NASCAR: Truck and Xfinity Series make case for more road courses

This past weekend, the NASCAR Truck and Xfinity Series just competed in road course racing action. Did they add to the case for the Cup Series to add more?

Year after year, NASCAR continues to produce great racing each time they take to the twists and turns offered by the various road courses. This was again the case this past weekend for both the Camping World Truck Series and Xfinity Series. Even the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series fired up the racing community earlier in the month.

On Saturday, the Xfinity Series raced at Road America and Justin Allgaier found victory lane. The race featured everything from intense battles for position to spins all over the track. Sunday’s Truck Series race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park provided fans with a last-lap wreck and some fun chatter following the race. Justin Haley was the race winner,but the talk of the town was Noah Gragson hitting Todd Gilliland, eliminating both from the contention for the win.

For whatever reason, the road courses seem to be the tracks producing the best racing. With 2020 being the next potential date for a schedule overhaul, this past weekend definitely had to hammer home to NASCAR that more road courses is needed. Here are three pieces of justification for adding more road races to the schedule.

The three biggest arguments

There’s a wide variety of tracks that could be used

There is no reason for NASCAR to go out and reinvent the wheel. Tracks such as Daytona, Indianapolis, Talladega and more all have the ability to hold road course races. Drivers have made it clear for years that they dislike restrictor plate racing. Instead of running the normal super speedway tracks twice, why not utilize these tracks for their road course potential? There are also several other road courses in North America that would make great homes for race weekends.

They produce new and different winners on a regular basis

In recent years, road courses have provided fans with winners who don’t often find victory lane. A.J. Allmendinger and Chase Elliott both won their first career Cup Series races at Watkins Glen International. Repeat winners at road courses has also been very rare. At Sonoma Raceway, a driver hasn’t won consecutive races since Jeff Gordon three-peated there in 1998, 1999 and 2000. It’s been six years since Marcos Ambrose went back-to-back at Watkins Glen in 2011 and 2012.

It should put more people in the stands

Watkins Glen sold out for the fourth straight year in early August. Based on the crowd’s reaction after Chase Elliott won, sellout number five will be happening in 2019. If you’re like me and are disappointed with all of the empty seats from week to week, then Watkins Glen has to give you hope.

I would be shocked if more road course races were added and less seats were filled. There is a ton of buzz around the Charlotte roval race coming our way at the end of September. With more road course races added in the future, the buzz and excitement would continue to grow.

Are you on board with more road courses being added to the schedule? If so, what tracks would you prefer to see on the schedule? Are you excited for the roval race at Charlotte Motor Speedway later this season?