NASCAR: Night Racing in Atlanta, The $1 Million Tournament and Mo Tyler Head of Atlanta MS, Sweitzer of The Lasco Press. w/ Mo Brings Plenty of Yellowstone, Ty Dillon and Ryan Preece.
from the Sky View uh motorsports desk. I have Rory J. Acres with me. I have Tyler Head from Atlanta Motor Speedway and Steve Schwitzer, our NASCAR Insider from the Las Press. We have um a awesome awesome time happening at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Atlanta Tyler, I’m not just blowing smoke. I wouldn’t have you on if I if I didn’t really mean it. And I know Steve feels the same. It’s one of our favorite tracks for sure. And it’s just going to be Absolutely. Yeah. It’s going to it’s going to be absolutely exciting coming up. And the first thing we want to do is talk about the night race. You moved your race from the playoffs to June. It must have been very important and worth it to Atlanta Motor Speedway to go back to the regular season. Well, I I think the big thing uh from that is is the night race aspect to it. and not just a night race, but a Saturday night race, which is something that over the last 10 years or so has been a little bit more of a rarity in NASCAR. um when the folks at our track that you know all the players that are involved to figure out this big jigsaw puzzle that is the NASCAR schedule when that opportunity was put in front of us um a lot of people uh here in the halls of Atlanta Motor Speedway got excited because we hear from our fans all the time about how much they loved in particular when we had the Labor Day race and that was obviously a night race just has that special atmosphere that comes with you know the the sun setting and the lights coming on the cars just look faster it feels like there’s more energy there’s more grip in the track for uh more brave moves to be made. Um and it’s a great way to, you know, kick off the summer or, you know, really have a great highlight in the middle of the summer uh for people here in Atlanta and that are coming to the race and, you know, for anybody who’s watching at home or, you know, just watching more widely uh in the NASCAR sphere really make that turn into the second half of the season with a a very big and, you know, exciting event. Steve. Yeah, I love Atlanta. I mean, uh it is just a thrill to watch a race there. Three wide, four wide, uh close racing all, you know, every single lap it seems like there’s a uh um a potential for a lead change. And um having it having it at night, I agree with you, Tyler. I think the fans will just eat that up. It’s uh um you know, we know how big a hit the night race at Bristol is on Saturday night and um I think that’s a wise move on you guys part to to move it to Saturday night and do it under the lights and give the fans a real treat. Yeah. Is it also um I know it’s not a big factor, but it has to be a factor. The heat in Atlanta in the middle of the summer. I’ve lived in Atlanta and uh it’s pretty hot down there. Is that also a factor as well? Oh, undoubtedly. I mean, we we’ve had uh since we got our second race back, we had a couple of those, you know, in July Sunday afternoon events and uh you know, absolutely credit to all the people that came out to to watch these races and I think they were rewarded with very great shows. But to your point, um the Southeast and Atlanta in particular uh in the middle of summer, very humid, very hot, uh a very high uh heat index uh to work against. So, um, our team did a lot to and continues to do a lot considering there’s going to be a lot of pre-race festivities and pre-race fun for people to enjoy even with the race happening at night. Um, we put a lot of effort into making sure that there’s places for people to cool off, uh, take care of themselves and, you know, be able to focus on the fun. Um, but definitely, uh, we had a lot of advocating for, uh, putting these races at night if we’re going to be in the middle of the summer. And uh we had that two years ago with a Sunday night race. Last year we moved into the playoffs and and uh enjoyed kicking that off in a big way. Coming back into the summer now with a Saturday night race. It’s going to be a lot better for you know anybody with families that are trying to come here, anybody that needs to work on Monday. You know, just a lot of things are simpler if you’re able to have that race on Saturday night rather than Sunday night. And uh we’re we’re seeing the effects of that when we call up people and say, “Hey, would you like to come out to the event and educate them that it is on Saturday night? Uh people are very responsive to it.” And with that, I was able to talk to Ryan Priest. And Ryan Priest, I asked him to compare what it’s like night racing at Charlotte versus Atlanta. And let me tell you something, Tyler, he’s got a lot of good things to say about AMS. You know, that’s a great question. Um, yeah, I I thought Charlotte definitely went through went through the swing that we all talk about throughout the race. Um, my car benefited from it pretty early on, but I got behind and and then just kind of became a top 10 car where I felt like we we ever got that track