One hurdle for a potential race at the Fairgrounds is that it does not currently meet NASCAR standardsFAIRGROUNDS SPEEDWAY
Bristol Motor Speedway and Formosa Productions have "reached an agreement to possibly bring NASCAR and other major racing events back to the historic Fairgrounds Speedway in Nashville," according to Robert Sorrell of the BRISTOL HERALD COURIER. Formosa has a "multi-year contract with the Metro Nashville Board of Fair Commissioners to promote and manage the speedway and operate a limited number of local racing events." SMI Exec Chair Bruton Smith has "shown interest" in the Nashville speedway since last year. At that time, Metro Nashville was "looking for a race promoter and manager, which ultimately resulted in Formosa’s contract." Fairgrounds Speedway "hasn’t hosted a major NASCAR race in years." The governing body in '01 "moved its Nashville races to the new Superspeedway," which is in nearby Lebanon, Tenn., while the Fairgrounds Speedway is "in the heart of Nashville." It is "not known when NASCAR could possibly return to the Fairgrounds Speedway, as it does not currently meet NASCAR’s standards" (BRISTOL HERALD COURIER, 12/20). In Nashville, Rau & Garrison in a front-page piece note Formosa told the fair board in October that discussions have "centered around a NASCAR Xfinity Series race and a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at the fairgrounds." It remains "unclear how soon races may start at the site" (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 12/20).
