NASCAR’s New Deal With Tracks Eliminates Direct Competition

If nothing else NASCAR is crafty and that is proven by one of the new provisions in their new deal with the tracks the Sprint Cup Series races at.

Last season NASCAR announced that they signed a new sanctioning agreement with the tracks. When the deal was announced one of the immediate frustrations amongst some was the realization that NASCAR would not be introducing any new tracks into the Sprint Cup Series in the foreseeable future. The agreement involves 23 tracks on the Sprint Cup Series side and 24 tracks on the Xfinity Series side, the announcement also coincided with the revealing of the 2016 schedule.

With the new sanctioning agreement there also came some new provisions between NASCAR and the tracks. One of the new provisions allows for NASCAR to essentially eliminate any direct competition to the Sprint Cup Series at tracks where the Sprint Cup Series races. According to a recent article on ESPN, one of the new provisions prohibits tracks that host Cup races to host any other events that resemble the Sprint Cup Series.

"Promoter covenants not to promote, host, conduct or stage, nor allow any third party[s] to promote, host, conduct or stage, a stock car racing event at the Facility that attempts to duplicate, emulate, imitate, copy, simulate and/or mimic the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series; or uses the same or similar race vehicles, rules, competitors, trademarks, trade dress, and/or ‘look and feel’ of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series; or would create confusion in the public; or would in any way dilute the stature, impact and value of the Event, (the sanction agreement states)."

This is a bold and crafty move on the part of NASCAR as well as a big risk on the part of the race tracks. For some of the tracks, the NASCAR weekend is their only major source of income for the calendar year. Agreeing to this not only limits other possible flows of income but it puts more pressure on the NASCAR weekend doing well from a financial standpoint.

From a NASCAR stance, the move is smart.

NASCAR wants to be the best and only ticket in town when it comes to quality racing on these tracks. The addition of this provision makes it so that nothing that could even remind people of NASCAR will be on those tracks unless it’s actually NASCAR. NASCAR has made themselves the only show in town in some respects for some of these tracks, most likely with the goal of increasing revenue for all parties involved.

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Of course the negative here is that if the NASCAR weekends don’t draw, it hurts all parties. A poor NASCAR weekend at a track is obviously poor for NASCAR but it could also throw off the fiscal year for a track. Granted, a poor NASCAR weekend isn’t going to bankrupt anyone, but that’s not to say that it won’t have a negative impact. That negative impact could now potentially be magnified with this new provision.

At the end of the day though it is what it is seeing as how all parties involved signed off on it. If nothing else, it certainly is a little bit of an interesting twist that some people might not have known about.