NASCAR commissioner Steve Phelps made it very clear in an interview with CNBC this week that the future of the sport is where the “Entertainment Dollar” is headed.
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And if that means further global expansion, attracting new and diverse sponsors, launching innovative promotions and finding new ways to bring in new fans — well then, by all means, that’s the direction NASCAR will be going in.
Phelps, who served as NASCAR President until March, was promoted to the newly created role of Commissioner and has practically become NASCAR’s No. 1 salesman. He is looking for unique ways to, in essence, spread the gospel of stock car racing.
Last week’s inaugural NASCAR Cup race in Mexico City is just a continuation of new markets and new considerations that the sanctioning body has undertaken in recent years. There were the three years of The Clash preseason race within the Los Angeles Coliseum (which is no longer held there), the first-ever NASCAR street race in Chicago (which is set to host its third consecutive edition next week), discussion of expansion into Canada and eventually Europe and potentially the Far East.
Phelps, in conjunction with NASCAR Executive Vice President Ben Kennedy (grandson of late NASCAR Chairman Bill France Jr.), is listening to any and all suitors. Talks of late have included the potential of street races in Philadelphia and San Diego. The Canada rumor involves at least five sites potentially under consideration in Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto, Montreal and even Halifax, Nova Scotia.
To put it bluntly, today’s NASCAR is not your grandfather’s or even your father’s NASCAR. Whereas in past generations, change or initiatives would be immediately shot down due to an extremely conservative mindset from NASCAR’s top administrators, particularly the late Bill France Jr., now it seems like anything and everything is on the table and open for discussion and consideration.
In a CNBC interview on Thursday, Phelps covered a number of topics, including one of the most pressing: where is the sport headed? “I think it’s really not just motor sports, actually not even just sports. It’s entertainment,” Phelps said. “And we are competing for that dollar.
“We are competing for your time and other people’s time, because if they’re not watching NASCAR, are they watching Netflix? Are they watching, you know, movies? Are they watching, you know, CNBC? What are they doing when they’re not doing that?
“So it’s super competitive. I believe if motor sports broadly is rising, we’re the number one motor sports in this country by a wide margin, we’re going to be the beneficiary of that.”
As the entertainment landscape keeps evolving, NASCAR isn’t content just being in the race — it’s aiming to lead the charge.
