide Series, and the No...
, and Carl Edwards
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards, II is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #99 Fastenal/Aflac Ford Fusion in the Sprint Cup Series and the #60 Ford in the Nationwide Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
are the only drivers to win the same event more than once, while Busch and Edwards are the only two drivers to win multiple races in the same weekend. Bodine won the Ford 200 truck race in 2005 and 2008, while Busch won the Ford 300 in 2009 and 2010, Biffle won the Ford 400 in 2004, 2005, and 2006, and Edwards won the Ford 400 in 2008 and 2010. Edwards won the Ford 300 and Ford 400 in 2008 and Busch won the Ford 200 and 300 in 2010. In his two wins Busch accomplished a rare feat in that he clinched multiple owners' championships with his wins. His victory in the Ford 200 won Busch the Truck Series owners' championship for his own team, Kyle Busch Motorsports
Kyle Busch Motorsports
Kyle Busch Motorsports is a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and late model team that is owned and operated by Kyle Busch, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series and Truck Series driver...
, while his 13th victory of the season in the #18 Joe Gibbs Racing
Joe Gibbs Racing
Joe Gibbs Racing is a group of NASCAR racing teams owned and operated by former Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, who first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991, and J. D. Gibbs, his son...
Nationwide Series car clinched the series' owners' championship for JGR.
Besides the drivers listed above, several others have won more than one event in Ford Championship Weekend during their racing careers. Kasey Kahne
Kasey Kahne
Kasey Kenneth Kahne is a NASCAR driver. He drives the #5 Farmers Insurance Group Chevrolet Impala for Hendrick Motorsports in the Sprint Cup Series....
won the 2003 Ford 300 and the 2004 Ford 200, Matt Kenseth
Matt Kenseth
Matthew Roy "Matt" Kenseth is an American stock car driver. Kenseth currently drives the No. 17 Crown Royal Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
won the Ford 300 in 2006 and the Ford 400 in 200, and Kevin Harvick
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick is an American stock car auto racing race car driver and car owner currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Richard Childress Racing, driving the No. 29 Budweiser/Jimmy John's/Rheem/Okuma/Realtree Outdoors/Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet Impala...
won the 2004 Ford 300 and the 2009 Ford 200.
Television and radio coverage
All three races in the weekend are carried nationwide by Motor Racing NetworkMotor Racing Network
The Motor Racing Network is the principal radio broadcasting operation of NASCAR, promoting themselves as "The Voice of NASCAR." It broadcasts coverage of most major NASCAR races at the top three levels of NASCAR at tracks owned by International Speedway Corporation as well as Dover International...
, NASCAR's principal radio carrier. For 2010, Speed Channel
SPEED Channel
Speed , is a cable and satellite television network broadcast to various parts of North America, but primarily the United States...
will air the Ford 200, ESPN2
ESPN2
ESPN2 is an American sports cable television network owned by ESPN. The channel debuted on October 1, 1993.Originally nicknamed "the deuce," ESPN2 was initially branded as a network for a younger generation of sports fans featuring edgier graphics as well as extreme sports like motocross,...
the Ford 300, and ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
the Ford 400. Prior to 2003, ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
aired the Ford 200 as part of its contractwith NASCAR to air the Truck Series. NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
and TNT retained their rights to air the Ford 300 and Ford 400 until 2006, when the ESPN family of networks acquired the rights. ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
aired the Ford 400 from 2007–2009, and ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
aired the Ford 300 during that same time.
Ford Championship Weekend Race results
Ford 200| Year | Race winner | Craftsman/Camping World Truck Series champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Ron Hornaday | Mike Bliss |
| 2003 | Bobby Hamilton | Travis Kvapil |
| 2004 | Kasey Kahne | Bobby Hamilton |
| 2005 | Todd Bodine | Ted Musgrave |
| 2006 | Mark Martin | Todd Bodine |
| 2007 | Johnny Benson | Ron Hornaday |
| 2008 | Todd Bodine | Johnny Benson |
| 2009 | Kevin Harvick | Ron Hornaday6 |
| 2010 | Kyle Busch | Todd Bodine9 |
| 2011 | Johnny Sauter | Austin Dillon10 |
Ford 300
| Year | Race winner | Busch/Nationwide Series champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Scott Wimmer | Greg Biffle1 |
| 2003 | Kasey Kahne | Brian Vickers |
| 2004 | Kevin Harvick | Martin Truex, Jr.2 |
| 2005 | Ryan Newman | Martin Truex, Jr. |
| 2006 | Matt Kenseth | Kevin Harvick3 |
| 2007 | Jeff Burton | Carl Edwards 4 |
| 2008 | Carl Edwards | Clint Bowyer |
| 2009 | Kyle Busch | Kyle Busch |
| 2010 | Kyle Busch | Brad Keselowski 8 |
| 2011 | Brad Keselowski | Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. |
Ford 400
| Year | Race winner | Winston/NEXTEL/Sprint Cup champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Kurt Busch | Tony Stewart |
| 2003 | Bobby Labonte | Matt Kenseth5 |
| 2004 | Greg Biffle | Kurt Busch |
| 2005 | Greg Biffle | Tony Stewart |
| 2006 | Greg Biffle | Jimmie Johnson |
| 2007 | Matt Kenseth | Jimmie Johnson |
| 2008 | Carl Edwards | Jimmie Johnson |
| 2009 | Denny Hamlin | Jimmie Johnson7 |
| 2010 | Carl Edwards | Jimmie Johnson |
| 2011 | Tony Stewart | Tony Stewart11 |
- 1. Biffle clinched the series points championship after the Bashas' Supermarkets 200 at Phoenix.
- 2. Truex clinched the series points championship after the BI-LO 200BI-LO 200The BI-LO 200 was a former NASCAR Busch Series event held from 1983–2004, and was always run as an accompanying race to the Southern 500. When the Southern 500 was dropped from the schedule and Darlington's Busch Series schedule was reduced to one race, this race was removed in favor of the Diamond...
at Darlington. - 3. Harvick clinched the series points championship after the Dollar General 300Dollar General 300The Dollar General 300 Miles of Courage is a NASCAR Nationwide Series stock car race that takes place at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina...
at Charlotte. - 4. Edwards clinched the series points championship after the O'Reilly ChallengeO'Reilly ChallengeThe O'Reilly Auto Parts Challenge is a NASCAR Nationwide Series stock car race that takes place at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. The race came about from the results of the Ferko lawsuit in 2004...
at Texas. - 5. Kenseth clinched the series points championship after the Pop Secret 400Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400The Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup event that took place in November at the North Carolina Motor Speedway from 1965 to 2003...
at Rockingham. - 6. Hornaday clinched the series points championship after the Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix.
- 7. Johnson's 2009 championship marked the first time in NASCAR Sprint Cup history that a driver has won four consecutive series titles.
- 8. Keselowski clinched the series points championship after the O'Reilly Challenge at Texas.
- 9. Bodine clinched the series points championship after the Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix.
- 10. Dillon's 2011 championship made him the youngest driver in Truck Series history to win a championship.
- 11. Stewart's 2011 championship made him the first owner-driver champion since Alan Kulwicki in 1992.