In July of last year, the U.S. military breathlessly announced plans for Coronado to host NASCAR racing in 2026, bringing one of the world’s premier stock car events to the island.
“NASCAR embodies the very best of the American spirit through speed, precision and an unyielding pursuit of excellence,” declared then Navy Secretary John C. Phelan. “Hosting a race aboard Naval Air Station North Island, the birthplace of naval aviation, it’s not just a historic first, it’s a powerful tribute to the values we share: grit, teamwork and love of country.”
In the months since that revelation, Navy warriors have spearheaded a war against Iran, the violent ouster of Venezuela’s president and lethal attacks on alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean Sea.
Meanwhile, U.S. government officials have declined to answer fundamental questions about the auto-racing extravaganza scheduled June 19-21:
- How did NASCAR get approval for races at a secure U.S. military base, and who authorized it?
- With more than 100,000 spectators swarming North Island, how will national security assets and secrets be protected?
- Is NASCAR paying for enhanced security, as well as construction and breakdown of the track, grandstands and concessions? What about other expenses?
- How does America’s national defense benefit from NASCAR racing on a military base?
In December, The Coronado News submitted a request under the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for correspondence, contracts and feasibility reports concerning the NASCAR weekend. Navy headquarters responded that only one record had been identified — and asserted that the document is exempt from disclosure for privacy reasons.
In response to a challenge, the secretary of the Navy’s office acknowledged that other naval offices may have additional records. But the chief of naval operations stressed in an email that stock car racing agreements for North Island are “between the Department of Defense and NASCAR,” rather than the Navy.
The Defense Department (rebranded by President Trump as the Department of War) responded to a FOIA request by noting that The Coronado News was No. 3,348 in a queue. It declined to expedite processing.
In late May, Navy Region Southwest provided two documents: a race contract with NASCAR, and a commercial sponsorship agreement.
To date, neither the Navy nor the DOD has provided records clarifying who authorized the event or what advance planning took place.
NASCAR’s account
In a phone interview, Amy Lupo, president of NASCAR San Diego, said the Coronado racing agreement emanated from the Chief of Naval Operations – not the Department of Defense.
Lupo said NASCAR officials began looking into San Diego venues more than two years ago, first considering Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and the Del Mar Fairgrounds. She said Mark Neville, CEO of Sports San Diego, then suggested North Island as an alternative.
Neville confirmed that his nonprofit organization had sponsored vintage auto racing on the tarmac beginning in the late 1990s. He invited NASCAR leaders to get a birds-eye view of the Navy base from Cabrillo National Monument.
Lupo said she and others gazed down and realized the Coronado venue would be perfect. “We went to the base for the first time in April of 2024,” she added, “and the rest is history.”
Through referrals from Sports San Diego, Lupo said, NASCAR was able to reach Adm. Lisa Franchetti, then chief of naval operations at the Pentagon. (Franchetti is among numerous high-ranking military officers fired by Trump’s Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, in the past year. She could not be reached for comment.)
When asked about the Navy’s contention that racing was approved by the DOD, Lupo said, “I’m not sure where that information comes from.”
Lupo said Trump played no role in authorizing the NASCAR races. She initially said the approval was granted in October 2025, after Trump took office, but later revised that statement saying the permission was granted in October 2024. She did not respond to subsequent requests for a copy of the authorizing letter or email.
Kevin Dixon, public affairs officer for Naval Base Coronado, said he does not know who in the U.S. government authorized auto racing on the base or who directed the Navy to accommodate NASCAR. Those decisions and instructions came out of the nation’s capital, Dixon said, as did any military contracts with NASCAR.
“Something this big would never start at the base,” he added. “…It came from Washington (D.C.) and it was, like, ‘Guys, let’s see what it takes to do this.’ It was pretty much a foregone conclusion by the time it reached us.”
The contract
Although Lupo said North Island racing was authorized under the Biden administration, the Navy contract was signed July 2 of 2025, six months after President Trump began his second term.
The contract, between NASCAR Event Management LLC and the Navy’s Fleet and Family Readiness command, is described as a “no-cost” agreement, meaning the Navy incurs no expenses.
NASCAR’s financial obligation is unclear. The company must pay for all race-related equipment, construction, services, ceremonies, transportation, tear-downs and other expenses. In addition, NASCAR is obliged to pay a “cash guarantee for concession and vendor sales.” But that price has been redacted from documents released to The Coronado News based on a Navy assertion that the amount of money owed to the U.S. government is confidential or a trade secret.
