According to a close associate of Bruton Smith, who requested anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak on the subject, a new drag strip is going to be built across the street from Lowe’s Motor Speedway next to the currently-in-operation dirt track.  However, this will apparently be anything but a slam dunk for Smith because he has yet to secure zoning approval, and may face opposition from a large housing tract and golf course that are already under construction.  Our source described the situation as “Englishtown-like,” in that it may take some serious effort to convince the neighbors that another motorsports facility is in their best interests.  If things go as planned the facility should be ready for action by September, but that’s a pretty big “if.”

According to a close associate of Bruton Smith, who requested anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak on the subject, a new drag strip is going to be built across the street from Lowe’s Motor Speedway next to the currently-in-operation dirt track.  However, this will apparently be anything but a slam dunk for Smith because he has yet to secure zoning approval, and may face opposition from a large housing tract and golf course that are already under construction.  Our source described the situation as “Englishtown-like,” in that it may take some serious effort to convince the neighbors that another motorsports facility is in their best interests.  If things go as planned the facility should be ready for action by September, but that’s a pretty big “if.” 

Our guess is that if the Charlotte track isn’t ready, or is otherwise delayed, the race will take place in either Gainesville, Florida, or Commerce, Georgia, both facilities being owned by NHRA and therefore eliminating the necessity of a financial split with a track owner.  However, with Gainesville and Commerce in the heart of SEC football country, if the Gators or Bulldogs are playing at home on the scheduled race weekend, there will be an extreme shortage of hotel rooms and, very probably, extremely minimal local media coverage.  We have to agree with our source when he said, “I’ve never seen a fall drag race do really well in the south, so we’ll see what happens here.”