“This is a complete dumpster fire. I would be surprised if they even sell 50% of the tickets next year”, is what a fan wrote on X after watching the excruciating wait at the Michigan International Speedway. And everyone thought the weekend could not get any worse.

For those who came to the race on Sunday and revisited the tracks Monday morning were unceremoniously received with jarred gates and endless lines. Many fans complained of a similar horror on Sunday as well. The management has got to do better than this, especially at the postponed event after a disappointing race suspension.

Despite all odds, fans showed up

The stands appeared empty at the FireKeepers Casino 400. But it’s not because people didn’t arrive at the tracks. Instead, they weren’t allowed entry through the gates, as “thousands” of fans appeared unable to enter the venue. People showing up for the Monday morning race could have been the best thing that happened to NASCAR this weekend. It could’ve all been put to rest with some focus on enabling maximum enjoyment for fans. However, the new norms of keeping a single gate open for entry only exacerbated the problem further.

Fans incessantly tweeted to Jeff Gluck, when he saw a video post and remarked, “No wonder the stands look so empty. Have gotten a lot of tweets from people saying they’re stuck outside.” The race crew and announcers must have thought of the obvious, but their assumptions turned out false. This was really the last thing NASCAR needed in an already abominable situation.

No wonder the stands look so empty. Have gotten a lot of tweets from people saying they’re stuck outside. https://t.co/dD1ldlrwfk

— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) August 19, 2024

Many fans who made it to the stands saw them littered from last night. This is not the kind of reception that the NASCAR fans deserved after the support they showed to NASCAR. What’s added fuel to the fire is how despite prior weather forecasts predicting a 60% chance of rain around 2:30 pm (when the race starts), NASCAR didn’t make any changes to its schedule either. It’s a known fact that MIS doesn’t have lights for a night race.

With a rain delay almost guaranteed, Jeff Gluck once again pointed out how NASCAR doesn’t have its priorities set despite fans being sacrosanct.

“I understand TV is king. Really, I do. But at what point does this just seem insane? Move the start times up at tracks with no lights. Especially with the threat of rain. Please. People have work and school tomorrow and they could have seen an official race today,” he wrote on X. Later, NASCAR insider and journalist Toby Christie also heavily criticized the organization.

“Jeff Gluck hit the nail on the head, here. Does maximizing the TV audience matter, if the race doesn’t actually happen in that ideal TV window? Now, a TON of people will be stuck at work in order to pay for said TV channels, and won’t be able to watch…”

Unfortunately, rather than rewarding fan’s solidarity, logistical issues made it an unforgettable weekend, but not in a good way.

Fans are slating NASCAR’s crowd management skills

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All this mismanagement that NASCAR has been displaying at Michigan International Speedway reflects terribly on the on-ground officials. It’s no surprise then that people called out for a change in management for handling their affairs better. “The track president should be fired. So many issues this week. Definitely went downhill from previous years,” wrote a user.

Notably, track president Joe Fowler had anticipated the weather foes and even said that in case of race postponement or cancellation, the credit for that particular ticket can be used for next year’s race.

Other fans highlighted that the gates should’ve opened sooner for a smoother verification process: “What dId they expect when they open the parking lots 90 minutes before the Green flag. @NASCAR couldn’t possibly make this weekend any worse for the fans! #NASCAR.” Many things could’ve been executed better to avoid this situation.

Neither track officials nor NASCAR has addressed these issues, with MIS’ official X handle wiped clean of any such mentions.

It’s not the first time that inclement weather has spoiled race weekends. A user recalled that and wrote, “Exact situation happened at Dover in 2023. Only half the gates open for Monday noon (I think it was noon) race starting from Lap 78. Lines were wrapped around the track at places.”

If it’s any consolation, a fan gave the benefit of the doubt to NASCAR for the unwanted admission barrier: “Rain postponements are a nightmare for tracks bc they only hire the security and ticket staff for race weekend, they have no one to scan tickets.”

If we look at the numbers, in 106 Cup races at the venue, six have been cut short due to rain with five of those instances happening after 2000. Even this year’s Xfinity race was stopped twice for rain.

But another user countered this with, “It was just as bad yesterday. Luckily I was in early, but when I lookes out at the start of the race, the lines were HORRIBLE!”

Another one added, “I don’t understand why they don’t just swing the gates wide open. I’ve been to many Monday races that didn’t bother taking tickets.” On the other hand, one fan gave a first hand account how mismanaged the situation was: “Parking lots opened at 930, gates at 10, green at 11. That was an aggressively tight window. Made it to my seats at 1045ish and we were in the line to get into the lot at 905.”

On the other hand, people watching on TV on Sunday night were being fed commercials when the race was at crucial conjecture.

It is high time NASCAR resolves its crowd management issues before its fan following starts to suffer as a result.