NASCAR in Cincy? It’s possible!

NASCAR Cup Series is looking into a few new cities to host their road race. Currently, Chicago has that gig. But the Windy City has only one year left on their contract. As NASCAR has reached out to San Diego, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore to host, Cincinnati’s name has emerged as a possibility for this, too.

 

Cincinnati NASCAR Street Race

1.99-Miles
11 Turns

Hosting it around The Banks/Stadiums makes the most sense. Roads are in good shape, limits traffic impact, get the Roebling bridge in shots, and plenty of parking north/east of the circuit. https://t.co/V1trDb2ZUf pic.twitter.com/fPnDeIzo57

— BrakeHard (@BrakeHardBlog) August 27, 2024

 

According to the article in sportsbusinessjournal.com, NASCAR has lost money with the Chicago event, though the first July 4th weekend race in 2023 saw torrential rain. It even rained for this past year’s event. They may be looking to get out of their contract quickly. Right now, San Diego is considered a front runner. But NASCAR in the Queen City? Oh man!

Road Races

NASCAR has enjoyed road course races in their history. Watkins Glen, NY. Riverside, CA. Sonoma, CA. But recently they have ventured into other cities like Chicago, Indianapolis, Charlotte (Concord, NC), Austin, TX and Plymouth, Wisconsin.

 

To host an event like that would be pretty amazing. But what about the cost?

 

The Cost of NASCAR Cup Series

 

According to a Chicago Tribune article, the city spent $3.5 million for the event that they say netted them $620,000 the first weekend in 2023. Cincinnati has met with the motoracing company, according to the sportsbusinessjournal.com article. Hopefully they are running the numbers.

 

In terms of what the Queen City might receive in return regarding dollars, Allen Samuelson, an economist with the University of Chicago, specializing in sports economics, said at the time of the first race regarding the economic impact laid out by NASCAR:

 

“Take whatever number they give you and divide it by ten and you will be pretty close!”

 

I think that Ohio would be an amazing place for this event. It’s not like we don’t already have hard-core racing fans for places like Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. (Thanks to long time driver, Tony Stewart) But for you old-timers like me, you can’t beat watching Ohio’s own, Paul Newman, and the Mid-Ohio in Lexington, Ohio! This will be an interesting watch over the next few months.

For more motor sports news, here are a few good sites.

NASCAR – Official site.

Formula 1 – Official site.

FrontStretch – Formula 1 and so much more!