position in the first 50 to 100, we had a we had a really solid race car. So, uh, but Atlanta, you know, I think that’s that’s going to be a place where that track’s aging. I think even though it’s a super speedway style race, handling’s becoming more and more of a thing, but at the same time, you know, with it being at night time, it’s certainly temp goes down and things that happen when it when you have a night race, it certainly could band-aid some of those issues. So, yeah, I’m not really sure. Uh, I just hope that we just continue to unload and and do the things that we’ve been doing as as a 60 team and RFK. And, you know, we’re going to we’re going to be real contenders here. When we return, we are going to turn things over to the milliondoll bracket style uh racing that’s going to kick off at Atlanta Motor Speedway. And I am so excited about that. You guys are going to find out something very interesting that’s going to happen in third. In our family business, we sell fumes at 200 mph. Visit the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte for the ultimate pounding. This is our sport. This is our house. Well, Tyler uh and Steve, we also have the Milliondoll bracket uh challenge that starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Actually, the qualifying for it actually starts receiving points wise uh for the last what three broadcast uh that are going to be on Amazon Prime. So, that’s all happening. And um I I I I find it kind of tough after uh uh NASCAR announced this about a year ago, they’re not the drivers are not really in the mode. You’re going to find that out in just a moment, but Tyler, you’re going to inform our audience cuz I’m sure you’re all over this one. Yeah. So, basically what’s going to happen those three weeks leading into Atlanta, as you said, 32 drivers are going to qualify for a chance to race for $1 million. Now, it’s all going to happen with head-to-head matchups between these drivers. So, somebody will be seated first, they’ll go up against the person that’s seated 32nd, second up against 31st, so on and so forth. That all starts right here at Atlanta Motor Speedway. So, there’s going to be 16 matchups where, you know, if it didn’t have enough happening with, you know, three and four wide racing and, you know, photo finishes and everything else that comes with Atlanta Motor Speedway these days, um, we’re going to be following, uh, you know, really think of, uh, the NCAA basketball tournament. You know, the the upsets and, you know, uh, just the drama that unfolds with, you know, uh, the stars of the sport going up against some underdogs. And there will certainly be some upsets as we go. Um that’s going to lead into the following four weeks. 32 will become 16, 16 will become 8 becomes four. And then finally uh two will race for $1 million in the fifth race on the TNT broadcast schedule. So um definitely going to add a lot of drama and intrigue to all the races uh where uh that’s in the mix and uh it’s something I’m looking forward to watching. Dave. Yeah, I Tyler, I think it’s great that you guys are kicking that off. So, you know, just so the fans understand, that’ll be like 16 individual races going on. Okay. Uh during your race, during your Sunday or Saturday night race and uh you know, I’m not sure exactly how the uh the drivers are going to react to that. Um it’d be interested to listen to some of the radio chatter and see what uh um you know if they’re coached on a regular basis or where their competitor is uh positioned with regard to that challenge. But I’ll tell you this, a million dollars is enough to get somebody’s attention. And so uh I think it’s going to add a very interesting twist uh to those uh five races. I’m going to give my comments after we talk right now. I had a Ty Dylan sighting at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Can you believe that? A Ty Dylan sighting. I don’t see him in the media room a whole lot. We saw him now. And we’re going to find out where his head is at. Tyler, and that’s going to lead into my comments. Um Ty, what do you think about this uh bracket style challenge? Yeah, I think um I think once we get in the middle of it, there’ll be probably more talk about But I think for us drivers, we we have to be so focused on the weekend in front of us that, you know, it’s hard to get looking at a tournament style uh deal because each weekend matters so much for our overall year. Um, for our team, if we can execute, I think we’ll give some guys some challenges throughout that tournament. Hopefully, we create some more buzz around our team, which would be great. Well, as you heard from Ty Dylan, and this also came from a couple other drivers that I talked to as well, including Ryan Priest, the drivers are not really focused on this yet. their teams have it drilled into them that it’s about this week’s race only. But I have a feeling as we get closer into it and we get in the middle of the cookies in the oven, so to speak, I think that these guys will realize that there’s a million dollars to be had and this is a chance to make something out of their season. Uh, for sure. And I