Author: Cory Mott

VRS Truck Series Championship Preview

The VRS Truck Series Championship is upon us, and that brings us four championship drivers to break down. Come with me on a journey through the season as we discover how we got here, and discover who will take the crown for the 2024 VRS Truck Series.

2024 VRS Truck Series Championship

Phoenix Raceway – 1.00 mi – Paved Oval
Monday, November 11, 2024
Time: 8:30 PM EST
Stages: 45/90/150
Stream: Crown Jewel Racing Network

The 2024 season comes to an end this week at Phoenix Raceway. A total of 97 different drivers took place in the 2024 VRS Truck Series across 31 races. The 2024 season was split into four distinct splits, three regular season splits followed by the 2024 VRS Truck Series Playoffs. The VRS Truck Series opted out of the win-and-in format and instead decided the playoff drivers based on the top three drivers in each split plus three wild-card drivers from the entire 2024 season. This led to the 2024 playoff field looking like such:

Nishil CondoorMatthew Owens
John ConnorGarth Griswold
Cory MottJim Mott
Zack SaundersThomas Villano
Pete MoralesJohnny Avila
Henry KallhoffCody Porter

Eight drivers were eliminated across six races, which has now led us to our final four:

Nishil Condoor
John Connor
Cory Mott
Zack Saunders

#61 – Nishil Condoor

Nishil is seen as a strong competitor outside of the VRS Truck Series, seeing multiple wins in the now defunct Gen 4 Cup Series. Nishil has participated in 25 of the total 30 races ran to this point and finished second in the regular season standings. However, Nishil has remained winless in the 2024 campaign, while notching 9 top five finishes and 18 top ten finishes. Nishil has also stayed out of the stage win column as well throughout the 2024 season, but is third in total stage points for the season.

It is clear that Nishil has an issue with winning in the VRS Truck Series. With some consistency, it is possible that he can be in position at the end of the race to win the championship – but only time will tell!

#97 – John Connor

John has had a late season surge – almost sweeping round one of the playoffs if not for a late race mistake causing him to finish third at Bristol. John has finished in the top five in all six playoff races this season and will be looking for a strong finish to the season at Phoenix. John participated in 28 of the total 30 races ran to this point and finished fifth overall in regular season. He has a total of two wins and three stage wins in the 2024 campaign and is the leading stage point scoring driver throughout the course of the playoffs.

It isn’t hard to see that John Conner has had an unbelievably consistent playoff run and will be a contender to win the 2024 championship.

#1 – Cory Mott

Cory has been a wildcard throughout the course of the 2024 VRS Truck Series season. Initially competing part-time while broadcasting, Cory qualified for the playoffs during Split #2 but would be at a distinct disadvantage by not being able to amass nearly as many playoff bonus points as other drivers. This would immediately be noticeable when the playoffs started, and he had to claw for every single point. But points would no longer matter when he started off the Round of 8 with a bang and win at Auto Club Speedway – locking himself into the Championship 4. Mott is the only driver in the 2024 Crown Jewel season to be participating in the Championship 4 for the VRS Truck Series and the Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Series.

Even with all that, Mott’s statistics are the least impressive of the four drivers and is currently the longshot for the championship. It will take a perfect night and minimal mistakes for Mott to be a contender at Phoenix this week.

#99 – Zack Saunders

Coming off a controversial protest decision in the Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Series that nullified his advancing win, Zack Saunders still has an opportunity to defend his 2023 Truck Series championship in Phoenix on Monday. Zack Saunders has had a videogame-like season putting up unmatched statistics: 12 top fives, 14 top tens, 7 wins, and 11 stage wins – and he is leading the league in every single one of those stat lines. However, Saunders has seen a dip in performance during the 2024 playoffs, with only 1 win, 1 top five, and 0 stage wins – simply cruising to the Championship 4 using his playoff bonus points.

It is without a doubt, that Zack Saunders is one of the favorites to win the championship this week at Phoenix. Can he avoid the bug that has been keeping him down these playoffs and claim the championship? Or will he fall to the wayside and fail to defend his 2023 championship? We will find out soon enough!

Fan Pick

JOHN CONNOR

Consistency is key, and John Connor has had nothing but consistency in the last six weeks. This race will be very competitive, and all 150 laps will matter – but the fans are on John’s side this week heading into the desert.