In addition to the concessionaire payment, NASCAR originally agreed to give the Navy 1,000 tickets for the event. In February, those terms were amended, granting the Navy 20,000 tickets to Military Day events on Friday, June 19; 4,500 tickets for Saturday racing; and 4,500 more for Sunday. (The combined value of those tickets was redacted.)
NASCAR also is required to give North Island a racing simulator system, and to conduct meet-and-greet sessions between 10 racing teams and Navy units on the base.
The general contract specifies that NASCAR will provide all food and merchandise – except alcohol — for concessionaires. The Morale, Welfare and Recreation command retains exclusive rights to sell alcoholic beverages, and to retain profits.
A “commercial sponsorship agreement” with NASCAR Event Promotions LLC authorizes more than three dozen premier event sponsors – companies such as Coca-Cola, Chevrolet, Goodyear and Anheuser-Busch.
Additional contracts were issued covering broadcasting, catering and the use of Navy property, but those agreements were not provided in response to a FOIA request.
What’s at North Island?
Coronado is home to 23 aviation squadrons and 230 aircraft. Three nuclear-powered aircraft carriers are based at North Island. Navy SEALs train there, and the base houses about 80 other commands, including the Fleet Readiness Center Southwest — San Diego’s largest aerospace employer.
Many of the units and operations involve top-secret national projects and technology, such as drones, electronic warfare weaponry and submersibles.
As a federal military installation, North Island is outside the jurisdiction of Coronado’s police and fire departments.
For many years, NASCAR was incorrectly touted as the most popular – or most watched — sport in America. Although live crowds were exceptional, overall viewership never compared with major American sports such as football, basketball and baseball.
Still, racing’s popularity prompted the Army to sponsor NASCAR driving teams, hoping to spur recruiting. That practice eventually was curtailed amid congressional criticism.
According to design plans released by NASCAR, the 2026 course in Coronado covers 3.4 miles with 16 turns. A computer-animated video shows race cars zipping past helicopters, alongside carriers, around runways and between Navy buildings. In a news release, race officials said grandstand seating and hospitality will be available throughout the circuit, “the longest course on NASCAR’s 2026 schedule.”
Collaboration between the military and NASCAR offers benefits to both. As spelled out in promotional materials, the Navy gets to “engage with the next generation of sailors, help build morale, bolster recruitment efforts and promote the Navy’s 250th anniversary.” At the same time, NASCAR gets a new venue and a PR boost.
Coronado businesses also are poised for rewards. The event will hit town at the peak of tourist season, when hotels and restaurants are mostly full, but NASCAR’s presence will likely jack up business.
In fact, while this would be the first NASCAR event at a military installation, it would not be the first time for auto racing at North Island. For almost two decades, vintage cars roared around the tarmac during the aforementioned Coronado Speed Festival, which closed down in 2017. Those crowd estimates peaked at about 25,000, and the Navy said racing did not impede base operations.
Base operations are sacrosanct
The Navy’s contract with NASCAR includes provisions to prioritize the base’s military functions in the event of a calamity – including race cancellations if necessary.
“The operational readiness of the Armed Forces will not be impaired,” says the agreement. “Unforeseen contingencies affecting national security or other emergency circumstances such as disaster relief may temporarily or permanently preclude the use of military resources.”
Additional passages establish security and vetting requirements for employees of NASCAR and its contractors; indemnify the Navy against lawsuits and property damage; and require NASCAR to obtain more than $55 million of insurance coverage.
Dixon, the public affairs officer, stressed that, while Naval Air Station North Island is a 365-day operation, military activities won’t be heavily impacted because most of the stock car events will be on a weekend when conflicts are limited. In any case, he added, NASCAR must work around Navy priorities.
“Our needs come first,” Dixon said. “We have an active base, and we have to do what we have to do (for national defense).”
Lupo said the three-day NASCAR event will attract 125,000 fans — 25,000 on Friday, plus 50,000 each on Saturday and Sunday.
That represents a temporary population explosion in a town of 19,000 residents, plus tourists and workers. But the island is accustomed to throngs, including an estimated 100,000 visitors each July 4 for Independence Day celebrations. Moreover, large public events have been held at other bases, including the annual air show at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, which draws about 700,000 spectators over three days.
Still, that kind of an influx on a Navy base poses security questions, especially at a time when the U.S. is at war with Iran. In March, the FBI warned California officials that it had received “unverified information” that Iran hoped to retaliate against the United States by launching a “surprise attack” using aerial drones launched from an unidentified vessel off the California coast.
