Texas Motor Speedway
| The Great American Speedway | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | 3545 Lone Star Circle, Fort Worth, Texas 76177 |
| Capacity | 191,122 (NASCAR and IndyCar) |
| Owner | Speedway Motorsports, Inc. |
| Operator | Speedway Motorsports, Inc. |
| Broke ground | April 11, 1995 |
| Opened | February 29, 1996 |
| Construction cost | $250 million USD |
| Former names | Texas International Raceway (1996) |
| Major events | NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Duck Commander 500 AAA Texas 500 NASCAR Nationwide Series NASCAR Camping World Truck Series IZOD IndyCar Series |
| Oval | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 1.5 mi (2.4 km) |
| Turns | 4 |
| Banking | Turns: 24° |
| Lap record | 0:22.542 (Paul Tracy, Team Green, 2001, Cart FedEx Championship Series) |
Texas Motor Speedway is a speedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas the portion located in Denton County, Texas.
The track measures 1.5 miles (2.4 km) around and is banked 24 degrees in the turns, and is of the oval design, where the front straightaway juts outward slightly. With the ability to seat over 190,000, Texas Motor Speedway has the largest capacity for any NASCAR track after Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The track layout is similar to Atlanta Motor Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway (formerly Lowe's Motor Speedway).
The track is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., the same company that owns Atlanta and Charlotte Motor Speedways, as well as the short-track Bristol Motor Speedway.
History
The speedway has been managed since its inception by racing promoter Eddie Gossage.
Based on qualifying speeds in 2004, 2005, and 2006 (with Brian Vickers shattering the qualifying record at Texas with a speed of 196.235 mph (315.810 km/h) in the 2006 Dickies 500 qualifying), the Texas Motor Speedway was once considered the fastest non-restrictor plate track on the NASCAR circuit, with qualifying speeds in excess of 192 mph (309 km/h) and corner entry speeds over 200 mph (320 km/h). However, as the tracks' respective racing surfaces continue to wear, qualifying speeds at Atlanta have become consistently faster than at Texas (2005 and 2006). Brian Vickers holds the qualifying record at TMS. In 2006, he posted a 196.235 mph (315.810 km/h) speed. Elliott Sadler beat the record before Brian, qualifying in the 49/50th spot. Being the last person out on the track, Brian nipped Elliott Sadler's qualifying time.[1] The NASCAR records still fall short of the all-time TMS qualifying record though. Driving a Lola Ford Champ Car, Kenny Brack took pole for the aborted Firestone Firehawk 600, with an average speed of 233.447 mph in 2001.
Two racetracks formerly on the Winston Cup (now Sprint Cup Series) schedule were closed to make room for Texas Motor Speedway's two race dates, with the North Wilkesboro Speedway being bought by TMS owner Bruton Smith and New Hampshire International Speedway owner Bob Bahre. The track was closed with one of the track's two dates going to both new owners. The North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham, North Carolina was also sold to Smith as a result of the Ferko lawsuit with the track's one remaining date also being handed over to Texas.
Texas Motor Speedway is home to two NASCAR Sprint Cup races: the Texas 500 and the AAA Texas 500, as well as two Nationwide Series races, the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 and the O'Reilly Auto Parts Challenge and the Indy Racing League IndyCar series race, the Firestone 550. The track also hosts two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races, the WinStar World Casino 400K (which takes place on the same weekend as the Indycar Firestone 550) and the WinStar World Casino 350K.
For a short time during construction in September 1996, the track's name was changed to Texas International Raceway. SMI's customary track naming convention had planned to have the "Motor Speedway" as part of the name. However, in August 1996, a small quarter-mile dirt raceway in Alvin, Texas (now known as Texas Thunder Speedway) had filed suit to use the name. On December 2, 1996, a settlement between the two tracks saw the "Texas Motor Speedway" name reinstated to the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) oval, and the small number of Texas International Raceway merchandise instantly became collectible. The following is a map of Texas Motor Speedway:
Between 2001 and 2002, the track, after the reconfiguration in 1998, was repaved because of a hole in turn three. On August 17, 2010, a press conference was held and it was announced that TMS's spring race will become a Saturday night event in 2011. The Samsung Mobile 500 will be held on Saturday April 9, 2011. The same year, the apron of the speedway was repaved.
