MISSISSAUGA, Ontario and BRISTOL, Tenn. — Story by Race Chaser Online Managing Editor Jacob Seelman — Boomtown Sim photo —
Real Sim Racing and LSRTV announced on Saturday a special partnership and naming change that will see Monday night’s =RSR= Full Throttle Cup Series event from Bristol Motor Speedway renamed the Thunder Valley 225 in Support of Steve Byrnes and Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C).
The race will be broadcast live beginning at 9:30 p.m. Eastern on LSRTV and will be round eight of the series’ 2015 season.
The event pays tribute to Byrnes, a fifteen-year veteran of NASCAR coverage on FOX Sports and co-host of the popular NASCAR Race Hub show on FOX Sports 1. Byrnes took over play-by-play duties for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series following his predecessor Rick Allen’s move to NBC, and is currently on a medical leave of absence while he undergoes treatment for a recurrence of stage IV head and neck cancer.
The move follows a similar step taken by Speedway Motorsports Incorporated (SMI), FOX Sports and NASCAR, who renamed Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Bristol in honor of Byrnes last Friday.
“Steve Byrnes means a lot to NASCAR, he is an inspiration and he has done so much for the entire racing community, both real life and virtual,” the Real Sim Racing administration crew said in a league statement. “This is our way at =RSR= to show our appreciation for all of his work and to say ‘We’re standing with you, Byrnesy,’ as he continues his brave fight.”
“This is the return of the Bristol spring race, a race that carries heavy significance for the driver that goes to Victory Lane, but Monday night will mean even more than normal and we anticipate both an exciting and emotional event as we look to help drum up additional support for the fight against cancer across the world.”
In addition, as part of the event’s festivities and paying additional tribute to Byrnes’ 30 years of work with FOX Sports and in the NASCAR community, the three teams from the RCO-Boomtown Sim Racing Stable (No. 30, Anthony DeBaro; No. 69, Corbin Himstreet; and No. 96, Mitch Rollo) will all sport special paint schemes with Byrnes, the FOX Sports emblem and SU2C all featured prominently on the three Chevrolet SS machines.
“This is something that I felt needed to be done, and especially knowing how much of an impact Steve has had in my time in the journalism field,” said team co-principal and Race Chaser Online Managing Editor Jacob Seelman. “All of the crew at Boomtown Sim immediately jumped on board and Mitch has designed some incredible artwork to help pay tribute to Steve’s valiant fight against head and neck cancer, as well as the Stand Up To Cancer foundation.”
“I know the Boomtown Sim crew is looking forward to getting Steve and SU2C some airtime Monday night at Bristol, and I think it would touch everyone on some level if one of those three happened to end up in Victory Lane after 225 laps.”
For more information on Real Sim Racing and the Thunder Valley 225 in Support of Steve Byrnes and Stand Up To Cancer, visit www.realsimracing.com.
About Stand Up To Cancer:
Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), a 501(c)(3), is a groundbreaking initiative created to accelerate innovative cancer research that gets new therapies to patients quickly in order to save lives now. SU2C, a charitable partner of FOX Sports Supports, brings together the best and brightest researchers and encourages collaboration instead of competition among the entire cancer community.
For more information or to donate to Stand Up To Cancer, please visit standup2cancer.org.
