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NASCAR races the Busch Light Clash at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum this weekend, and five reasons why you should tune in
It’s always when you're snowed in when you realize there is nothing good on TV anymore. I can’t tell you personally how many times I channel surfed my TV looking for something to watch other than Doug Heady from KOAM news talking about how much snow and ice we have received in the past 72 hours. Also I may mention that there is nothing to go see either. The Nevada Tiger Basketball game against the Cassville Wildcats has been postponed for a future date due to the inclement weather and it seems like the same things will keep happening throughout the weekend, as well.
Not so fast my friends (no pun intended), there is something new and exciting to see, and it's on your local FOX 14 channel. It’s NASCAR’s Busch Light Clash at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum on Sunday that kicks off at 2 p.m. our time. If you have nothing going on that afternoon, and don’t want to watch the lack luster of the Pro Bowl in Vegas, then I’m about to give you five reasons why you should watch this important race.
#1: Something New
Back on the Christmas Eve edition to the Nevada Daily Mail sports page, I wrote an article about this race and described it. But for the ones who didn’t read it, NASCAR is racing inside a Football Stadium on a quarter mile track. Imagine the 23 best race car drivers racing around Logan Field here in Nevada? It's crazy, and something the NASCAR community would have never thought would ever happen. And that's the thing about NASCAR these past couple of years, they have had the attitude of ‘Why not give this a try?’ and have tried new stuff. NASCAR used to have 3 hours worth of practice, qualifying, and the race, but due to Covid, NASCAR said no practice and qualifying, just bring what you got and go race. Last year we raced on seven road courses instead of the usual three like they have done in the past to try to reach a new market of people. NASCAR isn’t afraid to try something new with the big chance of failure.
#2: Short Track in a Big City
You know the Testman track right behind Truman Elementary? NASCAR is racing on a track that size. This is truly a throwback to the good ol’ days short track showdown. Like I said above, NASCAR is trying to reach a newer and younger fanbase, but they are doing that by not ditching the older generation of fans. Fans for years have begged for more short tracks, and that is exactly what they are going to get. It will be a knockout, drag out, battle to the finish that will keep you on your feet till the checkered flag drops. Almost like a Bowman Gray (Quarter mile short track in Winston Salem, NC) type of event where they always put on a great show. The race will have 23 drivers in it, but 40 cars will be trying to make the show. Seventeen drivers will be sent home after the heat races that will take place right before the race. Four heat races with a last chance race to see who makes the big show? Sounds like a great time to me.
#3: The Build Up
Around 50,000 people will be at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum, and 70% of those people will be attending their first NASCAR race at all. That shows you how much of a big deal this will be. NASCAR purposely wanted to race in L.A. this part of the year to attract some of the people and media of Super Bowl LVI. Not to mention that there will be a pre-race concert by rapper Pitbull, then during the halfway point of the race, rapper Ice Cube will do a Super Bowl halftime show like performance, and DJ Skee will make history by performing music during the caution flags of the event. Oh and the prize money? It was originally around $750,000, but with all the hype and sponsorship, it has now been raised to just below 2 million dollars. As if racing to be the first person to win inside a football stadium wasn’t enough, now you are racing for 2 million dollars too. Safe to say there will be bumping and banging going on for our excitement.
#4: Brand New Racecar/Big Names
This race will also be the debut for NASCAR’s 7th generation of cars, called the Next Gen. The more modern look of a car, that certain looks fast, mean, and beautiful. We will get to see for the first time what this awesome looking car can do on the racetrack. But while the cars are changing, the people driving them will not. Big names like Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and his brother Kurt Busch, and Bubba Wallace will all be trying to make the race. That's the thing about this event, only one driver is locked in, and that is Kyle Larson, Why? Because he walked away the champion back in November 2021 at Phoenix Raceway. The champion of the series is the only one safe, while 39 drivers fight for the 22 starting spots after that.
#5: Kicks off NASCAR Season
After the champion of this event is crowned, then we have to only wait one more Sunday without racing, which is Super Bowl LVI. After that, the Daytona 500 is right around the corner, and the rest of the 36 race season will follow suit. It truly is fitting that this is the opener for the season. That way if it turns out to be a great show, more fans will follow through with the season and stick around to see who the champion is. NASCAR scheduled this very strategically, to try to bring in a younger audience. Then, off to the very unique and tricky part of the regular season, From tracks of four miles of length, to small short tracks and everything in between, NASCAR’s 2022 season will be one to remember for sure, and it all starts this Sunday at the Busch Light Clash at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
So hopefully you tune in this weekend. The four heat races to determine the starting order and who makes the race starts at 2 p.m. Central Time, than a pre race concert to follow that with rapper Pitbull, and then the main event, the Busch Light Clash at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum, starts at 5 p.m. Central Time. All of this is on FOX 14 KFJX.