Jeff Burton (1997) and Dale Earnhardt, Jr (2000) both earned their first Cup win at Texas Motor Speedway. Earnhardt's victory was a then-record for fewest races to notch a victory in the "modern era" on the Cup circuit, winning in just his 12th start, breaking the record held by his father, Dale Earnhardt (16 starts). (The record has since been broken three times, by Kevin Harvick (3 starts), Jamie McMurray (2 starts) and Trevor Bayne (2 starts).)
On October 13, 2000, Tony Roper was racing in the Craftsman Truck Series O'Reilly 400 at Texas Motor Speedway when he attempted to pass Steve Grissom. However, another truck veered up the racetrack in the tri-oval, forcing Roper to evade, turning him into Grissom's front bumper. The contact caused Roper's #26 Ford to take a sudden hard-right turn, which then caused the truck to slam head-on into the concrete wall of the tri-oval. Roper died the next day as the result of the injuries he sustained from the crash.
In fall of 2012, Gossage added a carnival outside turn two to promote the track's "Wild Asphalt Circus" theme.[2] On September 23, 2013, the track announced that by the 2014 spring Cup race, the world's largest video screen will be added. The Panasonic screen, nicknamed "Big Hoss", will be 218 feet (66 m) wide and 94.6 feet (28.8 m) tall.[3]
In 2014, Texas Motor Speedway will not sell tickets on the backstretch for either of its NASCAR Sprint Cup races, reducing the seating capacity of the track to 112,552.[4] The worlds largest High Definition video screen, Big Hoss, will be intoduced in the Duck Commander 500. Drivers were scared in practice that there would be tire problems, even though Goodyear was confident that they would work.
Firestone Firehawk 600
The Firestone Firehawk 600, a CART race, was to be held on April 29, 2001. During practice and qualifying, however, 21 of 25 drivers[5] complained of dizziness and disorientation during two days of practice. Drivers experienced sustained G forces over 5 Gs, more than the typical human tolerance. With their powerful 900+ hp turbocharged engines and superspeedway downforce packages, the Champ Cars were averaging speeds well in excess of 230 mph (The track record, set by Paul Tracy, was 239.552 mph). This was much faster than IRL machinery of the time, and faster still than the speeds seen regularly by Sprint Cup cars. Brian Vickers' Sprint Cup qualifying record of 196.235 mph falls well short of Kenny Brack's 233.447 mph pole lap for this race.
With the possibility of drivers blacking out on the track, CART cancelled the race two hours before the scheduled start.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series statistics
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series records
(As of 11/6/11)
| Most Wins | 3 | 2 drivers |
| Most Top 5s | 10 | Matt Kenseth |
| Most Top 10s | 13 | Matt Kenseth |
| Starts | 22 | 4 Drivers |
| Poles | 2 | 4 Drivers |
| Most Laps Completed | 6997 | Jeff Burton |
| Most Laps Led | 756 | Matt Kenseth |
| Avg. Start* | 8.0 | Steve Park |
| Avg. Finish | 8.7 | Matt Kenseth |
* from minimum 5 starts.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race winners
- An asterisk (*) indicates that the race was extended beyond the scheduled distance due to the green-white-checker finish rule
| Season | Date | Winning Driver | Car # | Sponsor | Make | Distance | Avg Speed | Margin of Victory | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | April 6 | Jeff Burton | 99 | Exide Batteries | Ford Thunderbird | 501 mi (806 km) | 125.111 mph (201.347 km/h) | 4.067 sec | Report |
| 1998 | April 5 | Mark Martin | 6 | Valvoline | Ford Taurus | 501 mi (806 km) | 136.771 mph (220.112 km/h) | 0.573 sec | Report |
