If family history is any indication, Frank Kelleher is just getting warmed up in his fifth year as president of Daytona International Speedway.
The Kellehers have shown remarkable staying power.
The family’s tire shop in Scranton, Pa., was founded in 1927 and has spanned three generations. There, Kelleher developed a passion for cars and racing, along with a work ethic he carries each day to the track.
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“I still love going to work every day,” he said. “I’m a motorsports guy at heart, and this is the most storied racetrack in the world. I enjoy the people I work with and the events that we host.
“I wake up every day motivated to go earn it.”
The iconic 2.5-mile oval will host NASCAR’s regular season-ending Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Saturday night, capping a busy and invigorating calendar of events outside Kelleher’s office door.
The speedway is best known by the casual fan for hosting February’s Daytona 500, the sport’s showcase event.
But there is something for everyone at the World Center for Racing, and Kelleher aims to give them what they want.
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January’s 24 Hours at Daytona scratches the itch for fans of Grand Touring cars, as multi-driver teams compete on a 3.56-mile combined road course during the daylong event. It is one of three races of the Triple Crown of endurance racing.
In March, the AMA Supercross Championship series arrives during the city’s famed Bike Week.
In November 2021, the four-day Rockville musical festival moved to Daytona International Speedway before shifting to May the following year and featuring some of music’s top acts.
Staging big-time events is Kelleher’s passion because it demands he and his staff to also perform.
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“Being in this seat, you get to work with the best sanctioning bodies and the best athletes and the best musical acts,” he said. “They’re demanding perfection, and we have an opportunity to rise to the occasion. They want it to deliver memories.”
Kelleher hopes to deliver another experience to remember Saturday night.
Daytona’s 400-mile summer race will set the 16-car field for the season-ending 10-race playoff. No longer, however, does the 160-lap affair offer a winless driver by simply reaching victory lane.
This season, NASCAR changed the format, in place since 2014, and returned to a season-long points battle spanning all 36 races.
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Kelleher embraces the change, even if it potentially diminishes the stakes of the race.
“This environment puts more pressure on consistency and showing up each race and running a smart race, versus, ‘Hey, I’m just going to kamikaze and try to win one race,’ ” he said. “Race teams have to consistently produce.”
No one has produced like NASCAR star Denny Hamlin, a four-time winner in 2026 with 64 career wins.
The three-time Daytona 500 winner also seeks his first win in the summer race. A trip to victory lane would bolster his 77-point lead over Ryan Blaney as Hamlin doggedly pursues his first Cup Series title at age 45.
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Among the sport’s most aggressive drivers, Hamlin has pushed NASCAR for the new aerodynamic package in place this week. The rear spoiler will be reduced from seven inches to four, allowing for a three-mph increase despite a reduction in horsepower from 510 to 465. The changes are designed to create less congested racing.
“They’re going to be in a situation where they can get out of the pack, they could get out of line, and create their own run,” Kelleher said. “This something that the drivers have been asking for.”
Blaney, the defending Coke Zero 400 champion and among the sport’s premiere talents, enters off a win last week in New Hampshire.
After being shut out all season, Fords have won for the fourth time in six races, with two each for Blaney and Joey Logano -— another driver with a strong history at Daytona.
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The most recent winner, reigning Daytona 500 champion Tyler Reddick, looks to rediscover his early-season form, featuring five wins in the first eight races. With a win, he’d have much-needed momentum entering the playoffs and become the first drive since Jimmie Johnson in 2013 to win both races in one season at the iconic track.
Whatever happens, fans are expected to show up.
Kelleher said infield camping has sold better than he can recall, while grandstand attendance is expected to be higher than it has in years.
“It all comes to a head at Daytona, where we start the regular season and now end it,” he said. “It should be really special.”
Coke Zero Sugar 400
— When: 7:30 p.m., Aug. 29
— Where: Daytona International Speedway
— TV: NBC
— Tickets: Avaiable at www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com
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