Even after having undergone a dramatic youthful treatment in recent years, Nascar Holdings insists on the fact that he always masks gas to change, President Steve Phelps saying that sport explores everything, possible racing locations around the world external investments.
“We are at the moment what I would call the exploration phase, so we are trying to build our plans for ’26 and beyond, but it’s a bit like the NBA,” said Phelps. “Twenty years ago, their international imprint seemed significantly different from what it does today. My expectation is that ours will continue to grow. There are a lot of opportunities for us.
When the former NASCAR CEO, Brian France, resigned in 2018, Phelps had his chance to lead NASCAR after more than a decade as one of the best marketing and corporate heads of the organization sanction. Phelps was able to work on a multitude of initiatives intended to refresh the brand, to increase the relevance of the NASCAR and to arrest reductions in key performance indicators. This includes everything, innovation of the calendar, reconnection with the base of the race, the implementation of more aggressive marketing, the Nascar at the age of streaming and the strike of a litany License relationships at a time when racing clothes have become fashionable again as streetwear.
Last year, as part of a broader restructuring, Phelps told NASCAR employees that he would work more on the global expansion of racing properties belonging to NASCAR while the chief of the Operation Steve O ‘ Donnll has taken a bigger share of daily responsibilities. NASCAR has been detained private to the France family since its foundation in 1948, but with investment capital funds and sports funds that flood in the sector as sport becomes a class of assets, and with the organization of sanction Who seeks to develop at a quick pace, said Phelps Nascar could take such an investment. It is believed that it is the first time that Nascar has confirmed that it has been open to the sale of participation in the private company, although Reuters reported in 2018 that Nascar had hired Goldman Sachs to explore a sale in the company .
I would say that six years ago, whatever the EP arrives in sport in this way, they did not look to the extent that they are now in Nascar.
– The president of Nascar Steve Phelps
Other highest leagues in the United States allow investment in investment, including the four main properties of sticks and balls. Arctos has the most team investments, with 7.2 billion dollars raised and $ 4.4 billion engaged on 38 investments last June, Sports Business Journal reported. TKO Group, the sports portfolio and entertainment company listed on the UFC and WWE, showed its interest in investing in automotive sports properties, would have bid for MotoGP. The CEO of the UFC, Dana White, has links with the leadership Nascar through the Nitrocross property of Thrill One Sports & Entertainment, which could make it a natural candidate to invest in Nascar. TKO refused to comment.
“I would say that six years ago, whatever the EP arrives in sport in this way, they did not turn to the extent that they are now in Nascar,” said Phelps. “I myself had a lot, a lot of conversations with these EP companies that seek to invest in racing teams because they want to hear someone who sells it:” Where do you see this sport, as Do you believe the future to be? ‘ And they buy what we sell, which is fantastic. I believe that the EP is good for our sport because they bring money, they provide expertise and they bring sponsors in many cases, so these are all positive things for our sport. »»
Phelps cited Marc Lasry’s avenue Sports Fund Investing in Trackhouse Entertainment Group, which has a Nascar team and a MotoGP team, such as a positive development for sport and corporate values of the teams. The other NASCAR teams who have assumed external investments include: Legacy Motor Club, in which Knighthead Capital Management has recently invested; Richard Childress Racing; Joe Gibbs Racing; and RFK Racing.
Phelps said that when it is a possible global expansion, it makes sense not only for teams, but also for Nascar herself, to look at outside money, something that would be historic in a Sport that has never known Frances as owners of the sanction organization. He also admitted that he thought that Nascar must accelerate the pace when it comes to making international movements.
Nascar’s offer to develop on a global scale arrives at a time when Formula 1 of the Rival Racing property has increased on the American market, adding two races to bring it to three in the United States, most of all of all countries. “We absolutely examine that, and I think it is intelligent for us to do so,” said Phelps by assessing the opportunity to accept a investment in investment. “That something is happening there, I don’t know, but we must be intelligent on the way we are going to grow on a global scale, and for the moment, we somehow do it a country at a time and Do it through basic races and bring a race to Mexico. We are on the right track, but in my opinion, we have to speed up this and this is something that we look hard. »»
The race in Mexico will be the first point race in the Nascar Cup series series outside the United States since 1958, although it has organized exhibition races in Japan in 1996, 1997 and 1998 . The logistics of travel outside the United States is intense and may require much more planning and financing than what is necessary to run at the national level, and some in the industry and the base of fans are skeptical as to knowing If and how much Nascar should try to compete worldwide.
Over the past two years, Nascar has been linked to possible races in Canada, Brazil and Saudi Arabia, while in the country, the race property has discussed with places through the United States of the ‘Organization of a street race, including in the New York and San Diego region.
He also has talks with entities of the North West Pacific, notably Denver and Seattle, at a time when the Rivale Indycar race property is in talks in Denver. Phelps said Europe was also in the mixture.
This year, the Euronascar series is participating in countries like Germany, Spain, Italy, England, Holland, Belgium and Cychy. Nascar already manages regional series in Europe, Canada, Mexico and Brazil, and the series has an international division for years to manage these properties while deepening links with the promoters, governments and businessmen whole world. The Daytona 500, sold for the 10th consecutive year, is expected to be broadcast in around 190 countries.
“We have racing series in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Europe; What does the rest of the world look like in our races specifically? Said Phelps. “Are we going to continue to enlarge the country by country, will we look for an exhibition race somewhere in the world?” All these things are opportunities for us. »»
Although it does not explicitly commit to organizing races outside the United States every year in the foreseeable future, Phelps said that sport was looking for “the best opportunities to exhibit our sport and help develop it in the world entire”. He added: “If we have not done so in the next five years to a significant extent that seems different from that of the case today, I would consider that it is a failure.”