Speedway Motorsports Inc. CEO Marcus Smith yesterday affirmed that his family "would be interested in eventually purchasing" the NFL Panthers, according to Jonathan Jones of the CHARLOTTE OBSERVER. Marcus' father, Bruton Smith, last month said that his sons "want him to buy the NFL franchise when it becomes available." Marcus Smith: “It’s just one of those things where it’s not even on the market. Would we be interested? Yeah. It would be an incredible opportunity and such a neat opportunity and property for anybody to be able to shepherd into the future. We’re in the sports entertainment world now and we love what we do, and (I) think it’d be fun to do more of it." Jones notes Panthers Owner Jerry Richardson "revealed the succession plan" in '13. The Panthers "are to be sold less than two years after the death of Richardson." Bruton Smith "has made similar overtures before." After the succession plan was revealed in '13, Smith said that he would be "interested in buying the Panthers 'if the price is right.'" Marcus Smith: "We love wowing fans and love to entertain people from all over the world. If we have an opportunity to expand what we do, it’s certainly something that I would always be interested in" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 5/5).
