Effective Immediately: NASCAR President Taking on New Role

What’s Happening?

According to NASCAR, President Steve Phelps is stepping away from his current role and transitioning into the new role of NASCAR Commissioner. In his place, NASCAR COO Steve O’Donnell will become the sport’s sixth President.

• In his new role, Phelps is in charge of “all functions of the sport with a specific focus on strategic growth and international expansion while continuing to work directly with NASCAR owners Jim France and Lesa France Kennedy.” The role will heavily emphasize growing NASCAR’s international brand, something the sport is becoming increasingly focused on.
• Phelps started in NASCAR as Vice President of Corporate Marketing in 2005 and became President in 2018. This move places O’Donnell on the same path that Phelps was on, moving from COO to President.
• A press release from NASCAR claims that Phelps is the first person to hold the position of Commissioner; however, this is not technically true. The role was introduced in the early days of the sport and transitioned into a more ceremonial one, with Charles Strong serving as the last “Commissioner” in 2008.
• During his tenure as President, Phelps achieved several milestones, such as introducing the Premier Partner program and the Chicago Street race. However, his tenure has also seen controversy among fans, including the introduction of the NASCAR Next Gen car and the slimming down of race weekends.
• In the release from NASCAR CEO Jim France stated, “With more than 50 years of expertise between them, both Steve Phelps and Steve O’Donnell bring tremendous expertise, stability and a commitment to the bold racing innovations that will continue to serve fans, teams and stakeholders for many years to come.”

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