Eddie Gossage, whose flair for promotion was a cornerstone from the time of construction of Texas Motor Speedway in 1995 through his retirement in 2021, died Thursday. He was 65.
Gossage worked at tracks in Nashville, Bristol (Tenn.) and Charlotte as well as at Miller Brewing Company before Speedway Motorsports founder Bruton Smith put him in charge of the construction and then management of the Texas track. In the crowded media market in Dallas-Fort Worth, his vision and personality helped motorsports grow in the Texas sports landscape.
The Nashville native spent 32 years at Speedway Motorsports and more than 40 years overall in the sport.
“Today we have lost one of the world’s biggest race fans,” Speedway Motorsports President and CEO Marcus Smith said in a news release. “From his legendary promotions to the lasting relationships he developed throughout the sports and entertainment industries, Eddie Gossage meant so much to the world of motorsports.”
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The NASCAR All-Star Race is this weekend at the historic North Wilkesboro Speedway, and it was 32 years ago when NASCAR had its first night all-star event at Charlotte Motor Speedway, then the biggest race track (1.5 miles) to have lights installed. As part of an announcement to promote that race, Gossage had designed a big light switch — which threw sparks in the air and accidentally caught company founder Bruton Smith’s hair on fire.
It was that quest to do something that people would remember – or at least talk about – that was vintage Gossage.
“Eddie’s career spanned 32 years promoting major events at Charlotte Motor Speedway and supporting my father, Bruton, with the iconic showplace that is Texas Motor Speedway,” Marcus Smith said. “His impact in our sport will be felt for many years to come.
“We repeat one of Eddie’s favorite sayings often: ‘If we don’t make a big deal out of it, nobody else will.’ He lived that mantra every day at work developing creative publicity stunts, prerace shows and over-the-top entertainment.”
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
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