One good racing name deserves another.

Eight weeks after it officially became NAPA Speedway, far-west Albuquerque’s auto-racing facility added a NASCAR event to its schedule Tuesday.

A NASCAR K&N West Series race will be held on the paved oval Sept. 29, Speedway president Jim Guthrie announced during a news conference at NAPA Speedway. The 150-lap, regional series race will highlight a three-day Trilogy of Speed, which includes three days of racing on both dirt and asphalt.

“It’s pretty exciting to say NASCAR is coming to see us,” Guthrie said. “This is the largest race Albuquerque has ever had.”

The NASCAR West Series uses 4-year-old Sprint Cup cars with steel bodies. Formerly known as the Pacific Coast Model circuit, the 58-year-old series includes races in Colorado, Washington, Iowa, Utah, Arizona and California.

Drivers who have competed in the series include Ron Hornaday, Parnelli Jones, Hershel McGriff, Derrike Cope and Chad Little.

Guthrie said it took around five months of negotiating to secure the New Mexico race, which could become an annual event if successful.

“Having the NAPA name involved really helped,” Guthrie said, referring to the track complex’s recent name change from Sandia Speedway. “But NASCAR was very interested in having a race in the Southwest, so it’s a natural fit.”

The Trilogy of Speed will begin Sept. 27 with sprints, modifieds, mini-sprints and cruisers running on the speedway’s dirt oval. The NASCAR cars will practice the following day on the paved oval, while legends and bandoleros will have their regular competitions. The NASCAR main event will be part of a full Saturday night show that includes modifieds, S-mods, legends and factory fours.

The Trilogy of Speed weekend is scheduled between the end of Expo New Mexico and the beginning of the annual Balloon Fiesta.

“The weather’s usually perfect in late September,” Guthrie said, “so we feel like the timing is ideal.”

Guthrie, a former Indy-car driver who won an IRL race in Phoenix, recently began leasing the NAPA Speedway property and hopes to make the facility more family oriented. The NASCAR West race is one of several special events planned for the coming season, which will also feature such promotions as fireworks, 50-cent hot dog nights, celebrity races and military and faith nights.

The NASCAR West Series event also has a family friendly side, Guthrie said.

“It’s expensive to go to a NASCAR or IRL event,” he said. “We’re bringing NASCAR a little closer to home.”

More information is available at NAPASpeedway.com.
— This article appeared on page D1 of the Albuquerque Journal