Jeb Burton, Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet
Photo by: James Gilbert / Getty Images
Rockingham Speedway President and CEO of Track Enterprises Bob Sargent has teased a return of the NASCAR Cup Series to the circuit.
This weekend, Rockingham hosted the Xfinity Series for the first time since 2004. The Craftsman Truck Series also returned, having not raced at the North Carolina circuit since 2013.
Sargent reported a positive reaction from NASCAR insiders to the various changes that have been made to the track’s facilities.
“I’m pretty hands on, so I talked to them from Thursday night, when we got here, to all day today,” Sargent told The Charlotte Observer.
“Talked to a lot of different people at NASCAR, whether they were here or weren’t here. [Former NASCAR president and current board member] Mike Helton was here yesterday, and I talked to people on the phone today. And the teams that were here, we talked to them a lot.
“Older, veteran drivers that I got relationships with, they were texting me, calling me. And then again, the sponsors who were here, I talked with them all day long. The fans. The officials. My workers. A lot of positives from everybody.”
Jesse Love, Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet; Sammy Smith, JR Motorsports Chevrolet
Photo by: Getty Images
Sargent was asked if he felt the success of this weekend had justified a spot on the Cup Series calendar. He responded:
“Yes, absolutely, with the caveat that NASCAR is a big, worldwide entity, and when you look at dates, there are only so many.
“There are only so many geographic regions and things like that. So there are many factors that go into when dates get put where. So it’s not a magic wand. “But I feel comfortable, and am not saying anything out of line that, yes, we did everything we needed to do.”
“It’s a process. But we are on the radar. We are in that process.”
Rockingham Speedway hasn’t hosted a Cup Series race since 2004. The track was sold by Speedway Motorsports Inc. in 2007 to former NASCAR driver Andy Hillenburg.
The circuit underwent renovations ahead of hosting its first Truck Series race in 2012, before being sold again in 2018.
