Kentucky test rekindles argument for Cup date (cont'd)

"All the drivers who test here now say it's a great track," Pence said. "So if the state gets behind it with all its effort, the fans get behind it, and we have a few drivers who say it's a great place to race, it will happen eventually."

Pence asserted that a Nextel Cup event at Kentucky Speedway would create a success story for both Kentucky and the series.

"First, I think it'd be great for NASCAR because there are so many race fans in this area and this [television] viewing area in driving distance [of this facility]," Pence said. "There's no question that what [Kentucky Speedway chairman and co-owner] Jerry Carroll has built here is a great thing and they [the fans] would fill this up. It would be a huge impact economically for the state.

"A Nextel Cup race is just not a one-day event. It is a week event or more. That would have the same impact as a Kentucky Derby or greater. There are that many people that come to the track, it's a televised event and it's an opportunity to market Kentucky and the great job we've done in starting to do that."

Pence said he believes the people of Kentucky who are in favor of a Cup race can make a difference.

"Let NASCAR know that the state cares about this," he said. "That's one of the reasons I'm here today, to let the people on Ryan Newman's team know that the state does care about this and they want to see a Nextel Cup race here. I like to hear and talk to guys like Ryan Newman because they believe a Nextel Cup race would work here."