| 1999 | March 28 | Terry Labonte | 5 | Kellogg's | Chevrolet Monte Carlo | 501 mi (806 km) | 144.276 mph (232.190 km/h) | UC | Report |
| 2000 | April 2 | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | 8 | Budweiser | Chevrolet Monte Carlo | 501 mi (806 km) | 131.152 mph (211.069 km/h) | 5.920 sec | Report |
| 2001 | April 1 | Dale Jarrett | 88 | UPS | Ford Taurus | 501 mi (806 km) | 141.804 mph (228.211 km/h) | 0.73 sec | Report |
| 2002 | April 8 | Matt Kenseth | 17 | DeWalt | Ford Taurus | 501 mi (806 km) | 142.453 mph (229.256 km/h) | 0.888 sec | Report |
| 2003 | March 30 | Ryan Newman | 12 | Alltel | Dodge Intrepid | 501 mi (806 km) | 134.517 mph (216.484 km/h) | 3.405 sec | Report |
| 2004 | April 4 | Elliott Sadler | 38 | M&Ms | Ford Taurus | 501 mi (806 km) | 145.358 mph (233.931 km/h) | 0.028 sec | Report |
| 2005 | April 17 | Greg Biffle | 16 | Post-it/National Guard | Ford Taurus | 501 mi (806 km) | 130.055 mph (209.303 km/h) | 3.244 sec | Report |
| 2005 | November 6 | Carl Edwards | 99 | Office Depot | Ford Taurus | 501 mi (806 km) | 151.055 mph (243.099 km/h) | 0.584 sec | Report |
| 2006 | April 9 | Kasey Kahne | 9 | Dodge Dealers/UAW | Dodge Charger | 501 mi (806 km) | 137.943 mph (221.998 km/h) | 5.229 sec | Report |
| 2006 | November 5 | Tony Stewart | 20 | Home Depot | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | 508.5 mi (818.4 km)* | 134.891 mph (217.086 km/h) | 0.272 sec | Report |
| 2007 | April 15 | Jeff Burton | 31 | Prilosec OTC | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | 501 mi (806 km) | 143.359 mph (230.714 km/h) | 0.410 sec | Report |
| 2007 | November 4 | Jimmie Johnson | 48 | Lowe's/Kobalt | Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS | 501 mi (806 km) | 131.219 mph (211.177 km/h) | 0.944 sec | Report |
| 2008 | April 6 | Carl Edwards | 99 | Aflac | Ford Fusion | 508.5 mi (818.4 km)* | 144.814 mph (233.056 km/h) | 0.399 sec | Report |
| 2008 | November 2 | Carl Edwards | 99 | Office Depot | Ford Fusion | 501 mi (806 km) | 144.814 mph (233.056 km/h) | 8.310 sec | Report |
| 2009 | April 5 | Jeff Gordon | 24 | DuPont/National Guard GED Plus | Chevrolet Impala SS | 501 mi (806 km) | 146.372 mph (235.563 km/h) | 0.378 sec | Report |
| 2009 | November 8 | Kurt Busch | 2 | Miller Lite Operation Homefront | Dodge Charger | 501 mi (806 km) | 146.372 mph (235.563 km/h) | 25.686 sec | Report |
| 2010 | April 19 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | FedEx Ground | Toyota Camry | 501 mi (806 km) | 146.23 mph (235.334 km/h) | 0.152 sec | Report |
| 2010 | November 7 | Denny Hamlin | 11 | FedEx Office | Toyota Camry | 501 mi (806 km) | 140.456 mph (226.042 km/h) | 0.488 sec | Report |
| 2011 | April 9 | Matt Kenseth | 17 | Crown Royal Black | Ford Fusion | 501 mi (806 km) | 149.231 mph (240.164 km/h) | 8.315 sec | Report |
| 2011 | November 6 | Tony Stewart | 14 | Office Depot | Chevrolet Impala | 501 mi (806 km) | 152.705 mph (245.755 km/h) | 1.092 sec | Report |
| 2012 | April 14 | Greg Biffle | 16 | 3M/Filtrete Filters | Ford Fusion | 501 mi (806 km) | 160.577 mph (258.424 km/h) | 3.235 sec | Report |
| 2012 | November 4 | Jimmie Johnson | 48 | Lowe's | Chevrolet Impala | 502.5 mi (808.7 km)* | 136.117 mph (219.059 km/h) | 0.808 sec | Report |
| 2013 | April 13 | Kyle Busch | 18 | Interstate Batteries | Toyota Camry | 501 mi (806 km) | 144.751 mph (232.954 km/h) | 0.508 sec | Report |
| 2013 | November 3 | Jimmie Johnson | 48 | Lowe's | Chevrolet SS | 501 mi (806 km) | 151.754 mph (244.224 km/h) | 4.390 sec | Report |
| 2014 | April 6 | Report |
IZOD IndyCar Series statistics
IZOD IndyCar Series race winners
