Barber Motorsports Park has announced a new attendance record during the Verizon IndyCar Series’ ninth visit to the circuit.

“The 2018 Honda Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Americas First had an attendance of 34,240,” the event promotors revealed Saturday evening. “This is the highest Saturday attendance in the history of the event.”

The trend is unlikely to continue for Sunday’s race due to heavy rains that have been predicted throughout the week.

IndyCar’s annual stop in Alabama marks the series’ one and only appearance in the deep south, and despite the longstanding grip NASCAR has held in the region, the popularity of high-speed open-wheel cars appears to be growing.

The positive news from Barber follows a similar report from the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach. Using the 2000 CART race as the modern benchmark, the GPALB announced a new three-day attendance high of 185,000 fans for the 2018 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach won by Alexander Rossi.