the comment that I’ve got, I see kind of like the old Winston Cup and Nexttel and all these, I see a big sponsor happening out of all this. I mean, somebody that that puts the loot on this are going to because I think it’s going to grip fans all summer long. I really do, fellas. And not only that, I see a second chance bracket happening where guys might actually have individual races that are eliminated and they get back in that second chance and they might have to outra whoever, you know, wins the race and I’ll have to figure that part out. But what do you guys think about that? Am I is that genius on my part or am I just wishful thinking? Well, I think it’s something that can definitely evolve over time. You know, it’s no secret that this sort of comes from uh Denny Hamlin uh in the Dirty Mo group uh sort of doing this over the last couple of years and people being able to follow along. Obviously, this has taken it to a way larger scale. Um, selfishly, I think that we here at Atlanta Motor Speedway with the 16 matchups of head-to-head um, drivers competing against each other, I think that we’ve got the best event of the bunch because one, uh, that it’s going to be brand new and and, you know, we’re all going to be finding out together what exactly that turns into on the racetrack and, you know, how that drama unfolds, but two, there’s more opportunities as the race goes on. lap 40, 50, 60, you know, probably something that’s very much in the back burner. But when the checkered flag’s in sight and you’re racing for, you know, maybe seventh position, but the guy that you’re matched up against is right there in eighth, I think that’s just going to add a little bit more um motivation to find a way to keep that position or gain that position depending on which side of the coin you fall on and uh could make a lot more battles throughout the field uh have a little bit more weight to them than they usually do. Steve, yeah, I I agree, Tyler. Think another thing that uh um I was uh thinking about is you might get some matchups where you’ve got teammates that are facing off against each other in a um you know in an elimination. So, you know, how cool would it be to see, you know, uh, Denny Hamlin, uh, you know, racing Christopher Bell for the opportunity to advance in the challenge or maybe racing one of his, uh, one of the teams that he owns, you know, with, um, Bubba Wallace, uh, you know, and Denny going at it. So, I think there’s, um, there’s a lot of storylines that are available right there. Like I said, I can’t wait to hear some of the radio chatter. Um, and uh I think uh I think the crew chiefs will will come along uh on the program, especially, you know, when we’re talking about a million dollars. Okay. Um so, uh something new, something fun. Can’t wait. Yeah. And I see something else as well with this in a bracket style uh tournament. If you take a look at the Charlotte race, Kyle Larson, he blows an engine or he wrecks his car, whatever, and he finishes 37th. He had all kinds of damage and all that. And you get a guy like Ty Dylan who finishes ahead of him simply because he survived the race. He would move on. Larson would be an upset. And in the NCAA basketball tournament, you’re not going to see the starting point guard, center, and power forward blow an engine. But you could see that in this and you could see a few upsets happen here. And I think that’s going to be really interesting. And I to me that’s a real wild card in this. Final words. I Well, just to that Go ahead. No, go ahead. I was just going to say to that point, this is a track that’s really an equalizer as far as you know, uh bringing the top teams and and uh you know, some of those that are looking for speed closer to each other. So there’s a lot more opportunity for those upsets to happen, you know, organically uh through the course of just what happens in motorsports all throughout the tournament, but especially here where everybody’s going to be on top of each other. Yeah. Also, you’re going to see NASCAR might have forgot about this. You’re going to be seeing racing back to the finish line because you might have two guys they got, they know they got to stay the 17 has to stay in front of the number five or whatever in the bracket and they’re going to race back to the finish. That’s just me. But uh it’s going to be NASCAR old style for sure. Well, tell you what, we’re going to have some final words. I’m going to ask Tyler a little bit about the event itself in one final little segment that happens with you and 30. Who is the most likely one to succeed? I’m really going. What’s the question, dude? Dad was larger than life. I don’t know. Oh, I just look up to him so much. He raced to get his dad’s attention. [Music] I loved my dad to death, but we had our issues. [Music] Is that your son or is that your driver? That’s my son. One of the great things about Atlanta Motor Speedway besides the fans and the racing is you guys always host a great race and you always pull somebody out of the hat like a celebrity and um right now we have a huge celebrity from the you know the Yellowstone TV series right Tyler? Oh