For the first time since its inception in 2006, the 7/8 mile Iowa Speedway will host a NASCAR Cup Series race—the Iowa Corn 350 on June 16, 2024. The event is likely to host over 40,000 spectators. The ticket tally has already crossed the 24,000 mark, and it’s not even the new year yet. It is evident that the NASCAR community is excited with the prospect of watching Cup cars roaring past the start/finish line at “The Fastest Short Track on The Planet.”

However, amidst the massive sold-out success, renowned NASCAR journalist Bob Pockrass has disclosed a concerning issue, sparking outrage among insiders and passionate fans.

Iowa Speedway’s half-measures eclipse the historical feat

The Iowa Speedway has been a permanent fixture in the IndyCar and Indy NXT Series calendar since 2007 and regularly held Xfinity, Truck, and ARCA Menards Series races till 2019. With NASCAR trying hard to balance between road courses and short ovals, the addition of the track to the Cup and Xfinity calendar has attracted many old-timers.    

Sharing the news with the NASCAR community, Bob Pockrass revealed that despite getting sold out so early, the management is reluctant to expand the venue’s capacity. He wrote, “NASCAR announces its race at Iowa Speedway is sold out for grandstands and camping […] There are no plans to add any additional temporary grandstands there.”

The grandstand at the Iowa Speedway has approximately 24,000 permanent seats. Moreover, the infield along the backstretch will accommodate a few thousand campers as well. However, the issue is with additional temporary grandstands, which, because of Iowa Speedway LLC’s reluctance, seem far from being optimally utilized for the first-ever Cup Series race on the track. 

A few minutes after Bob Pockrass shared the concern on “X,” Iowa Speedway’s official “X” handle also posted that the tickets for the 2024 Cup Series race have already been sold out. However, booking for reserve seating is still open. The revelation came as a surprise for many in the community, with questions being raised about the seating capacity as well as the length of the race. 

Iowa Speedway’s disinclination causes severe backlash

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The news of reluctance to expand seating capacity and the tickets being sold out came as a surprise for the community as many weren’t even aware when the sale went live. Iowa Speedway’s management might not have expected the backlash it received after making the revelation.

Fans expressed their frustration over the shortening of the racing format. One wrote, “The shortening of races is getting out of hand. The top division in American motorsports should be running races that are long, not short. There’s several series that run shorter races, the Cup Series should not be one of them!”

Another fan claimed that IndyCar’s management did way better work than NASCAR and commented in exasperation, “Damn, no temporary terraces? That’s the only thing IndyCar does more confidently than NASCAR, considering IndyCar always seems scared to do something new. I would’ve thought at least something like that cuz they want to make a claim in that area. Oh, well.”

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Moments after Iowa Speedway’s post, fans felt betrayed and accused the management of not informing them about the ticket sale going live. One fan faced disappointment despite opting for the presale and wrote, “How? I never even got an email saying tickets were on sale and I signed up for presale.” Another fan expressed a similar concern and commented, “When did the tickets go on sale or was it all from the presale?”

Bob Pockrass had indicated a similar issue with additional grandstands for the 2024 Daytona 500, to which, a fan responded, “I think its time we bring back the backstretch grandstands @DAYTONA.”

In the excitement of sharing the news of getting sold out long before the commencement of the event, the management failed to look upon those factors that eventually led to the backlash. Can they find a solution and satisfy the demands of loyal fans? Let’s wait and watch. 

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