It’s no secret that NASCAR isn’t what it used to be in its golden days. The sport that once captivated millions with legendary rivalries and iconic moments now faces questions about its future. Recently, NASCAR veteran Kenny Wallace spoke candidly about why the sport might never return to those glory days, sparking a conversation that cuts to the heart of what modern racing has become.

Why Can’t NASCAR Return to Its Golden Era?

NASCAR was most likely at the height of its popularity in the 1970s, 1980s, and even some part of the 1990s. Richard Petty was already “The King” of the sport. Then Dale Earnhardt Sr. came and made NASCAR a household name. Even people who weren’t stock car racing fans knew about NASCAR.

Then came NASCAR’s golden boy, Jeff Gordon, a driver so good that he kept even Dale Sr. on his toes. Veteran fans of the sport often talk about that period and how they wish it could all go back to that time. That’s also what led Wallace to make a bold statement on the current state of the sport.

What Problems Are Killing NASCAR’s Appeal?

There are several reasons for NASCAR’s popularity decline. First, not many are fans of the current playoff format. The system values race wins over a driver’s consistency, like how Joey Logano was crowned the champion last season despite having the worst average finish for a champion in sports history.

Even the system of stage points in a race draws heavy criticism. Someone can win a stage just by staying out longer in the race than others. Then, even if they end up last in the race, they would still have earned decent points.

This was not the case with the earlier NASCAR format, where a driver had to be in top form all season long to be crowned a champion. But the format’s not the only culprit. NASCAR has also become too sponsorship-centric now. Regardless of talent, a driver who can rope in sponsors can buy a seat, which lowers the overall quality of competition.

And even speaking of sponsors, a driver has multiple nowadays. Given the sport’s declining popularity, it doesn’t make monetary sense for a brand to stay on for the whole season. So there are no iconic sponsor-driver duos nowadays, like Dale Sr.-Goodwrench or Gordon-DuPont. That tells a lot about the current state of the sport.

This is probably why Wallace, in an X post recently, wrote, “Let’s face it. @NASCAR will never be as good as it once was. However, it is THE BEST Motorsports in America 🏁.” This left one fan baffled, asking the veteran why the sport cannot go back.

He wrote, “Why can’t it be as great as it used to be? It’s a choice, there is no law, physics law, monetary law, nor economic law that is stopping NASCAR leadership from removing their collective heads from a lower orifice on the human body. Running a business based on politics, DEI, and social justice are catastrophic. NASCAR doesn’t just wonder around the racing world making it up day by day, they unfortunately have planned this ignorance. Americans are begging for nostalgia. Posted with all due respect.”

To which Wallace replied, “Because we have to recognize the HUGE societal shift in people. Things are so different nowadays compared to when NASCAR was great.”

Because we have to recognize the HUGE societal shift in people. Things are so different nowadays compared to when NASCAR was great. https://t.co/j64n9ZJ7qC

— Kenny Wallace (@Kenny_Wallace) July 17, 2025

Beyond the format changes and sponsorship issues, NASCAR faces bigger challenges. There’s the current lawsuit NASCAR is fighting with 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports, where the teams have accused the racing organization of monopolistic practices. Plus, there’s chatter of outside investors possibly coming into a sport that has traditionally been owned and run by the France family until now.

So clearly, things have not been solely focused on racing action or how to make racing great, as it used to be back in the day. Well, only time will tell where the sport will end up in the future.