(Macon, IL) Thursday, June 13th, get ready to welcome “The King” of NASCAR racing, Richard Petty, along with Indiana’s own NASCAR titan Tony Stewart, coming off of his win this past weekend at Dover. Macon Speedway will kick off the Night of NASCAR Stars by hosting an autograph session featuring Richard Petty, and co-owners of Macon Speedway Tony Stewart, Kenny Wallace and Kenny Schrader. So come out to the Macon Speedway early to get your chance to meet Richard, Tony, Kenny & Ken. The NASCAR stars will be signing autographs from 5:00 to 6:00. You also won’t want to miss the wild action of the Midwest Big Ten Series UMP Late Models, Billingsley Towing UMP Modifieds, UMP Street Stocks and UMP Sportsman as they take to the legendary oval for the crowd.
Known to many simply as “The King,” NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty is the most decorated driver in the history of NASCAR racing, winning a record number 200 career races – his last coming on July 4, 1984 in front of then-president Ronald Reagan – and seven NASCAR Cup championships during his illustrious career. One would think that after 1,184 races that spanned three decades, “The King” would bow out and retire quietly. Petty, however, had other things on his mind. Today Petty is as busy as ever, and spends much of his time overseeing the operations of Richard Petty Motorsports, a three-car team competing in NASCAR’s highest levels. We at Macon Speedway are proud to have this NASCAR icon make a stop at our track to visit our local race fans and drivers.
Pick a racing series. Choose a style of race car. Name a venue. Chances are Tony Stewart has proven victorious. The driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Mobile 1 is now racing for his own team, Stewart Haas Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Since Tony started his NASCAR career, he has scored 12 championships since he first wheeled a go-kart at a Westport, IN. race track in 1978. Tony is a three-time Sprint Cup Series champion winning in 2002, 2005 and in 2011. Tony joined the NASCAR circuit by way of IRL Indy Car Series, where he was series champion in 1997. Stewart has raced just about everything including USAC’s top three national touring divisions; Midget, Sprint and Silver Crown. He is the first and only driver to have won championships in stock cars, Indy cars and open-wheel Midget, Sprint and Silver Crown cars. “When I started racing competitively when I was about seven or eight, getting a trophy that was bigger than the other kids’ was all I cared about,” said Stewart, who entered his 15th year in the Sprint Cup Series.
Kenny Wallace and Kenny Schrader, co-owners of Macon Speedway, will also be in attendance with Petty and Stewart. Stewart, Wallace and Schrader will all be competing in the Billingsley Towing UMP Modified event on Thursday.
An autograph session with the NASCAR drivers will take place from 5:00 to 6:00 on a first-come, first-served basis. Racing starts at 7:00 PM.
Adult seats are $20 and seats for children 11 and under are free. Pit passes will be $30.
For information, call 217-764-3000. Visit www.maconracing.com or www.trackenterprises.com for a complete 2013 Race schedule and additional information. For quick convenient updates, follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/maconracing and Twitter @maconspeedway.