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NASCAR MEDIA CONFERENCEMay 23, 2017Jim CassidyTHE MODERATOR: Good afternoon and welcome to today's NASCAR teleconference. We're joined by NASCAR senior vice president of racing operations, Jim Cassidy, to discuss the 2018 NASCAR national series schedules, which were released earlier today. Jim, how excited are you about these 2018 schedules and the opportunities they provide for our fans? JIM CASSIDY: Thanks, everybody, for joining us today. I couldn't be more excited both at the timing of the announcement and the contents of the announcement for the schedule for '18. As everybody on this call is aware, last year we were able to dramatically move up the timing of announcements around the following year's schedule. To be here talking with this group in May about the 2018 calendar is pretty special, as well as some of the changes. I mean, some of it you've heard prior. We talked about, last summer, Daytona and the 500 moving back to its traditional and historical weekend, that is Presidents' Day weekend. What we didn't tell you at the time is also we'll go ahead and move The Clash to Sunday, along with the Daytona 500 qualifying. Happy about that change. It's a lot going on. We'll kick off in fine fashion at Daytona. Moving into the schedule a little bit more, listening to the fans, we've heard them loud and clear, we'll go ahead and move the Richmond spring race back to Saturday night. We've heard from our fan base. A lot went into the schedule‑making process. But it was very clear that night racing at Richmond is where we need to be. Moving into the beginning of the NBC portion of the calendar, you'll note that Chicago ‑ great market for us, big, big market ‑ is going to kick off the NBC season. Then we'll roll into really a significant portion of the changes when you get to the end of the regular season. We're going to finish the regular season in Indianapolis, and couldn't be more happy to do it. Such an iconic facility, such an important event. We heard a lot also from the fans about the Playoffs, the variety of the tracks that we have in the Playoffs. What we heard is that short tracks and road courses is something they would like to see more of. So we've been able to deliver that. We're going to kick off the Playoffs in Las Vegas. Again, a big, big destination for NASCAR fans. Then we'll move to a short track, historic short track, that is Richmond, and finish round one of the Playoffs at the Charlotte Roval. That is delivering on the request to have a road course in the Playoffs. Couldn't be happier to get that done with the help and support and vision of Marcus and his team at SMI and Charlotte Motor Speedway. The variety of the tracks within each of the rounds is dynamic. You move into round two, and kicking that off at a place like Dover, more of a short track, but certainly high‑speed. Then Talladega, then Kansas, and then we get into our traditional wrap‑up tracks, which have been very compelling for us for a number of years, Texas and Phoenix and Homestead. THE MODERATOR: We will now open the floor for questions for Jim. Q. I was curious about the move from Richmond to Indianapolis on two levels. First, was there any hesitation because you go from kind of a short track, a bump‑n‑run type of a track, to a track that's more track position and fuel mileage? Also with that race being on Sunday, unless the NFL changes their schedule, going up NFL Sunday opening day? JIM CASSIDY: Certainly all of that comes into play. We're taking a look at the schedule, we're sorting through every single element that you've mentioned, and then some. But really found that moving a short track into the Playoffs is what we heard our fans loud and clear wanting. Then trying to be very thoughtful about the venue that would take a significant place that's the end of the regular season. Certainly it's no secret there's different styles of racing at the different venues that we go to. Putting a short track into the Playoffs, into round one, was the right thing to do. Moving a historic facility that is the Brickyard into a prominent position at the end of the regular season was the right match, as well. Q. Do you know what the length of the Charlotte Playoff race will be? JIM CASSIDY: We are still working through that portion of it. No, not right now. Q. Could you talk in some specifics about the Charlotte road course race, what you're expecting there, what went into the decision to move off the oval to the road course. JIM CASSIDY: Again, back to my initial comments, the desire was loud and clear from the fans that they wanted a road course in the Playoffs. A lot of people heard that and went to work on how we could accomplish that. The project that is the Roval at Charlotte Motor Speedway wasn't something that was just thrown together overnight. It was thought out by a number of designers. There was a significant investment that has gone into getting that portion of