Short Track Weekly: States That Should Join Georgia In CARS Tour Expansion

Who doesn’t love a good hypothetical?

That’s exactly what we’re doing this week as the zMAX CARS Tour prepares to take their first trip to Georgia this Saturday night (April 12).

The tour’s trip to Cordele Motor Speedway this weekend means the series will travel to four different states in 2025, with the Peach State joining series staples North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

North Carolina has always made up a majority of the series schedule, while Virginia claims two of the most iconic tracks on the tour in South Boston Speedway and Langley Speedway. South Carolina is home to Florence Motor Speedway and previously had Greenville-Pickens Speedway and Myrtle Beach Speedway on the schedule.

But Georgia is new territory for Late Model Stock cars, which got us thinking. What states could be next?

These selections are writer’s choice, so some of these may not make logistical sense. They would surely require special circumstances. But that’s what makes hypotheticals fun – there are no rules.

Here are four states that would be great destinations for the CARS Tour, with the best track in each state to host the show.

Tennessee

Track: Newport Speedway

We’ll start with what seems to be the most obvious one: Tennessee.

It just makes sense.

Tennessee borders North Carolina, home to most of the tracks and teams that make up the series. The state previously hosted the Tour at Kingsport Speedway back in 2018.

Should it a return to the Volunteer State, a trip to the recently-revived Newport Speedway would be our pick. Located in East Tennessee, the track is still geographically in Late Model Stock country. In fact, Late Model Stocks are a weekly division at the track in 2025.

We’ll get a glimpse of a big show at Newport later this year, with the ASA STARS Tour set to take on ‘Mini Bristol’ on Saturday, May 24. The tour’s Super Late Models will feature a different cast of characters than the LMSC would, but it’ll be a good example of what Newport can pull off when it’s given the spotlight.

Not taking advantage of a racetrack resurrected back from a multi-year stint as a junkyard would be a crime. And who doesn’t love a high-banked short track?

This isn’t a just wishful thinking, a footprint in Tennessee is something that needs to happen for the Tour, and Newport is the perfect place to make it happen.

There are other options, of course. There’s always the Nashville Fairgrounds route, which many would argue should be the pick for Tennessee. Series co-owner Justin Marks is a Nashville native and the fairgrounds are sacred ground in the short track community.

But that doesn’t make as much sense financially and I have a hard time seeing Nashville putting on a thriller for Late Model Stock cars. There’s not enough power as is and the cars would need mufflers. Nashville is also a haul for everyone.

A CARS Tour clash at the fairgrounds would be awesome, but logistics give Newport the edge here.

Florida

Track: New Smyrna Speedway

If we’re expanding to Georgia, why not go a little farther south to the Sunshine State?

Florida is rich with racing roots, albeit a country-mile away from Late Model Stock land. Dirt Late Models, Super Late Models and NASCAR have tons of traction down in Florida.

The two main options are New Smyrna Speedway and Five Flags Speedway, and you could really go either way with this. But while Five Flags has the edge over New Smyrna overall, largely due to the prestige of the Snowball Derby, I’ll take New Smyrna for LMSC.

While both facilities are a half-mile in length, Five Flags and New Smyrna are anything but similar. The massive, sweeping corners at Five Flags would allow very little throttle time for Late Model Stock cars, while New Smyrna would create more passing opportunities and would likely be easier on equipment.

New Smyrna is in a prime location to draw a packed crowd, located less than a half-hour south of the iconic Daytona International Speedway. A race at New Smyrna could potentially be held during the World Series of Asphalt in February, or even in conjunction with NASCAR’s second Daytona date in the late summer.

The track hosts its fair share of big events, also welcoming the ASA STARS National Tour for the Clyde Hart Memorial during the World Series of Asphalt week. New Smyrna also hosts NASCAR’s Whelen Modified Tour, the Red Eye and the Florida Governor’s Cup.

It would likely take a large purse to draw CARS Tour LMSC regulars, as the trip south would be eight hours or more for a large majority of the field. But the PLM field would see a boost from the locals.

If the money is there, the trip is worthwhile. New Smyrna would put on a show.

Alabama

Track: Montgomery Motor Speedway

Now we’re getting pretty far outside the region, so what’s going on with late model racing in Alabama? Frontstretch‘s own Reid Scott calls Dixieland (and Montgomery Motor Speedway) home, so we leaned on him for some deep south late model knowledge.

While South Alabama and Mobile were both in the running here, Montgomery is the clear answer for a CARS Tour trip to Alabama. As the oldest paved racetrack in the state, Montgomery has a storied history of stock car racing.

While it may not be Late Model Stock country, Montgomery is right in the heart of deep south Pro Late Model scene and is home to the Alabama 200, a 200-lap crown jewel race for the discipline. The event’s winners list includes names like Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, Neil Bonnett and Chase Elliott.

There is a CARS Tour tie in the area as well, with Augie Grill being based out of nearby Birmingham, Ala. Grill won the inaugural CARS Pro Late Model event at North Wilkesboro Speedway back in 2023.

Adding Alabama would be a plus. The state has a rich racing history, with tracks such as Talladega Superspeedway and the now-defunct Birmingham International Raceway, along with the various racing legends that made up the Alabama Gang.

The flat half-mile oval would present a unique challenge for would-be CARS Tour competitors, as it’s unlike anything on the current schedule. And the drive to Montgomery would be similar to that of Cordele. The entry list would be, too – especially for the Pro Late Models.

Vermont

Track: Thunder Road Speedbowl

Okay, I know what you’re thinking. Why on earth is Vermont on this list?

This is where that whole writer’s choice deal comes into play.

For those that don’t know about it, Thunder Road is incredible. Arguably one of the nicest short tracks in America. Is that opinion influenced by the fact that I, myself, grew up attending races there? Of course. But there’s no denying that the facility is beautiful.

The Vermont quarter-mile puts on fantastic late model racing and the CARS Tour would be no different. It was opened back in 1960 by NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Ken Squier, who called Barre, Vt., home. In the years since, it’s been established as one of the region’s top tracks, with an iconic event. Thunder Road has hosted the famous Vermont Milk Bowl since 1962.

This sort of regional crossover isn’t unheard of. The Pro All-Stars Series (PASS) comes down to Hickory Motor Speedway every year for its one event down south, with many of the southern teams competing in the event. Imagine a reverse of that, where the CARS Tour ventures north and the northeastern competitors get a chance to defend their home turf.

Would this make logistical sense for the teams? Probably not. It would require numerous days of travel with a whopping 14+-hour drive from the CARS Tour’s home base in Mooresville, N.C. That would prove expensive and mean time off for the field.

But if the tour could pull it off, fans would show up in numbers. The facility is top-of-the-line and the racing is fantastic. If it could be pulled off financially, this would be a memorable event.

It’s likely just a dream, but a cool one nonetheless.