The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule has been "relatively stable over the past decade, but, if the input of various parties means anything, there could be a significant shakeup when the calendar moves" into the next decade, according to Mike Hembree of USA TODAY. Stewart-Haas Racing co-Owner Tony Stewart "wants to use the success of the Camping World Truck Series events" at Eldora Speedway, which he owns, to convince NASCAR officials to "schedule a Cup race at the track." The Cup series "hasn't raced on dirt" since '70. Driver Kyle Busch also "jumped into the conversation" recently, urging NASCAR to "consider more Cup events at tracks less than a mile." Meanwhile, a successful Roval race at CMS in September "could prompt consideration of similar approaches at other locations." The schedules for NASCAR’s three major series are set for '19, but the doors "appear wide open for examination of new directions in the years to come." Driver Joey Logano said, "Every sport is going to make changes. We have to keep up with the times." He added, "Short tracks are a lot of fun. I like short tracks a lot. If you want to go dirt racing, strap in, let’s go. I don’t care as long as I’m racing." But NASCAR HOFer Richard Petty "isn't among the group wanting to get dirty again." He said, "That would be like bringing the Carolina Panthers to play at Randleman (N.C.) High School. We've elevated about that." Logano said that the ultimate schedule "might include all tracks hosting only one race" (USA TODAY, 7/23).
REMAIN THE SAME: The AP's Dan Gelston wrote NASCAR has been "reluctant to make more than modest tweaks to its schedule." The idea of blowing up a schedule that has "largely remained unchanged for most of the last decade is hardly a novel idea, and drivers have long lobbied NASCAR to try something new and mix things up over the staid summer months." Driver Denny Hamlin said, "None of this is ever going to happen. Not until these tracks and NASCAR get together and are willing to make changes." Hamlin added, "It's going to have to take someone way high up saying, 'We're making changes and this is what we're going to do,' for it to happen." Gelston noted that seems "unlikely in the immediate future" (AP, 7/21). In Daytona, Ken Willis wrote the longer-term issue "involves the business model." If Martin Truex Jr. and Jimmie Johnson are "in the woods financially, and nearly everyone is now cobbling together pieces of deals to fill as many gaps as possible, it’s time for the smart people to develop a new way of doing things" (Daytona Beach NEWS-JOURNAL, 7/22).
CIRCLE OF LIFE: FORBES' Maury Brown notes those inside NASCAR "describe the sport as being in transition." Jeff Gordon said that since he, Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Danica Patrick retired, a "star-powered vacuum" has been created. Roush Fenway Racing President Steve Newmark "believes the sports requires being more proactive." Newmark: "It’s fair to say we’re in transition, but we also need to evolve. ... The way we operated 20 years ago doesn’t apply in the context of this day-and-age with how technology is used and how consumers absorb advertiser messaging, and things of that nature" (FORBES.com, 7/23).
