From Oct. 31 – Nov. 2, 2025, NASCAR hosted its annual championship weekend at Phoenix Raceway. The race weekend featured four races across three days, with the ARCA Menards Series West, Craftsman Truck Series, Xfinity Series, and Cup Series, all crowning their respective champions. In this article, I will cover the fan experience of attending the races, while also discussing what it was like to camp at Phoenix Raceway during championship weekend.
The fan experience at championship weekend was one unmatched by any other sporting event I’ve been to, due to the uniqueness of every event. At every NASCAR event, there are dozens of sponsorship engagement booths and merchandise shops located just outside the track, in an area called the midway. Companies like Chevy, Ford, Toyota, Coca-Cola, and Bass Pro Shops all had large booths displaying their products, while also running giveaways, games, and driver meet-and-greets. One negative aspect of the midway was its crowdedness, as on Sunday, it was nearly impossible to get around before the race. This was less of a problem on Friday and Saturday, as there were less fans in attendance. This made it significantly easier to visit every booth. There are many different merchandise trailers offering track, driver, team, and NASCAR merchandise. While generally overpriced, the selection at track is vast and unique.
At Phoenix Raceway, there isn’t a single bad seat in the stands. The track’s renovation in 2017 modernized the fan experience, while creating more seating areas. I went to the Xfinity Series championship race on Saturday, and the Cup Series championship race on Sunday. From my seats on both days, I could see the whole 1-mile oval. The food at the track has similar variety and taste compared to any other sporting event, and has the same ridiculous price tag. A major issue I noticed at the track was a lack of water bottle fill-up stations. Instead, the only water available at the track was bottled water from the concession, which cost $6.50. NASCAR became less cash friendly, only allowing for card use. This could be seen as a drawback for many people who still use cash. Furthermore, the stands lack protection from the sun, which was brutal on Sunday, when the race started at 1 p.m. The sun does set behind the stands, so after about 3:00 a majority of the stands were shaded.
Finally, the actual race experience. Before the race, the track held driver introductions, a common practice at NASCAR events. The driver introductions are a good way to see the drivers before the race and learn a bit about them. On Sunday, Phoenix Raceway held a pre-race concert, featuring country artist Jordan Davis, which I really enjoyed. The cars are very loud, so not bringing earplugs or renting a radio/headset bundle from the track would be a major mistake.
Alongside the normal race day ticket you could purchase, Phoenix Raceway offers a one-of-a-kind infield experience, which allows fans to go inside the race track to see the Cup Series garage and view the racing action. I’ve gone to the infield experience every year since it opened in 2018. The main draw of the infield is access to drivers and cars, which it does really well. The garages are open to the public, allowing the fans to get up close to the cars and teams behind a divider. The open garages are a common place to interact with drivers, especially after their qualifying runs on Saturday. Drivers come up to the fans and give them autographs, take pictures with them, and have conversations.
The infield experience also hosts three concession stands, all primarily selling both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. These concession areas also have large, shaded seating areas, but aren’t able to accommodate the influx of fans that visit the infield. Furthermore, the infield’s viewing options of the racetrack are very limited, with only a small portion of the track visible. In my opinion, the infield is only a great experience if you want to get up close and personal with the drivers and teams.
The final piece of the NASCAR championship weekend was the camping experience. Phoenix Raceway offers hundreds of campsites for race fans to stay at. The campground comes with showers and a shuttle to the track, both of which have been extremely useful. Camping at Phoenix Raceway is always a party, the campers are always super friendly and welcoming, and great for all ages. Phoenix Raceway offers exclusive events for campers as well, like volunteer work with drivers, driver meet-and-greets, and exclusive access to the midway before the race weekend. One area the campground fell short on this year was the lack of a store. For the last two years, Walmart provided a store offering food, drinks, amenities, and clothing to campers. This year, the Walmart was replaced with an area called the “trading post”, which had an ice truck, food trucks on select days, and a merchandise stand. The raceway made up for this lack of a store by providing a shuttle service to a local Fry’s store. Overall, the camping experience at NASCAR championship weekend was a great time.
In general, I believe that NASCAR championship weekend, or any NASCAR event, can be a great experience for avid fans and new fans alike. While it had its flaws, this year’s championship weekend was just as enjoyable as ones in years past.
