Kyle Petty Brands Atlanta as NASCAR’s Best Track After Chase Elliott’s Impressive Victory

NASCAR veteran Kyle Petty was full of praise for Atlanta's EchoPark Speedway after Chase Elliot's Sunday win.

Kyle Petty Brands Atlanta as NASCAR’s Best Track After Chase Elliott’s Impressive Victory

Chase Elliott and Kyle Petty (Via IMAGO)

NASCAR has some iconic tracks on its calendar. The stock car series races on circuits like Talladega and Daytona, tracks that have a rich history in the sport. However, former NASCAR racer Kyle Petty believes that Atlanta is actually the best track on the sport’s calendar.

Petty comes from an iconic racing family with his racing roots going all the way back to Lee Petty in the 1950s. Thus, KP knows the ins and outs of the sport, having watched generations of his family race in NASCAR, including himself.

After Chase Elliot’s incredible victory in the Cup Series race at EchoPark Speedway on Sunday, Kyle Petty was confident that Atlanta had the best track on the circuit. He recalled that while the speedway was never considered in the same league as Daytona and Talladega, it has managed to deliver some outstanding racing over the years, way better than what most have expected.

So many times this racetrack was classified as a mile and a half like Texas, like Kansas, like Charlotte, all these racetracks. It was not the superspeedway of Talladega and Daytona. But somehow it busted out of its boundaries, it busted out of its venue, it busted out of its genre and it moved to a different category. It is the one and only Atlanta Motor Speedway. We don’t see racing like this anywhere else.

Kyle Petty said on Kiss My A**phalt podcast.

Kyle Petty asserted that Atlanta always packs some exciting on-track action for fans, something that might not be possible even at a place like Daytona. The NASCAR veteran made it clear that the EchoPark Speedway was his favorite track in the calendar as it truly displayed the art of racing. So much so that KP wouldn’t mind NASCAR from racing here every weekend.

So for me, the art of racing and to watch these guys do this on this racetrack, is some of the best racing that I see all year… They should race there every week as far as I’m concerned because it is great NASCAR racing.

Kyle Petty added

Kyle Petty wants Atlanta to have its own category

NASCAR has a few different types of race tracks. First, come the massive superspeedways, such as Daytona and Talladega. These long ovals are some of the most iconic tracks in the world of motorsport. Apart from superspeedways,

NASCAR also has speedways that measure a mile-and-a-half. These are smaller than superspeedways, giving less room for the entire field. There are also road courses that race on more traditional race tracks or even city streets.

7. Kyle Petty
Kyle Petty

Previously, Atlanta was also considered a mile-and-a-half track. But now things are about to change. However, Kyle Petty revealed that Speedway Motorsports President Marcus Smith’s team managed to redesign the circuit, making it completely different from everything else.

You had the (super)speedways, Daytona and Talladega, and you had the mile-and-a-halves, and Atlanta was in that group. And somehow, (Speedway Motorsports President) Marcus Smith and those guys redesigned the place and said, ‘We’re going to create a whole new category of racetracks.’ I love this place, man.

Kyle Petty stated

While KP seems to be extremely excited about EchoPark Speedway after Atlanta, his comments would be quite divisive. NASCAR’s superspeedways have a rich legacy that continues to be cherished by millions of viewers. There is no doubt that Atlanta provides some great action, but it is not so easy to claim such a track to be the best in the entire series.

Read More: Brad Keselowski Confesses He Desperately Needed a Teammate Support to Beat Chase Elliott at Atlanta