DOVER, Del. – NASCAR and Dover Motorsports, Inc. have agreed to bring a NASCAR Cup Series race to Nashville Superspeedway in 2021.
“We were energized to see how excited Nashville was to host the NASCAR Cup Series banquet last December,” said Denis McGlynn, president & CEO of Dover Motorsports, Inc. “When we built Nashville Superspeedway in 2001 our goal was to one day secure a NASCAR Cup Series race for the venue. Nashville, central Tennessee and the surrounding market area is filled with passionate race fans. We are thrilled that we were able to collaborate with NASCAR and our television partners to get this done and we can’t wait to put on a great show there in 2021.
“While we have been in discussions with NASCAR for some time about the possibility of bringing the NASCAR Cup Series back to Nashville Superspeedway, plans really just became solidified in recent weeks. We will have many more announcements and exciting updates to share regarding plans for the facility shortly.”
The 1.33-mile concrete track was built in 2001 by Dover Motorsports, Inc. and hosted NASCAR- and IndyCar-sanctioned events from 2001 to 2011. It is situated on approximately 1,000 acres just outside of Nashville, and currently has 25,000 permanent grandstand seats and lights for night racing.
The property played host to the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, NTT IndyCar Series and other racing series in its history.
Current NASCAR Cup Series competitors who have notched wins at Nashville Superspeedway include Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, Clint Bowyer and Austin Dillon.
“Thanks to the collaboration of Dover Motorsports and our broadcast partners, we are excited to bring NASCAR racing back to Nashville, a place where the passion for our sport runs deep,” said NASCAR President Steve Phelps. “The Nashville market is a vital one for our sport, and bringing NASCAR Cup Series racing to Nashville Superspeedway will be an integral building block in helping us further deliver on our promise in creating a dynamic schedule for 2021.”
In turn, Dover International Speedway will host just one NASCAR Cup Series race weekend in 2021.
“Our company is excited about the terrific opportunity to not only host a NASCAR Cup Series race weekend, but opening our Nashville facility will enable us to host other exciting forms of racing and entertainment options,” said Mike Tatoian, executive vice president and chief operating officer for Dover Motorsports, Inc.
“We are also proud that our long history with NASCAR will continue at the Monster Mile in 2021, and we also look forward to hosting the ninth Firefly Music Festival next summer.”
Despite the news the Nashville Superspeedway will host the NASCAR Cup Series in 2021, Speedway Motorsports President Marcus Smith noted Wednesday that efforts to bring the premier stock-car racing tour to Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville for an event will go on.
Nashville will host the NASCAR Cup Series postseason awards banquet later this year.
“The news that NASCAR will bring a Cup race to Wilson County and the greater Nashville region in 2021 is a positive move for the sport of NASCAR and for NASCAR fans,” said Smith. “In recent years, we’ve made it very clear that we think Nashville is a place where NASCAR should be for the future and not just the past. Our efforts to work with state and local government officials to revive the historic Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway will continue. We believe that the beloved short track in downtown Nashville provides tremendous opportunity to be a catalyst for year-round tourism and entertainment development.”