South Boston Speedway opened its season to one of its largest crowds in recent memory. Track general Manager Brandon Brown believes pavement racing is seeing a resurgence. Part of that resurgence stems from the efforts of its sanctioning body, NASCAR.
“NASCAR has been on [an upward] trajectory in recent years — NASCAR is speaking to its core,” Brown said. “Bringing racing back to its roots at Darlington, North Wilkesboro and Rockingham also helps bring attention to South Boston Speedway. Our track is the grassroots of NASCAR racing.”
South Boston Speedway’s NASCAR roots run deep, with Cup (1960-1964, 1968-1971), O’Reilly Auto Parts (1982-1991, 1994-2000) and Craftsman Truck (2001-2003) series races. It also served as the launching pad for the careers of NASCAR drivers Elliott Sadler and Hermie Sadler. In fact, Elliott Sadler competed in this year’s opener, racing in the SMART Modified Tour race and finishing fifth. And, yes, South Boston promoted the fact that their hometown hero and former track champ was back racing. Not only that, they also had Lee Pulliam. He won the South Boston track title in 2013 and NASCAR Local Racing Series championship four times. Pulliam not only returned to South Boston, but to also its victory lane, the first time in six-plus years.
“We left no stone unturned in promoting the event,” Brown said. “In marketing a race today, you have to cover every base.”
South Boston Speedway made sure to use the best SEO practices to push its website to the top of search engines. The track ran ads across digital, radio and newspaper mediums. Brown, a former newspaper journalist, served as editor for his team’s promotional efforts.
“We also partnered with TV station ABC 13 to do a weather graphic that could be used on our Facebook and Instagram,” Brown said. “It was a full-court press. Our Public Relations Director, Joe Chandler, pumped out press releases that were focused on telling drivers’ individual stories, which got fans emotionally invested in the race. Paul Burnham, our TV broadcast producer, produced organic content showcasing people during practice sessions to be viewed on social media channels.”
Now with the successful season opener in the books, how can South Boston Speedway continue its momentum?
“We announced a fantastic championship bonus structure for the second season in a row,” Brown said.
The 2026 Championship Loyalty Bonus will offer late model drivers a total of $75,000 in incentives, thanks to sponsors Hitachi Energy South Boston and Empower Broadband. First place in points receives $20K, second $15K, third $10K, fourth $5K, fifth $2,500, and then $2K for sixth and all remaining eligible drivers. Limited sportsman, pure stock and hornet classes will also have bonuses.
“We are incentivizing loyalty to our track,” Brown said. “This will ensure sustainability into the future.”
Outside Groove Note of Transparency: Corrected the series Elliott Sadler raced in (2026-03-26).
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
