FloRacing, NASCAR Regional extend broadcast rights partnership

FloSports intends to be more than just a partner to NASCAR but a supporter to grassroots racers holistically and that is one of the driving forces behind the mutual contract extension for regional and local events remaining on FloRacing.

Since joining forces in 2022, FloRacing and NASCAR have jointly elevated the national and international availability and viability of marquee events like the ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway and the South Carolina 400 at Florence Motor Speedway but also touring divisions like the Whelen Modified Tour, Canada Series, ARCA Menards East and West and numerous Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series tracks.

FloRacing has boosted purses and supplied events with editorial teams dedicated to the in-depth stories of grassroots racers across the continent.

READ MORE: Whelen Modified Tour schedule released, purse increases

And in an agreement signed on Thursday, that mutual commitment will continue years into the future. NASCAR’s managing director of content, Dan Barker, called the extension a reflection of both parties enthusiasm for grassroots racing over the past three years.

“These first three years have been a great step,” said Barker, “and not just for NASCAR but FloRacing picking up the CARS Tour and the Snowball Derby. There’s a real contribution to the ecosystem. We’ve teamed up to put money into series purses and creating content to elevate their profiles.

“It never ceases to amaze me, that I walk around the Truck Series garage some weeks, and now I recognize drivers that we’ve worked with through the relationship with Flo.”

And at first blush, it’s easy to call a statement like that PR talk, but NASCAR has also invested into the grassroots racers in tangible ways they did not before. Specifically, NASCAR has expanded the editorial team that exclusively covers the Regional section, providing a team of short track content creators to a website that once only had one employee and contributions from national touring writers when time permitted.

While that trend began with NASCAR formally acquiring the ARCA Mendards Series in 2018, it was supercharged with the hiring of Joey Dennewitz as Managing Director of Weekly and Touring Series. Dennewitz has placed both resources and his time in talking to racers and better understanding how NASCAR can help make their disciplines healthier.

From the FloSports and FloRacing standpoint, the platform had long been the home of marquee dirt events like all three USAC national touring divisions and then the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals, but in seeking out expansion into the pavement world, NASCAR was a no-brainer target.

But beyond that, CEO and founder Mark Floreani says his philosophy is growing together because the partnership and renewals become more mutually rewarding if both sides are putting back into the it.

“When we started FloRacing, we wanted to make dirt racing more popular and to be more widespread, and so you look at what we’ve done with the High Limit Racing series and the CARS Tour, Snowball Derby, we’ve leveraged all these different partnerships.

“We want dirt racing fans to give NASCAR Regional a shot and vice versa. There isn’t 100 percent overlap but we think there is something for all these different groups to like about each other.”

Floreani cited the airing of the PRO Superstar Shooutout, a drag racing event, and that he was told initial feedback showed an interest in the race from those who ordinarily do not seek out that discipline.

At the CARS Tour banquet last weekend, Dale Earnhardt Jr. said there was significant growth year-over-year in those races and there is an element of the rising tide of all the brands on FloRacing lifting each individual boat.

Barker cited the same year-over-year growth for NASCAR Regional.

“But really, we view NASCAR’s role in this space as an important one in that we’re custodians of the sport,” Barker said. “We viewed a partnership with FloRacing as a no-brainer because of all the ways we have worked together the past three years.

“Having all those brands, adding Snowball, all of that is important in trying to grow racing.”

The aforementioned Earnhardt, and his role in all of this is important too, as the 15-time NASCAR most popular driver races at least five times a year on the platform between several CARS Tour appearances and two races the past two years at Florence, including this weekend in the South Carolina 400.

Earnhardt’s passion for grassroots racing is substantial and both his personal brand and that of JR Motorsports and CARS Tour has been a boon for FloRacing as well.

“He’s been incredibly valuable,” Barker said. “He’s been an advocate from day one, and a steward for this kind of racing. His impact as a racer is still being felt today. He ran the Icebreaker and Hampton Heat this year. He’s running Florence this weekend and I can’t even begin to imagine where they are going to put everyone with him brining back that paint scheme.

“We’re thrilled to have his support and it’s only a benefit when you have Dale Jr. pulling in the same direction we are.”

Floreani echoed that sentiment.

“He has been really important,” Floreani said. “And not because he’s a big celebrity but because he is such an authentic guy and when he tells you he is a fan of what we’re doing, you know you’re doing it right. If he didn’t think we were doing this for the right reason, we wouldn’t have teamed up.

“That he is such a popular figure is just a bonus.”

Ultimately, FloRacing and NASCAR, combined with all the other brands on the periphery will continue to pull together for years to come.

“I remember meeting with Jim France and learning about how important this way to him,” Floreani said. “So getting the blessing from him was huge but we also understood just how important it was to him that we all work together to grow the sport.

“NASCAR could not be a better partner and a better organization to work with. With things happen, or we need help, they step up. We’re going to continue stepping up too.”