So, what's the reason for this counterintuitive decline in the stock after such solid earnings numbers? Well, you can blame it on Lowe's (NYSE: LOW).

On the same day as TRK reported earnings, the home improvement retailer announced that it would be withdrawing its 2010 sponsorship of the Lowe's Motor Speedway near Charlotte, North Carolina. The soon-to-be former Lowe's Motor Speedway is the crown jewel in the Speedway Motorsports bevy of owned and operated racing venues.

While the immediate fiscal impact on Speedway Motorsports is yet to be determined, Wall Street certainly viewed the loss of a giant sponsor as a big negative for the shares.

And while Speedway Motorsports doesn't rely solely on any single venue to generate revenues (the company owns and operates many other venues such as the Atlanta Motor Speedway, Bristol Motor Speedway, Infineon Raceway, Kentucky Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and Texas Motor Speedway), the loss of such a high-profile sponsor as Lowe's does not augur well for the future health of companies in the space.

Last month, Speedway Motorsports' biggest rival, International Speedway Corp. (NASDAQ: ISCA), reported earnings that were in line with analyst expectations. Those solid earnings were welcome news for those of us addicted to all forms of motor racing, as well as investors who take their portfolio to the racetrack.

Unfortunately, Thursday's news of Lowe's pullout has put a damper on my hitherto positive assessment of the sector.

Before putting any money to work in either TRK or ISCA, I say wait and see if another big-name company steps in where Lowe's left off. When the corporate sponsors start to come back, that's when it will be time to leave pit lane and re-enter the speedway.

Jim Woods is a Contributing Editor for InvestorPlace.com.