Tony Stewart to fans: ‘Put some pressure on NASCAR’ for Xfinity race at Eldora

[QUOTE="StandOnIt, post: 1430049, member: 7219"...]there was a test on a makeshift road course right in the middle of the Charlotte infield,...[/QUOTE]
I dunno where the author got that 'makeshift' stuff. That road course has been there for years.
 
Towmater said:
Last nights race made it clear why you don't want the Cup teams there. First, that small a track can't handle that many cars. The Cup series would have another 8 cars on that track. Drivers up front would have to continually battle slower cars as they lapped them and we all know how much Harvick complains when he has to do that. Secondly, I've never been a big endorser of speed but watching the trucks slowly make their way around the track last night brought home the fact that speed is an important part of the NASCAR show.
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What if they split the show up like the Duels at Daytona, but reversed? Do two 20-car races, both assign points from 20 down to 1. Or make it a non-points race. Even qualified cars in race 1, odd qualified cars in race 2.
 
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My personal preference would be for Tony to round up the best cars available from the locals who race regularly and put Cup drivers in them in an exhibition race. That would save the Cup teams the costs of developing a car for one race. Let 'em race in cars designed for the purpose.

I'm not sure how well drivers and teams would accept lengthening the season, esp. for another race that doesn't count. I see all the favorable driver comments, but I wonder how many of those assume Eldora would replace another race, not be an additional one? As with all other suggestions to change the schedule, nothing is going to happen for a few more years.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
My personal preference would be for Tony to round up the best cars available from the locals who race regularly and put Cup drivers in them in an exhibition race. That would save the Cup teams the costs of developing a car for one race. Let 'em race in cars designed for the purpose.

I'm not sure how well drivers and teams would accept lengthening the season, esp. for another race that doesn't count. I see all the favorable driver comments, but I wonder how many of those assume Eldora would replace another race, not be an additional one? As with all other suggestions to change the schedule, nothing is going to happen for a few more years.
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What track is going to have a race stripped from them or allow a race to disappear from them? Tell ya what, lets run the All Star race at Eldora. It is a meaningless race that nobody is that interested in anyway. The track already has three races. They should be forced to give it up to Tony Stewart.
 
Taking a race away from any track to give to Eldora is going to be hard. I think the All Star race would be a good bone to throw Tony's way if NASCAR wants to see the Cup cars there. It isn't a points race and NASCAR could say it was an experiment.

Again, I hope they don't do it though.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
My personal preference would be for Tony to round up the best cars available from the locals who race regularly and put Cup drivers in them in an exhibition race. That would save the Cup teams the costs of developing a car for one race. Let 'em race in cars designed for the purpose.
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They literally did that for several years. Ever heard of the Prelude to the Dream?

DaBiff1618 said:
Who wouldn't want to see Kyle Busch try dirt racing? I'd love to see what elite cup drivers adapt the quickest, and if some of the mid packers acclimate quicker and can actually beat the big dogs for a change.
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Kyle actually won the Prelude to the Dream. It might have been the last one they had. Jimmie Johnson also won it one year. I think Kenny Wallace won the first, which falls into your mid-packer acclimating scenario.
 
Prelude to the dream was awesome

tony-stewart-hands-carl-edwards-the-trophy-for-winning-the-nextel-to-picture-id74427310
 
We've gone over this...several times...on why a long-distance, points paying Cup race couldn't happen.

Why Cup can't work at Eldora...

1. Not enough real estate on the track.
2. Not enough real estate inside the track (pit road)
3. Not enough supporting infrastructure like grandstands. Even at 30k or whatever Eldora seats that's not nearly enough for a Cup race....bitch about seating as we do I don't think any Cup race that runs on its scheduled day with a decent weather forecast gets less than 30k in attendance.

Why Cup can't work on dirt in general...

1. Heavy cars over a long distance would destroy the track surface and make it single groove. This is just a hypothesis, but I believe this would happen at Eldora but we've never seen it since there's always been a late-race caution to bunch the field back up.
1a. Why not run a shorter race then so that the track won't get destroyed? Well, these races need to be long enough to sell a decent number of commercials. NASCAR did shorten the Auto Club and Pocono races but each event on the schedule is still 2.5-3.5 hours in length. A 2.5 hour dirt race would have to be a lot of laps that...again...the track surface couldn't handle.
2. The "target demographics" that NASCAR wants isn't going to dirt tracks...they're not going to any track in general but that sacred 20-30 y.o. bracket is what drives NASCAR's decisions so why would they visit a dirt track with the same older fans that go to the asphalt ones?
3. SMI and ISC don't own dirt tracks, save for the "bullring" 1/4 mile at Charlotte.
 
To add to my point...

People talk like this sport has fallen off a cliff...but these teams and drivers still need helicopter pads, grandstands, executive suites, media centers, camping areas, hauler parking, area accommodations for thousands of crew members, NASCAR big-wigs, VIP's, sponsor guests... and modest area hotels for thousands of fans...

My point is...even the most marquee of dirt events pale in comparison to what would be the humblest of NASCAR events. And creating adequate facilities would take a massive investment that has no ROI with the current economy/health of the sport.
 
Yeah they are, those are two of the largest and heaviest cars that Detroit has ever produced..not tearing up the track (ridiculous), and racing a high line and a low line, on narrow bias ply tires.;)
 
Xfinity could be a possibility.

Any 2021 Cup realignment most likely begins and ends with Eddie Gossage and Marcus Smith having a press conference together and telling us that the enhanced TMS roval will be "the best road course we've ever seen". NASCAR fans are in for some big disappointment in a couple of years.
 
https://racer.com/2018/07/20/keep-nascar-cup-off-dirt-larson-says/

Keep NASCAR Cup off dirt, Larson says

Don’t look for Kyle Larson to be a proponent of NASCAR running more on dirt tracks.

