Trucks are Enough for Eldora

The annual Eldora Dirt Derby NASCAR Camping World Trucks series event roared into Ohio this week and provided another great race with a fantastic finish on the popular dirt track with Chase Briscoe claiming his first checkered flag on the clay. A large, but not sellout, crowd attended the race, and even the broadcast presented the race as a big deal, bringing in Xfinity Series driver, and dirt racing expert, Christopher Bell and Monster Energy Cup Series driver Kyle Larson, who the night before took the checkers in the World of Outlaws Sprint car feature at my hometown Lernerville, to join the broadcast team.

The truck race at Eldora is a big deal. It is a big event; so much so that there are increasing talks of bringing the Xfinity and/or Cup Series to the famed dirt track. Tony Stewart, the track’s owner, mentioned as much in an interview with ESPN, though admittedly saying the track needs to take the process slow. However he did say, in a spot on Sirius XM’s Trading Paint, that Eldora is ready to host an Xfinity event now. Bob Pockrass wrote an article for ESPN stating that he believes the timing is right for a Cup series event at Eldora, given the struggles of the sport.

I just don’t believe that’s the case. The CWTS should be the only of NASCAR’s top-tier series to race on the dirt. Too much of a good thing can become a bad thing. If the NASCAR universe is saturated with multiple events at Eldora the chances of disinterest and declining attendance are real. The luster will wear off. This year’s Derby wasn’t even a sell-out, and even sold fewer tickets than last week’s King’s Royal at Eldora. That’s not a good look for NASCAR. Sure, a Cup race at Eldora would sell out the first year or two, or even five. But after that, the race will fall into the pattern of every other one: a little bit of buzz and a lot less tickets sold.

The Trucks Series is just niche enough to keep attracting a dirt racing crowd (we can get to my thoughts on the series getting back to its short track-fairground roots at another time). If we put NASCAR’S top series on the Eldora clay, it will simply take away the novelty and magic that the Dirt Derby has delivered to fans each year. Even dirt racing advocate Larson doesn’t believe that the Cup series should race at Eldora, saying “To me, Cup belongs on pavement…and real road course tracks.”

As long as the Trucks Series drivers, and dirt regulars, continue to put on a great show at Eldora once a year, NASCAR fans should be happy. They can have Cup Series experiments elsewhere.

At rovals.