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NASCAR: If not Nashville, where will NASCAR go for more short track racing?

By Kyle Funderburk

LEBANON, TN - APRIL 23: Carl Edwards, driver of the #60 Ford DriveOne Ford celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series Nashville 300 at Nashville Superspeedway on April 23, 2011 in Lebanon, Tennessee. (Photo by Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR)
LEBANON, TN - APRIL 23: Carl Edwards, driver of the #60 Ford DriveOne Ford celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series Nashville 300 at Nashville Superspeedway on April 23, 2011 in Lebanon, Tennessee. (Photo by Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR) /
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MARTINSVILLE, VA – MARCH 24: A general view of the action during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway on March 24, 2019 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
MARTINSVILLE, VA – MARCH 24: A general view of the action during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway on March 24, 2019 in Martinsville, Virginia. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

NASCAR returning to the historic Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway has been a hot topic for nearly a year now. But recent site plans might stop the movement in its tracks.

Speedway Motorsports Incorporated’s (SMI) plans to bring NASCAR Cup Series racing back to the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway might have taken a huge blow last week. Without much help from Nashville City Hall and site plans that feature a proposed apartment complex, parking deck and Major League Soccer stadium close to the race track, SMI and Fairgrounds Speedway owner Tony Formosa have hit the first major obstacle in their plans.

Elsewhere in the mid-week NASCAR news cycle, NASCAR president Steve Phelps was on the Dale Jr. Download show and podcast Tuesday. Earnhardt Jr. did as fans on Twitter asked and he didn’t throw Phelps any softballs with his questions. He pressed Phelps on a number of topics, including Nashville and other short tracks. On the show, Phelps displayed a genuine desire to bring Cup Series NASCAR racing back to more short tracks.

Phelps mentioned how it’s what the fans seem to want. He also brought up statistics about Martinsville Speedway, saying at one time recently that sponsors wanted nothing to do with the “paperclip”. Now they’re all over Martinsville’s two Cup Series races.

It goes without saying that NASCAR is looking for some short tracks to venture to in the future. But for right now, the top candidate is in trouble. Formosa, SMI and Bristol Motor Speedway general manager Jerry Caldwell got everyone excited about the prospect of adding Nashville and other short tracks to the schedule when track contract negotiations for 2021 heat up, but now where will NASCAR go?

Fortunately, there is no shortage of short tracks in the United States. If NASCAR wants more short tracks, there are solid options scattered around the country. Here are some candidates NASCAR could and perhaps will look into.

But first, some criteria. When asked by Earnhardt Jr. at the beginning of the interview if short tracks are 0.75 miles or shorter, Phelps said yes. So while NASCAR should look into hosting a Cup Series race at Iowa Speedway, at 0.875 miles in length, it is not a short track.

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