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

Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park

Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park is located in Thompson, Connecticut. The facility has a 0.625-mile short track and a 1.7-mile road course. The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East races at the track yearly, and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour raced at the track four times in 2018. Both series competed on the short track.

The facility is located on 500 acres, complete with a golf course. NASCAR likes when celebrities attend races. Having a professional golfer present during the race would give the race some marketability. The track also boasts its own ice cream stand, and NASCAR increasingly wants the race atmosphere to be family-friendly.

As far as track infrastructure, Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park has a bridge for team haulers, 30 garage stalls, new concession stands, offices, restrooms and a timing and scoring tower. The track is prepared to host a Truck Series race. Furthermore, although the track does not have SAFER barriers, it has upgraded safety fencing and barriers called ISS Pro Link Barriers.

Fans and drivers alike want more short tracks on the Truck Series schedule.

The same family have owned Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park since its inception. It is a local historic short track. Plus, a Truck Series race there would be an opportunity for East Coast drivers, especially for drivers from the northeast, to compete in the Truck Series.

NASCAR dealt a blow to that area of the country though when it removed the Truck Series race from New Hampshire Motor Speedway. New Hampshire Motor Speedway is two hours away from Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. That’s not a vote of confidence by NASCAR for that region.

Logistically, Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park could be added to the Truck Series schedule. The Truck Series could race at the track on Friday night and the Xfinity Series and Cup Series could race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

In 2018, the Truck Series raced at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, four days before the Xfinity Series and Cup Series raced at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. However, NASCAR can solve that scheduling conflict by moving the Eldora Speedway race to the weekend during which the Xfinity Series and Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Truck Series did not race that weekend this season.

So what would sway NASCAR into moving race dates to accommodate a race at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park? A title sponsor for the race.

Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park is 50 minutes from downtown Boston, Massachusetts, two and a half hours from New York City, New York and 40 minutes from Hartford, Connecticut and Providence, Rhode Island. With all of those nearby metropolitan areas, surely NASCAR can help track officials secure a title sponsor for a Truck Series race at the track.

Finally, if NASCAR truly wants each series to be a ladder-like progression, some tracks on the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East schedule should be on the Truck Series schedule. Drivers could climb up the ladder as they further their careers in NASCAR.

Because of its proximity to major cities, the lack of a Truck Series race in the northeast and its quality facilities, Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park should be added to the Truck Series schedule.