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USA Today via Reuters

USA Today via Reuters

This weekend is the NASCAR Cup Series race at the Bristol Motor Speedway dirt track. However, things are going to be quite different for this particular race. First and foremost, the race will take place on Easter Sunday. Secondly, this race will kick off at night time, which is the first night race for the track.

However, it is worth mentioning that Easter Sunday races have taken place in the past. In fact, the Bristol race will be the 12th race in NASCAR history to kick off on the holiday. The very first one happened in 1953 at the Charlotte Speedway, and the last Easter race was in 1989.

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According to Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass, the Easter night race is actually a NASCAR experiment. The sport was hoping to see if hosting the race on a holiday would attract a larger TV audience.

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Of course, there is also a slight compromise, as hosting the race at night could mean that drivers can spend time with family during the day.

What else did the NASCAR community say about the Bristol Easter race?

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Admittedly, there were a few who were not overly fond of having a race on Easter. People like Dale Earnhardt Jr and Rodney Childers confessed that they were not big fans of the move. Now, another voice has joined their side, namely spotter, Brett Griffin. Dale Jr blamed NASCAR for this and said that they put themselves in that position. Griffin was particularly scathing in his comments and even threatened to not show up.

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From NASCAR’s perspective, it’s easy to understand why they took this controversial position. While it has traditionally been an off week for the sport, the MLB, NHL, and NBA play during the weekend. So, the stock car series obviously wanted to take advantage of the fact that the spectator attendance is projected to be high. As a result, NASCAR was hoping to build up TV audiences as well.

READ MORE: “Spot Off” – Dale Earnhardt Jr Expresses His Dislike for NASCAR Racing on Easter Sunday