Race preparations will generate an enormous amount of traffic and work to develop the race track, safety walls, grandstands, security fencing and other infrastructure. According to NASCAR, that effort involves the delivery of 1,300 truckloads of materials and equipment.
Lupo said racing at North Island will be an “open base event” and the Iran war has not prompted reconsideration or changes in planning. Guests will be allowed on base through security gates by presenting a NASCAR ticket and a government ID. There will be random vehicle inspections, she added, and visitors will have access only to racing-related areas.
“We’re calling it the ‘NASCAR bubble,’” Lupo said of security arrangements. “We’ll have a full fenced and secured perimeter around every piece of base that NASCAR is utilizing.”
Crowd control and safekeeping will include private contractors, Navy security, local law enforcement and up to 500 volunteers from Sports San Diego, according to Lupo. “Our security team at NASCAR and the Navy security team are in lock step,” she said, “and working to ensure that it’s going to be a safe event.”
Lupo declined to reveal financial details of the contract. However, she said NASCAR will pay an unspecified amount for security as well as constructing and deconstructing the track, grandstands and concessions.
Will the president be there?
It is unknown whether Trump will attend Coronado’s auto races, but he is a noteworthy fan of NASCAR.
At the 2020 Daytona 500, the president served as grand marshal, leading stock cars on a pre-race lap around the course. After last year’s race in Florida, he hosted winners at the White House.
Trump’s support of NASCAR has been warmly reciprocated. In 2016, Brian France — then chief executive officer of the racing organization – endorsed the Republican presidential nominee. In 2020, one Daytona event was dubbed the “Great American Race.” (Brian France stepped down as CEO after a drunk driving conviction in 2019; he was replaced by his nephew, Jim France.)
In December of 2024, NASCAR hired Craig Stimmel, a former vice president at World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), as its senior vice president and chief commercial officer.
The WWE is another professional sports entity that backed Trump, who is a member of the organization’s Hall of Fame. Linda McMahon, cofounder and former head of the wrestling enterprise, serves as chair of America First Action, a Super PAC that raised $189 million on behalf of Trump leading up to the 2020 elections. She co-chaired Trump’s transition team in 2024 and held a cabinet post in Trump’s first term as administrator over the Small Business Administration. She is currently the nation’s education secretary.
Eight months after NASCAR hired Stimmel, the race agreement in Coronado was made public.
One month later, Stimmel came out with another announcement: The military tech company known as Anduril Industries Inc. would be NASCAR’s “official defense partner” and a sponsor of the weekend in Coronado.
One of the races was promptly dubbed the Anduril 250, celebrating the Navy’s anniversary.
Lupo noted that Anduril is based in Southern California, so it made sense for the company to sign on as a sponsor. Anduril did not respond to an interview request.
A new military-industrial complex?
Since NASCAR racing in Coronado was announced, Anduril’s value has tripled from about $20 billion to $60 billion. By any measure, the corporation has emerged as a potent player in the development of U.S. armaments – and in the Trump administration.
Anduril’s primary business involves weaponry using artificial intelligence – surveillance technology, unmanned crafts and other “advanced autonomous systems.” In the conflict with Iran, the company reportedly has played a key role in combating Iranian drone attacks.
Anduril boasts numerous mega-deals with the Navy, including two signed this March: a $642 million agreement to produce counter-drone systems at Marine Corps bases nationwide, and a contract with an unspecified price tag to build large, uncrewed submarines. That same month, Anduril was selected by the Army for a $20 billion counter-drone project using artificial intelligence.
According to ABC News, Donald Trump Jr.’s investment firm, 1789 Capital, is among those with major stakes in Anduril Industries. The Daily Beast reported that Joshua Kushner, a brother of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, is also heavily invested in Anduril.
Anduril was started by a pair of tech billionaires, Trae Stephens and Palmer Luckey, who have been major donors to the current president.
Stephens was on Trump’s transition team in 2016, overseeing changes at the Department of Defense. A year later, he cofounded Anduril and the corporation began seeking military contracts. He is now executive chairman.
Stephens served as a Trump campaign consultant in 2024 and, according to Fortune magazine, was considered for a post as deputy secretary of defense, the No. 2 position in U.S. military leadership. He reportedly advised Trump on how to upgrade the Department of War.
Luckey was among the first tech kingpins to support Trump.
