Following the news that Steve O’Donnell and Ben Kennedy are officially stepping into their new roles as CEO and COO of NASCAR, the leadership team met at Talladega Speedway to outline what comes next. Joined by Jim France and Lesa France Kennedy, they addressed the industry and fans during a press conference to set a clear direction for the sport.

O’Donnell made it clear that his first priority is gathering feedback from every level of the garage. "To start out, we're going to be listening, and that means genuinely listening before making any decisions," he said.

"So I know there'll be a lot of questions. Where are you going? What are you doing? But I think it's important for us to go out there and spend the time listening to everyone in this industry: Team owners, team principals, drivers, tracks, manufacturers, OEMs, and probably most importantly for us too, all the talented employees we have at NASCAR."

While feedback will be openly received, O’Donnell, who replaces Jim France as CEO, stressed that the sport will move with purpose to fix pressing issues. "I know there are a number of areas that we need to address, and we're going to move with urgency, but what we're going to need from this industry is their collective intelligence," he added.

One of the most significant shifts already taking place involves the postseason format. After fan interest dipped last year due to a product that felt too manufactured, leadership moved to restore the sport's credibility. Once the legal hurdles of the antitrust lawsuit were cleared, NASCAR decided to bring back a version of "The Chase" format, similar to the one used between 2004 and 2015, which fans generally preferred.

Looking ahead, O’Donnell wants the sport to become a high-demand property. When asked by Bob Pockrass about his five-year vision, he explained that the commercial goal is for partners to actively chase NASCAR rather than the other way around.

While Steve O'Donnell's focus remains more on the commercial side, Ben Kennedy will be more involved in the competition side. The new COO will also be an integral cog in planning the NASCAR schedule. However, the scheduling efforts will be led by Julie Giese, former president of Phoenix Raceway.

Jim France reflects on a lifetime at the helm of NASCAR

The atmosphere in the press conference was one of nostalgia. The session began with a video tribute honoring Jim France's eight-year tenure as NASCAR CEO and his lifelong dedication to the sport. Visibly moved, France remained humble about his contributions.

"I'm a little embarrassed by that because it's difficult to take credit for other people's hard work, and I happen to be lucky to be a part of a great team called NASCAR," he said.

France recalled the early days when the organization was just a small family operation. He credited his parents and brother for laying the foundation before praising the current staff. "I believe we have the finest team of people working and running NASCAR that we've ever had in our entire history," he noted.

With those words, he officially prepared to pass the torch, stating, "It's going to be my honor here in just a few moments to turn this over to NASCAR's CEO, Steve O'Donnell."

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Written by

Sanskriti Pastor

Edited by

Yask Kotak