OFFICIAL RULING: Zack Saunders win eligibility revoked from Martinsville

An independent panel of peers has determined that Zack Saunders is guilty of violating iRacing Sporting Code 7.5.4.1 Yellow Flag Procedures – Oval.

Based on previous caution procedure violations in Crown Jewel Racing and NASCAR, it was determined that positions have never been returned to cars that do not maintain pacing speed regardless of the cause.

The independent panel of peers determined the fairest penalty for this situation is to revoke the automatic win eligibility for advancing to the Championship 4. With the automatic win eligibility revoked, Zack Saunders is -5 from making the Championship 4 and thus, eliminated.

Evidence presented by the protestor, Nic Vasquez.

The independent panel of peers that ruled on this case were Stewart Harding Walker, Ray Gill, and Justin Bell (abstained).

Team Conti Sim Performance & VRS Re-Up for 2025

Two key partners are returning to Crown Jewel for the 2025 season – Team Conti Sim Performance and VRS Racing.

Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series

Team Conti Sim Performance is returning to Crown Jewel as a title sponsor in 2025, but this time with a different series. Last year’s Cup Series sponsor will be moving to the Xfinity Series this year, dubbing the series the Team Conti Sim Performance Dash Series. The series will still feature Team Conti Sim Performance merchandise and subscriptions up for grabs as prizes for the Championship Four. Franchise bidding sign-up is now live – make sure to secure your spot at the bidding table for the 2025 season today!

VRS Truck Series

VRS returns to the Truck Series this season. For the second year in a row, the Truck Series will be named the VRS Truck Series. VRS will be offering up subscriptions the Team VRS coaching service, as well as VRS data pack subscriptions for the Championship Four and for the Triple Truck Challenge. Currently the Truck Series will be open to all competitors, but in the event that franchise numbers are higher than expected, the VRS Truck Series may become franchised. To get ahead of the game, put in a provisional franchise bidding registration and include the number of Truck Series franchises your team would like.

Team Conti Sim Performance and VRS join Project K-9 Hero as sponsors for the 2025 season. The Crown Jewel Cup Series currently remains unsponsored at this time, after Bob Henry’s BBQ Sauce and Rubs backed out of their deal earlier this month. If you or anybody you know has interest in sponsoring and supporting the Crown Jewel Cup Series, please reach out to Cory Mott on Discord to discuss the details.

Thank you to our 2025 sponsors for your continued support of our league. Your contributions allow us to continue our mission to bring realistic and affordable racing to oval races all over the world. Good luck to everyone in the remainder of the 2024 playoffs, and we cannot wait to see everybody on track in 2025!

Interested in racing in 2025? Join us here!

Crown Jewel Shop Now Open!

Crown Jewel officials announce the launch of the brand-new merchandise shop featuring various clothing, headwear, and more!

Supporting Crown Jewel

When purchasing items from the Crown Jewel Shop, you will directly be supporting league operations with the commission on the sale going directly into the league fund to support broadcasting fees, event prize pools, and more!

Quality Products by Squadlocker

All products are crafted with sustainability in mind. Better serving the environment however possible while creating the highest quality products for thousands of leagues, teams, and athletes. Learn more about Squadlocker’s mission and sustainability practices by clicking on the links.

Licensed Team Gear

As a part of the 2025 Franchise Agreements, teams will have the option to opt-in to have officially licensed gear listed for sale on the league shop. More information will be provided to team owners during the 2025 Winter Meeting on December 8, 2024, prior to franchise bidding.

Expanded League Prizes

The winner of each league in the 2024 season can choose one item from the new shop (up to $40 in value) as an additional prize to their trophy.

2025 Project K-9 Hero Series Schedule Release

The 2025 ARCA season will be run to support the Project K-9 Hero charity organization – championing retired police and military K-9s.

At Project K-9 Hero, our vision is to honor the unwavering dedication of retired Police K-9s and Military Working Dogs by creating a global environment that celebrates their heroic service. We strive to reshape perceptions, ensuring these valiant animals are revered and respected for their loyalty. Through our efforts, we aim to provide these remarkable companions with the dignified post-service life they rightfully deserve, offering access to comprehensive healthcare and advocating for a quality way of life in recognition of their selfless contributions.

