Cameron R. Argetsinger Award

On August 18, 2023, Richard Childress was honored with the Cameron R. Argetsinger Award for Outstanding Contributions to Motorsports.

Childress’ storied career spans decades. As a child, he spent time at Bowman Gray Stadium, Winston-Salem, North Carolina’s local short track, selling peanuts and popcorn. Years later, in the fall of 1969, his first opportunity to compete in a NASCAR-sanctioned event arose and he established Richard Childress Racing. Childress drove his own car for 285 starts in NASCAR’s premier series before realizing that he needed to focus on team ownership to flourish at that level.

The moment that changed everything for Richard Childress Racing was when Dale Earnhardt became the permanent driver of the #3 car in 1984. Success came almost instantly, with their first win together at Talladega Superspeedway on July 29 of that year. It was the first of 67 wins Earnhardt would record under the Richard Childress Racing banner. The team has expanded exponentially since, competing in all three NASCAR national series, with Childress becoming the first team owner to win in all three.

Presenting Sponsors: Sahlen’s, NASCAR, Watkins Glen International

Cameron R. Argetsinger Award for Outstanding Contributions to Motorsports

The Cameron R. Argetsinger Award for Outstanding Contributions to Motorsports honors a person in the motorsports industry who is recognized universally for having advanced and improved the sport, in roles that may include, but are not limited to, driver, team owner, sponsor, race promoter, journalist or official of a sponsoring or sanctioning organization. The honoree brings prestige to motorsports and demonstrates commitment to the future of racing.

Established in 2014, the inaugural award recipient was Chip Ganassi, who at the time fielded teams in the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Verizon INDYCAR and TUDOR United SportsCar Championship series. Richard Petty, the winningest driver in NASCAR history, was the 2015 honoree. The 2016 recipient was Roger Penske, who was celebrating more than 50 years involved in motorsports as a driver and team owner. Mario Andretti, considered by many to be the greatest race car driver in the history of the sport, was the 2017 recipient. Jim France, Chairman of ISC and IMSA and NASCAR Vice Chairman/Executive Vice President; Lesa France Kennedy, ISC CEO/Vice Chairperson and NASCAR Vice Chairperson; and Ben Kennedy, General Manager of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, were honored on June 28th of 2018. Team owner and famed driver Bobby Rahal was honored in 2019. In 2021, a pioneer for women in motor racing, Lyn St. James, received the award.

The award memorializes Cameron R. Argetsinger, often referred to as the father of American road racing. Argetsinger was a visionary who, in 1948, conceived, organized, and drove in the first post-war road race in America through the roads of Watkins Glen. He brought Formula One to Watkins Glen International in 1961 and the circuit hosted the United States Grand Prix for 20 years. He was president of the IMRRC for five years, until his death in 2008.