NASCAR Truck Series: 5 tracks to add to the Truck Series schedule

Jukasa Motor Speedway

Jukasa Motor Speedway is located in Hagersville, Ontario, Canada. It is a 0.625-mile short track formerly known as Cayuga Speedway. For the past two years, it has hosted the season finale for the NASCAR Pinty’s Series, the NASCAR-sanctioned Canadian series. NASCAR knows the benefits and challenges of the track hosting a Truck Series race.

Regarding track infrastructure, track officials are constantly upgrading the facility. Before the track reopened in 2017, it was repaved. According to Matt Weaver, there is plenty of land for the track to add parking and other infrastructure additions. Jukasa Motor Speedway has over 300 acres, over 1,100 campsites and free parking, so it is a very fan-friendly facility.

Track officials continued to update Jukasa Motor Speedway. Recently, LED lighting was added so the track can host spectacular night races. Further upgrades include replacing the current grandstands, installing a spectator crossover bridge to the infield and raising the main tower following the grandstand reconstruction.

The racing at Jukasa Motor Speedway is gaining popularity. The track owners also are the owners of Grand River Enterprises. Weaver calls them the “Native American tobacco czars”. With their wealth, they successfully debuted the Canadian Short Track Nationals.

The inaugural race took place in September 2018 with a winning purse of $38,000. The overall purse totaled $174,000. By 2021, that purse will be about $1 million. At a time during which Truck Series teams struggle with funding, a large purse would make the trip to Canada worthwhile. From a marketing perspective, NASCAR could promote the Truck Series race as the richest Truck Series race in history.

The race purse needs to be large mainly because of the logistical challenges for teams. The drive from Charlotte to Jukasa Motor Speedway is about 12 hours. It’s roughly two hours to the United States border. Truck Series teams already travel to Canada to race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. That track is about two hours away from Jukasa Motor Speedway.

Frankly, I don’t know where NASCAR would add Jukasa Motor Speedway into the Truck Series schedule. Scheduling the two Canadian race tracks back-to-back would be a nightmare. Would fans travel two hours for two straight weekends to see two Truck Series races? Doubtful.

As far as the teams, that would be a challenge. Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is a road course whereas Jukasa Motor Speedway is a short track. Teams usually race different trucks at different types of tracks, so it is highly unlikely that teams would stay north during the week.

Still, we should be hopeful. Weaver informed me that if a race track fulfilled the prerequisites set forth by NASCAR to host a race, NASCAR would be willing to work to find a date for a race. With the upgrades at Jukasa Motor Speedway, the racing is good for the fans.

Take a look at this video that Weaver took during the Canadian Short Track Nationals.

While the quality of racing is only a small reason why NASCAR would add a track to the Truck Series schedule, fan attendance certainly factors into the decision-making process by NASCAR. If fans fill a Truck Series race at Jukasa Motor Speedway to make the attendance comparable to the attendance for the race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, NASCAR should take advantage of that popularity.

Lastly, a Truck Series race at Jukasa Motor Speedway is an opportunity for Canadian drivers to perhaps catch the attention of NASCAR owners, as Bob Pockrass somewhat noted.

Racing at a short track in Canada would remedy that situation. At the moment, Jukasa Motor Speedway is not ready to host a Truck Series race. Once those upgrades are finished, track officials are interested in hosting a Truck Series race. So when the current sanctioning agreements that NASCAR has with its race tracks end, Jukasa Motor Speedway will be ready to host a Truck Series race.