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November 27, 2023
By Holly Cain
NASCAR Wire Service
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – For the fourth year, the always-anticipated NASCAR Awards celebration returns to Nashville this week to officially crown the sport’s series champions from the local series to NASCAR’s national series; the sport’s competitors and its massive fanbase arriving in the “Music City” to honor the 2023 season’s best and to celebrate the sport’s 75th Anniversary.
Newly crowned NASCAR Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney made the national media rounds in the days immediately after capturing his first series trophy Nov. 5 in Phoenix and the 29-year-old will undoubtedly be a popular sighting around Nashville all week as his work in the No. 12 Team Penske Ford is celebrated.
Fans will have a lot of opportunity to join in the season celebrations from sightings of their favorite drivers on Nashville’s famed Broadway Street to a NASCAR Champion car parade on Wednesday and this year, multiple award ceremonies on both Tuesday and Thursday evenings.
The first championship celebration takes place Tuesday at Nashville’s iconic Music City Center where champions and season standouts from more than a half dozen local and foreign NASCAR series will be honored including: the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East, ARCA Menards Series West and NASCAR’s International Series featuring the NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race, NASCAR Pinty’s Series, NASCAR Mexico Series and NASCAR Whelen Euro Series.
A new interactive fan experience debuts on Wednesday, the “NASCAR House,” which is open from noon-6 p.m. ET downtown at Fifth and Broadway. Fans can attend question-and-answer panels with the season’s top drivers across multiple NASCAR series, including two-time champion Kyle Busch, this year’s Nashville Speedway race winner Ross Chastain, three-time Daytona 500 winner, owner/driver Denny Hamlin and former champion Kevin Harvick, who retired from competition at the conclusion of the season.
Then the NASCAR Champion Car Parade will take place Wednesday (3:30 p.m. ET) on Nashville’s famed Broadway Street with fans lining up outside iconic bars, restaurants and tourist spots to see their favorite competitors and cars.
The NASCAR Awards Red Carpet rolls out Thursday afternoon at the Music City Center where the stars and championship competitors will make their way into the banquet hall for the trophy presentations and speeches. The NASCAR Cup Series champion Blaney, NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Cole Custer (Stewart-Haas Racing) and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champion Ben Rhodes (ThorSport Racing) and their teams headline the evening.
The NASCAR Most Popular Driver Award – voted on by fans – will be announced as well. The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion, Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott has won this award for the last five seasons. His father, NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott, was a record 16-time recipient during his championship career.
“As we continue to commemorate our diamond anniversary, there is no other place we’d rather return for our end of the year celebration than Music City,” NASCAR’s Chief Marketing Officer Pete Jung said in announcing the sport’s return to Nashville.
“The energy of this city never goes unnoticed and the fans’ dedication for our sport never fails.”
