In 2022, NASCAR, through Hendrick Motorsports, announced the Garage 56 Project to the world, which included a modified Chevrolet Camaro tuned as per the current Next Gen car competing at the Cup Series and introduced it in the 24-hour Le Mans. The global expansion looked serious as, after running the Camaro for over 7500 miles, two cars, the primary and the backup, were revealed to the world in France.

However, in the race to go global, Tony Stewart-backed Superstar Racing Experience seems to be ahead, as their groundwork seems pretty solid compared to NASCAR. Adding to it, the 3x Cup Series winner’s SRX series has made a revelation that is detrimental to the age-old league’s international persona.

Stewart’s brainchild’s 2024 expansion plans

Earlier in 2023, Superstar Racing Experience made an unexpected switch from network to cable TV and held races on Thursday nights instead of Saturday nights, resulting in a steep decline in viewership by a whopping 56%. However, due to the presence of notable drivers like Marco Andretti and Hailie Deegan, Cup Series champions like Bobby Labonte and Tony Stewart, Brad Keselowski, and many others, SRX witnessed a rise in the 18-49 age group with an average viewership of 148,000.

During the Race Industry Week Seminar, SRX Racing CEO Don Hawk expressed their inclination toward expanding the league and revealed, “There’s a reason we announced four pavement tracks, because the two dirt tracks are still in play. One of them is in Canada.”

According to Speedsport, Don Hawk further revealed, “I have a conference call tomorrow at almost exactly this time, with a television network in Canada. We need a partner in Canada because ESPN is not in Canada.” “ESPN has agreed they will air it in the United States and around the world.” Laying emphasis on the deal, Hawk unveiled, “We have a deal. The track partner up there is terrific. We’ve been talking for three months. Tomorrow is, let’s see if we can get it on the air in Canada itself and go international racing.”

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The conviction of CEO Don Hawk to take SRX to unprecedented heights is quite evident compared to NASCAR’s President’s uncertain verdict on international expansion. But how did a league, despite having a steep decline in viewership and limited backing, showcase itself to be a dominant force year after year over the decades-old NASCAR?

NASCAR President shelves expansion plans for now

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With the commencement of the Chicago Street Race in 2023, NASCAR made an unconventional move and portrayed a ray of hope for the sport’s future. But the President’s revelation had something else to offer.

Spilling the beans about expansion, Steve Phelps revealed, “Honestly, with a 38-week schedule, it’s tough, right? So what I do know is we’re not going to 38 countries to race. So, could we explore what some of those things could look like in the future? You do an exhibition race somewhere? All those things are on the table.”

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From the President’s words, it’s clear that despite going to lengths at the start of the season, the following progress to boost stock car racing’s popularity hasn’t been looked upon with greater emphasis, resulting in the rise of privately owned short-track racing formats like the SRX that has a higher attractiveness over the NASCAR format.