Getty NASCAR Cup Series drivers race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The dust has just settled on the Food City Dirt Race at Bristol Motor Speedway, and there are already questions about whether the Cup Series will return for a third season. There is no concrete answer just yet, but NASCAR officials have indicated that dirt remains a part of the future plans.
Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR Chief Operating Officer, provided some information during an April 19 appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. He indicated that another race on Easter is very likely considering the response and the opportunity to be on FOX instead of a cable network. O’Donnell also confirmed that NASCAR remains interested in more dirt races.
ICYMI: @NASCAR‘s Steve O’Donnell addresses the future of racing on dirt and Easter Sunday in the Cup Series.
“Yes, I think we are still interested in continuing to look at dirt,” O’Donnell said during his appearance. “Still kind of dissecting what took place this weekend, what we can do, where we can be. But all in all, I think the direction as of today would be certainly to remain on dirt.”
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While O’Donnell didn’t specifically confirm that there would be another dirt race, the track operators did. Bristol Motor Speedway president Jerry Caldwell issued a statement on April 19 and said that the track will prepare for a spring night race on dirt in 2023. He did not provide details about when the race will occur due to the schedule still being in flux.
Kevin Harvick Knew the Biggest Factor in a Potential Dirt Return
Easter Sunday Dirt Race from @BMSupdates scores double-digit increases from 2021, peaks at 4,518,000 million viewers on @FOXTV
Top 5 available markets:
Greensboro 5.0/13
Charlotte 3.6/9
Hartford 3.5/9
Jacksonville 3.3/8
Norfolk 3.2/8
O’Donnell’s comments on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio provided an answer to the question that many had asked, but there was one driver that already knew the answer. Kevin Harvick told media members after an early exit from the race that the TV ratings would determine if the Cup Series drivers returned to the dirt for a third consecutive season.
FOX Sports PR essentially proved Harvick correct on April 19 by releasing the viewer numbers from the Bristol race. According to the provided data, FOX earned 4,007,000 viewers during the Easter race with a seven-minute peak of 4,518,000. This made the Food City Dirt Race the most-watched event at Bristol Motor Speedway since the spring of 2016.
The number of viewers tuning in for the dirt race at Bristol Motor Speedway continues an upward trend for the sport. The 2022 Cup Series season on FOX has seen a 17% increase in average viewers over the 2021 season through eight races, going from an average of 4,087,000 to 4,764,000. The drivers have completed nine races, but the trip to Martinsville Speedway aired on FS1.
Drivers Remain Split About Dirt Races
GettyNASCAR drivers have different opinions about Bristol dirt.
The TV ratings are the biggest factor in whether NASCAR holds another Cup Series race on dirt. The sanctioning body has the ultimate goal of increasing its audience base and becoming relevant to other age groups.
The drivers and their personal preferences will have far less say in whether they compete on the dirt again, but they have voiced a variety of opinions. Some explained that they had a blast racing the new cars around the dirt track while others strongly criticized the use of windshields and the track prep.
Kyle Busch, the winner of the Food City Dirt Race, had a lot to say about the dirt race. He told media members in his post-race press conference that there are a lot of variables in play regarding whether the race turned out better than he expected. He explained that the new cars are heavier than purpose-built dirt machines and that they are just constantly on edge.
“But the biggest one is they did a better job with the track this year for sure,” Busch said, transcript from Speedway Digest. “God helped us out a lot tonight with watering it periodically, so that was really good. We didn’t even have to rely on the water truck driver.
“But the biggest thing that hinders me from enjoying this is just the application. We’re trying to do something that isn’t applicable, in my opinion. I mean, the first 10 laps of the race, everybody is shooting mud off, we’re covering everybody’s grilles. Our windshields are covered with the dirt going off the windshield, stuff like that.
“Those guys talk about the windshields and stuff like that: if we get rid of the windshields, we could have tear-offs and stuff. That’s fine, but the cars are 3,500 pounds. You saw what it’s like on the last corner, the last lap, to drive around here every single lap. You are on edge, on your toes, just trying not to crash every single lap.”
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