Oval track racing is a form of motorsport that is contested on an oval-shaped race track . An oval track differs from a road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, and the direction of traffic is almost universally counter-clockwise. Oval tracks are dedicated motorsport circuits, used predominantly in the United States. They often have banked turns and some, despite the name, are not precisely oval, and the shape of the track can vary.
153-719: Bristol Motor Speedway (formerly known as the Bristol International Raceway from 1978 to 1996 and as the Bristol International Speedway from 1961 to 1978) is a 0.533-mile (0.858 km) oval short track in Bristol, Tennessee . The track has held a variety of events since its opening in 1961, including NASCAR races, NCAA FBS college football games, and sprint car races. The track has been owned by Speedway Motorsports, LLC (SMI) since 1996 with Jerry Caldwell currently serving as
306-403: A " roval " (a blend word combining "road course" and "oval") is an oval track racing facility that features a road course in the infield (and/or outfield), that is usually linked to the oval circuit. This type of course makes for a multi-purpose track, and allows the facility to be used for both oval and road racing. A typical combined road course consists of the oval portion of the track, using
459-454: A $ 500,000 repave of the track was announced that was completed the next month. To Carrier's ire, the new surface saw increased tire wear, which Carrier blamed on how the track was resurfaced. In lieu of Carrier's anger of the new surface, he announced another repave in May 1989. The surface received complaints by drivers for the surface being too rough and bumpy. By the fall of 1991, Carrier announced
612-510: A 1/8 mile version. Perhaps the most unusual concentric oval facility is Dover Speedway- Dover Downs . The one-mile oval track encompasses a 0.625-mile harness racing track inside. Oval tracks usually have slope in both straight and in curves, but the slope on the straights is less, circuits without any slope are rare to find, low-slope are usually old or small tracks, high gradient are more common in new circuits. Circuits like Milwaukee Mile and Indianapolis Motor Speedway have 9° banking in
765-507: A 4.1-mile (6.6 km) course, consisting of a 1.5–2.0-mile (2.4–3.2 km) stretch of beach as one straightaway, and a narrow blacktop beachfront highway, State Road A1A , as the other. The two straights were connected by two tight, deeply rutted and sand covered turns at each end. Stock car racing in the United States has its origins in bootlegging during Prohibition , when drivers ran bootleg whiskey made primarily in
918-626: A 500-lap or 400-lap distance. Short tracks in many cases have lights installed and routinely host night races. The short ovals still form the backbone of NASCAR in the feeder series. Three race tracks of this type are also represented in the Cup: Bristol, Martinsville and Richmond. Tracks with potential for future cup races are the Iowa Speedway built in 2006, the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway used until 1984 in
1071-583: A bit different from the cars seen in America, being more akin to a late model , though steel tube-framed silhouette bodies powered by V8 engines is still the norm. In December 2006, NASCAR also announced the creation of a new series in Mexico, the NASCAR Corona Series (now Mexico Series), replacing the existing Desafío Corona Series, to begin in 2007. In 2004, NASCAR also began to sanction
1224-628: A car's worth by driving it from New York to Los Angeles. After his death, the famous transcontinental race the ' Cannonball Run ' and the film that was inspired by it were both named in his honor. Baker is enshrined in the Automotive Hall of Fame , the Motorcycle Hall of Fame , and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame. This level of honor and success in each diverse racing association earned Baker
1377-422: A concentric 1/4-mile oval layout. The 1/4-mile layout became a popular venue for legends car racing . The name "legends oval" was derived from this use. They have also seen use with go-karts, short track stock cars, and other lower disciplines. This idea was adopted by numerous tracks including Texas Motor Speedway, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Kentucky Speedway , Las Vegas Motor Speedway , and Iowa Speedway which has
1530-579: A football stadium and field. On January 17, 1961, local Tennessean recreational conglomerate businessman Larry Carrier announced his intentions of building a racetrack in Bristol, expanding his recreational conglomerate within the Tri-Cities, Tennessee , area. The track was constructed with no major issues, and opened in July of that same year for a speed record run. Carrier ran the track until 1977, when it
1683-480: A full season in NASCAR Xfinity Series competition. These include Kurt Busch and Carl Edwards (who both ran for Roush Racing ). In addition, veteran drivers who have had only moderate success at the other two levels of the sport have revitalized their careers in the truck series, including Ron Hornaday Jr. , Todd Bodine , Mike Skinner , and Johnny Benson . Beginning in 2009, the series became
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#17327837893431836-572: A full-time basis. Kevin Harvick was the first Cup series driver to compete full-time in the Busch Series and win a title, actually doing so twice; in 2001, he did this for Richard Childress Racing but only did so out of necessity as Dale Earnhardt 's death forced him into the Cup series ahead of RCR's intended schedule for him. His win in 2006, where he raced three cars for RCR and his race team ,
1989-498: A lap, plus the driver who leads the most laps. Another significant change involves the qualifying process for the Chase. The number of qualifying drivers will remain at 12, but only the top 10 will qualify solely on regular-season points. The remaining two Chase drivers will be the two drivers in the next 10 of the point standings (11th through 20th) with the most race wins in the regular season. In 2014, NASCAR announced another revamp to
2142-405: A length of one mile or more. Since the introduction of the intermediate oval, Superspeedway is an oval race course of 2 miles or longer. There are six active superspeedways in the United States, the most famous being Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Daytona International Speedway , both 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. These tracks were built in 1909 and 1959 respectively. Indianapolis Motor Speedway
2295-496: A light rain. Some tracks (e.g., Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, WA) have "rain or shine" rules requiring races to be run in the rain. Safety has also been a point of difference between the two. While a road course usually has abundant run-off areas , gravel traps, and tire barriers, oval tracks usually have a concrete retaining wall separating the track from the fans. Innovations have been made to change this, however. The SAFER barrier
2448-529: A local recreation conglomerate within the Tri-Cities, Tennessee , area, wanted to build a race track. He drew up initial plans to build a track in Piney Flats, Tennessee , using land his real-estate agent father had bought. However, the plan was rejected by local ministers in the area. Carrier instead opted to build the track five miles south on land formerly used as a dairy farm. Carrier, with later assistance from R. G. Pope and Carl R. Moore, drew up ideas for
2601-445: A lot of oval tracks, which neither have a classical geometric shape nor still represent a modern tri-oval in the strict sense. While these courses still technically fall under the category of ovals, their unique shape, flat corners, hard braking zones, or increased difficulty, often produces driving characteristics similar to those of a road course. Some facilities feature several ovals track of different sizes, often sharing part of
2754-575: A mini stock racing series in Mexico, known as the Mexico T4 Series. In early 2012, NASCAR announced that it would sanction the existing European-based Racecar Euro Series as a "NASCAR Touring Series". On July 1, 2013, with partnership from NASCAR Whelen Engineering , the series was renamed the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. In addition to the six main national series, NASCAR operates several other racing divisions under
2907-452: A new 5,000-seat grandstand and new concrete walls. The track throughout the 1980s saw increases in popularity and continued sellouts for the track, with the success of the track being remarked as "unprecedented in NASCAR racing" by The Charlotte Observer writer Tom Higgins. By the end of the decade, sellouts were guaranteed for the track months before the track's races occurred, along with
