Dwindling fan attendance for the Kansas Speedway caused a huge uproar among the NASCAR fans. Kyle Larson delivered yet another dominating performance, bagging his third win of the season. As he celebrated on the front stretch and collected the checkered flag, it was tough to ignore the half-filled rows on the grandstands. Arguably, the 1.5-mile tracks produce the best racing with these Next Gen cars, but still, that wasn’t enough of a pull for fans to witness the race last Sunday. But, in a surprising turn of events, the mood within the NASCAR circles has quickly changed, and it’s even got Dale Jr. excited.
The veteran driver took to his social media account X and wrote, “I hear there are less than 150 grandstand tickets left for the 600.” That is indeed a massive turnaround, especially after the visuals that came out from Kansas Speedway. It is almost on the verge of being sold out for the fourth year in a row. The Charlotte Motor Speedway can accommodate 79,000, and the infield section can add an additional 16,000 fans. But, given the prestige and history behind this marquee fixture, this news shouldn’t come as a surprise.
This race debuted in 1960, and since then, it has been a traditional race on the NASCAR calendar, falling on Memorial Day. The unique day-to-night transition tests the driver’s endurance both mentally and physically. It is officially the longest NASCAR Cup Series race of the year, with 400 laps. Last year, this race was scrutnized by the fans as NASCAR decided to end the race due to unfavorable racing conditions after the torrential rains. Christopher Bell was crowned the winner after running 249 of the scheduled 400 laps. So, the expectations are going to be huge as NASCAR returns to its backyard with another sold-out crowd.
It is worth noting that the Coca-Cola 600 will be exclusively streamed on Amazon Prime, as they make their NASCAR broadcasting debut. Another reason why Dale Jr. is excited about the attendance is that he is going to be in the booth calling the race at Charlotte after a year-long break. Not just Jr., even the fans erupted in delirium after they heard about the lack of tickets for the marquee NASCAR race.
I hear there are less than 150 grandstand tickets left for the 600
— Dale Earnhardt Jr. (@DaleJr) May 14, 2025
This announcement was met with a mixed response, with some fans looking forward to the big raceday. Whereas a few were questioning whether the figures released are true or not.
NASCAR Fans are divided over bold Coca-Cola 600 claims
“Dale, I’m bring some newbies to the race (they insisted when I told them there’d were shorter races). I’m hoping to make some fans. I even convinced them to camp,” a fan responded. The sport is in dire need of new viewers or fans to help it grow; arguably, the Daytona 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 are two ideal events for first-time fans to witness a NASCAR race. In this case, they are getting the whole experience of camping makes it even more worthwhile.
Although 150 tickets or so were unsold, given Dale Jr.’s reach and influence, those tickets would have been taken away minutes after he shared this update on X: “They were probably sold out a minute after you posted this.”
Now it is hard to understand why NASCAR fans didn’t turn out in numbers for the Kansas race last Sunday. However, this fan seemed to have figured out the reason behind the low attendance. “That’s why there was no one at Kansas, they all spent their $$$ on Charlotte..” The ticket price for the race ranges from $90 to $2579, and not to mention the travelling and the camping costs for the weekend would add to the expense.
Not everyone was thrilled to hear about this news. Like any major sporting event, the tickets are not always sold out, rather, they are purchased by the scalpers who, in turn, resell them for a good profit. So the sold-out messaging might not explain the ground reality, according to this fan. “Scalpers probably helped. I was planning to go until I saw most of the decent seats were snatched up by resellers and going for 2-3x what they should have.”
Then there were a few who couldn’t get over last year’s disappointing experience. For a fan who invests time and money to enjoy a NASCAR weekend, the weather indeed is their biggest foe. But, many fans felt that NASCAR could’ve continued racing last year as there was enough time to complete the race under the lights. Clearly, this fan isn’t going to attend the 600 this weekend. “I also heard @NASCAR will just call the damn race while drying the track for 30 minutes and waist everyone’s money.”
What are your thoughts about the ticket sales for the Coca-Cola 600? And does full attendance result in a better racing experience on a track like Charlotte Motor Speedway?
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