“Tony (Stewart) is probably going to get mad, but I would like to see it just stay as it is,” Larson said when asked of the Xfinity or Cup Series ever running on dirt. “If anything, Xfinity maybe, but I wouldn’t like to see Cup on dirt.

“To me, Cup belongs on pavement and real road course tracks. If we went to Eldora, yeah, I would be excited because I would be really fast and I feel like I would definitely have the best shot to win, but at the same time, I think we are fine not going there.”

The conversation around NASCAR running more dirt races intensifies about this time every year when the Camping World Truck Series runs at Stewart’s dirt track in Ohio, Eldora Speedway, as it has for the past six years. And this week, Stewart used a radio appearance to urge fans to pressure NASCAR into putting its other two divisions on dirt.

Larson is a dirt talent and still runs sprint car races across the country and even overseas. Conceding that Eldora — where Larson won in a truck in 2016 — would be the first track on the list should the possibility ever start to come to fruition, he also said there are also other “good dirt tracks” in the country.

“Knoxville has got the facility to do it,” Larson said. “I don’t know off the top of my head; I would think Knoxville would probably be the only other half-mile. You have your dirt miles that you can go to, but I don’t think a dirt mile would put on a good race. It would just end up being a pavement race.”

Pressed to further explain his feeling as to why the Cup Series should stay on pavement, Larson said, “I’ve raced the trucks, and I don’t know, I feel like maybe if Goodyear could make a way better tire and us be actually able to use the horsepower — or even more horsepower — in our Cup cars on a dirt track, I think it would be a lot more fun.

“I don’t really know how to answer the question without making people mad.”
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He's right. I love dirt track racing more than I love Cup racing. While it is great to see the enthusiasm for dirt, the two don't combine well, barring some radical efforts to create a dirt-specific package that would perform much better.
 
I love dirt.
Cover the asphalt with dirt, then race!!
Asphalts for drivin' and dirt is for racing'.
Nothin' like coming home after a good dirt car race and looking like you worked in a coal mine but just remember, "If ya ain't got dirt in your beer it ain't a real race!!"

Just a few of the old comments made by those who yearn for the days of old when dirt racing was the cat's meow.

But, racing Xfinity or Cup at Eldora?? Nah! Not if it's only one race. That would bring unnecessary expense on teams. If Tony wants a race using NASCAR type cars, why not bring in an ARCA race, Don't they already race one or two races a year on dirt?

Who knows, Tony might be on to something by getting an ARCA race on dirt and splitting the season by having the ARCA series run half of their season on pavement and the other half of the races .... ON DIRT!!!!!
 
Had everyone here forgotten the prelude to a dream at Eldora?
 
Will cup cars on dirt be as good as sprint cars or modifieds on dirt? Of course not. However, it will damn sure be better than Cup cars at Indy, Vegas, Kentucky, etc
 
ChexOrWrex said:
Had everyone here forgotten the prelude to a dream at Eldora?
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No, not at all. Prelude to The Dream, as in The Dream, one of the biggest dirt late model races of the season. I have suggested it was preferable. Though I understand the appeal of a non-exhibition event, and support the truck series race, because it works for that series, warts and all.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
My personal preference would be for Tony to round up the best cars available from the locals who race regularly and put Cup drivers in them in an exhibition race. That would save the Cup teams the costs of developing a car for one race. Let 'em race in cars designed for the purpose.

I'm not sure how well drivers and teams would accept lengthening the season, esp. for another race that doesn't count. I see all the favorable driver comments, but I wonder how many of those assume Eldora would replace another race, not be an additional one? As with all other suggestions to change the schedule, nothing is going to happen for a few more years.
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Maybe, instead of this just being another race that lengthens the season and becoming another race that doesn't count, it could become the all-new All-Star Race? :p
 
I am all for having an Xfinity race at Eldora. Replace the Xfinity New Hampshire race date with a race at Eldora.
 
Yeah I'm not picky, losing a double date would be nice and substituting in an Xfinity dirt race would be something to try. But thinking either major track owner would let a race go away is another thing. Maybe on a slim chance they would truck in some dirt at Bristol, or one of their other facilities. Diroval. :idunno:
On the other hand, Xfinity has open dates so a race could be added to the schedule without too much problem.
 
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Towmater said:
If the teams are trying to cap their cost building a one off car for a dirt race really isn't gonna do that. Taking the Cup teams there or the Xfinity teams there isn't going to do much for the sport. The novelty will wear off. Bad idea and I hope NASCAR isn't desperate to do this.
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Explain to me how come ARCA teams who are not exactly rich can afford to have 2 dirt races and NASCAR teams can't...
 
Speedbowl14 said:
To add to my point...

People talk like this sport has fallen off a cliff...but these teams and drivers still need helicopter pads, grandstands, executive suites, media centers, camping areas, hauler parking, area accommodations for thousands of crew members, NASCAR big-wigs, VIP's, sponsor guests... and modest area hotels for thousands of fans...

My point is...even the most marquee of dirt events pale in comparison to what would be the humblest of NASCAR events. And creating adequate facilities would take a massive investment that has no ROI with the current economy/health of the sport.
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Maybe the teams need to reduce expenses. Don't need more than 10,000 seats. Executive suites? Eff that, only need a few. Media center... Motocross brings in a tent and creates a makeshift media center. In the era of phones and tablets, I'm not sure you really need these big working infield and tower media centers anymore.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
Maybe the teams need to reduce expenses. Don't need more than 10,000 seats. Executive suites? Eff that, only need a few. Media center... Motocross brings in a tent and creates a makeshift media center. In the era of phones and tablets, I'm not sure you really need these big working infield and tower media centers anymore.
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Aren't those track expenses, not team expenses?
 
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