Kingsport Speedway Profile

MY FAVORITES WITH Noah Gragson

Noah Gragson is one of NASCAR’s top young stars. He’s energetic, fun to be around, has a cool haircut and can wheel an Xfinity Series race car like few his age. Gragson’s one-of-a-kind personality gets him in trouble sometimes, but that’s OK because he brings the flare back to the sport. Think of him as a modern-day Jimmy Spencer, a former NASCAR Cup Series racer known as “Mr. Excitement.”

BY JOSEPH WOLKIN

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE?

“STEP BROTHERS”

– it’s hilarious and I can quote basically the entire movie.

WHAT IS YOUR GO-TO DRINK?

WATER – STAY

hydrated for our long bike rides and for the races throughout the season.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE RESTAURANT?

LE THAI IN LAS

Vegas. It’s the best Thai food I have found and I go back whenever possible.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FOOD?

FRIED RICE –

from Le Thai in my hometown of Las Vegas.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PIECE OF RACING MEMORABILIA? WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE VACATION SPOT?

MY ENTIRE RIGHT

side from homestead in 2019 or the helmet trade I did with Travis Pastrana.

TOUGH ONE –

going back home to Vegas to see family or going to Cabo.

Kingsport Speedway

Opened in 1965, Tennessee’s Kingsport Speedway has undergone several transformations since hosting its first NASCAR-

sanctioned races in 1968.

Today, the three-eighths-mile oval is known as “The Concrete Jungle.”

“Kingsport is a very unique track. It started out in 1965 as dirt and it went to asphalt in the late 1960s. Then it went to back to dirt and it became concrete in 1996,” explained Karen Tunnell, who has served as the track’s general manager since 2014. “It’s had four different surfaces.

“If you look at an aerial view of Kingsport, it’s an odd-looking track. The backstretch is wider than the frontstretch. Turn three is narrower than turn two. It is very unique and has a lot of character. A lot of the fans that we have today have actually been coming since the place was built. It’s one of those family atmospheres.”

KINGSPORT’S SLATE OF FRIDAY NIGHT RACING CONTINUES THROUGH SEPT. 10.

CONCRETE SURFACE

KINGSPORT SPEEDWAY IS THE ONLY NASCAR

Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series facility that features an all-concrete racing surface.

The surface was poured in 1996 under the direction of then track owner Joe Loven. A veteran of the concrete industry, Loven was part of the team that oversaw installation of the concrete racing surface at nearby Bristol Motor Speedway.

“It’s just as good today as the day it was poured,” Tunnell said about the unique surface.

WEEKLY CARD

THE WEEKLY PROGRAM AT KINGSPORT

Speedway showcases five divisions.

“We run the NASCAR late models; the sportsman division, which is a limited-type class; pure street, which is your old Camaros, Novas and Monte Carlos; the modified 4-cylinders; and the pure 4s, which is a front-wheel-drive class,” Tunnell explained. “Our goal is to put on a good show for our fans, and to give our drivers a place to race that they want to keep coming back to.”

HEADLINE ATTRACTION

THE MARQUEE EVENT ON KINGSPORT

Speedway’s schedule is held in conjunction with the Fourth of July and honors the fans.

“We do our Fan Appreciation Night where we have all of the cars on display on the track,” Tunnell said. “The fans love being able to go down and have their pictures made with their drivers and get their T-shirts autographed. We always have a huge fireworks display. It seems everyone always looks forward to that race.”

NASCAR Wins ‘Sports League of the Year’ at 2021 Sports Business Awards

NASCAR was named Sports League of the Year during the 2021 Sports Business Awards, a virtual ceremony hosted by Sports Business Journal to celebrate the best in sports business over the past year.

The award, one of the most prestigious in the sports industry, recognizes NASCAR’s many successes and efforts during a historic and challenging 2020 season. Following the pandemic pause, NASCAR was the first major U.S. sport to return to competition, the first to safely welcome back fans and the first to complete a full season schedule.

In June 2020, NASCAR took a stand for equality and social justice and banned the confederate flag from all properties and events. The sanctioning body reinforced its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and later welcomed Michael Jordan and Pitbull as new team owners.

NASCAR worked with industry stakeholders to build and introduce the most dynamic new race schedule in more than 50 years, including several new venues added to the 2021 slate of events.

NASCAR also filled the live sports void with esports following the onset of COVID-19, collaborating with FOX and iRacing to introduce the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series. The new series generated six of the highest-rated esports programs in television history.

Joining NASCAR as finalists for the Sports League of the Year award were the NBA, NFL, NHL, PGA Tour, UFC and the WNBA. The win marks NASCAR’s first in the category for the Sports Business Awards.

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