Another tech billionaire, Peter Thiel, helped get Anduril started through an investment entity known as Founders Fund, which also counts Stephens as a partner.
In 2016, Thiel was a headline speaker at the Republican National Convention. He then served on the executive committee for President Trump’s first transition.
Thiel also was an early investor in Space X and several other companies founded by the billionaire Elon Musk, who contributed more than $250 million to Trump’s campaign and last year directed the president’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
J.D. Vance, who has described Thiel as a mentor, invested in Anduril through his own entity, Narya Capital, before becoming vice president. Vance had worked for Thiel as a partner at another investment enterprise, Mithril Capital, and was introduced to Trump by Thiel according to Forbes.
Inquiries to Anduril went unanswered.
Lord of the Rings?
In May, Anduril formed a partnership with an older company, Palantir Technologies, which develops artificial intelligence and has secured huge contracts with U.S. government agencies and the military.
If many of these corporate names seem oddly familiar, it is not mere happenstance: Anduril, Palantir, Narya, Mithril and other businesses in this network derive their monikers from magical features in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. (For more on this, see sidebar.)
Palantir was co-founded in 2003 by Thiel and others with seed funding from a CIA corporation known as In-Q-Tel. Thiel is Palantir’s board chairman.
Palantir specializes in data analytics. One of its software products boasts of an ability to “achieve AI-driven combat superiority, from space to mud.”The company claims to be reshaping modern warfare in an AI mode, and its technology has been described as the “core backbone” of Israeli and U.S. targeting in the Iran war.
Domestically, the company’s AI systems gather, merge, track and analyze information about people, using databases from agencies such as ICE, the FBI and the DOD. Palantir technology, for example, is currently used by ICE agents to identify and catch undocumented immigrants.
In May, Trump signed an executive order requiring federal agencies to share data with one another. According to the New York Times, Palantir was selected to coordinate those efforts, creating a potential master file of personal information on Americans “that could give (the president) untold surveillance power.”
“Palantir’s selection as a chief vendor for the project was driven by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, according to the government officials,” the Times reported.
According to the Times, in the year after Trump’s second presidential election victory Palantir stock value rose 240% — peaking at $490 billion. A Wall Street Journal analysis concluded that no company had ever reached that valuation so quickly. As of late May, Palantir’s enterprise value was listed at $320 billion – up 2000% in three years.
Last year, Palantir was a sponsor for the president’s military parade honoring the Army’s 250th anniversary. In May, according to CNBC, Trump acquired hundreds of thousands of dollars in Palantir stock shortly before the president put a post on Truth Social praising the corporation for its “great war-fighting capabilities and equipment.” A Trump Organization representative said the president’s investment holdings are independently managed by third-party financial institutions.”
While the corporations with Tolkien-derived names already have taken in billions of American tax dollars, they are pursuing much more.
Earlier this year, Anduril and Palantir formed a “consortium” with Musk’s Space X to develop components of the so-called Golden Dome, a Trump project that theoretically would use satellite and AI technology to protect the United States from nuclear attacks. The dome’s projected price tag varies dramatically, depending on who makes the estimate: $175 billion (Trump), $542 billion (Congressional Budget Office) or $3.6 trillion (American Enterprise Institute).
On Oct. 31, Space X was awarded the first contract – for $2 billion. Reuters reported that executives from Anduril, SpaceX and Palantir met with top officials in the Trump administration and Pentagon to pitch plans that would launch up to 1,000 satellites into space as an anti-missile detection system. Another 200 armed satellites would be deployed to take down enemy missiles.
In early June, Trump signed an executive order promoting AI for national security. About the same time, he reportedly began considering Palantir’s chief technology officer, Shyam Sankar, to head the nation’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
The Tolkien network’s reach
Because the Navy secretary’s office has declined to provide records or clarify the genesis of NASCAR events at North Island, it is impossible to say what role, if any, the president or military-industrial companies played in bringing stock car racing to Coronado.
But, as engines roar around the Navy base and war continues in the Middle East, Anduril Industries – and, by association, its partners — will play a prominent role in both venues.
Lupo, the NASCAR San Diego president, said advance ticket sales have been “incredibly strong,” with purchasers from 17 countries as of early April.
She added that NASCAR is excited to be working with Coronado residents and businesses, as well as the Navy.
The company has established a “Checkered Flag Challenge” for homeowners to put up lawn signs, and for local shops to participate in racing specials and promotions.
