Let’s talk dirt.
By the time you read this, the only dirt race for NASCAR’s three national touring series will probably be done. The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) Eldora Dirt Derby was held Wednesday night. The 2017 edition marks the fifth consecutive year the NCWTS has played in the mud at Eldora.
When NASCAR announced the return to dirt in 2012, the July Eldora race became one of the body’s premier events. Part of the appeal of the race is the qualifying format more like a Saturday night short track show than major NASCAR racing. Five 10-lap qualifying races – with only green flag laps counting – are held. Five trucks from each qualifying race will move on to the main event. There will then be a last-chance race with the top-two finishers moving on. Positions 28-32 are set by points and past champion provisionals.
In this year’s race, two drivers will not make the feature race (34 trucks vying for 32 spots).
For the first few years of the event, I was dead set on no dirt races following the truck’s lead for the Xfinity or Cup Series. But, after the way things have gone for NASCAR this year, I am beginning to reconsider. Attendance is down. TV viewership is down. NASCAR made a bold move with the 2018 schedule, swapping out Charlotte’s October oval race for the track’s “roval,” a combination of the oval and the infield road course.
So, why not give the Cup boys and girl a run at the dirt? Sure, it may take away from the truck event, but it can’t hurt boost interest in the big series – at least for a week. And you can’t tell me you wouldn’t love to see Kyle Larson, Kasey Kahne, Austin Dillon and Ricky Stenhouse (all come from dirt backgrounds) go back to racing on dirt against the other top drivers. You might even get Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon to come out of retirement to give dirt a go again.
The other amazing thing about the event at Eldora is it sells out a Wednesday night, which leads me to another thought: NASCAR was built on many a mid-week show. I seem to remember a highly rated and well attended Monday night race at Daytona a few years back (the Juan Pablo Montoya jet dryer race). You could argue a mid-week race would have a drop in attendance, but attendance is pretty bad on weekends, so what is NASCAR really risking?
If you pay attention to short tracks and local racing (because, doesn’t everybody?), you know dirt tracks are booming, relatively speaking, compared to asphalt racing. If NASCAR wants to tap into a broader audience, making a larger foray into dirt may not be a bad idea.
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Leadership shakeup
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Speaking of changes in the sport, it looks like NASCAR has shaken up its leadership team over the last week. On Tuesday, the sanctioning body announced the addition of Brandon Igdalsky as managing director of event marketing and Promotion. Evan Parker is the new managing director of content strategy, Scott Warfied is the managing director of digital and social content, and Jeff Wohlschlaeger has been appointed managing director of series marketing.
Last week, it was announced that chief operating officerBrent Dewar will replace Mike Helton as NASCAR president. Helton will remain the sanctioning body’s vice chairman.
What any of this means is beyond me. I am going to be optimistic that the changes will lead to some positive outcomes for NASCAR. I am excited about the addition of Igdalsky as essentially NASCAR’s chief promoter. He is the grandson of Dr. Joseph Mattioli, founder of Pocono raceway, where he had been president and CEO since 2007. During his tenure, he had done big things at Pocono in terms of track upgrades and improved fan experience. It is my hope that he can bring that experience to bear for all of NASCAR.
Normally, this kind of personnel moves would barely cause me to bat an eye. But with the problems NASCAR is facing, they are worth keeping an eye one.
Andy Cagle writes a weekly NASCAR column. He can be reached at andycagle78@gmail.com.