Kentucky on 2010 Sprint Cup Schedule?

Next stop on the Sprint Cup schedule, Bruton Smith hopes so.

As the buildup to All-Star Week builds in Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte’s Lowes Speedway owner/operator, Bruton Smith, announced he expects to have a Sprint Cup race at his Kentucky Motor Speedway in 2010 even if it means moving a date from one of his other SMI tracks which include Charlotte, Atlanta, Bristol, Concord, Las Vegas, Sears Point, and Texas. Conjecture immediately centers on the Concord, New Hampshire track while work continues on safety upgrade at the track.

Bruton Smith sent shivers through Mid-Atlantic race fans particularly in the upper Chesapeake region after the purchase of the Kentucky speedway last year followed by his bids for the Dover and Pocono racetracks with conjecture he would promptly move a date from one of those tracks to Kentucky. Moving a date from Dover would seem unthinkable given its huge capacity and service to three huge markets just a short drive away: Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC. The Pocono, track while providing good racing on television albeit races too long that should be shortened to 400 miles or 500 kilometers, is simply not up to Sprint Cup standards for fans. The view of the racing action is terrible given the grandstand is along a straight front straightaway and the track’s long length and odd configuration give little view of the action in the distance. Facilities are poor and access is difficult. However, the family owning the track is steadfast in its desire to keep it.

So who should be sweating about losing a date? Although Atlanta is a large market, it struggles to find ticket buyers. The fall race is being moved to Labor Day part in response to the miserable failure the race at Fontana, California has been since that date was stripped from Darlington. New Hampshire’s track is another candidate, but aside from Watkins Glen in Upstate New York, it is the only track north of New York City and the only track serving New England. The other SMI tracks would appear safe especially as Smith would love another date for Las Vegas. Texas recently received its second date. Charlotte is NASCAR’s home town track. Bristol is one of the most successful tracks on the circuit, and Infineon Raceway at Sears Point is one of two road courses on the circuit though it has a limited number of seats compared to most oval tracks.

Kentucky would be a plus opening up western Kentucky, southern Ohio, and southern Indiana. It’s a rather generic track like many of the newer tracks on the circuit. There are few negatives other than from a television fan’s perspective, it’s pretty much more of the shame when tracks like Richmond provide such a lively difference from other tracks as did the now defunct track at Rockingham, North Carolina.

The changing face of NASCAR continues as the focus of being perceived as an old Dixie enterprises becomes more and more nationwide.