The CARS Tour is an asphalt late model stock car racing series founded in 2014 and a consortium of NASCAR figures purchased it from its founder, Jack McNelly, in 2023. Leading this group was Dale Earnhardt Jr., and right alongside him were his partners, Kevin Harvick, Justin Marks, and Jeff Burton.
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Their goal was simple: Strengthen and promote grassroots-level stock car racing and they have been doing a splendid job at this over the past few years. In an interview with FloRacing last month, Dale Jr. discussed the state of the platform and why he chose Harvick as a partner in this ambitious undertaking.
“Honestly, this conversation happened in a golf cart,” he narrated. “In a bus lot in Bristol Motor Speedway. I said, ‘Kevin. I am thinking about buying this series, and he says, ‘I am in.’ Me and Kevin have been friends.
“We have had our bumps in the road as competitors over the years. But he is a very ambitious businessman, and I thought he could bring a lot to the group we put together.”
Dale Jr. also continued to explain that he picked Burton to be a part of the group for the versatile experience he has had over his career. Marks, he said, is an individual with a unique approach to marketing. All their different set of skills contribute to the functioning of the CARS Tour. Dale Jr. continued to note that it has been a lot of fun watching the series grow under them.
Dale Jr.’s vision for the CARS Tour
All four co-owners of the CARS Tour are aficionados of grassroots-level racing. They are never going to go towards bigger venues regardless of how much success they achieve. Dale Jr. underlined this during an event at the Florence Motor Speedway last year.
He said, “We run a particular car. It’s always going to stay in one lane. We’re never going to leave these types of racetracks and go to bigger and better venues. We love the grassroots connection. We love the vibe and energy that you get when you’re at a racetrack like Florence.”
They wish for the CARS Tour to grow much bigger and for fans from across the world to take notice of it. But they know what its strength is and will stick to that. Their investment is poised towards three main goals. The first is to preserve grassroots-level racing cultures. The second is to be a good development ladder for upcoming drivers.
And the third is to give local racing better visibility and sponsorship opportunities. Safe to say, they are traveling steadily towards achieving those goals.