3060-449: A notable exception. Many 1-mile dirt ovals were used by stock cars or champ cars before race tracks with dirt surfaces were removed from the racing calendar in the early 1970s. Many of these racetracks got the nickname "Fairgrounds” — for example Arizona State Fairgrounds , California State Fairgrounds and Michigan State Fairgrounds Speedway . The origin of these racetracks was in harness racing , which commonly used 1-mile tracks. Also,
3213-596: A point-fund money payout and even more goes to the National champion (driver with most points out of the four division winners). The Whelen All-American Series is the base for stock car racing, developing NASCAR names such as Clint Bowyer , Jimmy Spencer , Tony Stewart , the Bodine brothers, and many others along the way. The Whelen Modified Tour races open-wheel "modified" cars in Northern and Southern divisions. This
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#17327837893433366-437: A portion of the complex were denied by Carrier, with Carrier claiming that he was planning to buy out National Raceways, Hodgdon's company that owned the Bristol track. At the end of January 1986, Carrier's purchase was officially confirmed, paying $ 4.5–5 million for the company. Carrier also announced the sale of the dragstrip to Ruth to finance Carrier's purchase. With his purchase, Carrier announced further renovations, including
3519-463: A relationship with Bob Barkhimer and his partner, Margo Burke. He went to events with them, stayed weekends with them and generally became very familiar with racing on the west coast. "Barky", as he was called by his friends, journeyed to Daytona Beach and met with Bill France Sr. In the spring of 1954, NASCAR became a stock car sanctioning body on the Pacific Coast under Barky. Wendell Scott
3672-574: A result of that sponsorship, the Grand National Series became known as the Winston Cup Series starting in 1971, with a new points system and some significant cash benefits to compete for championship points. In 1972, the season was shortened from 48 races (including two on dirt tracks ) to 31. 1972 is often acknowledged as the beginning of NASCAR's "modern era". The next competitive level, called Late Model Sportsman, gained
3825-405: A road course, there are many different lines that can work on an oval track. The preferred line depends on many factors including track conditions, car set-up, and traffic. The oval track driver must choose which line to use each time they approach a corner. On a short track in a 25-lap feature race, a driver might not run any two laps with the same line. Both types of racing place physical demands on
3978-410: A row by Cale Yarborough in the late 1970s, the only other time when a driver has won three or more NASCAR Cup Series championships in a row. The Cup Series had its first title sponsor in 1972. R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company , which had been banned from television advertising , found a popular and demographically suitable consumer base in NASCAR fans and engaged NASCAR as a promotional outlet. As
4131-478: A season, along with the pre-season Clash and mid-season All-Star race. NASCAR runs races primarily on ovals , including superspeedways, short tracks, and dirt tracks , but also road courses and street circuits . Richard Petty holds the Cup Series wins record with 200. He is tied with Dale Earnhardt and Jimmie Johnson for the championship record, with seven each. Entering the 2025 season , Joey Logano
4284-598: A series of meetings held at the Streamline Hotel in Florida, beginning on December 14, 1947. At 1:00 pm, France called to order the 35 men who represented the NCSCC on the top floor of the hotel. The meeting was the first of four seminars in which France would outline his vision of an organized group of race car drivers. The name originally chosen for the series was National Stock Car Racing Association ; when it
4437-417: A single accident. This type of accident is often called " The Big One ". Oval track racing requires different tactics than road racing. While the driver does not have to shift gears nearly as frequently, brake as heavily or as often, or deal with turns of various radii in both directions as in road racing, drivers are still challenged by negotiating the track. Where there is generally one preferred line around
4590-461: A stand-alone road course layout(s) in the infield not directly linked to the oval layout, or otherwise using only a short portion of the oval. Combined road courses combine the high speed characteristics of ovals with the technical precision of road courses . It allows road racing disciplines the unique experience of being held in the stadium style atmosphere of an oval superspeedway. Numerous combined road courses saw widespread use with sports cars in
4743-709: A taste for moonshine , and a number of the drivers continued "runnin' shine", this time evading the "revenuers" who were attempting to tax their operations. The cars continued to improve, and by the late 1940s, races featuring these cars were being run for pride and profit. These races were popular entertainment in the rural Southern United States, and they are most closely associated with the Wilkes County region of North Carolina . Most races in those days were of modified cars. Street vehicles were lightened and reinforced. Mechanic William France Sr. , moved to Daytona Beach, Florida, from Washington, D.C., in 1935 to escape
Bristol Motor Speedway - Misplaced Pages Continue
4896-443: A third repave. The surface still oversaw more complaints for being too bumpy, and after the 1992 Food City 500 , Carrier announced another complete repave of the track. This time, Carrier opted to pave the surface in concrete instead of asphalt, which was what the track had been using since its inception. The repave was completed in July of that year. Despite Carrier stating at the start of the 1990s that he had no intention of selling
5049-629: A traction compound, on the track's lower groove in an attempt to artificially create multi-groove racing. Since 1961, the track has run two annual NASCAR Cup Series races: the Southeastern 500 and the Volunteer 500 (known as the Food City 500 and Bass Pro Shops Night Race for sponsorship reasons, respectively). The former was first run on October 22, 1961. In 2020, in an attempt to reverse declines in attendance, track officials announced that
5202-544: A young Bill France placed 5th at the end of the day. By early 1947, Bill France saw the potential for a unified series of racing competitors. France announced the foundation of the "National Championship Stock Car Circuit", otherwise known as NCSCC. France approached the American Automobile Association , or AAA, in hopes of obtaining financial backing for the venture. When the AAA declined support of
5355-554: Is Cole Custer in 2023. The modern incarnation of this series began in 1982, with sponsorship by Anheuser-Busch Brewing 's Budweiser brand. In 1984 it was renamed to the Busch Grand National Series, then later just the Busch Series. The Anheuser-Busch sponsorship expired at the end of 2007, being replaced by Nationwide Insurance from 2008 to 2014, and the series is now sponsored by Comcast through its Xfinity brand. The season usually has fewer races than
5508-581: Is NASCAR's oldest division, and the modern division has been operating since 1985 as the Winston Modified Series and later in 1994 as the Featherlite Trailers Modified Series. The ARCA Menards Series ' feeder divisions, which consists of East and West divisions, race pro-stock cars that are similar to older Xfinity Series cars, although they are less powerful. The east division was originally divided into
5661-467: Is a phenomenon found on fast, high-banked superspeedways. It occurs when the vehicles racing are cornering at their limit of aerodynamic drag , but within their limit of traction . This allows drivers to race around the track constantly at wide open throttle . Since the vehicles are within their limit of traction, drafting through corners will not hinder a vehicle's performance. As cars running together are faster than cars running individually, all cars in
5814-451: Is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing . It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in the world and is one of the largest spectator sports leagues in America. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and his son, Jim France , has been the CEO since August 2018. The company
5967-692: Is headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida . Each year, NASCAR sanctions over 1,500 races at over 100 tracks in 48 US states, as well as in Canada, Mexico, Brazil and Europe. NASCAR, and stock car racing as a whole, traces its roots back to moonshine runners during Prohibition , who grew to compete against each other in a show of pride. This happened notably in North Carolina. In 1935, Bill France Sr. established races in Daytona Beach, with
