[mcdude]

from the Laconia Citizen:

Report: Bahre Set to Sell NHIS

LOUDON — It may be the end of an era.

According to numerous media outlets and first reported by the Boston Globe, New Hampshire International Speedway owner Bob Bahre has agreed to sell the state's superspeedway to O. Bruton Smith, CEO and chairman of Speedway Motorsports Incorporated. There is an announcement set for today at the Texas Motorspeedway where the company plans to announce "big news." It has been speculated that Bahre and SMI will consummate the deal at that time.

"We have nothing new to report," said NHIS Public Relations Director Fred Neergaard when contacted Thursday afternoon.

Attempts to reach SMI for comment were unsuccessful.

SMI is a giant in the world of motorsports. The company owns Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., which host one Cup event, and Atlanta Motor Speedway, Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., Bristol Motor Speedway in Tenn. and Texas Motorspeedway, which host two Cup dates.

The potential sale of the Magic Mile leaves a lot of questions unanswered. It has been no secret that SMI wants another date for their Las Vegas Motorspeedway which would mean that it could take a date from the 1.058-mile oval. Nothing is expected to change for the upcoming season here in the Granite State. The Cup schedule is out for next season and some tracks already are selling tickets to those events.

The Loudon races at the Magic Mile play a key part in deciding NASCAR's Nextel Cup champion. The Lenox Industrial Tools 300 in July is the first of 10 races that serve as a prelude to the "Chase for the Nextel Cup" which incidentally kicks off at NHIS with the Sylvania 300 in September.

Bahre has long been considered the father of Cup racing here in the Granite State. Despite plenty of skepticism, the 80-year old bought the old Bryar Motorsports Park in 1989 and transformed it into a 1.058-mile superspeedway the next year. The track has sold out 26 consecutive races since, as 101,000 people pack the stands every race which is the largest sporting event in New England. This surely made the 1.058-mile oval so attractive for Smith and SMI.

Over the last year, Bahre has also left hints that he may be ready to put the 1.058-mile oval on the block. Bahre had discussions with Red Sox owner John Henry and Chief Operating Officer Mike Dee about selling the Magic Mile, he told FoxSports.com back in July. He described it at the time as a high profile potential buyer in a long line of suitors.

"There's always somebody talking," Bahre told FoxSports.com. "I've talked to Mike Dee and John Henry, and they act like someday they might want to do something. They called and said they want to talk, so we talked. I'm going on 81, so someday I want to do something with the track."

This is not the first time Bahre and Smith have worked together. The duo jointly purchased North Wilkesboro Speedway in 1996, transferring that track's Cup races — one to NHIS and the other to Texas Motorspeedway. Smith was ranked No. 207 on the Forbes 400 list with an estimated worth of $1.5 billion in 2005, and fell to 278 — worth an estimated $1.4 billion — in 2006.

The NASCAR Nextel Cup Series returns to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend for the Dickies 500.