NASCAR is undoubtedly one of the most popular sports in America, with traditions that span decades and generations of fans across the country. However, in an era where all sports are seeking new and innovative ways to connect with fans, NASCAR has lagged behind leagues like the NFL and NBA in terms of social media presence and cultural relevance.
NASCAR’s coverage has often drifted in and out of the broader sports conversation. Still, in recent years, the sport can sometimes feel distant to younger fans or casual followers due to a lack of accessible storytelling. That’s where the decade-old multi-sports site EssentiallySports comes in.
Looking at the NASCAR digital footprint, the issue became clear. While there were passionate and robust discussions about the sport around the digital media world, the conversation was scattered, with no central hub for fans to congregate.
“In NASCAR, the fans are still the heartbeat,” EssentiallySports co-founder Suryansh Tibarewal told ClutchPoints. “But the digital media around it wasn’t giving them what they deserved. It was either transactional, like stats and recaps. We wanted something in between that is fan-first, authentic, and rooted in the stories behind the drivers.”
EssentiallySports is known for building engaged sports communities across fandoms, which is how Lucky Dog on Track came to be in early 2024.
“When my fellow co-founder Jaskirat came up with the name Lucky Dog on Track, it just clicked,” Tibarewal said. “In NASCAR, the ‘Lucky Dog’ is the driver who gets a chance to rejoin the lead pack from the end, and we felt that’s where the sport was digitally. NASCAR has always had heart and history, but it deserved a comeback moment in the modern sports conversation. We wanted to be part of that journey.”
The idea that the NASCAR community was hungry for a platform like Lucky Dog on Track was quickly confirmed, as the small digital sub-brand exploded into a full-fledged newsletter that now reaches more than 250,000 subscribers. Curating highlight clips, nostalgia-laced throwbacks, and driver-focused stories on social media, the newsletter was something that NASCAR fans immediately felt a part of.
Focusing on community and conversation, each issue includes polls, light-hearted reader comments, and even mini-surveys on what readers want covered next. The team tracks sentiment using NPS and fan comments and often builds content around what fans respond to most.
“We noticed fans were reading and even replying,” Tibarewal said. “Every week we’d see messages from fans saying, ‘This is what NASCAR should feel like again.’ It was validation that we were doing something right.”
That validation continued in late 2025, when NASCAR.com launched its own official newsletter on Substack. It’s a sign that the wider industry was beginning to recognize the value of direct fan communication. When told about the launch, Tibarewal said, “It’s a good thing. It shows the sport is evolving. But for us, the goal was never just to build a newsletter. It was to remind fans why they fell in love with NASCAR in the first place.”
And that is one of the biggest things that sets Lucky Dog on Track apart. It is more than just a digital newsletter. The people behind the brand understand that, as important as building a digital community is, it will never replace the experience of a live NASCAR event.
“We always say that NASCAR fandom lives both in the grandstands and in the group chats,” Tibarewal explained.
That’s why, in 2024, the brand appeared on an Xfinity Series car driven by Mason Massey at Pocono Raceway, in partnership with Real American Beer. A year later, it partnered with Michael Waltrip Brewing Company for an on-ground fan activation in Bristol. These were part of an effort to blur the line between digital engagement and the physical fan experience.
Now, as the 2025 season heads toward its Championship race on November 2, Lucky Dog on Track continues to grow with plans to keep publishing even after the champion is crowned. That’s because, as Tibarewal aptly says, “Fandom never really has an offseason.”
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