Questions surround NASCAR as they prepare for their 76th season
Attendance problems, declining ratings, non-competitive races, a poor playoff format that no one seems to be interested in, and so on continue to dog the racing scene’s top tier.
The days of the old guard are gone with the likes of Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett, Rusty Wallace, Richard Petty, Bill Elliott, and so on are gone. But the 2024 Daytona 500 will mark a changing of the guard in the racing landscape. Year after year, NASCAR has been facing attendance issues at tracks, declining television ratings due to races being shifted around so much, and races that are just not competitive any longer. The grand old days from the 70s, 80s, 90s, and the early 2000s have officially dwindled away and while the fans are the most brand loyal, they are the biggest critics of the sport, fans have had enough of the constant changes in the cars.
Sports betting has changed NASCAR no doubt and is bringing in new fans but it’s not doing enough for the sport in general because to me, Generation Z doesn’t care for drivers that constantly drive in circle. One NASCAR fan who spoke out anonymity said, “I don’t see NASCAR lasting too much longer mainly because that’s just no general interest in racing anymore amongst the generations.”
Xfinity and Truck Series races aren’t garnering much interest either as the ratings for the races have absolutely flatlined.
Many fans are also tiring of the stages in races and competition yellows which make absolutely no sense in racing. Formula One doesn’t have anything like that at all.
NASCAR was hoping that their 75th season, the diamond season would be one of the finest in history, but according to Spotrac business, it was a very low point in NASCAR. There was a lot of marketability for the season in an attempt to re-attract the old fan base but it just never materialized as ratings crashed, constant poor weather, changes to the car, and gimmicky races that make no sense to the older generation NASCAR fan. Spotrac believes that NASCAR lost probably $60 million in revenue last season.
The Bristol Dirt Race has been removed from the schedule as drivers and fans alike weren’t really impressed with the race.
Iowa, Circuit of the Americas, and North Wilkesboro have been added to the schedule this season. North Wilkesboro, a wildly popular 0.625 mile track will host this year’s All-Star festivities for NASCAR including the All-Star Race which will feature a $2,000,000 first place prize.
NASCAR will definitely need to fix their image to welcome back fans new and old because the way they are doing it right now just isn’t working with the current fan base. I mean, it’s not like they’re bleeding money but if this shoddy, non-competitive, gimmicky racing continues, NASCAR will have to figure something out in terms in long-term viability.
