The future of the Winston Cup Preview, a daylong, fan-oriented event with NASCAR’s top drivers, remains uncertain next season since series sponsor Winston will be replaced by Nextel. Winston has sponsored the event, held each January in Winston-Salem, N.C., the past 14 years and it has grown into the largest single-day charitable event held in North Carolina each year. New NASCAR CEO and chairman Brian France said Sunday NASCAR would do “what made sense” for Nextel, as well as fans and the series’ drivers in determining the future of the Preview. “(The Preview) is a great fan interaction with our drivers. We’re going to have to figure out a way to preserve that, and I think we will,” France said. “Just where it goes is also a function of our schedules, making sure we don’t put another undue time constraint on our drivers.” France said Daytona Beach, Fla., home to NASCAR’s headquarters, was a possible site if the Preview were relocated. “The drivers are already there with the testing (in January), so that’s going to be something we’re looking at hard, but it’s not the only thing we’re looking at,” he said. “Although, it may very well end up there.”( ThatsRacin.com )(9-22-2003)
