IndyCar: After huge NASCAR crowd at Gateway, how many will turn out for IndyCar?

57,000 fans attended the first NASCAR Cup race at Gateway (World Wide Technology raceway) in June.

“NASCAR elevated the entire name recognition of the track to a whole other level,” track owner Curtis Francois said. “Here we were, little old St. Louis punching above our weight class.”

With momentum built, the track is in final preparations to host the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 on Aug. 20. The race has been the second-highest attended IndyCar oval race behind only the Indianapolis 500.

But attendance has dropped each year since the first IndyCar race in 2017 (yes, CART did race there in the late 1990s). In 2017 attendance was estimated to be 45,000. Last year it appeared to be half that number.

Will having a NASCAR Cup race at Gateway for the first time, result in a further hit on IndyCar attendance?

We shall know in one week’s time.

IndyCar signed a 5-year extension with Gateway. It remains to be seen whether NASCAR eventually wipes the IndyCar race out, which is what history shows will happen.

Currently, about 50% of the 78,000 grandstand seats are showing sold, but many of them may be free giveaways, so IndyCar will be hoping for a big walk-up crowd next weekend.

Soon after being awarded a NASCAR Cup Series date for the 2022 season, Francois remarked another $40 million worth of upgrades will be dedicated to the facility. One of the first enhancements was extending the Steel And Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) barriers down a large length of the oval track’s backstretch wall. A request by NASCAR, this improvement meant the originally constructed “bump out” fencing down the back straightaway would be replaced with a swing gate, making the backstretch wall continuous. Other upgrades include a complete modernization of the oval track tower’s rooftop and suites, addition of infield camping sites, rejuvenated team areas, and remodeling of concession and midway spaces. The projects will occur in phases and are scheduled for completion by early 2025.