Three Championship Format

The 2025 Project K-9 Hero Series will feature three separate championships – National, East, and West. This format will match the ARCA Menards Series in which it is based upon, with some events counting towards the standings for multiple championships. Each race has the designated series outlined above on the schedule release graphic. At season’s end, three champions will be crowned in the Project K-9 Hero Series and will earn prizes.

Double Header Nights

The 2025 schedule features three double header nights in which two races will be run. After a successful double header night in 2024, we have expanded to three nights at the request of the participants. The first double header night will be on Sunday June 1, 2025 and will feature races at Charlotte and Langley Speedway. The second double header will feature back-to-back races at Irwindale for the West Championship. The final double header night will be Sunday August 24, 2025 and feature an asphalt race at South Boston Speedway, and a dirt race a the legendary Eldora Speedway – both for the National Championship.

We look forward to seeing you on track for the 2025 Project K-9 Hero Series in 2025. Registration will open on December 9, 2025 at 12:00 PM.

OFFICIAL: 2025 Schedule Announcement

Crown Jewel staff release the official schedule for the 2025 season.

As the end of the 2024 season approaches, we are excited to announce a majority of the 2025 schedule. The 2025 season will see the addition of the franchise system, introducing the Crown Jewel Xfinity Series and adding a “career-mode” feeling to the Crown Jewel Racing League. Team owners will take control of their franchises and drivers will earn their way to the premier Crown Jewel Cup Series while navigating negotiations with team owners, manufacturer alliances, and more – bringing an authentic experience to all members of the league.

2024-2025 Offseason Schedule (Mon. & Wed.)

The 2024-2025 offseason will consist of two separate series – the Crown Jewel Offseason and the 2024 Trans-Am Offseason. The Crown Jewel Offseason will consist of classic oval Crown Jewel events from history. The races will be run at full distance with the same rules package from the era in which it was run. This series will test drivers in all forms of oval racing, while preparing drivers for the 2025 season with longer races. The 2024 Trans-Am Offseason will consist of the full 2024 Trans-Am schedule (available on iRacing) and run the Late Model Stock and Ford Mustang FR500S on road courses in short, 100-mile races. This series will test your H-pattern road racing skills across multiple tracks in a unique multi-class setting. Both of these series will be fixed setup (excluding the Snowball Derby, which will be open setup).

2025 Special Events Schedule

In 2025, we will be taking a smaller and more digestible route in the inclusion of road racing in the Crown Jewel Community. While not a focal point in our community, road racing is an important part of racing’s DNA and should be included in some capacity. In 2025, we will be introducing six special events to the calendar – five road, and one returning oval event. The second annual Frank Pauley Memorial 500 returns by popular demand and will be the third straight year the CJRL runs the Indianapolis 500. In addition to the FPM 500, five major road course events have been added as well. All events will have an entry fee that contributes to a prize pool and broadcasting. Prize pool will be based on participation and announced prior to the race. We hope to see you out on the track and turning left and right in 2025!

2025 Crown Jewel Cup Series Schedule

With NASCAR releasing the 2025 Cup Series Schedule, we are now able to fill in the blank as to what is the 2025 Crown Jewel Cup Series season. With The Clash moving venues and the addition of Mexico City, there are still two question marks on the schedule from an iRacing sense. These will continue to be monitored as those events approach. All decisions will be made with Cup Series team owner and driver input and will be decided no later than 2-weeks before the event. The 2025 schedule has a large mix-up that will surely change the dynamic of the season – and we are excited to be a part of it with the CJCS! All 38 events will be live on the Fireball Talks NASCAR Broadcasting Network – don’t miss a broadcast in 2025!

2025 Crown Jewel Xfinity Series Schedule

Xfinity Series action returns to the Crown Jewel Racing League in 2025! With the introduction of the franchise system, drivers will be fighting for their careers as they try to work their way into the Crown Jewel Cup Series. This steppingstone series will be sure to put on a show week in and week out as drivers battle for a Xfinity Series Championship! The schedule will feature four Dash 4 Cash races, where no Cup drivers will be allowed to enter, and drivers will battle for a cash prize each race. The Xfinity Series Mexico City race will be a mirror of the decision made by the Cup Series – where Xfinity will continue to be the support series for that week. Make your name known in the Crown Jewel Xfinity Series in 2025! All races will be broadcasted by the Cup Series Driver’s Only Broadcast – live on the Crown Jewel Racing Network every week in 2025!

