Mixing
Speedweeks
Budweiser Speedweeks[1] is a series of racing events that take place during January and February at the Daytona International Speedway. The events lead up to and conclude with the Daytona 500.
Nearby tracks New Smyrna Speedway and Volusia County Speedway also run special events during the period. There is also a Monster Jam event held at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida.
For the 2019 season, AdventHealth replaces Budweiser as the official sponsor of Speedweeks.[2]
Contents
1 January
2 24 Hours of Daytona
3 Daytona 500 week
3.1 Thursday
3.2 Friday
3.3 Saturday
3.4 Sunday
3.5 Thursday
3.6 Friday
3.7 Saturday
3.8 Sunday
4 History
4.1 Former names
4.2 Former events during Speedweeks
5 See also
6 References
January
Through 2014, Speedweeks informally kicked off in early January with off-season testing at Daytona. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Xfinity Series regularly conducted annual preseason tests on the 2.5 mi (4.0 km) oval, under the moniker "Preseason Thunder". For 2015, the January test sessions were cancelled as part of NASCAR's overall ban on private testing.[3]
Also in early January, the United SportsCar Championship conducts a test session on the Daytona road course, in preparations for the Rolex 24. It is nicknamed the "Roar Before the 24."[4]
24 Hours of Daytona
The first major event of Speedweeks is the Rolex 24. Currently it is held the final weekend of January, which is also the bye week for the Super Bowl. This weekend has been specifically chosen to avoid conflict with the Super Bowl. Events during the weekend include:
Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (Friday)
Rolex 24 (Saturday-Sunday)
Daytona 500 week
Following the Rolex 24, there is no track activity for two weeks. This prevents a conflict with the Super Bowl. During this time, track officials clean the track, convert it back to the oval configuration, and make final preparations for the arrival of stock cars and the increased number of spectators.
The highlight of Speedweeks are the nine days leading up to and including the Daytona 500. It begins the weekend prior to the Daytona 500, and ends with the race itself. Currently, the Daytona 500 is scheduled for the Sunday of the weekend during the Presidents Day holiday.
Thursday
ARCA practice
Friday
ARCA practice and qualifying
Saturday
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice for the Advance Auto Parts Clash
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice for the Daytona 500
ARCA Lucas Oil 200 race
Sunday
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pole qualifying for the Daytona 500
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Advance Auto Parts Clash exhibition race
Thursday
Truck Series practice
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Can-Am Duel[1] races
Friday
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 practice
Xfinity Series Practice
Truck Series Qualifying
Truck Series NextEra Energy Resources 250 race
Saturday
Xfinity Series Qualifying
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Final practice for Daytona 500
Xfinity Series PowerShares QQQ 300 race
Sunday
- Daytona 500
History
2010 Speedweeks logo
In 2004, the Hershey Kisses 300 was stopped on Saturday for rain. The race couldn't continue on Sunday due to the 46th running of the Daytona 500. The race was completed on Monday, with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. winning both the Busch Series race and Cup race in the same weekend.
In 2005, a 5K run was added to the Speedweeks schedule, as part of the Rolex 24.
In 2007, the IndyCar Series hosted an open test on the road course configuration during the week after the Rolex 24. No race was scheduled, however.
In 2012, the Daytona 500 was postponed for the first time in race history.
Former names
- Daytona Speedweeks
DirecTV Speedweeks
Hershey's Milk & Milkshake Speedweeks
Former events during Speedweeks
International Race of Champions (usually held on Friday)- Daytona 500 consolation race
- NASCAR Dash Series Daytona 200 (usually held the same day as the Busch Clash)
- UNOH Battle at the Beach
See also
- Daytona Beach Bike Week
References
^ ab Newton, David (February 24, 2012). "Next year's Daytona 500 is Feb. 24". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 24, 2012..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ "Daytona announces official sponsor for Daytona Speedweeks". NASCAR. October 8, 2018. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
^ NASCAR’s testing ban will include Daytona’s Preseason Thunder
^ Roar Before the Rolex 24 to move back a week in 2015
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