Marcus G. Smith (born 1973) is president and chief executive officer and director of

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

track owner Speedway Motorports, Inc.(SMI) and general manager of SMI owned

Charlotte Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including th ...

. He is the son of SMI CEO

Bruton Smith Ollen Bruton Smith (March 3, 1927 – June 22, 2022) was a promoter and owner/CEO of NASCAR track owner Speedway Motorsports, Inc. He was inducted into NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2016 and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2007. He was bill ...

Background

Marcus Smith attended the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

studying to become a doctor, then later a journalist, but did not earn a degree. He started working at Charlotte Motor Speedway during summers as an intern picking up trash, selling tickets and souvenirs, and cutting the grass. Smith slowly began to work his way up the SMI corporate ladder, becoming a sales associate in 1996 and manager of new business development in 1999. In 1999, Smith led talks between SMI and Lowe's Corporation, Inc. to sell the naming rights of Charlotte Motor Speedway. The track was known as ''Lowe's Motor Speedway'' until 2009 when a deal could not be reached to extend the contract. He became vice president of business development in 2001, and was made director in 2004. Also in 2004, he became the executive vice president of national sales and marketing for SMI. Smith assumed theposition as president, chief operating officer and director of SMI on May 28, 2009 after H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler retired. At the same time, Smith also assumed duties as general manager and president of

. When promoted, Smith stated "I'm going to bring the same passion to work each day that the race fans bring to the track every week. I'm competitive, and I want to be sure we're doing everything we can to provide a fantastic motorsports experience to our fans."

References

External links

Official website of Speedway Motorsports
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Marcus G. American motorsport people Auto racing executives NASCAR people Businesspeople from Charlotte, North Carolina Living people 1973 births American chief operating officers Charlotte Country Day School alumni University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni