The debate about Greenville-Pickens Speedway’s future has been growing, and now, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s entry into the conversation promises some action. After helping bring North Wilkesboro Speedway back onto the NASCAR Cup Series calendar, Dale Jr. appears ready to get involved in the fight to revive the half-mile oval in South Carolina.
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Greenville-Pickens has a history that dates back to the 1940s. It once hosted NASCAR-sanctioned races, along with events from the CARS Tour and the Upper South Carolina State Fair beginning in 1964. It also holds a special place in broadcast history, as it was the site of NASCAR’s first start-to-finish race shown on national television on April 10, 1971.
Across the decades, drivers such as David Pearson, Richard Petty, and Junior Johnson took laps around the oval, which has a rich legacy. Situated along the highway linking the towns of Greenville and Easley, the track has sat idle while plans surfaced to tear down the property and replace it with industrial buildings.
Recently, when word came out that the track might still have a fighting chance to become part of racing fixtures, Junior took to social media to pledge support.
“If @GPSpeedway1 (Greenville-Pickens Speedway’s X handle), the @CARSTour (late model stock and pro late model racing series) will be the first in line to return and I’ll be the first entry,” Dale Jr. wrote on X.
If @GPSspeedway1 can survive, the @CARSTour will be first in line to return and I’ll be the first entry. https://t.co/g1Gl7jj1PC
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) March 13, 2026
Through his work with the CARS Tour and late model racing, Junior has spent recent years showing up at short tracks across the nation, lending his name and drawing crowds wherever he goes. And his call to keep the track up and running has already garnered attention. a
Alan Wilson, the Attorney General of South Carolina, has backed the NASCAR icon. Responding to Dale Jr. on social media, Wilson said the state should do everything possible to preserve it. He called the track part of the heritage of American motorsports.
Greenville-Pickens Speedway is part of South Carolina history.
When @DaleJr says he would be first in line to return, it shows just how important this track is to the heritage of American motorsports.
We should do everything we can to preserve this historic landmark. https://t.co/jeq1lwGkwU
— Alan Wilson (@AGAlanWilson) March 13, 2026
The track has been caught in a tug of war between development plans and efforts to preserve its racing heritage. By March 2023, the land had been placed under contract with RealtyLink LLC, and a proposal for its redevelopment received approval in 2024. That led to work on a truck access area and several buildings near the former fairgrounds site.
On January 13, 2025, the Pickens County planning commission approved another phase, which involved the construction of four buildings covering about 2.9 million square feet, spread across 153 acres. However, that plan hit a roadblock on March 9, 2026, when the commission rejected later phases that would have led to the demolition of Greenville-Pickens Speedway.
During the subsequent meeting, developers said a deal could still emerge with resident Jackie Manley to preserve the racing surface. Officials, meanwhile, cited other issues tied to the county’s long-term development plan, a pending contract, and traffic studies stretching two miles around the site.
With Dale Jr. stepping in, the fate of the track would get attention from the motorsports world. It has rekindled hope among fans that the legacy of the track will not fade into the past.
