NASCAR's Kennedy on why Naval Base Coronado race was a no-brainer

NASCAR putting on a race at a naval base had been a thought for quite some time before being put on the 2026 schedule, according to NASCAR's Ben Kennedy.

“We have a scheduling team that meets on a regular basis and we’re constantly evaluating our current schedule and thinking bold, and frankly, aggressively about where we want to take events in the future,” said Kennedy, NASCAR EVP, chief venue and racing innovation officer. “One of the ideas that we had several years ago was to race on a military base, and we’ve had a number of conversations with bases across the country. We also wanted to find a way to have a presence back in the Southern California market.”

The conversations with Naval Base Coronado began a few years ago, and Kennedy admitted surprise that it stayed under wraps for as long as it did. Naval Base Coronado will host all three NASCAR national series during Father’s Day weekend next year.

NASCAR will unveil the course in the fall. But it will be about three miles in length, according to Kennedy, and take place entirely on the naval base. The event will be open to the public as far as race fans are concerned, and the backdrop will be the Pacific Ocean as cars and trucks race around the base.

“You’ll probably see a couple of carriers, some F-18s out on the tarmac, and the beauty of it is that some of the course will be set in stone a little bit as we’re making our way through the streets on the base, and a lot of it will be a blank canvas,” Kennedy said. “There will be a portion where we’ll actually go out onto the tarmac. You might have some long straightaways. You might have some more technical sections.

“But a big credit to iRacing, who has been great partners with us on every one of these new events that we put on. … They have created a virtual rendition of the course. We’ve had a few of our drivers already on iRacing and turned a few laps around the racetrack. We’ve gathered a lot of their feedback and have already made a few tweaks to it. … I can tell you it’s going to be an amazing track.”

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But why a naval base in the first place? Kennedy said there were a handful of factors as to why it became NASCAR’s latest destination event.

“We looked at a handful of military bases across the country,” he said. “We looked at different branches of the military as well. Naturally, it was a great fit for us being in San Diego, Coronado, the Southern California market. Then, as I spoke about, the location and the backdrop of all of San Diego and being in this part of the country, and the natural ties that our fans and a lot of the folks in our industry have with the military and the men and women that fight for our freedom, and give us the ability to do what we love to do every single day. It was a natural fit.

“Then as we got to the base and we started to have conversations with the team here at Naval Base Coronado, one thing led to another. They’ve been tremendous partners from the start and to sync it up with the 250th anniversary of the country, and importantly, the 250th anniversary of our Navy as well, there were just so many synergies that came together and this was really a no brainer for us.”

There was a push to make it happen for 2026. San Diego fills the void left by Chicago, which will not return to the schedule next year. Chicago hosted the Xfinity Series and Cup Series for three seasons near Grant Park.

San Diego will be the second street course event in the modern era of the Cup Series. It will be the first time NASCAR has contested a race on an active military base.

“We believe it’s a once in a lifetime moment for our sport,” Kennedy said, “to be able to celebrate both the 250th anniversary of our country and our Navy, and then to put on a spectacle of an amazing race for our fans.”