6120-563: Is primarily a Midwestern United States series. NASCAR acquired the series on April 27, 2018 after being privately owned for 60 years. The NASCAR Canada Series is a NASCAR racing series in Canada that derives from the old CASCAR Super Series (founded in 1981 and bought out by NASCAR in 2006). The new series has races through six of Canada's provinces for a total of 13 events with TV coverage on TSN . Many drivers are content running in Canada while others move up to bigger NASCAR series including J. R. Fitzpatrick and D. J. Kennington . The cars are
6273-610: Is scheduled to continue as planned. The series was renamed again in 2020 to the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series before returning to the Camping World Truck Series name in 2021. On August 26, 2022 it was announced that the original series' sponsor, Craftsman, would return as the title sponsor starting in the 2023 season. The ARCA Menards Series is a racing series that races at big touring series tracks and local racing series tracks. It
Bristol Motor Speedway - Misplaced Pages Continue
6426-560: Is the Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama . Built in 1969, it is 2.66 miles (4.28 kilometers) long, and holds the current record for fastest speed in a stock car, lapping at an average of 216.309 mph (348.116 km/h) and reaching 228 mph (367 km/h) at the end of the backstretch. Daytona and Talladega are the pinnacle of stock car superspeedway racing, where restrictor plates are mandated by
6579-491: Is the defending Cup Series champion. In the 1920s and 1930s, Daytona Beach supplanted France and Belgium as the preferred location for world land speed records . After a historic race between Ransom Olds and Alexander Winton in 1903, 15 records were set on what became the Daytona Beach Road Course between 1905 and 1935. Daytona Beach had become synonymous with fast cars in 1936. Drivers raced on
6732-587: Is the predominant form of auto racing in the United States. According to the 2013 National Speedway Directory, the total number of oval tracks, drag strips and road courses in the United States is 1,262, with 901 of those being oval tracks and 683 of those being dirt tracks. Among the most famous oval tracks in North America are the Indianapolis Motor Speedway , Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway . Pack racing
6885-449: Is very common as vehicles may travel two and three abreast. This forces drivers to use strong mental discipline in negotiating traffic. There are drawbacks, however. Should an accident occur at the front of the pack, the results could block the track in a short amount of time. This leaves drivers at the back of the pack with little time to react and little room to maneuver. The results are often catastrophic as numerous cars may be destroyed in
7038-682: The MotoGP races were run counter-clockwise, with some reconfigured corners to fix corner apex problems. Michigan was also an example of a clockwise combined road course. Another example is the Adelaide International Raceway in Australia which combines a 2.41 km (1.50 mi) road course with an 0.805 km (0.500 mi) speedway bowl. The Bowl forms a permanent part of the road course and also runs clockwise. At many tracks, multiple configurations are available for
7191-551: The 1968 United States presidential election . In 2021, YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson, known by his alias MrBeast , held a game of tag between 10 people at the track with a purse of $ 500,000 given to the winner. As of September 2024, the fastest official race lap records at Bristol Motor Speedway are listed as: Oval track racing#Short track Major forms of oval track racing include stock car racing , open-wheel racing , sprint car racing , modified car racing , midget car racing and dirt track motorcycles . Oval track racing
7344-548: The 24 Hours of Daytona . Since 2018, NASCAR has held the Bank of America Roval 400 on a combined course at Charlotte . In some rare examples, the combined road course layout is run in the opposite direction to the oval circuit. For instance, at Indianapolis the oval is run counter-clockwise, but the combined road course used during the IndyCar Series Grand Prix of Indianapolis is run clockwise. However
7497-536: The Appalachian region of the United States. Bootleggers needed to distribute their illicit products, and they typically used small, fast vehicles to better evade the police. Many of the drivers would modify their cars for speed and handling, as well as increased cargo capacity. The repeal of Prohibition in 1933 dried up some of their business, but by then the people of the American South had developed
7650-485: The Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds on August 2, 2025, which will be the first regular-season MLB game played in the state of Tennessee . The track on numerous occasions has served as a facility to assist the general public in a variety of situations. In 2002, the track acted as a temporary high school for students at Sullivan East High School when their school was closed due to a black mold infection. In
7803-791: The Camping World Truck Series. In 2019, per a branding request made by Camping World, the series was rebranded as the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series. As noted previously, the Chase format was extended to the Truck Series in 2016. The format is identical to that used in the Xfinity Series, except that only eight drivers qualify for the Chase (instead of 12 in the Xfinity Series) and only two drivers are eliminated at
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#17327837893437956-482: The Great Depression . He was familiar with the history of the area from the land speed record attempts. France entered the 1936 Daytona event, finishing fifth. He took over running the course in 1938. He promoted a few races before World War II. France had the notion that people would enjoy watching stock cars race. Drivers were frequently victimized by unscrupulous promoters who would leave events with all
8109-518: The Knoxville News Sentinel reported the track had a capacity of 21,000, a press box, around 10,000 parking spaces, and shower rooms upon a 120-acre facility. The track has since seen mass expansion during the ownerships of Larry Carrier and Speedway Motorsports, LLC (SMI). As of 2024, the facility features a capacity of 146,000, down from its peak of 162,000. The facility also features a 30-by-63 foot television screen that hangs over
8262-751: The Virginia Tech Hokies , to take place in 2016. The game took place on September 10, with the Volunteers winning. A week after the Battle at Bristol, the track played host to another football game, this time a for NCAA Division I FCS game between the East Tennessee State Buccaneers and the Western Carolina Catamounts . Bristol Motor Speedway will host a Major League Baseball game between
8415-634: The roadsters , which fans perceived as a Northeast or Midwest series. The roadster division was quickly abandoned, while the modified division now operates as the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour . The Strictly Stock division was put on hold as American automobile manufacturers were unable to produce family sedans quickly enough to keep up with post-World War II demand. The 1948 schedule featured 52 Modified dirt track races . The sanctioning body hosted its first event at Daytona Beach on February 15, 1948. Red Byron beat Marshall Teague in
8568-682: The "Grand National" title passed down from the top division and soon found a sponsor in Busch Beer . In 2004, Nextel Communications took over sponsorship of the premier series, and formally renamed it the Nextel Cup Series. A new championship points system, the " Chase for the Nextel Cup ," (renamed "Chase for the Sprint Cup" in 2008) was also developed, which reset the point standings with ten races to go, making only drivers in
8721-479: The 16 participating in the Cup Series Chase. Four drivers are eliminated at the end of each preliminary round of the Chase in the Xfinity Series, which also mirrors the Cup Series Chase. This means that four drivers are eligible for the series title entering the final race, as in the Cup Series. Similar to Cup, starting in 2017 "The Chase" moniker was dropped and the final seven races are now referred to as
8874-424: The 1970s and early 1980s. However, their use at the professional level has since diminished considerably, since most layouts lacked the desirable topography and competitive challenges of natural road courses. In addition, most combined road course circuits offer poor sightlines for fans sitting in the grandstands. Oftentimes the challenging infield portion is obscured or not visible at all from the grandstands that line