the track and the Roval into the shape that it is today. You've probably seen that as you've been out to the Speedway recently. Certainly there was a lot of discussion across the board, as there was with the rest of the schedule, with every single player in the sport, as to what we were thinking about with Charlotte and the Playoffs. So a lot of discussion. As you know, we had a test there. There was a good test with A.J. There will be additional testing there. Probably you can look at early 2018 to get more of the teams out there and dialing it in for what will be a compelling race to conclude round one of our Playoffs in '18. Q. About the Charlotte road course race, are there any concerns, you'll have testing, but this will be an entirely green racetrack that has never been seen at this fantastic facility? What concerns did you have throwing that kind of wrench in there? I know you answered the fans' call. And also, is that a day race or a night race at this point? JIM CASSIDY: We're still working on finalizing the start times. As you know, the race moved from the fall to Sunday afternoon. That's what you can expect for next year, as well. Concerns? I can't think of any concerns out of the gate. I think we've got the right mix of professionals that have looked at the opportunity. We've evaluated it. We've certainly seen a car on the track. We'll see more cars on the track. We've certainly gone to new venues before. It's the business we're in. From a competition standpoint, we'll be buttoned up. From a safety standpoint, we'll be buttoned up. Certainly from a standpoint of delivering a product to the fans that they've asked for, this certainly fits the bill. Q. Have you determined if you will be racing on the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway next year, or is that still open? JIM CASSIDY: We will be running on the oval at the Brickyard next year. Q. You mentioned that you listened to the fans in moving the spring race at Richmond back to night. I thought that race in the daytime was one of the best races of the season. What did the fans tell you that said you should move that race back under the lights? JIM CASSIDY: I think if you look back at Richmond, back to the spring of 2016, and you look at that race, then you look at the race that we had in the fall last year, the racing at Richmond from a package standpoint, from a tire standpoint, we've got the right equation to put on some very good races at Richmond, and have proven that both during the day and night in the last number of races. I would say from a fan standpoint, I can't tell you specifically, but I can tell you that the sentiment was strong that they preferred that Saturday night position versus Sunday. That probably came from a number of factors that we could spend a long time talking about. In the end, it was loud and clear. It was the right move. We look forward to getting back to Saturday night there. Q. You talked about the interest in the road course the fans want for the Playoffs. Obviously there are already two road courses on the schedule with Watkins Glen and Sonoma. Why weren't one of those moved? Were they considered to be moved into a Playoff spot? JIM CASSIDY: I would say we looked at a lot of different things, a lot of different considerations across the board. It was really an interesting process, a fun process to be a part of. It was one where we worked together with every single partner in the business to get to a final product. Certainly we talked about that. It's obvious we would have talked about the other road courses in the mix. But, again, speaking of variety and speaking of the opportunity to add an additional road course, was where we landed. We're looking forward to that. Q. Even with the changes, essentially the final six races in the Playoffs remain the same, three of the last five remain mile‑and‑a‑half's. That's constantly been the big challenge for the sport, to provide entertaining racing for the fans. Why weren't changes made there? What is it you feel comfortable having three of the last five races on mile‑and‑a‑half tracks where not all mile‑and‑a‑half tracks are equal in the type of entertainment they can provide? JIM CASSIDY: First I would say that the amount of change that you see in this calendar is a result of a lot of cooperation, a lot of hard work across the board. Certainly there is a lot of progress on the schedule. As far as the intermediate tracks go, I wouldn't get too hung up on the number of intermediate tracks because I think what you've seen, if you want to focus on the back end of the Playoffs, focus on the racing that we've seen at intermediate tracks, each of the intermediate tracks as kind of taking shape from having its own distinct personality from a racing standpoint. I think you saw that at Texas this year with the changes they made, again, a vision to change things up on that side, and to create a different racing dynamic at a mile‑and‑a‑half track. What you