Changes may benefit LVMS

Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2003 | 9:45 a.m.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway president and general manager Chris Powell said it would be premature to speculate about whether his track could receive a second Winston Cup date as a result of NASCAR's announcement on Tuesday that it was considering moving less successful races to venues that draw better.

"It's too early to say and I'm not going to speculate," Powell said. "I think Las Vegas takes a back seat to no other market in supporting NASCAR Winston Cup races ... and we can definitely find room in the schedule if NASCAR wants to come here twice."

Last year's Winston Cup race at LVMS attracted a sellout crowd estimated at 137,500, making it the largest single-day sporting event in the state. This year's race, to be held March 2, is expected to match or surpass that attendance mark.

Although an estimated 75 percent of those who attend Winston Cup races at LVMS come from outside the state, Powell said he was confident that a second Winston Cup event could be just as successful as its spring race because of Las Vegas' lure as a tourist destination.

An industry source, who requested anonymity, told the Sun that Tuesday's announcement was nothing more than a "smoke signal" sent up by NASCAR chairman Bill France Jr. -- whose family also owns International Speedway Corp. -- that he intends to move races from two of his tracks (North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham and Darlington, S.C. Raceway) to ISC facilities in larger markets in 2004. Both Rockingham and Darlington currently host two Cup races a year.

The source added that once ISC does that and its stock begins to rise, Speedway Motorsports Inc., which owns Las Vegas Motor Speedway, might be pressured into following suit and move less successful races at its tracks in Charlotte, N.C., and Atlanta to facilities such as Texas Motor Speedway and LVMS. Both ISC and SMI are publicly traded companies.