ALLADEGA, Ala. \u2014 NASCAR\u2019s new leadership team pledged urgency, unity and renewed swagger for stock car racing\u2019s next era as Steve O\u2019Donnell officially stepped into the role of chief executive officer, flanked by chairman Jim France and newly named chief operating officer Ben Kennedy.<\/p>\n
Speaking Saturday ahead of a Cup Series race weekend, France praised the organization\u2019s workforce and credited O\u2019Donnell and Kennedy with steering NASCAR through the COVID-19 shutdowns that reshaped the sports industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I can speak with some real experience here that we have the finest team of people working and running NASCAR that we\u2019ve ever had in our entire history,\u201d France said. \u201cSteve and Ben went to work putting together the plan that got us back to the racetrack, led the way for major sports getting back in business and were the first to bring fans back.\u201d<\/p>\n
O\u2019Donnell, a NASCAR veteran of more than 30 years, said his immediate priority is aligning teams, tracks, manufacturers, broadcasters and employees around a shared long-term vision.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we\u2019re at our best as a sport, we\u2019re all working together and we\u2019re aligned to make each other better,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said. \u201cThe first goal that we\u2019ve got is to really unite our industry.\u201d<\/p>\n
He emphasized that NASCAR is building on nearly eight decades of history rather than starting fresh, pointing to its charter system, broadcast agreements, evolving schedule and portfolio of racing series as foundational strengths.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a solid foundation,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said. \u201cOur job is to tap into the collective intelligence of this industry and move with urgency.\u201d<\/p>\n
O\u2019Donnell also framed NASCAR as \u201can American original,\u201d stressing the importance of connecting with younger fans while preserving the sport\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur job is to make sure the next generation of fans knows this sport belongs to them,\u201d he said. \u201cNot because we changed who we are, but because they recognize what our core fans have known all along \u2014 that we\u2019re a bad\u2011ass American sport.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kennedy, 32, assumes the COO role after reshaping NASCAR\u2019s schedule in recent years, including innovative events such as the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Clash and the Chicago Street Race. He acknowledged operational changes ahead, including Julie Giese taking the lead on future scheduling as he balances expanded responsibilities overseeing competition and venues.<\/p>\n
Kennedy, a former driver and team owner, said his racing background has helped him build trust in the garage.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore important than anything are the relationships,\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cThat empathy and perspective matter in this business.\u201d<\/p>\n
O\u2019Donnell echoed that sentiment, pointing to Kennedy\u2019s work ethic and credibility with teams, noting that Kennedy once met with every Truck Series owner within days to gather feedback on competition issues.<\/p>\n
Fan engagement and accessibility were recurring themes throughout the session. O\u2019Donnell said NASCAR is recommitting to listening to its audience, citing the return of The Chase format, increased horsepower, and the sport\u2019s \u201cHell Yeah!\u201d marketing campaign as steps toward restoring fans\u2019 sense of ownership.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re the one sport where you know exactly how the fans feel,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said. \u201cIf we get someone to the infield at Talladega, they\u2019re coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Looking ahead five years, O\u2019Donnell envisioned NASCAR as a must-have media property, with rising team values, more sponsor activation and drivers becoming crossover stars beyond motorsports.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re building off an incredibly strong foundation,\u201d he said. \u201cWe just have to keep doing the right things to let it grow.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ALLADEGA, Ala. \u2014 NASCAR\u2019s new leadership team pledged urgency, unity and renewed swagger for stock car racing\u2019s next…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":626293,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[446],"tags":[15823,49,48,10660,20823,4445,12716,634,582,721,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-628656","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nascar","8":"tag-ben-kennedy","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-chase","12":"tag-covid-19","13":"tag-fans","14":"tag-motorsports","15":"tag-nascar","16":"tag-racing","17":"tag-series","18":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628656","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=628656"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628656\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/626293"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=628656"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=628656"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=628656"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}