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Bristol Motor Speedway to Lease Nashville Fairgrounds

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Bristol Motor Speedway’s proposal to lease and renovate the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway was approved by the Nashville Fair Board.

“We are thankful to the Nashville Fair Board for supporting the vision to restore the historic Fairgrounds Speedway,” said Jerry Caldwell, president and general manager of Bristol Motor Speedway. “They invested a lot of time vetting this opportunity, and we agree it provides a financially responsible future for the speedway while shifting the risk off taxpayers to a private operator, and completes the restoration of the Fairgrounds with improvements like a state-of-the-art sound-reduction wall that benefits the surrounding neighborhoods. We look forward to working with the Metro Council in the weeks ahead and believe that they also will agree that this is a smart plan for the future of the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.”

Under the agreement, Bristol Motor Speedway will lease, manage and operate Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway for a thirty-year term. Bristol would be responsible for installing state-of-the-art sound mitigation to help reduce the noise in the surrounding neighborhoods. The track’s grandstand would be rebuilt to seat approximately 30,000 fans.

All American 400 at Nashville

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Finch, All American 400 2021One of the most popular short track racing events in the country makes its return to the stately Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway. It will be a full weekend of racing, October 28-30. This will be the 38th year for the All American 400, in memory of Jonathan and Jillian Brown.

Jonathan Brown was CEO and owner of US Tank and Cryogenics. He and his family were avid race fans and an integral part of the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway. Brown passed away unexpectedly at the age of 40 on June 16, 2022. Jillian Brown tragically lost her life at the age of 16 as a passenger in a car accident on October 20, 2020. 🙏

The racing program for Saturday, October 29 will consist of Pro and Super Late Model practice and qualifying for the All American 400. The Pro and Super Late Models will also compete in a last-chance showdown race on Saturday night. Following the last-chance race, the CRA Street Stocks and the Compact Touring Series will compete in their feature races.

The finale will take place on Sunday, October 30 and will feature a 100-lap Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway Pro Late Model championship race followed by the 300-lap Super Late Model feature race, combining for the All American 400.

The Sunday Super Late Model feature race is co-sanctioned by three of the country’s top racing bodies. The ARCA Midwest Tour, the ARCA/CRA Super Series, and the Southern Super Series. Some of the drivers expected:

  • Bubba Pollard
  • Stephen Nasse
  • Jake Garcia
  • Chandler Smith
  • Derek Thorn
  • Casey Roderick

The All American 400 is a classic annual race held at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway since 1981 when Butch Lindley took the honors in the first racing event. Last year, Matt Craig took the checkered flag in the All American 400. This year, more than 40 of the best wheelmen in the country will compete for the trophy and the honors. Past winners include,

  • Jim Sauter
  • Chase Elliot
  • Rusty Wallace
  • John Hunter Nemechek
  • Darrell Waltrip
  • Daniel Hemric
  • Jeff Purvis

 

Evernham and Stewart Bring SRX Championship Race to Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway

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Superstar Racing Experience Car
Superstar Racing Experience Car

Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway will host a Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) event on July 17, 2021. The Superstar Racing Experience Series is the brainchild of three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart, NASCAR Hall of Fame crew chief Ray Evernham, Sandy Montag and George Pine.

The Superstar Racing Experience is a new racing series that runs on Saturday nights. The first race will be on June 12 at Stafford Motor Speedway in Stafford, Connecticut. The series will conclude on July 17 at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway in a race scheduled to be broadcast on CBS television. The series is in stark contrast to NASCAR Series racing because it features shorter races on short asphalt tracks and dirt tracks. The Superstar Racing Experience currently features legendary drivers from a variety of racing backgrounds, but later may include younger up and coming drivers looking for exposure. Tony Stewart has compared the series to the now defunct International Race of Champions (IROC). SRX cars will be designed in total by co-founder Ray Evernham. Fury Race Cars will design and build the racing chassis for the cars. The cars are said to have high horsepower and low downforce.

According to the SRX website:

SRX will re-ignite the passion of the die-hard motorsports fan and reintroduce racing to a whole new generation.​

Featuring an unprecedented line-up of all-star drivers and crews, this supercharged spectacle is hellbent on recapturing the glory days of racing and getting things back on track. Big engines, bigger personalities, and big-time drama and intensity irresistible. This will be the most exhilarating racing on the planet.

SRX events will be held primarily on asphalt and dirt half-mile race tracks. Here is the SRX schedule.

  1. June 12 – Stafford Motor Speedway
  2. June 19 – Knoxville Raceway
  3. June 26 – Eldora Speedway
  4. July 3 – Lucas Oil Raceway
  5. July 10 – Slinger Speedway
  6. July 17 – Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway

“All (of these tracks) demand respect and each forces drivers to adapt,” Stewart said. “What works at one track won’t necessarily transfer to another.”

Speaking of drivers, here’s a lift of drives that is expected to compete in the Superstar Racing Experience.

Driver Primary series Accomplishments
United States Tony Stewart NASCAR Cup Series 1996–97 IndyCar Series Champion, 2002, 2005, and 2011 NASCAR Cup Series Champion
Brazil Tony Kanaan IndyCar Series 2004 IndyCar Series Champion, 2013 Indianapolis 500 Winner
Canada Paul Tracy IndyCar Series 2003 CART season Champion
United States Bobby Labonte NASCAR Cup Series 2000 NASCAR Cup Series Champion
Brazil Hélio Castroneves IndyCar Series 2001, 2002, and 2009 Indianapolis 500 Winner
United States Willy T. Ribbs Trans-Am Series 1976 Formula Ford Champion
Australia Mark Webber Formula One 2015 FIA World Endurance Champion
United States Bill Elliott NASCAR Cup Series 1988 NASCAR Cup Series Champion, 1985 and 1987 Daytona 500 Winner
United States Ernie Francis Jr. Trans-Am Series Seven-time Trans-Am Series Champion
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