There’s no question NASCAR has been behind the times in terms of tech compared to other global motorsport brands, which have been for decades. To some, that’s the charm of it. That old school man and machine, raw horsepower with the simplest tech possible running on ovals with a few road courses sprinkled in.

Well, fast forward 75 years since its formation and 70 years after the first road course, and NASCAR now runs multiple different types of tracks. The sport opens its season on a quarter-mile oval in a nod back to its original seasons, though this time, it is in one of the oldest stadiums in the United States. The sport then moves on to its most legendary track, the superspeedway at Daytona. The sport runs the majority of its season at 1.5 miles or larger intermediate tracks. Of course, the sport runs numerous short tracks and, for the first time ever in 2023, a street course.

NASCAR has essentially run the same season over and over and over and over again for decade after decade. The biggest attempt at a change-up came in the mid-90s with the addition of the short track-focused series dubbed the Craftsman Truck Series. But in the 3 decades since, that series has made its way to just another Cup/Xfinity-type series racing on nearly all the same tracks.

The sport needs something new. They’ve done some good work with the addition of the LA Coliseum and the Chicago Street Course, but they need a lot more than that. A new, very different type of NASCAR Touring Series would be HUGE for the sport in terms of growth into the future, and I’ve put a lot of thought into what that new series could be. I’ve got two fantastic ideas for what that could be.

An All-Electric SUV Short-Track Series

NASCAR fans were teased with this type of series with the leak of an EV crossover (Pictured below). People may question both the EV as well as the Crossover/SUV premiss. So here are the simplest explanations I can give.

Crossovers/ SUVs

This one is pretty simple. I’ve sold cars for over 10 years now, and that’s what people buy. People buy crossovers and SUVs in extreme numbers when compared to sports cars or sedans… Combined. When the Craftsman Truck Series came to light in 1995, people were transitioning from pickup trucks simply being work-horses to everyday family vehicles and the best-selling class of vehicle in the United States.

Crossovers and SUVs being the second most popular class in the US just makes them the obvious choice for a new series.

EV

Sure, the auto industry is slowly abandoning the full push to EV after the industry over-saturated the market with these vehicles in ’22-’23. Plus, the NASCAR community holds zero understanding of the type and, therefore, hates even the idea of it. So why keep it?

Performance! It really is that simple: EVs are some of the best performance cars ever built. Instant acceleration makes the short-track EV Series a must-watch. These cars would likely achieve a greater speed by the end of the straight of, let’s say, Martinsville in less time than a Cup car.

Body/ Engine/ Chassis: The OEM’s bodies are, as stated above, Compact SUVs. Underneath would be the NASCAR “NEXTGEN” platform powered by OEM-specific Electric powertrains putting out over 950hp.

Showcase: An EV Series can be a showcase of the type of technology the sport is capable of building, therefore hopefully building the appeal to new OEMs as well as new tech sponsorship to come into the sport.

Short-Tracks: This series should be a tweaked version of what the Truck Series once was. A NASCAR-sanctioned series that focuses on medium-capacity local short tracks in markets that are not saturated by NASCAR, including mostly the Midwest, Northeast, and Northwest. They can join the 3 main series for more eyeballs at bigger tracks for 2-3 races a year, such as Richmond, Martinsville, and Bristol.

Racing: This series would operate 20 races across the US’s best and more storied short tracks. Heat Races for qualifying, with the champion winning using the old-school Winston Cup Era points payouts.

This could be a fantastic way to bring in new money in a way no one would expect.

A Hybrid Only Road Course Series

Based 100% on the Garage 56 car with a hybrid powertrain. This Series could accomplish 2 things for the sport: bring in new manufacturers who are going away from big, fire-breathing V8 engines without going full electric. This could also bring in the eyeballs of the people who may be interested in NASCAR but still see it as the sport that “Drives in circles” or “only turns left.”

Body/ Engine/ Chassis: Leave the body completely up to the OEM while using a spec electric support to the OEM’s choice of a smaller V8 or larger V6. This powertrain sits on top of the current “NEXTGEN” chassis.

Showcase: Unlike the EV car mentioned above, this car would showcase just as mentioned in the last paragraph. They can show that this sport can be a lot more than just left turns. After Garage 56 embarrassed many of the fiercest race cars in the world, from Porsche, Ferarri, and Corvette’s racing programs. They can show that they can do it week after week, not just once.

Road Courses/ Street Courses: This car is spectacular as it sits, so a bit more development toward a full series would make it just that much better. Showcase our sport on some of the greatest road courses and street courses not only in the United States, but globally. Maybe include a doubleheader or two with an established series such as IMSA or V8 Supercars.

Racing: As an American-based company, I’d run this series at 8 races in North America and 8 others globally. 16 races and an old-school NASCAR Winston Cup era points-style championship. Races would be timed to 4 hours to give more of an endurance feel, with 3-5 laps to settle it once the timer goes out, depending on the track size.

Header Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images