BY: EDDIE KALEGI
Table tennis. Equestrian. Artistic swimming. Skateboarding. Break dancing. Like auto racing, all of these sports have been heavily criticized by the unknowing public before, with some going as far to say that they shouldn't be deemed "sports" at all due to their perceived lack of athletic rigor. Yet, the International Olympic Commission has accepted them with open arms into the world's most grandiose and prestigious athletic competition.
The time has come to bring motorsports onto the global stage. Between Formula One's post-pandemic surge, and forward momentum for NASCAR, IndyCar, and IMSA, the hype around racing is at palpable as its been in recent memory. With the Olympics heading to Los Angeles, California in 2028, a city with a rich motorsports history, it is a perfect situation for auto racing to formally make its Olympic debut.
THE PRECEDENT
Believe it or not, there is a history of motorized vessels in the Olympics. Motorboat racing was an official Olympic competition in the 1904 and 1908 installments of "the games," while the 1936 proceedings in Germany featured an exhibition off-road motorsport event.
That doesn't even begin to venture into the myriad of attempts to unify drivers from different disciplines under a specialty umbrella series, including the International Race of Champions and the Superstar Racing Experience. There have been moderately successful developments before, but the sport needs the IOC's assistance to truly make this aforementioned unification a reality.
THE FORMAT
On an episode of Motorsports Today earlier this month, I outlined my format that I believe would be not only compelling, but extremely feasible and cost-effective. For those who missed it, what follows is a comprehensive breakdown of how to properly structure a tournament of this magnitude to coincide with other Olympic events.
Like other Olympic sports, namely gymnastics, motorsports is fit for both an individual and a team competition, given how the sport's structure is conducive to both of these styles. For each competition, I believe that a standardized sportscar would be best. If the Olympics could secure a partnership with a major car manufacturer, that company could be build vehicles for each competitor. This event is designed to evaluate which drivers are best, not which countries can develop the fastest car. Finally, all nations will be allowed to enter up to three drivers (more on that later).
THE INDIVIDUAL COMPETITION
To effectively challenge the competitors across different styles of racing, the individual competition will encompass a road course, an oval, and a street course. In Los Angeles, California, finding race tracks within a two-hour radius is very easy.
Practice and single car qualifying sessions will be held for each race as normal. The competition will begin with a road course race at Willow Springs Raceway, then transition to the half-mile oval at Irwindale Speedway, and finish with a street course race in the Los Angeles area. Back in the 1990s, NASCAR's Southwest Tour actually ran a street race in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum parking lot. That might not be feasible during the Olympics, but given recent announcements that there will only be public transportation for the 2028 Games, it could work. Otherwise, there are plenty of street course locations that could be constructed. Points would be handed out "Formula One style," and the top three earners would receive medals for their home countries after the three races are complete.
THE TEAM COMPETITION
Between constructor battles in Formula One, endurance racing in IMSA, and teams in general across all motorsports disciplines, this competition would not be complete without some aspect of drivers working together. This is where the "team competition" enters the fold.
As previously stated, countries can enter three drivers. Those three will share a sportscar in a six-hour endurance race through the historic streets of Long Beach, less than a 90 minute drive from the likely location of the 2028 Olympic Village. The race will have two mandatory driver swaps at the end of hours two and four, and three highest finishing cars will be medal earners.
Just imagine seeing a New Zealand trio of Scott Dixon, Scott McLaughlin, and Shane van Gisbergen, squaring off with the English contingent of Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, and George Russell. Or the American trifecta of Kyle Larson, Josef Newgarden, and Jordan Taylor trying to prove their worth in their home ballpark against a Mexican team of Pato O'Ward, Sergio Perez, and Daniel Suarez, or a Spanish group anchored by Alex Palou, Carlos Sainz, and the ageless Fernando Alonso. The possibilities are endless. And even better, imagine all of these drivers going head-to-head in an individual competition that would truly feature the most talented field of drivers in a race in motorsports history.
THE RECEPTION
Given the fact that this event would only require the construction of one race track, with the other three being established venues, the cost of getting this off the ground is far less daunting than many think. Plus, Formula One already has a summer break, and NASCAR and IndyCar were already willing to pause competition during the 2024 Olympics due to broadcast conflicts with NBC, so every major series is completely capable of taking another "Olympic break" to allow for this competition, which could effectively be wrapped up in just one week, to play out.
But how would the drivers feel? We asked a few NASCAR full-timers at Richmond Raceway this weekend to share their thoughts.
Some were skeptics, including NASCAR's Most Popular Driver Chase Elliott, who simply thought it would be "too tough" to put together. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was also a critic, admitting "I think we enjoy our off time."
However, the majority were open-minded.
"I'd be all for that," 2012 NASCAR Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski told us. "I mean, you look at some of the sports they've got, they've got to be able to figure out racing."
Christopher Bell similarly had a positive reaction to the idea, explaining "I would be all for it... Whatever the circuit and the vehicle is will dictate who your drivers are."
And then there's Denny Hamlin, who has a history of championing ideas from "stick and ball sports" and applying them to racing, most notably creating a bracket-style in-season tournament on his "Actions Detrimental" podcast last year, which will actually introduced to NASCAR competition itself next summer.
"It would be very difficult and it would be very costly for the Olympic Commission to put something together for motorsports, but certainly I saw some sports I didn't know existed this time around, so I would love to see motorsports be part of it."
CONCLUSION
The seemingly daily Twitter debates between NASCAR elitists and Formula One purists have become tiresome and circular. This discourse continues to arise because there is no way to pit these competitors head-to-head in a standardized competition. The auto racing powers that be and the International Olympic Commission have the chance to settle the score once and for all with a once in a lifetime event that everyone will watch: motorsports at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Games. Let's make it happen.
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