- Dover delivered action, but Hamlin doesn’t believe All-Star Race belongs there.
- He suggested Nashville Fairgrounds as the venue for the 2027 All-Star race.
- Steve O’Donnell is working to get the track back in action, but there are hurdles.
Dover delivered everything stock-car racing usually promises when chaos takes the wheel and refuses to let go.
The race had pileups, cautions, shredded sheet metal, swings through the running order, flames shooting from wrecked cars, and enough bruised fenders to keep body shops active. By the time the chequered flag waved, the “Monster Mile” had once again collected its tax from the field.
Yet for all the spectacle, one thought kept hanging over the garage that the race should probably have been a points race.
An All-Star Race stretching four and a half hours never quite fit the bill. The format historically thrives on short bursts, elbows-out aggression, and urgency. Dover instead became a marathon run through a concrete blender. Drivers felt it, and fans noticed it. And now Denny Hamlin already has another venue in mind for NASCAR’s 2027 All-Star plans.
From North Wilkesboro to Dover, Denny Hamlin now points toward a Dale Earnhardt Jr. backed racetrack
Dover supplied chaos, contact, and enough carnage to fill highlight reels for weeks, but even the winner walked away sounding unconvinced that the All-Star Race belongs there long term.
Speaking on the latest episode of his podcast, Actions Detrimental, Denny Hamlin made it clear that while the on-track product delivered from start to finish at Dover, the atmosphere surrounding the event never resembled an All-Star Race.
Hamlin said, “It was one of the best over races from a passing standpoint. If you’re just a racing fan and like seeing cars battling, I think they got their money’s worth. The aura of the All-Star definitely is not the same.”
He then threw another name into the ring, pointing directly toward Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway.
“If I’m Steve O’Donnell, CEO of NASCAR right now, I’m contacting SMI and saying, all right, let’s do whatever we got to do to run this in Nashville Fairgrounds on Saturday night next year. It needs to be at night. I think it needs to be on a Saturday night, and it needs to be on a shorter track,” he said.
Hamlin explained that the track does not necessarily need to be the shortest stop on the calendar, but Nashville Fairgrounds checks several boxes at once. It introduces another venue into the fold, carries links to Speedway Motorsports Inc., and, in his view, pieces together the ingredients for a perfect All-Star race weekend.
Denny Hamlin wants the All-Star Race to stop feeling like a shift at the factory and start feeling like a Saturday-night street fight again.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. continues pushing for Nashville Fairgrounds revival
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has spent years fighting to keep the Fairgrounds alive while sections of the surrounding community continue resisting attempts to revive the venue.
The speedway has weathered decades of wear, political tug-of-war, and stalled negotiations. Plans to renovate the facility and expand seating have drifted across five mayoral administrations. Former Nashville mayor John Cooper nearly reached a deal in 2021, with Speedway Motorsports Inc. prepared to invest in upgrades aimed at bringing the NASCAR Cup Series back to the city.
That proposal eventually stalled before Cooper left office. Even so, supporters of the project continue arguing that a NASCAR return would bring fans, attention, and revenue back into a track they believe still deserves a pulse.
Opposition groups, however, have not backed off on the gas. While some residents insist they are not against racing itself, they want a citywide vote to determine whether the site should instead become something they believe better fits the surrounding neighborhood.
One side hears engines and opportunity. The other hears noise and disruption.
Steve O’Donnell sees potential but acknowledges roadblocks.
Steve O’Donnell has publicly supported the idea of returning to Nashville Fairgrounds, though he has not hidden the obstacles standing in the way.
Speaking on the Door Bumper Clear podcast on April 14, O’Donnell said, “Nashville is one of our most historic tracks; we’d love to be there,” while also pointing toward the zMAX CARS Tour event in April as proof that NASCAR still belongs in the city.
Dale Jr. finished 12th during the event, while teammate Caden Kvapil took the win. The race effectively became a measuring stick for what a NASCAR return could resemble for the first time since 1984.
Still, O’Donnell admitted the process remains “an uphill battle.”
The resistance has remained since 2021, when Speedway Motorsports executive Marcus Smith began pushing plans to renovate the venue and restore NASCAR competition there.
O’Donnell also highlighted the concerns raised by residents surrounding the area. “When you think about the noise and everything, I mean they’ve got concerts (at nearby Geodis Park) and all kinds of stuff, they’ve got soccer. Then there’s a pretty vocal group there about noise ordinances, what can you do? But there’s been a lot of plans put together around what we could do to offset some of that.”
According to O’Donnell, discussions regarding the project continue every week. While Dale Jr. was in town for the CARS Tour event, he made clear that preserving the speedway now outweighs immediate Cup Series ambitions.
O’Donnell also flagged another complication surrounding the property itself. Officials constructed the soccer stadium directly beside the speedway, leaving limited room for movement, traffic flow, and event logistics around the facility.
“That was the first kind of red flag,” O’Donnell explained. Then there’s a pretty vocal group there about noise ordinances. But there’s been a lot of plans put together around what NASCAR could do to offset some of that.