| Season | Date | Driver | Team | Chassis | Engine | Race Distance | Race Time | Average Speed (mph) | Report | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laps | Miles (km) | |||||||||
| 1996-97 | June 7, 1997 |  Arie Luyendyk* | Treadway Racing | G-Force | Oldsmobile | 208 | 312 (502.115) | 2:19:48 | 133.903 | Report |
| 1998 | June 6 |  Billy Boat | A.J. Foyt Enterprises | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 208 | 312 (502.115) | 2:08:46 | 145.388 | Report |
| September 20 | John Paul, Jr. | Byrd/Cunningham Racing | G-Force | Oldsmobile | 208 | 312 (502.115) | 2:21:53 | 131.931 | Report | |
| 1999 | June 12 |  Scott Goodyear | Panther Racing | G-Force | Oldsmobile | 208 | 312 (502.115) | 2:00:06 | 150.069 | Report |
| October 17 | Mark Dismore | Kelley Racing | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 208 | 312 (502.115) | 2:14:16 | 135.246 | Report | |
| 2000 | June 11* | Scott Sharp | Kelley Racing | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 208 | 312 (502.115) | 1:47:20 | 169.182 | Report |
| October 15 | Scott Goodyear | Panther Racing | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 208 | 312 (502.115) | 1:43:36 | 175.276 | Report | |
| 2001 | June 9 | Scott Sharp | Kelley Racing | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:55:44 | 150.873 | Report |
| October 6* | Sam Hornish, Jr. | Panther Racing | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:43:36 | 168.523 | Report | |
| 2002 | June 8 | Jeff Ward | Chip Ganassi Racing | G-Force | Chevrolet | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:45:50 | 164.984 | Report |
| September 15 | Sam Hornish, Jr. | Panther Racing | Dallara | Chevrolet | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:46:29 | 163.981 | Report | |
| 2003 | June 7 | Al Unser, Jr. | Kelley Racing | Dallara | Toyota | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:43:48 | 168.213 | Report |
| October 13 |  Gil de Ferran | Team Penske | Dallara | Toyota | 195* | 292.5 (470.733) | 1:48:56 | 156.268 | Report | |
| 2004 | June 12 | Tony Kanaan | Andretti Green Racing | Dallara | Honda | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:53:24 | 153.965 | Report |
| October 17 | Hélio Castroneves | Team Penske | Dallara | Toyota | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:49:32 | 159.397 | Report | |
| 2005 | June 11 |  Tomas Scheckter | Panther Racing | Dallara | Chevrolet | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:45:47 | 165.047 | Report |
| 2006 | June 10 | Hélio Castroneves | Team Penske | Dallara | Honda | 200 | 300 (482.803) | 1:34:01 | 185.71 | Report |
| 2007 | June 9 | Sam Hornish, Jr. | Team Penske | Dallara | Honda | 228 | 342 (550.395) | 1:52:15 | 177.314 | Report |
| 2008 | June 7 |  Scott Dixon | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara | Honda | 228 | 342 (550.395) | 2:04:36 | 159.74 | Report |
| 2009 | June 6 | Hélio Castroneves | Team Penske | Dallara | Honda | 228 | 342 (550.395) | 1:55:16 | 172.677 | Report |
| 2010 | June 5 |  Ryan Briscoe | Team Penske | Dallara | Honda | 228 | 342 (550.395) | 2:04:47 | 159.508 | Report |
| 2011 | June 11 |  Dario Franchitti | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dallara | Honda | 114 | 171 (275.197) | 0:54:47 | 181.649 | Report |
| Will Power | Team Penske | Dallara | Honda | 114 | 171 (275.197) | 0:48:09 | 206.693 | |||
| 2012 | June 9 | Justin Wilson | Dale Coyne Racing | Dallara | Honda | 228 | 342 (550.395) | 1:59:02 | 167.217 | Report |
| 2013 | June 8 | Hélio Castroneves | Team Penske | Dallara | Chevrolet | 228 | 342 (550.395) | 1:52:17 | 177.257 | Report |
- 1997: Billy Boat took checkered flag as the winner due to scoring error; Luyendyk declared official winner the following day.
