Kelley Earnhardt discusses ‘complicated’ things about MLB Speedway Classic ahead of the commencement at Bristol dirt track

Kelley Earnhardt invited Jessica Fickenscher, the Chief Experience Officer at Speedway International Inc. (SMI), to her "Business of Motorsports" podcast to discuss the preparation for the upcoming Major Baseball League (MLB) event at one of NASCAR's well-recognized tracks. Fickenscher shared insights about the complicated procedure of preparing the track for racing and baseball in a short time frame.

Major Baseball League (MLB) will organize one of their games between the Atlanta Braves and the Cincinnati Reds at NASCAR's fan-favorite track, the Bristol Motor Speedway, on August 2, 2025.

Earnhardt questioned the Chief Experience Officer about the upcoming event and their involvement on the track. Fickenscher mentioned that they are working with food and beverages. The Bristol team is handling the operational side of the event because a race is scheduled three weeks after the baseball event.

Preparing the track for the baseball event requires a lot of dirt on the infield area and is a 'complicated' task. Reflecting upon the same Kelley Earnhardt hilariously compared the three-week race situation with putting dirt on the track:

"Is it as complicated as putting dirt in and taking dirt back out?"

The Chief Executive Officer replied:

"Oh, I feel like it's more complicated."

Kelley Earnhardt asked Fickenscher how she and her team held several concerts on the track. The chief officer replied:

"All about relationships, you know, with the MLB one, years and years and years and years of discussions, and there's no team in Tennessee, so the MLB was really excited about it, and I think they saw success, you know, with their Field of Dreams that they've done." [00:28]

Kelley Earnhardt has always been fascinated by working and learning new experiences. Once she opened up about how his father helped her shape her career.

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“Definitely instilled by our dad”: Kelley Earnhardt expressed her gratitude to her father, recalling his racing days

Kelly Earnhardt, the daughter of seven-time Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt Sr., was recently featured in an interview on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) with Angie Skinner reminiscing about her upbringing under her father's guidance.

Angie Skinner is the wife of former NASCAR driver Mike Skinner, and Skinner expressed her admiration for Kelly Earnhardt after they met for the first time. Skinner highlighted that Earnhardt was organized and professional and wanted to be her friend since then.

"I mean, that was definitely instilled by our dad. We didn't really get the opportunity to half do anything, you know, or rest on our laurels or our name or anything else. So, you know, right away we went to work, and I think really working under other people, and not in our family business, even though, you know, they were entities owned by my dad," stated Kelley Earnhardt.

Despite being from a well-recognized family, Dale Sr.'s daughter opted to work and took it seriously, not relying on her family's name. Kelley mentioned that her father taught her great values and the true meaning of hard work to prove herself.