yeah. Oh, well, I met a one of the uh stars of that particular show at Charlotte and uh he’s a brand new NASCAR fan. He first came in in Texas. He was a guest of Joe Gibbs Racing. He hasn’t missed a race since. And right now, I have this actor from the Yellowstone TV series, Mo Brings Plenty. Mo, you are hooked. The smoke, the noise, the power. Mo, what are you doing uh at the Coca-Cola 600 today? Man, I tell you what, I got a taste of NASCAR back in Texas few races ago and and got hooked ever since. Got in real good with a good friend of mine, Wes and Mona Gore. And so here we are loving it. Loving it. That to me what got me attracted a long time ago. I love the smoke. I love the noise. I love all the excitement. Is that some of the same things that bring you here? You know, I tell you what, here’s what I love about NASCAR the most is the horsepower. Definitely the noise. Definitely the the burnt rubber. Yeah. I mean, but the the power that goes into these what these guys do with these cars is absolutely amazing. Yeah, it it truly is. And with uh with all that, you have a JGR tag on, so you’re here courtesy of them. I imagine one of their drivers uh must be one of your favorites. Yeah, absolutely. Ty Gibbs. Ty Gibbs is my guy. I mean, I I feel that I’m hoping today’s his day and so yeah. Yeah. A lot of people think perhaps a uh somebody who hasn’t won yet like him or Carson Hosar might break through and so we’ll see exactly what happens out there. Um are you doing any grand marshall work or anything for the race today or you just here as a fan? You know, I’m here as a fan and cheering on Ty. This is his 100th start today and so pretty excited about it and I think I feel that you know like I said he’s going to break through soon and he’s he’s very talented young individual so I’m rooting for him all the way. Tyler, do you have anybody you can tell us about or is that going to be kept under the hood of the car? Well, I’m I’m not withholding anything, but I’ll I’ll tell you. So this year we not only have the inseason tournament starting here at Landler Speedway, but we also kick off TNT’s return to broadcasting NASCAR races. So um I don’t have anything I can reveal yet from a big-time celebrity standpoint. Uh you know, we have our concerts that are going to be happening throughout the weekend. One of those we know in the peach pit in the middle of the infield everybody can access. We’re going to have uh Tim Duggar who’s pretty popular across the series and uh has performed in a number of places. I know that he’s going to be here performing, but um we’ve we’ve had the fortune of having big people like, you know, Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top this spring and uh Big Boy from Outcast Fame earlier this year. Um, it goes on and on throughout the years, but I’m sure that we’ll be working very closely with our new partners in TNT and Warner Brothers Discovery, all that group uh to identify some people that might be able to come into the mix or hey, even just people from here in the Atlanta area, which has a rich uh group of uh people who are uh very prominent to to draw from. So, unfortunately, I don’t have more I can tell you on that front. That’s something that definitely materializes as we get closer to the race, but uh definitely something that we’re looking forward to. You gave us a tease. That’s what we were expecting, right, Steve? But I knew we weren’t going to get the full reveal. Uh, but I will say this. We’d like to have you back on the week of the race early because we know once once Wednesday hits, you’re like slammed. And you know who I’d like to get to come on with us? I’m going to get Anthony Vestal to come on and we’re gonna have the Battle of the Summer night races. What do you think about that, Steve? Yeah, that sounds like fun. That that sounds like a show and he’ll probably come anyway because he’s always a great help to all the staff there. For Tyler Head, once again, if you could tell us how people can order tickets, find out about everything at Motor Speedway for the June race and more. Tell us that website address. Yeah, you’re going to go to atlantammo speedway.com. We got a bunch of information on there from tickets to camping to, you know, upgrades that can get you out onto the track, sign the start finish line, see the starting field up close. Uh, you’re going to want to be here for the Quaker State 400 available at Walmart weekend June 27th and 28th here at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Steve, hey, I’m looking forward to it. And how do we get a hold of you, Steve? Well, we got to read all you got. The lascess.com. Check us out. Thanks. And Steve has had also on his uh he’s been interviewing people left and right as we have as well. And we’re going to go ahead and wrap it up right now. So for Tyler Head of Atlanta Motor Speedway and also Steve Schwitzer of [Music] Alask and it’s just a drag race and nobody’s going anywhere and it comes down to a dead heat between the three of them at the start finish line. What? That’s unbelievable. We’ll believe it. That was awesome. And I I love what you said there.
