This week, a new report confirmed that NASCAR is transitioning its season finale to a rotational format between tracks. So, what tracks best fit this format, what have NASCAR officials said, and what tracks do the fans want?
This topic has been discussed in multiple interviews with NASCAR brass. In fact, current NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell has spoken at length about potential host tracks.
In November, at the State of the Sport press conference in Phoenix, O’Donnell listed several tracks that are “considerations” for NASCAR. Those comments set a basis for the location and track type that NASCAR is seeking in a new potential championship race host.
O’Donnell also mentioned a rotational format in an interview with Adam Stern of Sports Business Journal. In that interview, O’Donnell listed some of the same tracks from November. Not until February did O’Donnell speak at length about the concept on the debut episode of NASCAR’s Hauler Talk podcast.
This episode featured a soft pitch of the concept to NASCAR fans. It provided NASCAR’s thought process on implementing this system alongside some limitations to potential tracks in a rotation.
The now-former NASCAR COO said an ideal venue is “any oval where we can pull it off,” though attendance will factor into the decision. However, O’Donnell did limit the thought of superspeedways, saying, “Road courses and street courses might be a little tough. Who knows? Down the road, depending on the balance of where we race.”
So, with our seemingly narrow parameters set, what tracks are favorites to be included?
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The source confirming the new rotational system was a report by Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic on Apr. 21. This report not only confirmed the system but also announced that Homestead-Miami Speedway, the long-time host of the finale, will be the first track in the rotation.
The track has great racing and was the original track O’Donnell named for consideration in November. While fans may not be happy that it is only for one year, the trade-off of leaving the poor short-track product at Phoenix makes it worth it.
The report from Bianchi also confirmed that Phoenix Raceway will remain part of this rotation. This may be to the dismay of fans, who have grown weary of the Next-Gen car’s short-track racing.
However, as O’Donnell said in November, the attendance and atmosphere factor at Phoenix is “really big” in the decision-making for a championship host track. Regardless, during the delay between the 2025 Phoenix Championship race and the next Championship Weekend at the track, which is still undetermined, NASCAR could find a fix for the cars’ on-track problems.
Almost every time O’Donnell spoke about a host track, Las Vegas Motor Speedway was mentioned. This includes a mention in November’s State of the Sport press conference and the interview with Adam Stern.
The track puts on a solid race and is in one of the largest tourist destinations in the world. While attendance has been spotty at LVMS, there are already rumors that it could host the 2027 Championship race. The only odd factor is that NASCAR does not own the track; rather, Speedway Motorsports owns it.
If NASCAR takes the championship to LVMS, it would be the first time in the playoff era that a non-NASCAR-owned track hosts the event.
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While those tracks are the heavy favorites, there are some fan favorites that NASCAR should and have considered for the Championship rotation.
In the State of the Sport press conference, O’Donnell mentioned a second SMI-owned track: Charlotte Motor Speedway, the jewel of the SMI track lineup. While this would be a sort of home game for certain teams, much like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers playing in the Super Bowl in their home stadium, it poses several questions.
Of course, we all know the fall race at Charlotte is on the ROVAL; it seems unlikely that the race would be on the Roval, begging the question of whether or not this would mark a gap year for the hybrid oval and road course.
The egg-shaped Darlington Raceway led off O’Donnell’s comments on potential host tracks in November. Undoubtedly, the energy and racing that the track brings to NASCAR are unbeatable. However, the small market may not favor the track getting the race in the long run.
All things aside, a championship race at Darlington would stir excitement, as the lady in black has been as unpredictable as ever in NASCAR’s Next Gen era. However, hosting the championship would have to remove the Southern 500 from its traditional Labor Day weekend slot once again.
The longest shot of all the fan favorites, and the one that puts on perhaps the best racing in modern NASCAR, is Kansas Speedway. While it does match the vague terms set off “any oval,” the location in Kansas City, Kansas, is a stark outlier when even compared to Darlington.
That being said, the race would surely be more thrilling and unpredictable than NASCAR could ever dream of. However, the track presents one problem that the others don’t, and that is the cold midwestern climate that could drive fans out of the grandstands in early November.
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