Mike Helton

Mike Helton
Helton in 2012
Born	c. 1953 (age 63–64) Bristol, Virginia, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Executive/President
Employer	NASCAR
Predecessor	Bill France, Jr.

Michael "Mike" Helton (born c. 1953) is the vice chairman of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). He replaced Bill France, Jr. in November 2000 as the company's 3rd president. He was named Chief Operating Officer of NASCAR in February 1999.

Helton is from Bristol, Virginia. After graduating from John S. Battle High School in Washington County, Virginia, where he was senior class president, he attended King College in Bristol, Tennessee, home of Bristol Motor Speedway. He majored in accounting and minored in math displaying an aptitude for numbers. He was awarded an Honorary Degree from King College in May 2000.

Following college, Helton worked as an accountant plus supplemented his income by refereeing football and basketball. A fellow referee would introduce him to a small local AM radio station where he became the station's sports director. One of Helton's favorite assignments as sports director in the mid-1970s were the frequent NASCAR events in his area. By 1980, Helton became a public relations director at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

In 1980, Helton began at Atlanta International Raceway and was promoted to general manager in 1985. He joined the management team at Daytona International Speedway in 1986. After eighteen months, Helton became the general manager at Talladega Superspeedway. He became vice president of International Speedway Corporation in two years and was promoted to president of the Talladega track in 1989. Helton held that position until January 1994, when he became the new vice president for competition for NASCAR taking over for Les Richter.

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