In mid-August, North Wilkesboro announced its upgrade. The 0.625-mile short track experienced a revival in 2023, when Dale Jr. and co brought it back to NASCAR’s racing schedule. But it entered the Cup Series as the venue for the All-Star Race, an exhibition race. In 2026, however, the track will host a points-paying race for the first time since 1996.

Presently, other racetracks are also hoping to follow in North Wilkesboro’s footsteps. One of them is a 25-year-old track in Sparta, Kentucky, which last hosted a NASCAR race in July 2020. In fact, its elected officials are stepping up the development game to woo a possibly bright future.

Small steps lead the way

Kentucky Speedway was a popular NASCAR destination in its heyday. From its opening in 2000 to the early 2010s, the intermediate racetrack brought tens of thousands of fans to Gallatin County every race day. But those 66,000 grandstand seats and 3000 RV Camping sites fell silent after July 2020. Since then, NASCAR has not come back. With weeds growing across the track and trespassers capturing glimpses of the racing site, Governor Andy Beshear wanted to change things. And the first step involved building an airport.

On the other side of I-71 from Kentucky Speedway lies a relatively new state and federal investment. Gov. Beshear cut the ribbon for the airport’s concrete runway in 2023. Judge-Executive Ryan Morris said construction on the airport’s first hangar is expected to begin in November and be completed by the end of 2025. In 2026, a new terminal may be on the way. It may open doors for new factories and businesses to enter the area. What is more, he also hopes that “they’ll start racing” in the speedway so close by.

Judge Morris reminisced about the NASCAR memories of Kentucky Speedway, a track where Kevin Harvick has won twice. “It’s unfortunate that we have that beautiful property, and there hasn’t been a race there in a few years. But we’re hopeful that they’ll start racing there. And, you know, it’s a large property. It’s got a lot of infrastructure in place. And if we’re not going to race there, then that property could benefit from the airport, in terms of industrial side of things.”

Since the introduction of NASCAR’s Next-Gen car, intermediate ovals have grown popular. This has led to grassroots campaigns to bring back such tracks. According to Speedway Motorsports CEO Marcus Smith, “I think Kentucky has as much of a shot as North Wilkesboro.” The latter track was entirely overgrown and disheveled. Smith and his team helped revitalize North Wilkesboro, something he said could happen with Kentucky or any former race track. “It’s happened. So it could happen to
Kentucky, it could happen anywhere.”

With changes afoot in Kentucky, it would be no wonder to expect a return. What is more, it would benefit the locals immensely.

A source of economic boost

Kentucky Speedway offered the people of Gallatin County many things. First was the thrill of watching stock cars speed past at 180 miles per hour. But it was also the promise of regular tourism, consistent racing, and jobs. The government-issued bonds allowed the track to avoid property taxes by making an annual payment of $400,000 to the county. Kentucky Speedway brought thousands of dollars into the county during its two decades of operation. From the EMS staff and police force who would work extra shifts on race days at the speedway, to the local schools and nonprofit organizations who volunteered at the track to fundraise, Morris said, the track was synonymous with opportunity.

Judge-Executive Ryan Morris said recently, “It was exciting times. Area businesses saw an influx of business and people just coming from the small convenience stores to the local restaurants, to local hotels, local campgrounds … the buzz was huge.” He continued, “If we’re utilizing the county’s borrowing power to invest in this property…I don’t want this property to be a tax break … anytime you issue those types of bonds, it’s for occupation, it’s for jobs, it’s for infrastructure, it’s to bring something else here.”

Evidently, Kentucky Speedway is on the move back to NASCAR. We can only wait and see if the sport has plans for the intermediate track in the near future.