Fans love Bristol Motor Speedway. Those high banks and close contact racing make for quite a spectacle, with tempers flaring and high-speed crashes taking place at ‘The Last Great Colosseum.’ Who remembers Tony Stewart taking on Matt Kenseth in the 2012 night race, or Rusty Wallace battling it out with the iconic Dale Earnhardt nearly 30 years ago? Even Dale Jr. struggled to come up with his favorite memory at the 0.533-mile venue, going on to say, “I have a lot, dude.”

But something has shifted in the last two decades. Fans have gone from adoring Bristol Motor Speedway to preferring other races on the calendar, even though short tracks have always been the lifeblood of the sport. What could be the underlying reasons for the venue losing its shine, and could the 2025 Bass Pro Shops Night Race reignite that charm?

Bristol Motor Speedway falls out of fans’ favor

It all started in 1961. Carl Moore, Larry Carrier, and R.G. Pope started what was then called the Bristol International Speedway on a 100-acre dairy farm, which was initially made of asphalt. Featuring 22 degrees of banking in the turns, the venue quickly became a fan-favorite, and the track was revamped several times, with floodlights being added in 1978 to race at night. Eventually, the venue changed from asphalt to a concrete racing surface in 1992, before switching to dirt for a few years in 2021.

But despite the many changes, Bristol Motor Speedway failed to sustain the fans’ love. Back in 2002, a staggering 60.6% fans said they would choose the short track if offered tickets for a Winston Cup Series race. However, in a recent interview by Daniel Céspedes, that figure had dropped down to just 19.76%, with the Daytona 500 getting 35.02% votes, and the Coca-Cola 500 trailing closely behind at 31.53%. But what caused this drastic shift in fans’ preferences?

Perhaps it all comes down to the Next-Gen car and its struggles with the short track package. It’s no secret that the vehicle has struggled at such venues in recent years, with passing opportunities hard to come by, resulting in lacklustre races at venues such as Martinsville, Bristol, and Richmond Raceway. With minimal tire wear and strategy taking a backseat, it’s not surprising that fans are opting for crown jewel events like the Daytona 500 or Coca-Cola 600 instead. After all, who doesn’t want to see exciting races?

The results are there for all to see. Apart from the dwindling viewership on TV, the Food City 500 earlier this year also saw sparse attendance at the short track, with Kenny Wallace even saying, “Those seats will never be full again. Those days are over. However, those 150 thousand seats must stay for other special sporting events.” The venue recently hosted an MLB game between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds, as well as some football games over the years. Perhaps that might be the only time ‘The World’s Fastest Half-Mile’ will be full again.

Even Dale Earnhardt Jr. has mixed emotions when it comes to Bristol Motor Speedway.

Dale Jr. reflects on his favorite memory at Bristol

During his racing career, Junior made 35 starts at the venue, winning just once, along with eight top-five and 16 top-10 finishes. And while the short track is one of his favorites on the calendar, his ‘best memory’ at the track isn’t his own, but involved his father, the legendary Dale Earnhardt, even though it didn’t have a good ending.

Taking a trip down memory lane, the 50-year-old said on the Dale Jr. Download podcast, “1984, this is when I’m 10. So, forgive me if I got some of the statistics wrong, but I think Dad’s leading the race. This is very early, like year two or three of living with Dad, and really, really knowing like what my Dad does, and going to these races. I’m going, ‘Holy crap, like this is big. This is a big deal.’ So we’re at the Bristol Night Race, Dad’s leading, he’s in the blue goose, the blue Wrangler car with the yellow hood.”

But in the closing stages of the race, things went disastrously wrong for ‘The Intimidator.’ Dale Jr. said, “I remember, even at 10 years old, being aware enough that Dad spinning out of the lead and having four flat tires and losing a lap, all that was bad.” Ultimately, Harry Gant ended up finishing second to Labonte for the championship that year, followed by Bill Elliott and Dale Earnhardt, who ended up fourth. To this day, many feel that it was that summer race in Bristol that was the start of the end of ‘The Intimidator’s championship bid.