NASCAR Busch Grand National Series St. Louis Debut
24 July 1997
NASCAR BUSCH SERIES MAKES ST. LOUIS DEBUT THIS WEEKEND DAYTONA BEACH, FL - The NASCAR Busch Series will make its first ever appearance in the St. Louis area on Sat., July 26, when the Series visits the new Gateway International Raceway for the running of the inaugural Gateway 300. Approximately 50 cars are entered for the race, second to only Charlotte for largest number of driver entries in the NASCAR Busch Series this season. Nine Winston Cup regulars: Joe Nemecheck, Dick Trickle, Terry & Bobby Labonte, Kyle Petty, Michael Waltrip, Jimmy Spencer, Ricky Craven, and St. Louis native Kenny Wallace are giving up their weekend off in order to participate in the event. CBS Sports will televise the event at 1:00 p.m. (EDT), from the 1.25-mile facility. In three previous events on CBS Sports in 1997, the Series is averaging a 2.7 rating, according to Nielsen Media Research. The Nashville Network (TNN) will air live the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Lund Look 275K race from Topeka, Kan., on Sunday, July 27, at 2:00 p.m. (EDT). This is the first of three road course stops for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 1997. Joining the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at the 2.1-mile road-course event in Topeka is the NASCAR Slim Jim All Pro Series, which makes its first live television broadcast appearance of the season on TNN with the Coca-Cola Shootout, July 26, at 1:00 p.m. (EDT). (The NASCAR Slim Jim All Pro Series is joined by the NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Tour and the NASCAR REB-CO Northwest Tour for the only combination event among the three NASCAR touring series. Drives from both the NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Tour and NASCAR REB-CO Northwest Tour can enter this event and earn points only in the NASCAR Slim Jim All Pro Series.) While the NASCAR Winston Cup Series will take this weekend off, the Series' ratings continued to do the same. Cable ratings for Sunday's TBS coverage of the NASCAR Winston Cup race from Pocono climbed to a 4.7 up from 3.8 in 1996, according to Nielsen Media Research. The NASCAR Winston Cup Series season resumes next weekend for the fourth annual Brickyard 400 race at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. By NASCAR Public Relations