NASCAR's Pacific Theater: Fontana vs. Las Vegas
This is a Tale of Two Cities. No, not the Charles Dickens book that sits on the bookshelves of millions. It’s a tale of two racetracks, fighting for fans in a market that leaves NASCAR drooling every time you say the word “West.” At stake is the hallowed ground of a second date, guaranteed to get some action in the form of millions in ticket sales, concessions, and souvenirs from hundreds of thousands flocking to see their favorite drivers.
Who’s in line to capture that hallowed prize? Come with me as we do a little Tale of the Tape. For the sake of telling the two tracks apart though, we’ll have to assign them unique names for this exercise. Let’s get a little creative: How about “Racetrack 1” and “Racetrack 2?”
Racetrack 1 is an intermediate oval that’s been on the Cup circuit since the late 1990s. The fans claimed the racing was too boring, so the track has already been ripped up and redesigned in 2006 at a cost of millions.
Racetrack 2 is an intermediate oval that’s been on the Cup circuit since the late 1990s. The fans claimed the racing was too boring, so the track president flew in a ton of “B” list celebrities and added more shops and souvenir stands.
Racetrack 1 is within 10 miles of a major city that boasts more casinos and attractions than nearly any other place in America. The city’s main Strip, according to Forbes, is the second-most visited tourist destination in the country.
Racetrack 2 is within 10 miles of a city that sells a heck of a lot of In ‘N’ Out Burgers. Its main attractions are traffic, a reasonably sized shopping center/amusement park, and the town’s “Museum of History and Art.” If you’re lucky, a major city is 45 minutes away … if you don’t get stuck in traffic. Prime hours to avoid it are somewhere between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m.
Racetrack 1 is a Who’s Who of celebrities you can’t look away from or you’d never thought you’d see again. Case in point: Kim Kardashian is the Grand Marshal for its upcoming race. Robin Leach from Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, Hulk Hogan of WWF Fame and even Robert Goulet have popped up in pre-race festivities through the years. And that’s not to mention who you run into simply by walking down the street: Andrew “Dice” Clay, David Copperfield, and even someone like Jerry Seinfeld can be shaking your hand at virtually any random moment.
Racetrack 2 is a Who’s Who of celebrities you never want to see again. There’s been more Tom Cruise sightings there the last decade then movies he’s made during his lifetime. The Grand Marshals for their most recent race were Kate Walsh and Andy Garcia. Who? Oh that’s right, it’s the girl from Private Practice, and that guy that was made Godfather in Francis Ford Copola’s forgettable finale to an otherwise masterful trilogy. Bet you had to look that up.
Racetrack 1 has had its share of critics, but since repaving, has put together some excellent racing. It’s averaged 21 lead changes over the last three years and an average of just two cautions per race for debris. The 2009 race was arguably the best for the Cup Series on an intermediate oval 1.5- to 2-miles in length.
Racetrack 2 has had its share of critics, but with no changes made to the track, has seen only a slight uptick in its competition the last three years. Its last three races have averaged 25 lead changes, but note that most of those have occurred under green flag pit stops or when other drivers lead a lap under yellow. Let’s also note the track is riding a streak of 13 consecutive races where there’s been at least four cautions for non-wreck related issues (mystery debris, rain or fluid on the track).
Speaking of fluids, Racetrack 1 has never been officially rained out. It’s had one rain-shortened event, in 2000, but usually runs with the sun shining down and temperatures hovering in the 60s or 70s.
Racetrack 2 has had rain problems for several years running, including an infamous incident several years ago where rain kept bubbling up from the asphalt. These weepers led to a 10-hour rain delay with several stops and starts, and crashes caused by drivers slipping in the water that inevitably caused the race to be postponed. That kept weary fans waiting until — get this — 11:00 p.m. EST for a race that was supposed to start at 1:00. For three straight years, there’s been at least one caution for Mother Nature during the race’s February event.
Racetrack 1 has a slight drop in attendance the last three years. It went from 160,000 in March of 2007 to 140,000 last year.
Racetrack 2 has a seismic drop in attendance the last seven years. It went from 120,000 in 2003 to 70,000 (officially) during the most recent race held there in February.
Can you guess which track is which? Track 2 — Auto Club Speedway — has been under fire all week for holding two dates on the NASCAR Cup schedule since 2004. Las Vegas Motor Speedway is ready for its lone Sprint Cup race this weekend, hanging on to just one date despite spending millions to improve competition and entice fans to spend a weekend out West.
Sure, Vegas has its share of problems, too — traffic there is as bad as anywhere else on the circuit — but at least it’s willing to address them. No amount of sugarcoating, B-list celebrities or claims that fans are “shopping under the grandstands” — as Auto Club President Gillian Zucker famously quipped a few years ago — can hide the shortcoming of NASCAR’s “L.A.” Speedway now.
So why does Auto Club have two dates and little ol’ Las Vegas just one? Sorry, I forgot my final comparison …
Racetrack 1 (Vegas) is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc. CEO Bruton Smith, who owns zero percent of NASCAR.
Racetrack 2 (California) is owned by International Speedway Corporation. CEO Lesa Kennedy France’s family runs NASCAR, with her brother, Brian, as CEO.
Ah! In order to have a sinking ship, you’ve got to keep your black hole intact, right? Well if NASCAR is in tune with listening to the fans and cutting its losses — something it has seemed willing to do this season — then maybe we’ll see it wake up and smell the coffee now. For keeping two dates next year at California would be one heck of a gamble, but taking one and moving it to Vegas instead would be the type of gamble that would pay off.
Join Matt Taliaferro, Braden Gall and Tom Bowles every Thursday afternoon for Athlon Sports’ one and only totally NASCAR podcast, Inside Racing presented by 5 Gum.
