FONDA, N.Y. — A trio of historic dirt tracks in the Northeast will join the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (NAAPWS) for the upcoming season.
Delaware’s Georgetown Speedway as well as New York’s Utica-Rome and Fonda Speedways — all operated by promoter Brett Deyo — are the latest facilities to become NASCAR sanctioned. Various benefits include insurance for NASCAR license holders and additional point money.
“I’ve been looking at the option (to sanction with NASCAR) for the past couple of years,” said Deyo in a recent press release. “For Fonda and Utica-Rome, we have the same core racers that run both nights, Friday night at Utica-Rome and Saturday night at Fonda. It gives them an opportunity to run for a state championship, the regional championship and the national championship.
“From the Georgetown perspective, there is more growth here,” Deyo continued. “We have a more ambitious schedule than we’ve run (recently). We’ve been a part-time track since 2016. We’re still not weekly at Georgetown, but we are racing more than we have in the past.”
Georgetown Speedway was constructed in 1949 by businessman Melvin L. Joseph. The track will host races on Thursday and Friday nights this year in addition to special events. Utica-Rome Speedway was built in 1961 by Joe Lesik as a quarter-mile asphalt oval before being transformed into a dirt track in 1979. Known as the “Home of Heroes,” Utica-Rome will host weekly racing on Fridays throughout the upcoming season.
Fonda Speedway opened in 1953 and continues to operate today as a half-mile dirt oval. Dubbed “The Track of Champions,” Fonda played host to four NASCAR Cup Series races in the 1950s and 1960s. Those events, known as the Fonda 200, were won by Junior Johnson in 1955, David Pearson in 1966 and Richard Petty in 1967 and 1968.
For the 2023 season at the Fonda Speedway, the Amsterdam Truck Center Modified, Swagger Factory Apparel Crate 602 Sportsman and Below Zero Ice Cream Pro Stock divisions will be sanctioned by NASCAR as part of the NAAPWS.
The Amsterdam Truck Center Modifieds at Fonda will be listed as Division I and competitors will be eligible for national, regional, state/provincial and track championships; rookie-of-the-year honors; and national ranking among the Top 100 drivers. Swagger Factory Apparel Crate 602 Sportsman at Fonda will be listed as Division II while Below Zero Ice Cream Pro Stocks at Fonda will be listed as Division III.
Both will be eligible for the same awards as the modifieds.
For Deyo, giving competitors at his three tracks the chance to earn more money and race for state, regional and national championships made joining the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series an easy decision.
“It opens up a whole other earning potential for our racers and that really got me excited because we’re always trying to give them the most opportunities to make money as we can,” Deyo said. “I felt like the NASCAR program gives them that opportunity without having to do anything different than they were already doing.
“Anytime you can give them an opportunity to race for more money, it’s a good thing. Not to mention the exposure that comes with it, the honor of being a NASCAR champion. Especially during the 75th season of NASCAR, there is just a lot of hype that goes along with it.”