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“We’re in the Entertainment Business”: Kyle Busch All-In for NASCAR’s Return to Bowman Gray’s ‘Calamity and Chaos’

Published 03/24/2024, 11:17 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

NASCAR recently took over the ‘Madhouse’ track to manage racing operations there. The iconic Bowman Gray Stadium has been around for ages, plastering its name across racing circles. But one reason for its fame are also the reckless races that have happened on the track. Kyle Busch approves this infamous quality of the track, in line with his tendencies.

‘Rowdy’ Busch dons that nickname with pride and good reason, as Busch’s short temper is a well-established fact. The driver has locked horns with several racers, including Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, and even his team owner, Richard Childress. So that might give you a hint about how much Busch is looking forward to a possible showdown at the ‘Madhouse’.

Kyle Busch shows the green light for Bowman Gray’s chaotic races

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Bowman Gray Stadium, the historic North Carolina short track, boasts origins in stock car racing’s earliest years. The first race was held in 1949 at the 0.250-mile dirt oval. However, NASCAR could not call the track its own until last week. The racing series will take over managerial operations from Winston-Salem Speedway Inc.

Many fans were unhappy with this turn of events, calling NASCAR incapable of holding up the track’s iconic history. However, Kyle Busch is on the polar end of opinions, thrilled with the development. The 63-time Cup winner is always on the lookout for some track trouble and therefore more fun.

Busch told Bob Pockrass: “I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a good race out of that place. I’ve seen plenty of highlight reels, you know, on TV. Issues of guys running through the in-field and crashing other guys’ cars, and getting out and fighting and what have you. We’re in the entertainment business and the more calamity and chaos we can have, the better.”

 

Although Rowdy is excited to be in a crash-riddled race, others have criticized the ‘Madhouse’ for reaching extremes of reckless racing. Instead of focusing on delivering a good race, drivers lose their calm at the Bowman Gray Stadium. When someone is irked, they wreck many others just to get to their culprit.

Yet despite the infamous reputation for wrecking, the track also holds fond memories for the family who took care of it.

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Hawkins family to continue to oversee operations at Bowman Gray

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The Hawkins family has been in charge of the track since its days of inception. The earliest race meets were promoted by a powerful duo of NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. together with Alvin Hawkins, a NASCAR Hall of Fame Landmark Award nominee. In the modern day, even as the track went over to the American stock car racing series, the Hawkins family will remain active in its operations.

Ben Kennedy, NASCAR senior vice president of racing development and strategy, credited the sacred bond. “There’s a lot of history of the families working together, and a lot of history that we’ve had with that stadium. Especially over the next few years, in particular, we want to stay super close. … They’re going to continue to stay involved with us as we kind of get our feet underneath of us because they know every nook and cranny of that entire facility.”

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Kyle Busch is going all in to support a possible addition of the ‘Madhouse’ to NASCAR’s race schedule. However, other racers are not as rowdy as him and may turn around the track’s reputation.

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Written by:

Sumedha Mukherjee

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Sumedha Mukherjee is a NASCAR Writer at EssentiallySports who is known for her in-depth track analysis as well as her lifestyle coverage of Cup drivers like Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick. Inspired by the Kiwi's journey so far, Sumedha has also written pieces on Shane Van Gisbergen, predicting how the Supercars Champion would do in the new and unfamiliar American setting. Pairing her research skills with her vast experience as a writer, Sumedha creates stories her readers can easily get lost in.
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Edited by:

Shreya Singh