9027-867: The 2000s were of this type. These include the Chicago Motor Speedway and the Walt Disney World Speedway , which were built during the 1990s construction boom but used for only four years. The historic Nazareth Speedway , which was paved in 1986, was completely abandoned after the 2004 season. Physically, many mile oval still exist such as the Rockingham Speedway and the Pikes Peak International Raceway . However, these racetracks have not been used by nationally important motorsports events for years. There are only three 1-mile tracks left on
9180-461: The 2011 season, drivers would be allowed to compete for the championship in only one of NASCAR's three national series in a given season, although they could continue to run in multiple series. This change was officially confirmed by France in a press conference less than two weeks later, and has remained in the NASCAR rules ever since. Beginning in 2010, the Nationwide cars adapted somewhat to
9333-764: The Busch North series, which raced in Northeastern states, and the Busch East Series, which raced throughout Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states. The west division was originally known as the Winston West Series and raced throughout Southwestern and Coastal Pacific states. In 2008, the series came together in east and west divisions under sponsorship from Camping World as the Camping World Series. K&N Filters took over
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#17327837893439486-441: The Chase format, expanding the Chase pool to 16 drivers, and eliminating four drivers after every three races, leaving four drivers to compete for the championship at the season finale at Homestead . In addition, wins were given an increased emphasis, with the 16 drivers with the most wins (15 if the points leader is winless; points leader will receive an automatic berth) gaining a spot in the chase. If there are fewer than 16 winners,
9639-483: The Cup Series, and the prize money is significantly lower. However, over the last several years, a number of Cup Series drivers have run both the Xfinity and Cup Series events each weekend, using the Xfinity race as a warm-up to the Cup event at the same facility. Furthermore, several drivers not only participated in both Cup and Busch/Nationwide/Xfinity events on the same weekend but also began to compete in both series on
9792-573: The Cup, and the Memphis Motorsports Park, which had races of the Busch Series back then until the 2000s. The Auto Club Speedway is to be converted from a 2-mile super speedway to a 1/2 mile short track in 2024. Synonymous with the name, a 1-mile (1.61 km) oval is a popular and common length for oval track racing. The exact measurements, however, can vary by as much as a tenth of a mile and still fall into this category. Most mile ovals are relatively flat-banked, with Dover being
9945-682: The Modified division race. Byron won the 1948 national championship. Things had changed dramatically by 1949, and the Strictly Stock division was able to debut with a 20-mile (32 km) exhibition in February near Miami. The first NASCAR "Strictly Stock" race ever was held at Charlotte Speedway , although this is not the same track as the Charlotte Motor Speedway that is a fixture on current NASCAR schedule. The race
10098-483: The NASCAR Regional banner. Many local race tracks across the United States and Canada run under the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series banner, where local drivers are compared against each other in a formula where the best local track champion of the nation wins the Whelen All-American Weekly Series National Championship. The Whelen All-American series is split into four car divisions as well as state and track championships separately. Each division champion receives
10251-404: The NASCAR racing calendar: Phoenix, Loudon, and Dover. IndyCar only returned to 1-mile oval racing with the addition of the Milwaukee Mile in 2024 after 9 years of it being off the schedule. Also referred to with the general term of "speedway", these courses are 1 to 2 miles (1.6 to 3.2 km) in length, but the term is particularly reserved for 1.5-mile (2.4 km) tracks. At the beginning of
10404-424: The NCS and the ambiguous use of "NASCAR" as a synonym for the series is common. The 2023 NCS Champion is Ryan Blaney . The record for most championships is 7, held by three drivers: Richard Petty , Dale Earnhardt , and Jimmie Johnson . Johnson has the record for most consecutive with five consecutive Cup Series drivers' championships from 2006 to 2010. Previously, the most consecutive championships had been three in
10557-401: The Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles after a failed attempt by Marshall to hold the game at the Charlotte Motor Speedway . The track was met with optimism throughout Tennessee and with sports personalities. The track was praised for its layout and amenities by team owner Bud Moore , driver Cotton Owens , and Redskins public relations director Dave Slattery. The Governor of Tennessee at
10710-443: The US was in Canada, where on July 1, 1952, Buddy Shuman won a 200-lap race on a half-mile (800 m) dirt track in Stamford Park, Ontario , near Niagara Falls . The NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) is the sport's highest level of professional competition. It is consequently the most popular and most profitable NASCAR series. Since 2001, the Cup Series season has consisted of 36 races over 10 months. Writers and fans often use "Cup" to refer to
10863-404: The United States. Bristol Motor Speedway (BMS) in its current form is measured at 0.533 miles (0.858 km), with the track's turns ranging from 24 degrees to 30 degrees in banking. The straightaways are banked at four degrees at the bottom and progresses up to 9 degrees at the top. When the track was initially constructed, the track had 27 degrees of banking. Before 2007, the track marketed that
11016-476: The Xfinity Playoffs. Even with restrictions limiting points earnings to one national series, Cup drivers were still running and winning a vast majority of Xfinity series races through 2015. Starting with the 2015 season finale, NASCAR began to add additional restrictions in regards to Cup drivers running Xfinity races. Beginning in the 2020 season, Cup drivers with more than three years of experience in
11169-469: The association's headquarters at the track. By the mid-1970s, Carrier wanted to focus more on his drag racing endeavors with the IHRA. On November 2, 1977, Carrier announced the sale of the track to Nashville businessmen Lanny Hester and Gary Baker for $ 1 million. At the time of the duo's purchase, the track had seen stagnating attendance, which the duo attributed to shortening its NASCAR races to 400 laps. Upon
11322-408: The back straight of the oval. As they are separate tracks, this creates a unique situation where different races can actually be run on both the oval and the full road course at the same time. Also unique is that unlike most combined circuits which use the oval track's start/finish line and pits, in the case of Calder Park it is the road course start/finish line and pits that are used. This configuration
11475-500: The biggest charlatans I had ever encountered", sharing sentiments with Gossage, who both left soon after Hodgdon bought the track. By the end of 1984, Hodgdon faced a litany of legal issues. In November, The Tennessean ' s Larry Woody reported that Hodgdon was facing accusations of bid rigging in his home state of California along with his company, the National Engineering Company, facing bankruptcy. By
11628-481: The capacity of the track to 50,000. In May 1982, Baker and Hodgdon also purchased the dragstrip from Carrier. By October, according to Gossage in a letter to the editor of the Herald Courier , he claimed that Hodgdon increased capacity by 3,000, added new sewer and water lines, and expanded parking. In July 1983, Hodgdon purchased the rest of Baker's interest in the track for $ 2 million, completely buying out
11781-514: The cars coming towards and moving away from their vantage point. Traditional ovals (such as Indianapolis ) offered only limited linear views of the course, and required fans to look back and forth much like a tennis match. The tri-oval shape prevents fans from having to "lean" to see oncoming cars, and creates more forward sight lines. The modern tri-ovals were often called as cookie cutters because of their (nearly) identical shape and identical kind of races. Additional prominent examples: There are