saw at Kansas a couple weeks ago kind of speaks for itself. And then I don't think you could argue that Homestead has provided some of the most compelling racing you could ever imagine to bring home a championship. Q. Looking at the schedule, the All‑Star Race is on there at Charlotte. That is a lock that it's going to continue to be at Charlotte? There was a lot of conversation about shifting it. Is it too late in the game to do that? Is it still possible? Is it going to be at Charlotte for 2018, and if you move it, it would have to be 2019? JIM CASSIDY: The All‑Star Race is scheduled to be in Charlotte again next year. So, yeah, we're pretty locked in for '18. We're good to go. Q. There's no way that would be moved or anything? JIM CASSIDY: No. We've finished our discussions for '18. We'll begin looking at '19 and beyond in the near future. Q. Have you figured out as far, as SAFER barriers on the Charlotte Roval, where you want them? How detailed have you gotten as far as a look at it from a safety perspective? JIM CASSIDY: We've had a number of visits over there in working through that process as we would with any new or changing venue we would go to. We're working through those final details right now. We'll be in good shape for next year. Q. Were you close at all to having a midweek race or a Monday night race when you were trying to talk about the schedule? JIM CASSIDY: Again, having the group that we did get together and talk about schedules in a way that we haven't done before in a very long time, if ever, it's going to drum up those conversations that we all have heard. Certainly those sorts of things came up in conversation. But I think that where we landed was obviously not focusing on midweek races, and focusing primarily with the portfolio of racetracks that we have, making the most of them on the traditional days we would race. Of course, a lot of things came up in those discussions, but none that would probably surprise you. Happy with where we landed across the board with significant enhancements. Q. You mentioned the value in having the regular season end at an iconic venue like Indianapolis. That's also been the scene of some racing that has been heavily scrutinized, criticized. Was there any concern about blunting momentum going into the Playoffs, or is this maybe going to be in conjunction with some other competition changes that try and stoke the product there? JIM CASSIDY: I would say that we're always going to continue to work on the competition piece. We're certainly not going to make a call that's going to, what you said I think, blunt the momentum. Contrarily, we look at Indianapolis as a long‑time partner, as a key player in our season. We were happy that they were open to looking at moving a little bit later in the calendar. Even more pleased we could find a significant spot. As I mentioned before, I think the competitors will rise to the occasion, and look forward to bringing home the regular season in Indiana. Q. With the timing of the announcement, basically when everybody is home for this week, is this something that just worked out in such a way that the timing fell perfectly to be announced while everybody is basically home here in Charlotte, or one of those that you had this planned from the beginning? JIM CASSIDY: From a timing standpoint, we wanted to get as close as we could to last year's announcement. But there was a lot more that went into the process from a standpoint of people being involved and the inputs that we had collectively. That probably drew it out a little bit longer. But from the standpoint of timing, it didn't tie it specifically to folks being home this weekend. We wanted to get it wrapped up as quickly as we could so that teams and fans and everyone else could start planning as quickly as they could for 2018. Q. Looking at the Truck schedule a little bit, I know you referenced earlier kind of looking at the tracks and working with the tracks that were already in NASCAR's arsenal. I've heard some of the drivers talking about trying to eliminate some of the gaps in the early part of the schedule. I know adding Las Vegas alleviates that a little bit. Has there been any consideration going forward of possibly adding a couple races back to the Truck schedule, getting closer to maybe that 25‑race slate that you had a few years back that worked so well? JIM CASSIDY: I think from a Truck standpoint, you're right, the gaps are something we see. When you start the season in Daytona and end the season in Miami, which we like to do, it's going to create that opportunity for gaps. From a number‑of‑race standpoint, I think certainly for next year we'll be at 23. I wouldn't anticipate that changing. What I think will change is we'll continue to focus on how we can kind of minimize those gaps going forward. But overall, despite some of the off weeks that are back‑to‑back, I think from a Truck schedule standpoint, you mentioned Vegas moving earlier to close up