Night racing a ‘blast,’ presents unique challenges

Friday, June 23, 2023, Vol. 47, No. 26
By Tom Wood

Chris Buescher says he’s looking forward to Nashville Superspeedway’s first official NASCAR Cup Series night race. Last year, he and the other drivers got an unplanned preview of what the day/night transition will be like for Sunday’s third running of the Ally 400 at the Gladeville concrete oval.

The 2022 race started at 4 p.m. and didn’t finish until more than seven hours later due to two lengthy red-flag weather delays, the second of which lasted more than two hours because of lightning in the area.

This year’s 300-lapper on the 1.3-mile track begins at 6 p.m. on NBC (WSMV-4 locally) with a sunset start and should conclude under the lights somewhere around 10, barring more rain delays or red-flag crashes.

“We were kind of forced into (a night finish) last time but doing it on purpose this go-around. And that way, we can get everybody here, keep everybody entertained for the full evening – really for the whole weekend,” says Buescher, who finished 30th last year.

“It is just neat to start in the daylight and transition through. We get to go through some changes through the car, and it’s something we’ll have to keep up with as drivers and as teams. So it’s just another added bonus for us, another challenge for us to overcome.”

Alex Bowman, who wrecked early and failed to finish last year, echoes Buescher’s sentiments about night racing.

“The race track changes a lot. Knowing that it’s a night race, knowing that it’ll be a bit cooler and we won’t have the sun and the hot track, you probably won’t go through that evolution of the race track,” says Bowman, who is still recovering from a broken back early in the season.

“I think it’ll have us in a better spot. Everybody’s got the same game plan when it comes to that. And how you adjust your car for night is different across the board. Hopefully, we get it right.”

The Sunday feature will wrap up NASCAR’s triple-header weekend at the track. Friday’s Craftsman Truck Series Rackley Roofing 200 gets underway at 7 p.m., followed by Saturday’s Xfinity Series Tennessee Lottery 250 at 2:30 p.m.

Truck Series driver Ben Rhodes and Xfinity Series driver Josh Williams think night racing should be the future for Nashville because of the heat and humidity that both drivers and fans experienced during the 2021 midday race.

“Night racing’s a blast. I like it, honestly, because it’s just cooler inside the race truck. Night racing gives us a good change from day to night on what the track’s going to do,” says Rhodes, who finished 12th at Nashville a year ago. “So as a driver and as a crew, you kind of have to do a little bit better job with predicting what’s going to happen.”

Williams says he’s “jealous” of the drivers who get to race under the lights.

“Night racing is awesome, man. All the sparks fly and things like that. And it is cooler,” Williams says. “It’s fun, man. I love coming to Nashville. The atmosphere is great. This racetrack’s a blast and I love it.”

Buescher is in agreement, also calling the track’s night roar “a blast. It’s something that’s just a little bit more special for us. It’s neat to see the paint schemes reflect up under the lights at night. It gets a little cooler at night.”

Matt Greci, the track’s new general manager, is “super-excited” about racing at night, citing better conditions for fans and drivers.

“It will give us the unique perspective of starting in daylight and transitioning into the night, and finish under the lights this year,” says Greci, who was named Speedway Motorsports senior vice president and Nashville Superspeedway general manager after Erik Moses was named executive director and CEO of the Fiesta Bowl “Of course, we were forced to because of last year’s weather. But we’ll plan for it this year and look forward to a great finish under the lights.”

Greci says fans will notice several major improvements and changes since the much-criticized first two editions of the race over heat and traffic issues.

“A lot of what we’re doing this year is adding some premium spaces and some entertainment things. You know premium hospitality that’s outside the track, inside the track. New premium camping areas and things,” he says. “But also with the heat and temperatures in June, further heat mitigation … shade structures, misting areas and things that we can help make the fans more comfortable throughout the day.”

The Nashville race opens the second half of the NASCAR season with the switch of broadcast partners from Fox to NBC, and also begins the drive toward the NASCAR playoffs.

Chase Elliott is the defending Ally 400 champion, having survived both last year’s lengthy delays and a late caution flag to edge Kurt Busch. It was only the second Cup race in the Nashville area since 1984, when Geoff Bodine won the Pepsi 400 at the aged Nashville Fairgrounds short track.

Nashville Superspeedway opened in 2000 to host IndyCar and second-tier NASCAR events before being shuttered in 2011. The track reopened in 2021 with Kyle Larson taking the checkered flag at the initial Ally 400.