11934-415: The circumference of the oval track, so many fans choose to view from the ground level inside the infield – leaving the grandstands mostly empty and unsightly. Many combined road course layouts have been abandoned. However, some have enjoyed extended life as venues for testing, driving schools, and amateur race meets . Since 1962, the most famous race continuously held on a combined road course has been
12087-601: The combined road course layout(s). An example of an outfield combined road course can be seen at the Calder Park Raceway in Melbourne , Australia . The Calder Park complex has a 1.119 mi (1.801 km) high-banked oval speedway called the Thunderdome as well as a separate road course. The road course and the oval can be linked via two short roads that connect the front straight of the road course to
12240-460: The current " Car of Tomorrow " (or COT) design used by Cup cars, with different bodies from the Cup Series. In 2016, the Chase format was extended to both the Xfinity and Truck Series. Instead of the four-round, 10-race format used in the Cup Series, the Chase in each of the two supporting series consists of three rounds and seven races in all, with each preliminary round consisting of three races. The Xfinity Series Chase involves 12 drivers instead of
12393-438: The dragstrip project was officially announced by Carrier, with the facility announced to be a 27,000-seat, 1 ⁄ 4 mile (0.40 km) long facility built on a 500-acre plot of land at a budget of $ 700,000. A month after the announcement, Russ DeVault, writer for the Herald Courier , predicted that Carrier was planning to build a bigger facility that was at least 1 mile (1.6 km) long; Carrier neither denied or admitted
12546-444: The driver. A driver in an IndyCar race at Richmond International Raceway may be subject to as many lateral g-forces (albeit in only one direction) as a Formula One driver at Silverstone . Weather also plays a different role in each discipline. Road racing offers a variety of fast and slow corners that allow the use of rain tires . Paved oval tracks generally do not run with a wet track surface. Dirt ovals will sometimes support
12699-486: The drivers, IndyCar will no longer drive super speedways outside of Indianapolis. Michigan Speedway was part of the series from 2002 to 2007, AutoClub Speedway from 2002 to 2005 and a second time from 2012 to 2015, Pocono was used by IndyCar between 2014 and 2019. In NASCAR they are still an essential part of the racing calendar. The closed and partially demolished Texas World Speedway , was the original "sister track" to Michigan. The two-mile oval, with its 22-degree banking,
12852-430: The early 2010s, Remote Area Medical held a medical clinic at the track. The track has been used as an evacuee center for several hurricanes, including Hurricane Irma in 2017, Hurricane Florence in 2018, and Hurricane Dorian in 2019. The track has also been used as a COVID-19 vaccine distribution center. In 1968, the track served as a campaign rally for longtime Alabama Governor George Wallace for his campaign in
13005-474: The early twentieth century had wood surfaces. Indianapolis Motor Speedway 's track surface used to be made entirely of bricks, and today, 3 feet (0.91 m), or one yard, of original bricks remain exposed at the start-finish line. Each was hand laid over a 2-inch (51 mm) cushion of sand, then leveled and the gaps filled with mortar. Before the work was completed, locals nicknamed the track "The Brickyard". A combined road course , colloquially referred to as
13158-526: The early years of the Indy Racing League , the series visited several intermediate tracks. The higher-downforce, normally aspirated IRL-type cars proved to be competitive at several of the tracks. The CART series however, mostly stayed away as the faster, more powerful Champ Cars were generally thought to be too fast for this type of circuit. This became evident at the 2001 Firestone Firehawk 600 , when drivers experienced vertigo-like symptoms, and
13311-694: The end of December, he was facing additional lawsuits from the North Carolina Motor Speedway and overdue payments to the Tennessee State Fair and Exposition Commission. He later failed to meet deadlines for a $ 102,000 payment for the Bristol track. By January 1985, the Bank of Virginia planned to put the track and the dragstrip up for auction on February 8. However, the auction was eventually scrapped when Hodgdon filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy , requesting for protection and reorganization. Despite this, Carrier declared that
13464-580: The end of each preliminary round (instead of four in the Xfinity Series). As in both the Cup Series and Xfinity Series, four drivers are eligible for the series title entering the final race. Similar to Cup, starting in 2017 "The Chase" moniker was dropped and is now simply referred to as the Truck Series Playoffs. On May 8, 2018, NASCAR and Camping World announced the Truck Series title sponsor would be moved to Camping World subsidiary Gander Outdoors starting in 2019. The contract through 2022
13617-437: The facility was scheduled on January 23, it was delayed by poor weather for two days to the 25th. The next month, new local modified races were announced at the track. By March, the track was selling tickets, with Tennessee Ernie Ford buying the first ticket. Within same month, Carrier was able to negotiate with Washington Redskins owner George Preston Marshall to hold a National Football League (NFL) exhibition game between
13770-399: The field will draft each other simultaneously in one large pack. In stock car racing this is often referred to as " restrictor plate racing " because NASCAR mandates that each car on its two longest high-banked ovals, Talladega and Daytona , use an air restrictor to reduce horsepower . The results of pack racing may vary. As drivers are forced to race in a confined space, overtaking
13923-573: The formation of the NASCAR SuperTruck Series presented by Craftsman . The first series race followed in 1995. In 1996, the series was renamed the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series to emphasize Craftsman's involvement. The series was first considered something of an oddity or a "senior tour" for NASCAR drivers, but eventually grew in popularity and has seen drivers move straight to the Cup Series without running
14076-552: The history of NASCAR and IndyCar, this oval size was not very common. Until 1990, there were only five examples. Two of these, the Marchbanks Speedway (1.4 miles) and the Trenton Speedway (1.5 miles), were demolished in the 1970s and 1980s, and only three—Charlotte Motor Speedway, Atlanta Motor Speedway and Darlington Raceway—have survived to this day. All other ovals of this type were built after 1994. During
14229-860: The hope that people would come to watch races and that racers would race for him, as other organizers tended to fleece the winners of their payouts. This was a success, and the series was founded in 1948. Races were held in several divisions, which eventually morphed into what is the "ladder:" the Cup Series at the top, the Xfinity Series second, and the Truck Series third, with smaller series spread out below. Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota compete in each series. The vast majority of NASCAR drivers are American, but drivers from Canada, Mexico, Europe, and other places have competed. All Cup Series races are held across America. There are 36 points-paying races in
14382-541: The mid-1960s, the vehicles were purpose-built race cars with a stock-appearing body. Early in NASCAR's history, foreign manufacturers had shown interest in entering the series; the British car manufacturer, MG , found a few of its vehicles entered, with some placing. For example, on August 16, 1963 in the International 200, Smokey Cook drove an MG to a 17th-place finish. The first NASCAR competition held outside
14535-468: The middle of the track that is named Colossus TV. In 1964, plans for a drag strip were announced by then-track owner Larry Carrier and National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) officials. After a hasty construction process, the 1 ⁄ 4 mile (0.40 km) dragstrip was completed by May 1965. The dragstrip has gone under renovations since the 1990s, including an $ 18 million renovation in 1997. In 1960, businessman Larry Carrier, continuing plans to expand
14688-727: The money before drivers were paid. On December 14, 1947, France began talks with other influential racers and promoters at the Ebony Bar at the Streamline Hotel in Daytona Beach, Florida , that ended with the formation of NASCAR on February 21, 1948. The first Commissioner of NASCAR was Erwin "Cannonball" Baker, a former stock car, motorcycle, and open-wheel racer who competed in the Indianapolis 500 and set over one hundred land speed records. Baker earned most of his fame for his transcontinental speed runs and would prove
