LOS ANGELES — The general consensus from those involved in Sunday’s Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum, held on a temporary track inside the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, was that the non-points event for the NASCAR Cup Series was a rousing success.
The event, which served as the debut of the Next Gen race car, produced an entertaining spectacle that saw Joey Logano best Kyle Busch at the conclusion of 150 laps of racing on the quarter-mile track.
“I think an incredible day for the sport,” said NASCAR Senior Vice President of Strategic Innovation Ben Kennedy when asked to sum up his feelings after the race. “Really proud of NASCAR, the industry, everyone coming together. Patrick Rogers, the entire team, did an incredible job, Derek Muldowney and the rest of the folks, building a track. Really proud of the group.”
While not a sell-out, more than half of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum’s 77,500 seats appeared filled during the Busch Light Clash, with NASCAR officials estimating 70 percent of those in attendance were first-time fans.
While Kennedy wasn’t sure of the exact attendance number, he said he was happy with the appearance of the crowd.
“I can tell you the bowl looked really good,” Kennedy said. “I think people filtering in over the heat races, last-chance race, Pitbull concert, we were pushing that 3 p.m. window for fans to show up. I think you saw that over the course of the day. I think optically it looked fantastic. We’ll go back and comb through the numbers of the next few days or so.”
The event, which took months of planning to execute, included musical performances by Pitbull, Ice Cube and DJ Skee. Rather than a typical race, the Busch Light Clash was designed to serve as a cultural event to attract fans who may not otherwise attend a NASCAR event.
“I think it was fantastic. Everything about the day, ton of energy with the crowd. I watched a handful of interviews. A lot of new fans were out here having a great time, too,” Kennedy said. “The energy and buzz I think was really positive from a fan perspective, then everything that we’ve heard at least from the teams and drivers before the race has been really positive.”
Nearly all of the 36 participating drivers had positive things to say about the Busch Light Clash.
“Coming into L.A., if that’s how you want to term it, I felt like it was a huge success,” said Busch. “I thought it was a huge chance, Ben Kennedy and the guys at NASCAR, if this didn’t work, it was going to be ugly. I’m sure they’re taking a huge sigh of relief and a big high-five because it was a big success.”
With the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum officially in the books, the question becomes what’s next? Kennedy wouldn’t speculate whether or not NASCAR would return to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, but did say a decision on what’s to come will be made sooner rather than later.
“I think we’ll have a lot of data coming out of this,” Kennedy said. “I think there is certainly potentially a future here. We’ll probably try to make a decision on that sooner than later.”
One potential option is located in Fontana, Calif., where the current two-mile Auto Club Speedway is expected to be torn down in favor of a smaller half-mile oval in the coming years.
While NASCAR and Auto Club Speedway officials have been coy regarding details of the planned project, Busch believes what we saw Sunday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum all but seals the fate of Auto Club Speedway.
“I would prefer the two mile, but I guarantee you it’s getting cut up, no question, after what we saw today,” Busch said.
As for the temporary half-mile oval inside the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, work has already begun to disassemble the track and return the stadium to its normal configuration. The facility is the home of the University of Southern California Trojans football team and hosts numerous other events throughout the year.
“It’s important for us to get here in a big way,” Kennedy said. “It’s been two years since we’ve competed in Southern California. To be able to get back here to downtown Los Angeles at the L.A. Coliseum, come back a few weeks later at Fontana, I think it was really important to us.
“The Coliseum, USC, have been tremendous partners. That will be certainly an important part as we think about this,” Kennedy said.