NASCAR’s phenomenon is not limited to a certain part of the US. Throughout the country, many regions host some of the best fan turnouts, with sold-out venues and millions of TV viewers. Yet there are some regions the sport hasn’t tapped, and as President Steve O’Donnell suggests, it could be taking on a new direction soon.

NASCAR President reveals what determines a new racing venue

“If we showed up tomorrow and said, hey, we’re going to go race somewhere in Africa next year because we’re all going to take a big check. Most of the sponsors on the teams would say this does absolutely nothing for me, right? It’s not growing my brand.” Understandably, the sponsors have a significant say in selecting new racing venues. But while NASCAR is definitely not preparing to race in Africa anytime soon, they might be expanding to the Northwest.

“So we kind of want to pick, okay, where are we not activating? What is the sponsorship group really desire? I think the Northwest would absolutely be something that we want to look at,” Steve O’Donnell said on The Varsity podcast.

Despite being home to iconic tracks like Evergreen Speedway and Yakima Speedway, the Northwest seems untapped. The region produces some of the strongest grassroots racing, but remains limited to that. The Cup Series does not seem to be moving that way anytime soon. However, NASCAR now seems to be thinking about it.

Apart from Steve O’Donnell’s comments, Ben Kennedy, last year, had also expressed an interest in the same.

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“We’d love to be in the Pacific Northwest at some point,” Kennedy said. “I think we’ve said this a couple of times -We’re always looking at new markets we could go and explore in the future, and the Pacific Northwest has always been high on our list.”

At the same time, however, NASCAR might be planning to put some ocean between its current racing venues.

Cup Racing might soon be moving overseas

NASCAR recently crossed borders to the south, moving to Mexico. But for the first time ever, the sport might expand further than that. As Ben Kennedy stated earlier, the sport is planning to broaden its approach.

“[The ultimate goal] is to improve the fan experience and bring out people to our events and tune into TV every week,” Kennedy said. “So, that could be through initiatives like esports [and] international.”

He mentioned that NASCAR is looking for “a couple of potential new venues.” While this might as well include a few races in the Northwest (like he mentioned earlier in 2025), it could also include some potential races across the ocean. The Fuji Speedway in Japan and Brands Hatch in England have been promising contenders. Each of these tracks could pose logistical hurdles unprecedented for NASCAR. 

As of now, however, nothing is confirmed. Racing is prepared to take place at the Naval Base Coronado this year; moreover, the Roval layout at Charlotte has been scrapped. But that seems to be about it for now. Will NASCAR prioritize more races in the country first? Or will they focus on expanding internationally?