A new racetrack’s coming to NASCAR in 2025!

Lakeville-based Lime Rock Park prepares to host a top-3 National Series race for the first time. According to the governing body’s official website, the country’s third-oldest active road racing circuit will make “its inaugural appearance on the NASCAR calendar with a stand-alone Truck Series race scheduled for June 28 (2015).”

The K&N (ARCA) East Series raced at LRP from the early 90s until its last outing in 2010. The track was also part of the IMSA schedule, racing the North East Grand Prix until 2023. Lime Rock Park is also set to witness a Craftsman Truck race, which will be a definitive first for the State of Connecticut. For that matter, Bobby Isaac won the last NASCAR National Touring event in CT, back in 1970 at the Thompson Speedway. Almost five-and-a-half decades later, reporter, racer, and co-owner of Lime Rock, Parker Kligerman, shares exactly what the entire thing means as a native of the region.

Parker Kligerman’s stake in Lime Rock Park’s NASCAR debut

Parker Kligerman grew up in Westport, only an hour and a half’s drive from Lime Rock Park. This is where the full-time Xfinity racer “saw, drove and won in a race car for the first time in his life,” as per Nate Ryan’s 2021 article on NBC, where Kligerman discussed his ownership ventures alongside a consortium led by general partners Charles Mallory, Dicky Riegel, and Bill Rueckert.

Skip Barber had sold the 1.5-mile facility to ‘Lime Rock Group LLC.’ after 37 years of ownership. And Kligerman became a minority investor. The 34-year-old had said on the NASCAR on NBC podcast back then, “It was a really cool opportunity with amazing people involved…” he had promised, “Over the next three to four years, you’ll see amazing improvements and additions to lime rock. Hopefully one of those involves something very near and dear to my heart. So we’ll see if we can make it happen.”

Kligerman had also noted that he was “the youngest involved and most connected” to NASCAR in this new partnership. But it seems he has finally made his aspirations come true with a historic announcement. After LRP’s inclusion in the 2025 Truck Series schedule, Parker Kligerman retweeted the racetrack’s official announcement on social media and penned a heartfelt caption. “Four years ago after I was graciously invited into the ownership group at LRP. I dreamed of seeing a top3 NASCAR race there From the first chats with @BenKennedy33 to LRP leadership taking action. It’s been fascinating to see this come together Congrats CT! We got a big race.” He concluded his message with a heart emoji.

His emotions attached to Lime Rock are understandable for his home track. Not only does he get to see his dreams become a reality, but he now also has the chance to potentially run the Truck race at Lime Rock in 2025. But above all, he has witnessed the steady resurgence of this racetrack over the past few years.

Just a few weeks ago, legends like Ken Schrader, Mark Martin, Bobby Labonte, and others took part in an IROC exhibition event, which marked an unofficial return for the series, after sixteen-long years. Now, the 7 turns of the “Road Racing Center of the East” will make way for a NASCAR National Touring Series race in 2025.

As Kligerman asserted, a lot of these recent developments are thanks to the ‘leadership’ of Ben Kennedy, NASCAR’s Executive Vice President & Chief Venue & Racing Innovations Officer. Under his charge, NASCAR will also witness its first points-paying international Cup race in 67 years at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City next season. The new schedules have also revived the historic Rockingham Speedway for an Xfinity & Truck Series double-header return in 2025. It is safe to say there are some exciting developments to look forward to with the conclusion of the 2024 season.

But what does Ben Kennedy have to say about Lime Rock’s return? And can it ever realistically receive a Cup Series date in the future?

A Sunday speed bump in Connecticut’s stock-car return

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For those unaware, Parker & Co.’s little investment is also a part of the National Register of Historic Places. Some notable drivers who have run races at Lime Rock in recent years are Paul Newman, Mario Andretti, Mark Donohue, Joey Logano, and Austin Dillon. Even Hollywood star Tom Cruise, a native New Yorker and racing enthusiast, has run laps at LRP. Hence, Ben Kennedy stated, as per RaceDayCT, “We are proud to bring the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series to historic Lime Rock Park for the first time.”

He thanked “Dicky Riegel and the Lime Rock Park team for their commitment with NASCAR to bring an event to our passionate race fans in the northeast.” And was excited to showcase the dramatic bumper-knocking action of the Craftsman Truck Series to “one of the most historic road racing circuits next season.”

Riegel, the ex-president & CEO of Airstream, Inc., and COO of Thor Industries, Inc., believes “this will surely be the biggest event in Lime Rock Park’s history.” He noted that “the combination of the incredible NASCAR fan base in New England with the spectacular beauty of Lime Rock will create motorsports magic in Connecticut.” 

Nestled within the Northwest Hills, beside the famous Appalachian Trail hiking route, the venue is unique in the sense that it has no grandstands. Spectators usually watch races from the hillside viewpoints, making for an aesthetically immersive experience. But for all its appeal, Lime Rock Park also holds a tricky obstacle that might hamper Sunday racing in the area.

In 1959, a group called the Lime Rock Protective Association, backed by the local Trinity Episcopal Church, tried to stop racing on Sundays at the racetrack. They took their grievances to the Litchfield Superior Court and got a permanent order upheld by the Connecticut Supreme Court. banning Sunday racing forever.

However, the court’s decision was not a complete ban. It allowed racing on Fridays and Saturdays, as well as testing on Tuesdays and other days of the week. This decision has remained in place, allowing Lime Rock Park to continue operating while still respecting the concerns of the local community.