Texas Motor Speedway president Eddie Gossage has backed the inclusion of NASCAR's big names in the Nationwide Series field next season, providing a promoter's perspective on the debate currently raging within the sport.

While the likes of Carl Edwards, Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr bring in the crowds for the second tier series, organisers are pondering whether to exclude them and make the soon-to-be-renamed series a true pot in which to develop talent for the senior Cup competition. This year's top ten - the last to run under the Busch Series banner - contained five full-time Cup drivers, including champion Edwards, and five 'juniors', the advent of a new backer is being seen as appropriate time to reconsider the series' role on the NASCAR ladder.

“The debate over Sprint Cup drivers running in the Nationwide Series reminds me of seeing a young Bruce Springsteen with fewer than 1000 other people years ago," Gossage said, adding his views to the mix, "He hadn't made a name for himself yet. If the Nationwide Series wants to run in front of big crowds, on national television and run for big purses, you have to have names people recognise and want to see.

“There was a time when drivers like Bobby Labonte, Dale Jarrett and Jeff Burton were racing in Nationwide Series events with stands capable of holding 8000 people and paying total purses of $100,000. They were learning their craft while making their name. In recent years, drivers like Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex Jr and Brian Vickers have done the same by succeeding in the Nationwide Series en route to the Cup Series. It's not easy [and] it's not supposed to be, but they proved it can be done.

“The people in the Nationwide Series need to decide if they want to be a major league series like they are now, or go back to being a minor league series. If they want to be major league, they have to have names that will cause people to buy tickets and television networks to broadcast their races. The result of that is getting an estimated 100,000-plus fans and purses in excess of $1.2 million for both the O'Reilly Nationwide Series events at Texas Motor Speedway. Otherwise, they have to go back to 6000-8000 seat speedways and run for $100,000.”