Summertime: A Season That Hit Different
In my world as an event producer, I’m often brought into conversations early, when new partnerships are forming and fresh ideas are starting to take shape. Those early discussions spark brainstorming sessions where our team gets to dream big about creating experiences that fans will remember forever.
Traditionally, the start and end of the year are our busiest seasons, with summer being a bit slower. But this year? This summer has hit differently.
Over the last two months, our team has delivered major announcements, forged new partnerships, and achieved some incredible milestones. From collaborating with Amazon to producing landmark events like our race in Mexico City, we’ve built momentum that’s become a steady drumbeat of improvement, week after week, stronger than years past.
We’ve made meaningful strides in our musical programming, talent development, team structure, and customer management. It hasn’t all been perfect, but we’ve learned fast and adapted well. Layer those lessons over a handful of truly kick-ass events, and you get a summer that stands out as one of our best yet.
Even though I’m admittedly a proud papa who loves every one of our events, three standout productions from this summer really elevated our game, and they’re worth sharing.
Ram Returns to NASCAR
Mission:
Ram’s return to NASCAR was destined to be bold — CEO Tim Kuniskis is known for his “Hold My Beer and Watch This” style announcements. The creative team at Doner dreamed up a stunt where Tim would announce Ram’s return to the Craftsman Truck Series live at Michigan International Speedway, complete with a working race truck doing doughnuts in front of the stage.
Challenge:
The challenge was timing. The day’s schedule included a major Busch Light sponsored concert happening just moments before the announcement. Thousands of fans had paid premium prices to be up close for both the concert and the reveal. We needed to strike the concert stage, set up the stunt, introduce the drivers, and manage crowd safety, all within a razor-thin window of time.
Outcome:
Working closely with the teams at Stellantis and Doner, we built and rehearsed a tight plan with contingency options for every scenario. On event day, the execution was flawless. The stunt team was incredible, and our project lead, Richard Vail, did an outstanding job keeping Stellantis happy, fans informed, and everyone safe. The result was everything we hoped for, a bold, unforgettable announcement that set the tone for a promising new partnership with Nate Buelow and the Stellantis team.
Viva La México
Mission:
A year ago, I got the call, start brushing up on my Spanish because NASCAR was headed back to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, this time with the NASCAR Cup Series headlining alongside the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Mexico Series.
Challenge:
Producing a show in another country comes with countless questions. How much should our team be involved versus our local partners? What language should the talent use? Should we run our video show locally or route signals back to Charlotte like we do every weekend? The timeline was tight, and there were no easy answers.
Outcome:
After 365 straight days of Duolingo, I can confidently say my Spanish is still terrible, but my love for Mexico City and the team at the Autódromo has never been stronger. Working alongside our promoter partners at OCESA to host a NASCAR Cup Series event at such a historic venue was an incredible experience. It reinforced that collaboration, adaptability, and cultural respect are the keys to expanding NASCAR’s global footprint.
Chicago Street Race
Mission:
Year three of the Chicago Street Race gave us a clear challenge: elevate our driver introductions and highlight one of NASCAR’s most important assets, the drivers themselves. Track President Julie Giese asked us to take what we did in 2024 and make it even bigger, this time debuting it live on race day.
Challenge:
Timelines were tight, and driver schedules even tighter. We couldn’t extend the intro window, so we had to innovate, making every second count. In 2024, we worked with our local partners at Fourline Creative and the Chicago Bulls Entertainment Team. This year, we needed to pour gasoline on that success.
Outcome:
We started by creating an original track featuring beats by the Chicago Bulls’ own DJ Flipside, with creative direction from Wide Open Trax’s DJ Stylus Chris, who sampled the voices of MRN. Then we layered in live performances from the 312 Crew, the Luvabulls, the Bucket Boys, and the Pack Drumline. When everyone was in sync, we introduced our Grand Marshal, Chicago Bulls legend Derrick Rose, who set the stage for the fastest stock car drivers on the planet. The result? A 20-minute show filled with passion, rhythm, and energy. Undeniably one of our proudest productions of the year.
Looking Back
NASCAR has one of the longest, most demanding seasons in professional sports. But that also means endless opportunities to create memories that fans will cherish for life. This summer, from Michigan to Mexico City to Chicago, our team did just that.
Here’s to a season that’s already one for the record books.
See you trackside,
Michael