2025 VRS Truck Series Schedule

VRS is set to return in their second season as the title sponsor for the VRS Truck Series. Cut in size to just twenty-five races, the VRS Truck Series just might become the entry-level for the career mode system in 2025. Based on the number of charters being requested by teams, a contingency plan is in place to include the Truck Series in the franchise system to ensure all drivers have the ability to experience the career-mode structure. Decisions regarding its inclusion will be made prior to franchise bidding, and all teams will have the ability to prepare and draft franchises if necessary. The 2025 VRS Truck Series action can be found on High Velocity TV for the entirety of the 2025 season!

2025 Crown Jewel ARCA Schedule

The 2025 ARCA Menards Series schedules have yet to be released. However, community members can expect the Sunday Night ARCA series to continue. The current plan is to combine the East, West, and National schedules into a single schedule and run it in its entirety. When the 2025 ARCA Menards schedules are released, we will announce the series in full via another post – so stay tuned!

OFFICIAL: Team Conti Sim Performance joins Crown Jewel as Cup Series title sponsor

Crown Jewel partners with a growing sim racing brand – Team Conti Sim Performance. Team Conti will join as the Cup Series title sponsor for the remainder of the 2024 season.

The Crown Jewel Cup Series – the flagship racing series of the Crown Jewel Community – has received a brand-new title sponsor for the remainder of the 2024 season. Team Conti Sim Performance – a popular setup shop, coaching service, and eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing team – has agreed to sponsor the remainder of the 2024 Cup Series season. The partnership between Crown Jewel and Team Conti will bring prizes for the Cup Series and discounts to Team Conti Sim Performance setup packs, merchandise, and coaching services! For a 10% discount on all Team Conti store items, use code: CROWNJEWEL10.

READ MORE: 2025 Franchise System Reveal

As part of the agreement, Team Conti will be promoting Crown Jewel and its leagues through social media and their driver base in the Team Conti Discord Server. Team Conti will also be providing prizes for the Championship 4, as well as supplemental prizes for the end-of-year banquet:

  • Champion (1st Place)
    • Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Quarterly Subscription
    • Additional Team Conti Merchandise
  • 2nd, 3rd, 4th Places
    • Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Monthly Subscription
    • Additional Team Conti Merchandise
  • Rookie of the Year
    • Team Conti Merchandise
  • Most Improved Driver
    • Team Conti Merchandise

With the new title sponsorship, the Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Series logo has been reworked. New contingencies have also been added to the contingency sheet.

Team Conti Sim Performance owner, Michael Conti, spoke with the Crown Jewel media team regarding the partnership:

Team Conti Sim Performance has grown tremendously over the last eight months, and we’re excited to be able to further our involvement in the iRacing community by becoming the title sponsor of the Crown Jewel Cup Series. We look forward to working with the series over the remainder of 2024 and are thrilled to be partnered with a league that has such a strong and passionate group of drivers.

Michael Conti, Owner – Team Conti Sim Performance

Crown Jewel owner, Cory Mott, also spoke with the Crown Jewel media team regarding the partnership:

Over the last 2 years, we have focused on growing our community organically while ensuring our league was accessible as possible to everybody in iRacing. Today marks a big step in that mission, as we partner with one of the fastest growing brands in the iRacing industry. In nearly every NASCAR open official you join you will see the Team Conti branding on a paint scheme. We are extremely excited to welcome them to our community and further our partnerships in the iRacing community.

Cory Mott, Owner – Crown Jewel Racing

The Team Conti Sim Performance Cup Series returns to action on Wednesday, August 14th at 8:15 PM EST – following the conclusion of the Olympic break. Catch the action live on the Crown Jewel Racing Network!

For all orders placed on teamconti.gg, make sure to use code CROWNJEWEL10 for 10% off all orders!