14841-477: The oldest oval race track, the Milwaukee Mile was originally a race track for horse racing . In NASCAR, 1-mile oval tracks are among the intermediate tracks. IndyCar rates these tracks as short ovals, since IndyCar does not usually run on ovals shorter than 3/4-mile. The 1-mile ovals have lost a great deal of their former importance for oval racing. Most of the racetracks abandoned by NASCAR or IndyCar in
14994-607: The only long, flat tracks on the schedule. Auto Club Speedway, which joined Indianapolis, Michigan and Pocono as the one of four superspeedways used in the Verizon IndyCar Series , was the site of Gil de Ferran 's qualifying lap of 241.428 mph (388.541 km/h) in the CART FedEx Championship Series in 2000 , the fastest qualifying lap recorded at an official race meeting. Due to the low number of spectators or safety concerns by
15147-700: The original series sponsor's name with the notion of being bushwhacked. In May 2007, NNS director Joe Balash confirmed that NASCAR was exploring options to deal with the Buschwhacker controversy. One of the most often-cited proposals was for Cup Series drivers participating in the Nationwide Series to receive no points for their participation in a Nationwide race. In 2007, NASCAR chairman Brian France indicated that all options, except an outright ban of Cup competitors, were still being considered. On January 11, 2011, NASCAR.com reported that beginning with
15300-448: The oval race tracks. As a result, the racetracks have lengths of different accuracy. The following table shows the values that NASCAR, IndyCar and CART/CCWS used to determine the lap speeds and track records. A typical oval track consists of two parallel straights, connected by two 180° turns. Although most ovals generally have only two radii curves, they are usually advertised and labeled as four 90° turns. While many oval tracks conform to
15453-591: The past, NASCAR also sanctioned the AutoZone Elite Division, which raced late-model cars that were lighter and less powerful than Cup Series cars, and was originally split into four divisions: Northwest, Southwest, Southeast, and Midwest. At the end of 2005, NASCAR announced that the AutoZone Elite Division would be discontinued after the 2006 season due to having trouble securing NASCAR-sanctioned tracks to successfully host AutoZone Elite Division events, plus escalating costs of competing and downsizing of
15606-401: The predicted project. In March 1965, the track announced plans to build a 2.25 miles (3.62 km) long road course that would utilize parts of the dragstrip. By May, the dragstrip was finished in time for its opening in early June. By the beginning of 1966, the track was beginning to construct the road course. In 1969, Carrier announced a repave and reconfiguration of the track. The banking in
15759-539: The premier series title name became the Sprint Cup Series, as part of the merger between Nextel and Sprint . In 2011, NASCAR announced a number of major rules changes, the most significant being abandoning the points system. The winner of a race now receives 43 points, with one-point decrements for each subsequent position (42 for second, 41 for third, and so on). The winner also receives 3 bonus points, and single bonus points are awarded to all drivers who lead
15912-545: The progressive banking system, the track announced the elimination of the progressive banking system. In October 2015, the track announced the construction of Colossus TV, a 30-by-63 foot television screen that was touted as the world's largest "outdoor, permanent, center-hung digital display". Construction on the screen started in November and was completed in April 2016. In that same year, the track began applying PJ1 TrackBite ,
16065-861: The race track construction boom of the late 1990s, these tracks began to be labeled with the rather derogatory term "cookie cutter" tracks, as their differences were perceived to be minimal. In 1992, Charlotte became the first intermediate track to install lights and allow for night racing. It is now commonplace for these types of tracks to host night races. Intermediate tracks usually have moderate to steep banking. Almost all modern race tracks that are still used in NASCAR and IndyCar today are of this type. Since their size allows them to compromise high speeds with sightlines, especially tri- and quad-ovals of 1.5-mile length have become commonplace in major racing series that use oval tracks. While intermediate speedways were designed primarily with stock cars in mind, they were also believed to be suited to host Indy cars as well. In
16218-529: The race was cancelled for safety reasons. As of 2020, the IndyCar Series has only one race remaining at a high-banked intermediate track ( Texas ). These tracks began to be removed from the Indy car schedule in the late-2000s and early-2010s due to low crowds and serious crashes, including the fatal accident involving Dan Wheldon at Las Vegas in 2011. Originally a superspeedway was an oval race track with
16371-609: The race would take place on a temporary dirt surface. The idea was scrapped after three years, reverting to using the concrete surface. The latter was first run on July 30, 1961; the first major event held at the track. In 1978, the race switched to running at night. Also in 2020, BMS ran a one-off iteration of the NASCAR All-Star Race . Along with its Cup Series dates, the track also hosts lower-series NASCAR races, including second-tier NASCAR Xfinity Series and third-tier NASCAR Truck Series races. On various occasions,
16524-404: The race, the heavier cars got bogged down in the sand, while the lightweight Fords navigated the ruts of the course, eventually claiming the top 6 finishes for the race. Of the 27 cars that started the event, only 10 managed to survive the ordeal, as officials halted the event 10 miles (16 km) short of the scheduled 250-mile (400 km) distance. Driver Milt Marion was declared the winner, and
16677-450: The remaining spots will be filled based on the conventional points system. Monster Energy became the title sponsor in 2017, which changed the series' name to Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. With Monster Energy's title sponsorship, NASCAR also abandoned "The Chase" name and now refers to the last 10 races simply as "the playoffs" similar to most other sports. After the 2019 season, NASCAR declined an offer from Monster Energy to remain
16830-447: The same front straightaway. The now defunct Ascot Speedway featured 1/2 mile and 1/4 mile dirt oval tracks, and Irwindale Speedway features 1/2 mile and 1/3 mile concentric paved oval tracks. Pocono Raceway once had a 3/4 mile oval which connected to the main stretch, and circled around the garage area. In 1991, Charlotte Motor Speedway connected the quad oval start-finish straight to the pit lane with two 180 degree turns, resulting in
16983-403: The same start/finish line, and same pit area, but a mid-course diversion to a winding road circuit in the infield (and/or outfield). At some point, the circuit leads back to the main oval, and completes the rest of the lap. On some of the faster ovals, a chicane is present on long back-straights, to keep speeds down, and create additional braking/passing zones. Some more complex facilities feature
17136-435: The similar construction boom of the baseball/football cookie-cutter stadiums of the 1960s and 1970s, and the subsequent sport-specific stadium construction boom that began in the 1990s. Most of the oval tracks are located in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. However, there are also many oval tracks elsewhere too, as listed below. NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC ( NASCAR )
17289-669: The sponsorship in 2010. 2019 was the last season for both of the series before they are to go under the ARCA banner in 2020 as part of the unification of the NASCAR K&;N Pro Series East and West and the ARCA Menards Series. The series became known as the ARCA Menards Series East and ARCA Menards Series West starting in 2020, meaning 2019 was also K&N's last year as the series title sponsor. In
17442-612: The sport's ruling body to reduce the high speeds accommodated by their steep banking since 1988. Other superspeedways used by NASCAR include the Michigan International Speedway (2.0 miles), Auto Club Speedway (known as California Speedway prior to February 2008) (2.0 miles), and Pocono Raceway (2.5 miles). Auto Club Speedway and Michigan are often considered intermediate tracks by NASCAR due to their similarities with 1.5-mile tracks, while Pocono and Indianapolis are sometimes classified separately, as they are
