“This seems unnecessary”: Fans divided as NASCAR president puts a race in Philadelphia on radar, per reports

NASCAR President Steve O'Donnell was recently featured in an interview with the Pocono Record. O'Donnell discussed the possibility of shifting the Pocono Raceway event to a short track in Philadelphia. His comment on the major change divided stock car racing fans.

The governing body is considering adding a race to Franklin Field and claims to have a lot of opportunities with an Olympic-style race track inside the stadium. Opened in 1895, the home of the Penn Quakers is among the oldest football stadiums and was renovated in 1922.

Given its Olympic-style structure, NASCAR president Steve O'Donnell could consider holding a race in Philadelphia. He further explained:

"The days of just building a rural track are over, but if we can build a track with some real estate development around it and partner with some people, we're gonna look at major cities and bring the product to the fan base within the city as well." (via PoconoRecord.com)

Reflecting on the potentially big decision, NASCAR fans were left divided with different opinions, with one fan saying:

"This seems unnecessary. Isn’t the whole purpose of street and stadium courses to visit markets without a permanent racetrack?"

Tommy Mattix

@tmattix65

LINK

This seems unnecessary. Isn’t the whole purpose of street and stadium courses to visit markets without a permanent racetrack?

Here's what another fan wrote:

"It’s as if he’s reading from “how to destroy NASCAR in 10 easy steps”

BYRD Racing

@ByrdRacing

LINK

It’s as if he’s reading from “how to destroy NASCAR in 10 easy steps”

Here are some more reactions to the same decision:

"Nascar will completely break its fan base within the next two years," a stock car racing fan expressed frustration.

Meanwhile, another fan was excited over the decision and stated, "A SHORT TRACK IN PHILADELPHIA? GIVE IT TO ME NOW"

"well of course, Philly has always been an underserved NASCAR market," stated a motorsports enthusiast.

"Replace the MIS event with the Detroit street circuit," an X user suggested to the governing body.

However, no final decision has been made public yet, and the situation is still in the early discussion.

Meanwhile, the Cup Series race, The Great American Getaway 400 Presented by VISITPA.COM, is scheduled to be held at Pocono Raceway on June 22, 2025. Amazon Prime, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Ch. 90 will broadcast the 160-lap event live at 2 pm ET.

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NASCAR Cup Series entry for the upcoming Pocono Raceway event

The Great American Getaway 400 Presented by VISITPA.COM will mark the 17th start of the season. 37 NASCAR Cup Series drivers will compete against each other on the track to secure a win at the Pocono Raceway in the 400-mile race. Here's the list of the drivers:

1. #1 - Ross Chastain
2. #2 - Austin Cindric
3. #3 - Austin Dillon
4. #4 - Noah Gragson
5. #5 - Kyle Larson
6. #6 - Brad Keselowski
7. #7 - Justin Haley
8. #8 - Kyle Busch
9. #9 - Chase Elliott
10. #10 - Ty Dillon
11. #11 - Denny Hamlin or Ryan Truex
12. #12 - Ryan Blaney
13. #16 - A. J. Allmendinger
14. #17- Chris Buescher
15. #19 - Chase Briscoe
16. #20 - Christopher Bell
17. #21 - Josh Berry
18. #22 - Joey Logano
19. #23 - Bubba Wallace
20. #24 - William Byron
21. #34 - Todd Gilliland
22. #35 - Riley Herbst (R)
23. #38 - Zane Smith
24. #41 - Cole Custer
25. #42 - John Hunter Nemechek
26. #43 - Erik Jones
27. #44 – Brennan Poole
28. #45 - Tyler Reddick
29. #47 - Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
30. #48 - Alex Bowman
31. #51 - Cody Ware
32. #54 - Ty Gibbs
33. #60 - Ryan Preece
34. #71 - Michael McDowell
35. #77 - Carson Hocevar
36. #88 - Shane van Gisbergen (R)
37. #99 - Daniel Suárez

Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney took home the race win at the Pocono Raceway. He finished the event in three hours, 13 minutes, and 59 seconds. Blaney will aim to defend his win at the 2.5-mile oval track.