Crown Jewel, Fireball Talks NASCAR, & High Velocity TV pen historic media deal

Crown Jewel, Fireball Talks NASCAR, and High Velocity TV have come to terms on a historic media rights deal for the 2025 Crown Jewel season. For the first time in Crown Jewel history, races will be broadcasted by external partners with commentators, live production, and media content.

Crown Jewel officials have finalized a deal for the Crown Jewel Cup Series with Fireball Talks NASCAR for all 36 points races, and 2 exhibition races for the 2025 Crown Jewel Cup Series season. Races will continue to take place on Wednesday nights and will feature the new franchise system announced by the officials yesterday. FTN will be rotating multiple sets of commentators through the booth for the 2025 season, each bringing a unique perspective to the league, while continuing to build on storylines created in the 2024 season. Each broadcast will consist of live production, custom numbers, custom broadcast assets, driver headshots, social media posts, pre-race trailers, and in-race advertising. This will allow the league to expand its social media and marketing efforts while also expanding sponsorship opportunities for the 2025 season and beyond.

READ MORE: 2025 Franchise System Reveal

For the 2025 Crown Jewel Xfinity Series, spectators can expect a twist for the broadcast – welcome to the Crown Jewel Cup Series Drivers Only broadcast! Headed by current broadcasters Nathaniel Campbell and Cory Mott, fans will be treated to a rotating cast of Cup Series talents telling the stories throughout the 33-race schedule. Nobody knows the league storylines quite like the veterans and giving them the opportunity to shine on the Xfinity broadcast will bring nothing but good times and great commentary for the fans of the Xfinity drivers.

For the 2025 VRS Truck Series, has inked an agreement with an up-and-coming broadcasting company – High Velocity TV. High Velocity TV recently filled in during a time of need for the Cup Series, and proved they can be a great asset to the community. HVTV will broadcast all 23 races of the VRS Truck Series season, with HVTV commentator Christian Delgado heading the booth. He will be joined by Crown Jewel community member and current Cup Series commentator Bill “Billy” Martin, who will continue as the “colorful” commentator and league expert for the broadcast.

SEE NOW: OFFICIAL: VRS partners with Crown Jewel as Truck Series title sponsor

League owner, Cory Mott, spoke on the media deal today:

This historic media deal will allow us to reach audiences that otherwise would not have been able to enjoy the exciting atmosphere our league has crafted. Combined with the franchise system, this will allow us to bring an even more authentic racing experience to all league members, their friends and families, and of course – the fans. Increasing fan experience has been a major focus for us for the 2025 season, and this brings us one step closer.

High Velocity TV owner, Christian Delgado, also spoke to the media:

We are happy for the opportunity to broadcast for Crown Jewel. We are fairly new and just getting our foot in the door when it comes to broadcasting, but we look forward to getting to know the drivers and community members throughout our time.

2025 Franchise System Reveal

Crown Jewel officials have released the official 2025 Franchise System transition processes and procedures – let’s discuss. Haven’t seen it yet? You can find it here: 2025 Franchise System.

Before we start talking about the franchise system itself, we need to understand how teams will be classified for the remainder of the 2024 season and transitioned over to the 2025 season. With a system like the franchise system, team owners take a step up into a middle management-type role, where they will be responsible for operating their team and will also be responsible for their drivers. As seen below, it is imperative that any teams planning on participating in franchise bidding over the offseason are registered prior to the 2024 Cup Series playoffs and participate in 20 combined races (2 drivers complete one race means 2 combined races) before the end of the 2024 season.

  • Full Time Team
    • A team that completed a minimum of 20 combined races in the 2024 Cup season.
  • Part Time Team
    • A team that completed less than 20 combined races in the 2024 Cup season.
  • Open Team
    • A team that is registered after the beginning of the 2024 Cup Series playoffs.

