NASCAR Cup Series

With the announcement by Roush Fenway Racing that Carl Edwards would not be returning in 2015 still reverberating throughout the garage, here is what else was surprising and not surprising in the 21st Annual Crown Royal presents The John Wayne Walding 400 at The Brickyard Powered by BigMachineRecords.com at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Crown Royal attaches a hero's name to the Brickyard 400 as part of their sponsorship, and this year that honor went to 12 year military veteran John Wayne Walding. Yet, to be honest and if the length of the title could go on to infinity, this should have been called “Crown Royal Presents The John Wayne Walding 400 at the Brickyard to be Dominated Once Again by Jeff Gordon.” That sounds about right.

The first shoe dropped Sunday morning. It was almost certain when Jack Roush revealed that Trevor Bayne would be driving the No. 6 Ford in 2015. Roush has only had three cars in recent seasons because of the lack of sponsorship, and it was almost unbelievable that he would field four in 2015.

NASCAR’s most popular driver and driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet SS, Dale Earnhardt Jr., is scheduled to make an appearance at The Finish Line, Kansas Speedway’s Fan Hospitality on Oct. 5, prior to the Hollywood Casino 400, the fourth race in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Back by popular demand, Talladega Superspeedway’s “Two for $88” ticket package, named for NASCAR’s most popular driver and a Talladega favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr., is available again, offering fans amazing savings to see Dale Jr. attempt to repeat history in the GEICO 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on October 19.

Bank of America and Hendrick Motorsports have extended their relationship through 2015 with a new agreement that will for the first time include presenting sponsorship of the official website and mobile application of the 11-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions.

Jeff Gordon, driver of the No.24 Axalta Chevrolet owned by Rick Hendrick, made history at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway by becoming the first 5-time winner on the oval and ties Michael Schumacher for most wins overall. It was Gordon’s first win at the track since since 2004. His other wins include the inaugural race in 1994, as well as wins in 1998 and 2001.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points leader Jeff Gordon, who won the inaugural race back in 1994, scored his fifth Brickyard 400 victory at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway, tying Michael Schumacher for the most wins at the track. Schumacher, a seven-time Formula One champion, won five out of six United States Grand Prix events on the 2.5 mile layout.

Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS for Hendrick Motorsports, wrote another chapter in the history books for himself, his team and for Chevrolet with a celebrated victory in the 2014 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS). The victory was his fifth in the prestigious NASCAR Sprint Cup series (NSCS) event at IMS, ninth for Hendrick Motorsports, 12th straight for Chevrolet and 16 of 21 for the Bowtie Brand. In addition, Gordon’s second win of the season helped him clinch a spot in the Chase for NASCAR Sprint Cup with six races remaining before the 10 race playoff starts at Chicagoland Speedway on September 14th.

Motorcraft Quick/Lane team kicked off the Woods’ 64th NASCAR season – and Trevor Bayne and the crew of his No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion spent most of their pre-race practice time at Indianapolis Motor Speedway preparing their car for qualifying, which meant sacrificing time normally spent preparing for the Brickyard 400.