Richmond loses NASCAR race weekend; community loses millions in revenue

RICHMOND, Va. -- NASCAR confirmed Tuesday that Richmond Raceway is losing one of its two NASCAR races in the 2025 season.

It would be the first time since 1959, outside the COVID-impacted seasons, that the eastern Henrico track has not hosted two races in a season.

Jordan Bianchi, a reporter for The Athletic, wrote Monday that NASCAR planned to take a June race away from Richmond Raceway and move it to Mexico City.

NASCAR announced on Tuesday that the June 15, 2025 race would take place in Mexico.

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"This is a historic moment for our sport, and specifically for the NASCAR Cup Series, in being able to expand our footprint to Mexico,” NASCAR’s Executive Vice President & Chief Venue & Racing Innovation Officer Ben Kennedy said. “We’ve been bold about our intentions to grow on a global scale, and there isn’t a better place to take the next step in that journey than at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez road course in Mexico City.”

With that announcement, Kennedy confirmed Richmond would only appear one time on the 2025 schedule.

"This has certainly been a journey for us on the scheduling front," Kennedy said. “Our next opportunity was to expand internationally and we said we’ve wanted to do this for a long time but also needed to make sure it was the right time, the right partners and the right location and Mexico City checked every box."

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The Henrico Citizen reported 2009 studies that found race weekend generates nearly $169 million in economic impact for the region and about $42 million in tax revenue.

Richmond Raceway has not yet commented on this development

This is a developing story. Tell the CBS 6 Newsroom what you think about NASCAR taking a race away from Richmond. We may use your comments on TV.

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Video Vault 1992 Sept. 11: NASCAR impact in Henrico County

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