CUP: Bruton Wants Kentucky Cup Date

Sprint Cup

CUP: Bruton Wants Kentucky Cup Date

SMI Chairman and CEO O. Bruton Smith said Thursday that he expects to have a Sprint Cup race next year at Kentucky Speedway..

Tom Jensen | Posted May 22, 2008 Charlotte, N.C.

Bruton Smith wants a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at SMI's newly acquired Kentucky Speedway. (Photo Courtesy of KentuckySpeedway.com)

Speedway Motorsports Inc. Chairman and CEO O. Bruton Smith said Thursday that he expects to have a NASCAR Sprint Cup race next year at Kentucky Speedway, now that SMI has purchased the track from Kentucky Speedway, LLC.

But that’s about all the 81-year-old NASCAR mogul chose to reveal during a press conference Thursday afternoon at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. What Smith wouldn’t disclose were what it cost to buy the track, where a Kentucky Sprint Cup date would come from or what specific improvements he’ll make at the track.

“What propels me in business is being able to do things,” said Smith, whose tracks currently host 13 of 38 races on the annual NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule. “You either grow or you die. And I’d like to think we can grow what we’re doing. I know we’re kind of bumping our head on the ceiling at times, but we have to move the ceiling a little bit, too.”

Smith said he would be making improvements at the track – including adding 50,000 seats – though details were sparse. He did say, though, that he would be interested in acquiring another track. “I like what we do,” said Smith. “If you’re doing good things, that’s exciting. And that’s what it’s all about. I like to have fun.”

It is widely expected that Smith will try to purchase another NASCAR Sprint Cup track, most likely Pocono Raceway. “I don’t know if it’s for sale,” Smith said of Pocono. “If you tell me it is, I’ll make a call tomorrow.”

But the big news for now is that he struck the Kentucky deal. Kentucky Speedway, which opened in 2000, currently hosts one NASCAR Nationwide Series event, one NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event, one IndyCar Series event and other racing events each year. The speedway is located in Sparta, Ky., approximately one-half hour south of Cincinnati.

Located on about 820 acres, Kentucky Speedway features a 1.5-mile tri-oval speedway, with chair-back grandstand seating for 66,089 spectators, 50 luxury suites with seats for approximately 2,000 people, 100 private RV spaces, 200 reserved camping spaces and 1,000 unreserved camping spaces. Kentucky Speedway regularly hosts near- capacity crowds for its Nationwide Series events.

SMI, which is expected to close on the Kentucky acquisition in the fourth quarter of 2008, also owns and operates Atlanta Motor Speedway; Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn.; Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.; Las Vegas Motor Speedway; Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.; New Hampshire Motor Speedway, in Loudon, N.H.; and Texas Motor Speedway in Ft. Worth, Texas.

With this acquisition, the company will own race tracks in the West, Northeast, Midwest, Southeast and Southwest, including four of the nation’s top-10 metropolitan markets.

Tom Jensen is the Senior NASCAR Editor for SPEEDtv.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. He is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED,” and has appeared on numerous television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the President of the National Motorsports Press Association. The Answer Man is back at SPEEDtv.com. Tom Jensen answers your questions during every race week and looks forward to hearing from you - please e-mail it to

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