17595-448: The striking of a five-year renewal with ESPN . The track by this point had expanded to 50,000 seats and generated more than $ 138 million annually in economic revenue, with stated future intentions to build $ 400,000 worth of improvements. In 1989, the track also sought to expand to hold major concerts according to then-general manager Ron Scalf. During the late 1980s and the early 1990s, the track oversaw numerous repaves. In September 1988,
17748-542: The time, Buford Ellington , declared a "Volunteer 500" week in the state of Tennessee. Jimmy Smyth, a writer for the Johnson City Press , praised that local residents in the Tri-Cities area now had a track nearby instead of driving hundreds of miles to another track. The track officially opened to the public on July 23, 1961, for a paved half-mile speed record attempt by driver Tommy Morgan. Two days later,
17901-843: The title of "King of the Road". In the early 1950s, the United States Navy stationed Bill France Jr. , at the Moffett Federal Airfield in northern California. His father asked him to look up Bob Barkhimer in San Jose, California . Barkhimer was a star of midget car racing from the World War II era, and later ran about 22 different speedways as the head of the California Stock Car Racing Association. Young Bill developed
18054-502: The title sponsor of the top series. On December 5, NASCAR revealed their new sponsorship model. Instead of a singular title sponsor, four "premier partners" ( Coca-Cola , Xfinity , Busch Beer and GEICO ) would be closely affiliated with the top series, which was simply renamed the NASCAR Cup Series. The NASCAR Xfinity Series is the second-highest level of professional competition in NASCAR. The most recent series champion
18207-431: The top series were limited to five races per season. Furthermore, those same drivers are ineligible to run the regular season finale, NXS playoff races, or Dash 4 Cash races. The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series features modified pickup trucks . It is one of the three national divisions of NASCAR, together with the Xfinity and Cup Series. The most recent series champion is Ben Rhodes in 2023. In 1994, NASCAR announced
18360-410: The top ten or within 400 points of the leader eligible to win the championship. In 2007, NASCAR announced it was expanding "The Chase" from ten to twelve drivers, eliminating the 400-point cutoff, and giving a ten-point bonus to the top twelve drivers for each of the races they have won out of the first 26. Wins throughout the season would also be awarded five more points than in previous seasons. In 2008,
18513-558: The track had spent $ 20 million in renovations, with more renovations being announced in November. By April 1997, the track surpassed Neyland Stadium as the largest sports arena in Tennessee by capacity. The track continued to oversee further expansion in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In 1999, the track constructed the Kulwicki Tower, which was completed by 2000 and increased capacity by 12,000 seats to 147,000. In 2000 and 2001,
18666-622: The track has held American gridiron football games at varying levels. In 1961, the track hosted an exhibition National Football League (NFL) game between the Washington Redskins and the Philadelphia Eagles after an initial failed attempt to host an event at Charlotte Motor Speedway . In 2013, an NCAA Division I FBS game was officially announced for the track between the Tennessee Volunteers and
18819-419: The track held its first dirt races on a temporary dirt surface; however, the races were scrapped after 2001 due to issues with lengthy cleanups. In 2002, the track expanded further; the track built a new pedestrian tunnel that connected the grandstands to the infield, along with stated plans to expand seating. In August, the seating expansion was officially confirmed, with an intent to expand to 160,000. In 2006,
18972-503: The track officially announced a repave of its track surface; however, the repave was later rescheduled to occur in 2007. By the time the new variable-banking system was complete in August, the turns varied from 24 to 30 degrees, with the racing surface being widened from 40 to 43 feet. The track repave saw criticism for removing the one-lane and rough style racing Bristol became reputable for; criticism became so prevalent that an ashamed Byrd
19125-404: The track on paper bags. On January 17, 1961, the three announced plans to build a 20,000-seat, 100-acre, 1 ⁄ 2 mile (0.80 km) track adjacent to U.S. Route 11E at a budget from $ 750,000 to $ 1,000,000. Along with the announcement, two annual NASCAR -sanctioned races were announced, with further intentions to use the track for other entertainment purposes. Although groundbreaking on
19278-533: The track opened for NASCAR-sanctioned activities, with a practice session for the 1961 Volunteer 500 . The next year, Carrier announced in the Bristol Virginia–Tennessean of a new recreational building near the track along with highway renovations. The track was favored in the local media by this point; the Virginia–Tennessean declared the track to be the "best" and "fastest" half-mile track in
19431-425: The track's banking was 36 degrees; this was eventually later found to be incorrect, with the true banking being 30 degrees. When the track is temporarily covered with dirt, the track uses a progressing banking system from 16 to 19 degrees. The track is also the only track left on the NASCAR schedule that utilizes two pit road lanes instead of one, combined pit road lane. At the time of the track's initial construction,
19584-405: The track's events for the year would still occur. NASCAR eventually confirmed Carrier's declaration in February, with Carrier being proclaimed by the Johnson City Press as the one who was able to maintain events at the track. The track also struck a five-year deal to broadcast its NASCAR races nationally on ESPN . In November 1985, rumors of Kentucky businessman and drag racer Jim Ruth buying out
19737-568: The track's general manager. The track is served by the concurrent U.S. Route 19 and U.S. Route 11E , along with Tennessee State Route 394 . The speedway has a capacity of 146,000 as of 2021. In addition to the Bristol Motor Speedway, the track's complex also features a two-lane, 1 ⁄ 4 mile (0.40 km) long drag strip. The main track has also on several occasions been temporarily covered with dirt to host various types of dirt track racing, and on occasions has acted as
19890-475: The track's purchase, Smith's ownership was met with suspicion. Many local businesses and fans feared that the track could lose a NASCAR race weekend as a result of NASCAR experiencing a surge in popularity in the 1990s, with Smith having a previous record of buying or building bigger tracks and taking away race weekends from smaller tracks. The loss of a race weekend spurred fears of crippling the local Tri-Cities economy. In February 1996, Smith denied rumors of moving
20043-542: The track's purchase, the duo announced $ 200,000 worth of renovations, a rebranding to "Bristol International Raceway", an increase of purse money, and a revert to the traditional 500 lap distance for its NASCAR races. In addition, the track planned to run its first ever night race at the 1978 Volunteer 500 , with temporary lights being installed during for the night race. The renovations did see success, with increased attendance according to Kingsport Times writer Denny Darnell. In January 1981, Baker bought out Hester's share of
20196-453: The track's spring race weekend to the new Texas Motor Speedway , along with announcing intentions of increasing capacity to 120,000, an increase from 81,000 from when Smith bought it. Initial renovations started in March, with further plans for expansion and events being announced by Byrd. The track was also renamed "Bristol Motor Speedway" within the month. By the end of the year, Byrd estimated
20349-429: The track, sometime in the early 1990s, motorsports mogul Bruton Smith displayed interest of buying Bristol International Raceway. According to Scalf, although Carrier refused, Smith insisted on purchasing the track, stating, "everything is for sale". Within the next three weeks, Carrier, Scalf, and Smith negotiated the potential sale of the track, with the situation being described by Scalf as "where one family-owned track
20502-617: The track. As a result of Hodgdon's purchase, Carrier was appointed to become the general manager. The next month, Carrier announced a new renovation plan over several years. However, by the late fall, staff were disgruntled; according to staff who worked with Hodgdon, he was heavily disliked. Then-public relations manager of the Hodgdon-owned Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway , Tom Roberts, had a grudge with Hodgdon, and immediately realized "I needed to be looking for another job... I looked at him as one of
