The NASCAR All-Star Race is being held at Dover Motor Speedway this weekend, with the Monster Mile featuring in a non-points race. Unfortunately for racing fans in Delaware, this may be one of their last opportunities to see the Cup Series at the Monster Mile.
On Sunday's episode of The Teardown, The Athletic's motorsports reporter Jordan Bianchi shared that there is a "real concern" around the industry that Dover could lose out as a future host for NASCAR races.
"There's real concern among people about the future of Dover... They've lost a race, they're now stuck in an All-Star race that no one's interested in... It's been moved around, it has no place on the schedule. It's one of those things that just floats around here, there, wherever."
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Dover was effectively dropped from the NASCAR schedule a few months before the season. Reports first surfaced in August that the Monster Mile was being strongly considered to host an All-Star race, marking the first time since 1968 that Dover did not have a points race.
Instead, the track owned by Speedway Motorsports is now mired in a race that the drivers care less about and the fans have even less interest. Making matters worse, the All-Star Race will be held in the early afternoon (1:00 p.m. ET) because the proximity to Dover Air Force Base means that no lights can be used on the track to support night racing.
To make matters worse, Dover itself is not suitable for the All-Star Race, which is a shorter race and does not include the longer races for which the Monster Mile is designed. As a result, there is less excitement for this year's non-points race than previous All-Star races.
"Most people don't think it's going to be very exciting. Dover is a nice track, but I think we both agree that it's a track built on long, green-flag races and things like that. It's not conducive to the All-Star Race format. Yes, there are concerns... I've heard it's iffy (ticket sales). It's not good, it's worrisome... If you're worried about Dover, you're sitting there thinking, How will Dover get back into the points race?
Jordan Bianchi on uncertainty about NASCAR's future at Dover
If there is not a strong attendance for the NASCAR All-Star Race this weekend, it will potentially give the league an 'argument' to justify not holding the race at Dover in 2027.
This may not necessarily be fair, especially given the history of Dover and the level of appreciation both fans and drivers have for that track. However, the Monster Mile is clearly not a priority track by NASCAR officials and fears about the future of the venue seem justified.
