What started as a simple answer quickly turned into a rallying cry. Last week, Chase Briscoe was all in to bring back a particular speedway to the NASCAR Cup Series. He didn’t overthink it, and he didn’t dodge. But with growing calls for the return of this beloved racetrack, fans are left at the mercy of Tony Stewart. And as things stand, there isn’t much hope.

When the Joe Gibbs Racing driver was asked which track he would like to revive in the Cup Series calendar, Briscoe didn’t hesitate with his answer.

“@EldoraSpeedway,” he replied.

That was it, and somehow it was everything. With just one tag, the idea that Tony Stewart has championed for years was back in the spotlight. And almost instantly, NASCAR fans piled on, urging the three-time Cup champion to finally get the moment they believe the sport has been denying them.

And it’s not hard to see why the passion erupted so quickly. Tony Stewart owns the legendary dirt track and has long believed it deserves far more than the limited spotlight NASCAR has allowed it.

In Stewart’s mind, Eldora was never meant to be just a Truck Series novelty. It was always capable of hosting something bigger.

“Maybe one of these days, we’ll get an Xfinity or Cup race here,” he said back in 2018. “We’ve proven we can run the vehicles here. And the Truck drivers who have never been here before can get around here really well. If a truck can get around here, a Cup or Xfinity car can do it too. Who knows?”

And that confidence wasn’t empty talk. As recently as 2025, Stewart unveiled a $10 million expansion plan for Eldora, including the launch of a new national dirt racing league and major facility enhancements.

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The message was clear: Eldora isn’t stuck in the past; it’s being built for the future. A future that, many fans believe, should include a NASCAR Cup Series race.

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Because Eldora Speedway isn’t just another track for fans to toss around in their wish list. Known as the Big E, the half-mile, high-banked clay oval in Rossburg, Ohio, has been a cornerstone of American motorsports since 1954.

It has hosted iconic events such as the World 100 and the Dirt Late Model Dream, drawing massive crowds and earning a reputation as one of the most respected races in the country. Its NASCAR chapter only added to the legend.

When Eldora joined the Camping World Truck Series schedule in 2013, it marked NASCAR’s first national touring Series race on dirt in more than 40 years. The races were raw, unpredictable, and widely popular, the kind of spectacle fans crave even today.

But Eldora’s relationship with NASCAR didn’t begin or end there. Long before the trucks arrived, the track welcomed NASCAR stars for charity races and special events, blending disciplines and creating moments fans still talk about today.

And even after the Truck Series races disappeared from the schedule following 2019, the appetite for Eldora never faded. Now the fans are pushing hard for the racetrack to return to the NASCAR Series; however, the nostalgia has turned into a plea

Fans beg for NASCAR’s Eldora return

As the idea of Eldora’s return resurfaced, the fan response made one thing clear: this wasn’t just nostalgia talking. It was frustration, reflection, and unresolved disappointment, layered with hope that something meaningful had been left behind.

Some fans looked back at how the dirt experiment unfolded and couldn’t help but point out the familiar cycle NASCAR often finds itself trapped in.

“People complained until they got what they wanted, and then complained that it sucked. As NASCAR fans do,” they wrote.

For others, the story of Eldora disappearing from the NASCAR schedule felt less like a single decision and more like a domino effect, one setback stacking on top of another until something special was quietly lost.

“For Eldora, COVID came, and then a fallout with Tony, I believe, bringing them to Knoxville Raceway, which was a disaster, and then they removed a classic race with a dirt one. The first year was a disaster; the subsequent years were okay, so it went on. It’s been a literal world shutdown, a wreckfest, and putting dirt on concrete that killed it. But PLEASE at least bring back the Prelude to the Dream.”

That plea stood out. Even among fans who acknowledge the missteps, there remains a longing for the events that felt authentic, purposeful, and rooted in dirt racing culture rather than experimentation.

Not everyone believes Eldora, or dirt racing in general, is meant for the top level of NASCAR. Some fans drew a firm line between what works and what doesn’t.

“Agreed that the Trucks are the perfect Series to have a race. For the Cup Series, it’s a novelty and honestly not great racing. Teams are also spending millions on development for one race. I’ll just say it: if you like dirt racing, go support World of Outlaws, DIRTcar, IMCA, etc.,” they wrote.

Yet even among those skeptical of Cup Series racing, Eldora still holds a special place, particularly because of Tony Stewart’s involvement and legacy.

“Hopefully, with Smoke involved in Trucks, he can try to get them back to Eldora. It can’t sit right with him that Friesen won the last race there.”

Others took a more practical view, arguing that the dream was never abandoned out of spite, but out of logistical reality.

“Most dirt tracks can’t support a Cup Series race. There isn’t the infrastructure, concessions, bathrooms, or media access for a NASCAR-level crowd. Hence, they did it in Bristol Motor Speedway. Also, NASCAR and SMI don’t own most dirt tracks, so you would be taking revenue away from NASCAR to run elsewhere.”

Together, the reactions paint a complicated picture. Fans aren’t unified in what Eldora should be, but they are unified in feeling that something meaningful was mishandled. Whether it’s nostalgia for the Truck Series night under the lights, frustration with how NASCAR’s dirt era unfolded, or a lingering belief in Tony Stewart’s vision, Eldora remains a symbol of a dream that never quite got a fair shot.