Getty Steve O'Donnell has teased some big changes for the 2023 season.
A key NASCAR executive has just provided some important pieces of information to racing fans. Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR Chief Operating Officer, set a timeline for the release of the 2023 schedule while teasing some big changes.
O’Donnell appeared on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio’s “The Morning Drive” on June 15 and provided the update. He provided a tease by saying that NASCAR has “one big event” that it wants to add for the 2023 season, but he did not provide any further details. O’Donnell also said that the next schedule should become available in about two months.
Working on some exciting things,” O’Donnell said, transcript courtesy of NBC Sports. “Hopefully, something to announce in the next six to eight weeks in terms of where we’re going to be, and then we’ll be off and running for ’23, and we’ll continue to evolve for ’24 and beyond.”
NASCAR officials have provided some minor updates about the upcoming season. They revealed that the Busch Light Clash will return to the LA Memorial Coliseum on February 5 and that the season-opening Daytona 500 will take place on February 19. Finally, NASCAR confirmed that the championship race will take place at Phoenix Raceway on November 5.
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O’Donnell Addressed the All-Star Race Conundrum
GettySteve O’Donnell teased a different location for the All-Star Race.
Following the controversial end of the All-Star Race that featured a late caution, issues with Ryan Blaney’s window net, and strong comments from Denny Hamlin, there were numerous questions about the exhibition event. Many people wanted to know if it would return to Texas Motor Speedway or move to another location?
Speedway Motorsports briefly provided an answer by tweeting out a promotion for the 2023 All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway. However, SMI later deleted this tweet and created even more questions.
O’Donnell addressed the questions during his appearance on “The Morning Drive.” He said that NASCAR has a history of moving the All-Star Race around to different locations and that this is something that they would like to do in 2023. He added that NASCAR is talking to Speedway Motorsports about this possibility.
O’Donnell’s Comments Fit Well With Those by Steve Phelps
The comments by O’Donnell tease at some big changes for the future of the Cup Series, as well as the addition of an event that will surely turn heads. They also fit with comments made by NASCAR President Steve Phelps ahead of the trip to Sonoma Raceway.
“We’re going to be bold and innovative,” Phelps said about schedule changes during a media availability. “I think we’ve done that, whether you’re talking about scheduling innovation, think about going to the LA Coliseum and running an exhibition race. The Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum. We never would have done that, right?”
Phelps continued and said that NASCAR would “mash the gas” in the coming years. He noted that NASCAR’s success over the past few years has stemmed from making big changes and going to places where the fans would not expect to see stock car races.
Neither Phelps nor O’Donnell provided more in-depth information about what the new additions to the schedule will be. The details will likely remain secret until late in the summer when NASCAR drops the full schedule of races. For now, there will just be speculation about possible street races and unique locations for the All-Star Race.
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