20655-455: The track. However, just 10 months later, then-public relations manager of the track, Eddie Gossage announced that California businessman Warner W. Hodgdon bought out half of Baker's share of the track's ownership. According to Baker, while he did not initially intend on selling some of his interest, his opinion changed when Hodgdon displayed interest of buying out some of Baker's interest. With Hodgdon's investment, Hodgdon stated plans to increase
20808-407: The traditional symmetrical design, asymmetrical tracks are not uncommon. Additional prominent examples: The tri-oval is the common shape of the ovals from the construction booms of the 1960s and 1990s. The use of the tri-oval shape for automobile racing was conceived by Bill France, Sr. during the planning for Daytona. The triangular layout allowed fans in the grandstands an angular perspective of
20961-414: The turns and are considered low banked, superspeedways like Talladega have up to 33° of tilt in curves, Daytona has up to 32°, both are considered high banked. Atlanta is the intermediate track with the highest banking, 28°. Winchester has the highest banking of any active oval track with 37° Track surfaces can be dirt , concrete, asphalt, or a combination of concrete and asphalt. Some ovals in
21114-527: The turns was changed to a progressive banking system from 31 to 35 degrees and the straightaways would be changed to 20 degrees, which Carrier promised would produce speeds nearing 100 miles per hour (160 km/h). The repave was completed by July of that year, and in the next major race, drivers saw average lap speeds of over 100 mph. The next year, when Carrier created the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA), he set up
21267-521: The venture, France proceeded to announce a set of rules and awards for the NCSCC. France declared that the winner of the 1947 NCSCC season would receive $ 1000.00 (equivalent to $ 13645 in 2023) and a trophy. The season would begin in January 1947 at the Daytona Beach track, and conclude in Jacksonville the following December. Nearly 40 events were logged during the season, and attendance often exceeded
21420-445: The venue's capacity. The competitors were paid as promised, and by the end of the season, driver Fonty Flock was declared the season champion after winning 7 events of the 24 that he entered. Bill France delivered the $ 1000 and 4-foot high trophy to Flock at the end of the season, along with $ 3000 in prize money to other drivers who competed throughout the season. At the end of the 1947 season, Bill France announced that there would be
21573-479: The world. The track did face difficulties; according to Carrier, the 1961 NFL game lost them $ 36,000. As a result of the loss, Pope left the track soon after, leaving the track to be run by Carrier and Moore. In October 1964, the Bristol Herald Courier reported that the track was negotiating with National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) officials on building a proposed dragstrip . Two months later,
21726-596: The years. While some tracks use terms such as "speedway" or "superspeedway" in their name, they may not meet the specific definitions used in this article. A short track is an oval track less than one mile (1.6 km) long, with the majority being 0.5 miles (0.8 km) or shorter. Drivers seeking careers in oval track racing generally serve their apprenticeship on short tracks before moving up to series which compete on larger tracks. Due to their short length and fast action, these tracks are often nicknamed " bullrings ". Professional-level NASCAR races on short tracks usually use
21879-443: Was basically competing with corporate America". Although Carrier stated fears to Scalf about losing NASCAR race weekends, he eventually agreed to sell off the complex with the exception of a 78-acre campground. On January 23, 1996, the sale of the track was confirmed at the cost of $ 26 million, with an executive for the sports marketing division of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company , Jeff Byrd, replacing Scalf as general manager. Upon
22032-643: Was built as a facility for the automotive industry to conduct research and development. Daytona International Speedway was built as a replacement for the Daytona Beach Road Course , which combined the town's main street and its famous beach. Daytona hosts the Daytona 500 , NASCAR's most prestigious race, while the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is home to the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 . The longest superspeedway in North America
22185-421: Was created to provide a less dangerous alternative to a traditional concrete wall. The barrier can be retrofitted onto an existing wall or may take the place of a concrete wall completely. Oval tracks are classified based upon their size, surface, banking, and shape. Their size can range from only a few hundred feet to over two and a half miles. The definitions used to differentiate track sizes have changed over
22338-461: Was held on June 19, 1949 and won by driver Jim Roper when Glenn Dunaway was disqualified after the discovery of his altered rear springs. Initially, the cars were known as the "Strictly Stock Division" and raced with virtually no modifications on the factory models. This division was renamed the "Grand National" division beginning in the 1950 season. Over a period of more than a decade, modifications for both safety and performance were allowed, and by
22491-555: Was pointed out that that name was already in use by a rival sanctioning body, "National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing", proposed by mechanic Red Vogt , was selected as the organization's name. NASCAR was founded by William France, Sr. on February 21, 1948 with the help of several other drivers of the time. The original plans for NASCAR included three distinct divisions: Modified, Roadster, and Strictly Stock. The Modified and Roadster classes were seen as more attractive to fans. It turned out that NASCAR fans wanted nothing to do with
22644-408: Was sold to businessmen Gary Baker and Lanny Hester. The duo's ownership was quickly bought out by Warner W. Hodgdon, who ran the facility until 1986 when Hodgdon suffered financial troubles. Carrier later regained control of the facility, owning it until 1996 when Bruton Smith bought control of it. Since Smith's purchase, BMS underwent major expansion, becoming one of the largest sporting facilities in
22797-506: Was stated to have repeated "y'all, we're sorry" to fans leaving the track after the 2008 Sharpie 500 . In 2010, the track saw its streak of 55 consecutive sellouts for its NASCAR races end. In October of that year, after Byrd died in October, the track promoted its vice president of corporate sales, Jerry Caldwell, to become the track's general manager. Two years later, in response to both fan criticism along with Smith's stated displeasure with
22950-560: Was the first African-American to win a race in the Grand National Series, NASCAR's highest level. He was posthumously inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, North Carolina , January 30, 2015. On March 8, 1936, a collection of drivers gathered at Daytona Beach, Florida . The drivers brought coupes , hardtops , convertibles, and sports cars to compete in an event to determine the fastest cars, and best drivers. Throughout
23103-476: Was the first of five consecutive titles in NBS/NNS that were won by Cup series regulars. The practice received criticism because it was thought to give the Cup Series teams an unfair advantage, and that the presence of the Cup Series drivers squeezes out Nationwide Series competitors who would otherwise be able to qualify. These dual-series drivers have been labeled " Buschwhackers ", a play on words which combines
23256-539: Was the site of Mario Andretti's closed-course record of 214.158 mph (344.654 km/h) which stood for 12 years. No major professional series have raced at TWS since the 1990s. The 2.5 mile Ontario Motor Speedway was known as the "Indianapolis of the West", but was bought by the Chevron Land Company in 1980 and partitioned for development. NASCAR and IndyCar use different measuring systems to measure
23409-521: Was used only twice (both in 1987) and has not been used for major motor racing since hosting Round 9 of the 1987 World Touring Car Championship . There have been two distinct oval race track construction "booms" in the United States. The first took place in the 1960s, and the second took place in the mid-to-late 1990s. The majority of tracks from the 1960s boom and the 1990s boom have survived, but some tracks failed to achieve long-term financial success. Incidentally, these two booms loosely coincided with
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