Results tagged “Jamie McMurray” from Haddock in the Paddock

NASCAR driver Jamie McMurray will be in L.A. for the next couple of days for the ESPY awards. The show is being taped Tuesday and will be televised Sunday on ESPN.
McMurray is nominated for Best Finish for beating Kyle Busch in last year's Pepsi 400 at Daytona Internationa Speedway.
"This is going to be a very busy week, but certainly it's going to be a lot of fun," said McMurray, driver of the No. 26 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing. "On Tuesday, we are flying out to L.A., where we'll spend a couple days, and then it's off to practice my go-kart for a day, then fly to Gateway for the Nationwide race, and then back to Indiana for the go-kart race on Sunday."
Following the ESPY Awards on Wednesday evening, McMurray will fly to Indiana, where he will practice his go-kart during the evening practice session on Thursday. On Friday morning, McMurray will travel to St. Louis for the Nationwide race weekend.
In the ESPYs, McMurray is up against Western Kentucky's upset win over Drake in the NCAA men's basketball tournament, Game 1 of the NBA playoff game between the San Antonio Spurs and the Phoenix Suns, and Game 5 of the NHL Stanley Cup finals, triple overtime win by the Detroit Red Wings over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Jamie McMurray is beginning a monthlong effort to promote autism awareness by having an online auction, a special paint scheme on his car and having two fans spend the weekend at Texas Motor Speedway as the driver's guest. April is Autism Awareness month.
“A few weeks ago, we thought of a pretty cool promotion to give two fans a full access weekend at Texas Motor Speedway," said McMurray, driver of the No. 26 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing. "Along with a pair of garage passes, the two fans will also enjoy get to watch the race from one of the luxury suites. And to top off the weekend, they will leave with a replica helmet. The two fans went way above our expectations and bid more than $4,200 on the package. I hope it’s worth every penny to them, because all of the money is going to such a great cause.”
The money raised through the online auction and the Texas Motor Speedway package will go toward autism research and support. To see what is available in the online auction, click here: http://foundation.nascar.com/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=793&srcid=793
“Crown Royal has been extremely giving to my foundation by providing space on the car, as well as on my firesuits and helmets,” McMurray said. "Each season they pick a race where we can run the autism awareness puzzle pieces, and throughout the season, they assist us with promotions, donations and helping promote awareness.”
McMurray qualified 32nd for the Cup race at Texas on Friday. His car wil carry a black and gold paint scheme with the rear quarter panels and the television panel with the autism awareness puzzle pieces.
Dawn Litteken and Chris Dake, both from Springfield, Mo., McMurray’s home state, won the Texas Motor Speedway package and will be at the track as McMurray's guest.
“Both Chris and I are looking forward to a great weekend with Jamie,” said Litteken. “We realize the challenges that autism presents, and being able to support a great cause was reason enough to donate the
money. Being able to attend the race and spend the weekend with the No. 26 team is extra to us.”

It's not exactly stock car racing, but Jamie McMurray is at Daytona International Speedway for a race, more than a month before the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season-opening Daytona 500.
McMurray, driver of the No. 26 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing, is entered in one of the races for the Daytona KartWeek by Cometic Gasket.
He will be competing in the World Karting Association's Sprint Championships on the half-mile track in between turns 3 and 4 at Daytona International Speedway this weekend.
His dad, Jim McMurray, is entered in the Elite Karting Championships on the 3.56-mile road course at Daytona.
“I’ve been trying to get him to come back because this is where we actually started,” said Jim McMurray, who has been a regular fixture to Daytona KartWeek events since the late 1970s. “We started racing karts when he was seven. There are so many people to thank in the karting industry that has actually helped us get to the level of where we’re at now.”
This will be Jamie McMurray's first visit to Daytona since winning the Pepsi 400 in July. It was his only win in 2007 and the second Cup win of his NASCAR career.
“I remember taking off from here in July at 3 in the morning or whatever,” McMurray said. “There’s not really anything that compares to Daytona. Certainly winning at Charlotte at home is a big deal and winning at the Brickyard would be a big deal but Daytona, that’s our race. The only one bigger for me would be winning the 500.”
McMurray said kart racing has changed a lot since he returned about six months ago for a race in Pennsylvania.
“Go karting is so much more advanced than it was when I raced,” McMurray said. “When I raced karts, it was literally a hobby, a mom and pop thing. Man, you come here, there are teams. You drive for a team. The karts are so fast. It’s just unbelievable how much faster and the load, it’s really hard on your body to do this. I just really enjoy this. It’s fun.”
The Daytona 500, the first race of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, is Jan. 16 and culminates weeks of races at Daytona, including twin 150 qualifying races and the Budweiser Shootout, for Cup Series pole winners in 2007.
“Daytona, there’s something every year when you come here,” McMurray said. “You’re so excited and I had that yesterday when I got here. But you are here for so long (during DIRECTV Speedweeks) that you are ready to go home. I’m hoping that the two or three extra days that I’m spending here karting is not going to burn me out too soon but you can’t beat it, it’s beautiful weather here.”
Tickets for Daytona KartWeek by Cometic Gasket are available at the gate. Race tickets for any Daytona International Speedway events are available online at www.racetickets.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.