Now that we understand the types of teams that will be transitioning over, we can outline the transition procedures:

Transition Procedure Breakdown

  • At the end of the 2024 season, all drivers will become free agents.
League# of FranchisesCost ($)
Crown Jewel Cup Series36$50.00/season ea.
Crown Jewel Xfinity Series24 – 30$20.00/season ea.
  • Full time teams and Tier III Discord supporters that have been subscribed for a minimum of 3 months will have priority access to Cup Series franchise bidding.
  • All teams that do not acquire a Cup Series franchise will have priority access to Xfinity Series franchise bidding.
  • Teams may claim a maximum of 4 franchises in each series.
  • All un-acquired franchises will be auctioned to the community.
  • Full-time Cup Series drivers are ineligible for Xfinity Series drivers points and limited to 8 regular season starts in the Xfinity Series.
  • Full-time Xfinity drivers are ineligible for Cup Series drivers points, but are not limited in Cup Series starts.
  • Crown Jewel will be hosting a media day for all series on January 29, 2025.

Why a franchise/charter system?

Having a system like this will allow all dedicated community members the opportunity to guarantee a place to race at least once per week in our flagship series. With concerns over the skill level in the league rising, this will allow us to cater to dedicated, long-term members while still offering the opportunity for new drivers to join and race.

The franchise system will bring an aspect of teambuilding not seen anywhere else in iRacing community leagues. Team owners will be responsible for putting the most competitive drivers in the Cup Series, while being encouraged to scout and develop talent in the Xfinity Series. Team owners will take a larger role in the community and continue to grow the overall talent pool within the league. Drivers will naturally climb to the ranks of the Cup Series, while others will fall due to poor performance, team orders, etc. This is the start of a greater expansion towards having a fully developed NASCAR career mode eco-system that spans from Cup all the down to ARCA and eventually beyond.

In the event that participation does not reach the levels expected, we have a failsafe plan to remove the Xfinity franchises and open it back up for full participation. In the event that participation is larger than expected, we also have a rapid acceleration plan in place to implement Truck team owners and move forward with a similar system to expand the ecosystem before the 2025 season starts. However, it is the current plan to keep the VRS Truck Series open to all for the 2025 season.

On top of an expanded ecosystem, expanded owner’s standings will be tracked based off the car numbers ran in the Cup and Xfinity series, and team owners can expect prizes at the end of the season based on performance. As well as a more refined incident system that will be announced later in the fall. These are all features that are now possible due to the new franchise system – with more planned on being added moving into 2025, 2026, and beyond!

If you haven’t seen the full breakdown of the 2025 Crown Jewel Franchise transition processes and procedures, you can find them here.

OFFICIAL: VRS partners with Crown Jewel as Truck Series title sponsor

Crown Jewel partners with popular sim racing company VRS, bringing them in as the Truck Series title sponsor for the remainder of the 2024 season and 2025 season.

The Sportsman Truck Series – a staple of the Crown Jewel Community – has received its first title sponsorship in its storied history. VRS, a sim racing hardware manufacturer and coaching company, has agreed to sponsor the remainder of the 2024 season and the upcoming 2025 season. The partnership between Crown Jewel and VRS will bring prizes and exclusive access to Team VRS – a coaching program currently in closed beta.

Being a Crown Jewel member will allow you exclusive access to apply for coaching programs run by eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRaicng Driver, Bobby Zalenski. Full information on Team VRS and the application process can be found here: TEAM VRS.

In addition to Team VRS coaching, VRS will also be providing the following prizes to the Championship 4 drivers at Phoenix later this season:

  • Champion (1st Place)
    • 1 Year VRS Subscription (Competitive Plan)
    • 3 Month Team VRS Scholarship
    • 1 VRS Sponsor Hat
  • Runner Up (2nd Place)
    • 3 Month VRS Subscription
    • 1 Month Team VRS Scholarship
  • 3rd Place
    • 3 Month VRS Subscription
    • 1 Month Team VRS Scholarship
  • 4th Place
    • 1 Month VRS Subscription
    • 1 Month Team VRS Scholarship

With the new title sponsorship, the VRS Truck Series logo has been reworked. Contingencies will be updated over the weekend.

We are very excited to have such a reputable sim racing company backing up the hard work we put into this league, day in and day out. This is nothing short of an incredible step forward for our community, leagues, and for our members. Thanks again to VRS for taking the time to meet with me and for supporting all the hard work that has got us to this point!

Cory Mott – Crown Jewel Owner

The VRS Truck Series Split #3 continues Monday at 8:30 PM EST – live from the Indianapolis Raceway Park short track for 200-laps around the tough short track! Watch live on the Crown Jewel Racing Network!