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Upcoming Braves vs. Reds Speedway Classic matchup is already breaking records

Eric Cole
Eric Cole

House That Hank Built

Construction of the baseball field in progress during a media event at Bristol Motor Speedway on June 24, 2025, ahead of the MLB Speedway Classic game between the Atlanta Braves and the Cincinnati Reds held at the racetrack. / Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

MLB has been diligent in recent years to try and expand baseball's fan base and reach audiences that normally don't follow along. Some of that has been on the international side as the league has played games in Tokyo, Seoul, Mexico City, and Monterrey. However, MLB is also looking to expand the game's appeal within the US and the 2025 Speedway Classic featuring the Atlanta Braves taking on the Reds might be the most successful example by the numbers.

For those that are somehow unaware, the Speedway Classic is a game that will happen on August 2 on a field that the league has built inside of Bristol Motor Speedway. Interest in the game has been exceedingly high since it was announced, but most observers probably didn't expect the game to break attendance.

However, that is exactly what has happened as, by tickets actually sold, will be the highest attended baseball game in baseball history. The previous mark was 84,587 from a matchup between the Yankees and Indians.

Braves' Speedway Classic matchup poised to claim all-time attendance record

While it will be weird to see a major league game take place on a temporary field built inside a race track, there are some perks to playing at Bristol. Bristol Motor Speedway has a capacity, under normal conditions, of 146,000 people and with the level of interest in this game, having that added capacity is going to help out.

Of note, there is some debate as to what the actual attendance record is, but this is the official number of paid attendance that MLB uses. Back in March 2008, 115,300 people watched the Red Sox and Dodgers play an exhibition game at the Los Angeles Coliseum, but this game could rival that with several days before the game.

This isn't the first time the Braves have been involved in a special MLB game. Back in 2016, Atlanta participated in the Fort Bragg Game against the Marlins, though the 12,582 in attendance due to a much smaller venue on a military base is going to be dwarfed by what we see at Bristol this coming weekend.

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Eric Cole

Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.