NASCAR celebrated its 75th anniversary this year and it didn’t disappoint. While the Cup Series provided some entertaining races, it also brought in plenty of surprises. In fact, even the playoffs looked quite promising despite many not favoring it. However, the sport’s president Steve Phelps has come out and publicly dismissed those claims in a recent press conference.

Given the Phoenix Raceway will host the final race of the season, Phelps spoke highly of the competition and the racing witnessed this season. In fact, he gave some astonishing facts to support his arguments.

NASCAR President Steve Phelps claims the sport provides the best racing in the world

In the “State of the Sport” news conference before the final at Phoenix, NASCAR President Steve Phelps pointed out some interesting facts from the season. He informed how the sellouts were 50% this year. While the TV ratings took a hit, the loss was in “mid-single digits”. However, he was quick to reason that the dip was more because of the weather-impacted races and should be up next year.

In fact, to support his claims, he explained how NASCAR is close to signing the next TV deal. Phelps confirmed that there has been plenty of interest in winning the sport’s media rights. The response so far has exceeded expectations. However, he pointed out that a combination of broadcast cable and streaming at a certain level is being considered.

What was more amazing was how Phelps spoke highly about the playoff system. While many have had their doubts about the format and claimed it gimmicky, he said, “It’s not. It’s an incredible playoff system that rewards the best drivers in the sport.”

With all three manufacturers still involved in the final at Phoenix, it speaks volumes of how the format has helped with the Next-Gen car. Not only that, Phelps gave a very helpful update on the ongoing charter negotiations.

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NASCAR President Steve Phelps has his say on the new charter agreement

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It is public knowledge that the existing charter agreement expires at the end of the 2024 season. However, it only got more concerning when earlier this year, Denny Hamlin stated that the negotiations for a new deal weren’t going very well. While that has been concerning for the fans, NASCAR President Steve Phelps brought the latest update on the scenario.

Phelps confirmed that progress has been made in the talks. At the same time, he pointed out that the value of a charter has gone up significantly already. However, he stated that keeping a fair deal in mind for everyone, an agreement should be reached but there is no specific timeline for the negotiations.

As per the NASCAR President, the media rights are the first on the agenda. Once a deal is closed on that front, securing an agreement for the charters would be taken up instantly.  It remains to be seen how NASCAR handles this. Will we see a surprising twist in the negotiations?

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