NASCAR: Purchase of International Speedway Corporation a bigger deal than most realize

By Kyle Funderburk | Jun 9, 2019

DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 18: Alex Bowman, driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet. (Photo by Sarah Crabill/Getty Images) /

NASCAR recently merged with another Bill France Sr.-founded company, International Speedway Corporation. The merger gives NASCAR ownership of 12 of the 23 tracks on the Cup Series schedule.

Sometimes, big news goes undervalued. That’s the case with NASCAR‘s recent $2 billion purchase of International Speedway Corporation (ISC).

Bill France Sr. founded ISC in 1953 as a front for the construction and ownership of Daytona International Speedway. Over the years, ISC has expanded to include 12 of the race tracks that are currently on the Cup Series schedule, and they’ve managed many other tracks over the years.

Like NASCAR, ISC has remained under control of the France family. At the time of the purchase, NASCAR CEO Jim France, the brother of Bill France Jr., was the chairman of ISC, while his niece, Lisa Kennedy, was the CEO. The family ties are likely why this news has been shrugged off. It’s easy to believe that nothing will change.

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But keep in mind, ISC were still their own company. They operated with independence and had to pay the same sanctioning fees as Speedway Motorsports Incorporated (SMI) and other track owners. They also had some control over the dates of their races. Most importantly, ISC, not NASCAR, decided which tracks they bought or constructed.

Now NASCAR has that power.

The sanctioning body has 14 tracks that they can schedule as they please (12 ISC tracks plus Iowa Speedway and Sebring International Raceway, the latter being owned by NASCAR via IMSA). More importantly, they have a large team of experienced race track managers, buyers and sellers working for them, meaning that they have more control over the schedule than ever.

We already know that the heads of NASCAR want to further vary the schedule with more short tracks and road courses. NASCAR president Steve Phelps has made this abundantly clear numerous times since starting his position last year.

But without their own race tracks, Phelps was restricted to the ISC, SMI and independently owned tracks keeping their facilities up to date and paying their sanctioning fees.

The purchase of ISC illustrates NASCAR showing a more proactive approach to scheduling, one that will finally allow them to finalize a slate of tracks with variety. If they’re serious about adding short racks and road courses to the schedule, expect to see them use ISC to either buy or invest in those tracks around the country.

For instance, NASCAR might see the need in adding another short track in the south and go after Myrtle Beach Speedway, or they might move into the Pacific Northwest by adding Portland International Raceway. How about midweek races? They no longer have to wait on a track to step up and agree on a date. And if SMI’s deal with the Nashville Fairgrounds falls through, NASCAR can pick up the pieces.

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NASCAR is open to a whole new world of possibilities as far as scheduling is concerned, but they might not even be finished acquiring track corporations. SMI appears to be in the process of privatizing as Bruton Smith’s Sonic Financial Corporation may acquire all outstanding shares. This would make selling SMI much easier. SMI owns eight tracks, including Charlotte Motor Speedway, Bristol Motor Speedway and Sonoma Raceway.