one of the gaps. But when you look at that lineup to end the regular season for Trucks at Bristol, then you look at the first round of the Playoffs, Canada, Las Vegas and Talladega, is a pretty cool lineup and variety, then Martinsville, Texas, Phoenix, and obviously Homestead. I'm looking forward to the Trucks. Q. You're making a transition from Indianapolis all the way out to the west to Vegas. Talk about what we can expect when we kick off the Chase in Vegas, the Playoffs in Vegas. There's been some talk at the end of the season with the banquet maybe not being in Vegas. Are we still looking at going to Vegas for the banquet, as well? JIM CASSIDY: From a standpoint of moving from Indianapolis to Vegas, I would say from a logistics standpoint, we've got probably some of the best folks in logistics in the business. Moving around from different parts of the country, that's what we do. So I don't see any issues there. Our teams and other folks that travel with us are very accomplished at doing that. From the standpoint of the banquet, we'd obviously like to finish up and celebrate our season, from an awards standpoint, in Vegas. I'm not in position to comment about Vegas beyond 2017. It's not really my area of focus. Q. A lot of pomp and circumstance when we get to Chicago. What can the fans expect when we go to Vegas for the Playoff kickoff? JIM CASSIDY: Well, if you've ever been to Vegas, I think you can expect them to roll out a pretty good time for you, for the fans, and for everybody that's going to come out there to kick off the Playoffs. There's no place quite like it on earth, and certainly no experience quite like it anywhere out there. That will obviously translate to how they welcome us for the Playoffs, as well. Q. Was there any consideration to have all three of the national series start the Playoffs in Las Vegas compared to seeing the Trucks start their Playoffs in Canadian Tire for 2018? JIM CASSIDY: I think when we looked at the Playoffs, elimination, how that would stagger between the different series, the number of races, then trying to line it up would be a monumental task. Frankly, having it staggered provides an opportunity for those series to really stand on their own in a very strong way. When you look at the Trucks in particular, from a standpoint of kicking off at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, it's one of our stronger standalone Truck Series events, probably 35,000, 40,000 people on race day. An incredible crowd and fan base in Ontario. It's nice to see some of those standalones in the mix of the Playoffs, standing on their own. From a continuity standpoint, I guess you could try and work it all together. But I like it from the standpoint of letting the series shine in a place by themselves. Q. Asking about Speedweeks, moving The Clash and the Daytona 500 on the same day, I guess the question is, why do Speedweeks still need two weekends? Why isn't that able to be compressed into one week, maybe less time for the teams to be on the road? That's something that the sport has looked at in the past with other issues with these types of events. JIM CASSIDY: I would say certainly we talked about a lot of things. But when you kick off the season with your biggest event of the year, and you have a number of races to support that kickoff of the season, Daytona has a portfolio of races that commands a number of weeks. I think our fans look forward to spending a lot of time in Daytona in the month of February. Certainly there's consideration around the race teams, the amount of time they spend. But when you talk about the biggest event of your season, it certainly warrants a couple of weeks based on what we have from a content standpoint. Q. I know later on this season there's going to be some shows, Cup events, where qualifying will be the same day as the race. When will you determine, or have you determined, any of these events in 2018 Cup will be two‑day shows? How will you look at that moving forward? JIM CASSIDY: I look at it from a standpoint of anything that we can do to enhance the weekend experience, we're going to enhance it. It's not tied to the number of days. We've got a lot of content across the entire weekend everywhere we go. I would say those plans will come together. We'll turn to start times next, then we'll turn to event schedules, then we'll begin to dial it in. Around the same time we'll be able to see how some of those events are playing out for 2017, whether it's qualifying on race day or the day before. Looking forward to seeing how that plays out at Watkins Glen and Pocono and Martinsville, then the day before at the Brickyard from a qualifying standpoint. We'll get all that in motion pretty quickly and we'll be in good shape before long. THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Jim. Thank you to the media for joining today. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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