Racing toward normalcy: fans return to the Monster Mile

By Mike Finney
Posted 5/15/21

DOVER — Dover International Speedway will open the gates to its grandstands today and allow 20,000 socially distanced race fans into the Drydene 400 Cup Series race, marking NASCAR’s only …

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Racing toward normalcy: fans return to the Monster Mile

Posted

DOVER — Dover International Speedway will open the gates to its grandstands today and allow 20,000 socially distanced race fans into the Drydene 400 Cup Series race, marking NASCAR’s only visit to the Monster Mile this year.

It will be the first time fans will be allowed to witness a race from the grandstands at Dover’s high-banked, 1-mile oval in a year-and-a-half, since Kyle Larson emerged victorious Oct. 6, 2019.

“We’re happy to report that officials in Delaware have given us approval to host up to 20,000 fans at our NASCAR weekend at Dover International Speedway in May,” Dover Motorsports President and CEO Denis McGlynn stated in a first-quarter earnings release last month. “We are happy to be on a path back to normalcy with actual fans in the stands.”

This year will also be the first since 1970 that Dover will not host a pair of NASCAR Cup Series races, after an announcement last June that it would be moving its fall race to Dover Motorsports-owned Nashville Superspeedway.

Dover was forced to postpone its May 2020 race and ran a doubleheader in August in front of empty grandstands. Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick emerged victorious in the weekend double dip at the Monster Mile.

While the times continue to be changing, today’s Drydene 400 will be a step toward business as usual following the pandemic-plagued 2020 season. There still were no practice sessions or qualifying rounds leading up to the race.

At 2 p.m. today, Cup Series drivers will just climb in their racecars and go.

Martin Truex Jr. will start today’s race from the pole position, thanks to his win last week at Darlington, along with other criteria. Truex, a three-time winner at Dover, has already notched three victories this season. He is the only driver with more than one win.

One thing is for certain: Truex, a native of Mayetta, New Jersey, always feels at home when he comes to Dover.

“Just ever since I went there the first time, it’s a place I really enjoyed going to,” he said. “It’s a unique track, where you can use a lot of past history, and I think for me when I go there, I don’t really worry a whole lot about how fast we are or exactly what the setup is or things like that.

“I really just kind of go by feel of the car and know what I’m looking for. That’s really a key for a lot of places ... once you figure it out, if you can duplicate that feel or those certain little tendencies your car has to do well, you can carry that through the years, and we’ve been able to do that (at Dover). Hopefully, we’ll get it feeling the way I like (today) and get up there and try to win another one.”

Cup Series points leader Denny Hamlin will start second, William Byron third, and Kyle Larson and Harvick will round out the top five.

As for racing in front of fans again at the Monster Mile, Truex said the drivers can definitely feel a difference — especially in the atmosphere.

“That’s been great to be getting back to where we should be and having fans there,” Truex said. “Our sport runs off of that. We feed off of that as drivers. You feel that energy. I think we all talked last year when we came back and there was no one there, no practice. It just felt like we were at a test. It doesn’t feel like a real race.

“It definitely feels more normal to have everybody there and enjoying a great show. Definitely a lot more fun to celebrate after winning when they’re there, that’s for sure.”

Truex, Harvick, Kyle Busch and Ryan Newman lead all drivers in today’s race field with three career victories each at Dover. Hamlin, Larson, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Kurt Busch have each won once at the Monster Mile.

A total of 38 different NASCAR Cup Series drivers have won at Dover since 1969, including the recently retired Jimmie Johnson, who captured an unprecedented 11 checkered flags at the track, followed by legends Richard Petty and Bobby Allison, who each won seven races at Dover.

In last week’s race at Darlington, Larson finished runner-up to a dominant Truex. He’s looking forward to returning to Dover.

“Dover is just an awesome place. It suits my style,” Larson said. “You can move around quite a bit. It’s fast, aggressive, and I love it. I’m ready to (race) there and, hopefully, be one spot better.”

Meanwhile, Harvick is actually the most recent winner at Dover, dominating the second race of the doubleheader last August and clinching the regular season Cup title in the process.

“Dover is a track that everything about it is unique,” Harvick said. “The concrete, itself, all the way around the racetrack, is unique. Dover is a racetrack where you can get away with being aggressive every single lap.

“You have to drive the car as hard as it will go every single lap, and that’s hard to do because there are all the little bumps that come with that concrete, the change in elevation as you go in and off the corners and all the banking in the corners — it’s just a really, really fast racetrack.”

Harvick said that, just like Truex and the rest of the drivers, they are looking forward to seeing their passionate fan base back in the grandstands today.

“I’m just like those fans,” said Harvick. “I’m ready to get out and do things, and I think as you see those fans in the grandstands and you hear that enthusiasm and excitement and cheering, just the noise of the fans moving around even when they’re not doing anything, is way better than the pure silence we had at so many of the racetracks for most of the season last year.

“I’m excited to see these racetracks starting to open back up. I just saw that Pocono is opening up to 100%. I think it’s time for everyone to open back up to 100% and get these fans back in the stands and enjoying everything that’s going on at the racetrack.”

Local businesses thrilled at fans’ return

The return of NASCAR to Dover will be a boon to the area’s economy but certainly won’t compete with the impact the races generated in the early 2000s.

Dover International Speedway had hosted two races a year for nearly 50 years but announced last June that it would be moving one of its races to Nashville Superspeedway this year.

Dover began hosting NASCAR races in 1969 and had hosted two Cup Series races each year from 1971-2020.

A 2001 study estimated that the NASCAR races brought around $94 million annually into the area. However, a 2019 Delaware Department of Transportation economic-impact study on state airports reported a lower figure, around $60 million.

And while hosting a limited crowd this weekend certainly won’t have business owners dancing in the streets, hoteliers are finally able to host race fans again, local restaurants and bars are serving them, and retailers are helping the fans stock up on food and gear for their campsites.

“It’s no secret that Dover and Kent County have taken a huge hit with the loss of a race, a race in absentia and an uncertain spring race,” Dover Mayor Robin Christiansen said. “Tourism and the hospitality industry have suffered an unknown financial hit, which I’m not sure of the exact figures.

“It is imperative for the race to go on with the presence of COVID-cautious fans. With the advent of vaccines and continued precautions by fans, the race needs to go. Gentlemen, start your engines.”

Judy Diogo, president of the Central Delaware Chamber of Commerce, was also thinking positively when she found out in April that Dover would be able to host NASCAR fans.

“We are so excited that NASCAR can have fans back in the stands,” said Diogo. “It will be very beneficial to the entire central Delaware community and all the businesses. This also sends a positive message out to the community — our businesses will keep you safe (and) central Delaware is safe. Come back and see us!”

Diane Laird, executive director of the Downtown Dover Partnership, just hopes some of those race fans find their way about a mile or so from the racetrack and enjoy some of the attractions downtown.

“The city of Dover and the hospitality industry benefit so greatly from the loyal race fans,” Laird said. “And truly, the fans deserve an opportunity to see the drivers and enjoy their annual long weekend in Dover now that the vaccines are so accessible and the pandemic appears to have nearly run its course.”

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