- 2000: Postponed from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon due to rain.
- 2001: Postponed from September 16 due to 9/11.
- 2003: Race shortened due to crash involving Kenny Bräck.
Current races hosted
Texas Motor Speedway
- IZOD IndyCar Series Firestone 600
- Sprint Cup Series Duck Commander 500
- Sprint Cup Series AAA Texas 500
- Nationwide Series O'Reilly Auto Parts 300
- Nationwide Series O'Reilly Auto Parts Challenge
- Camping World Truck Series WinStar World Casino 400K
- Camping World Truck Series WinStar World Casino 350K
- ARCA Racing Rattlesnake 150
- Global RallyCross Championship
Other races such as the Lone Star Legends[6] series take place during the summer. The dirt track facility hosts the occasional Monster Truck show as well as motocross and short course racing.[7]
Other events
On June 14, 1997 Texas Motor Speedway hosted the Fruit of the Loom CountryFest for an estimated 185,000 spectators. Featured performers were Jo Dee Messina, Bryan White, Wynonna Judd, Vince Gill, The Charlie Daniels Band, Hank Williams Jr., LeAnn Rimes, Travis Tritt, and Randy Travis.
On June 21, 1997 Texas Motor Speedway hosted the Blockbuster Rock Fest where an estimated 385,000 fans bought tickets and attended. The 15 hour plus and 16 band concert featured the likes of Bush, No Doubt, Collective Soul, Matchbox Twenty, Jewel, the Wallflowers, the Counting Crows, Third Eye Blind, Sugar Ray, Paula Cole as well as many others. Because fans started arriving the night before, VH1 organized a kickoff concert on that Friday night. The concert remains one of the top attended concerts ever.
Ongoing classes and events are held regularly at the facility, such as the Texas Driving Experience[8] and Team Texas.[9] 87-year old Don Krusemark was killed in an accident during an event at the speedway hosted by the Texas Driving Experience.[10]
The Traxxas TORC Series held the series' first off-road racing event in 2009 at Texas Motor Speedway.[11] The 0.4 mile clay oval at the facility was transformed by adding jumps and whoops.[11] Winners in the two-race weekend were: Pro-4 winner Rick Huseman won twice; Pro-2 events were claimed by Ricky Johnson and Scott Taylor; and for Pro Lite class winners were Marty Hart and Casey Currie.[12] It was the only TORC event held at the track as of 2013.
The first annual Christian alt-rock festival FortyFest was held at the Texas Motor Speedway "Little Texas" facility in August 2010.
Texas Motor Speedway made an unsuccessful overture to move the annual Texas-Oklahoma rivalry football game from the Cotton Bowl to the infield of the modern racing facility in 2004.[13]
See also
- List of NASCAR race tracks
- Sports in Texas
References
- ^ "NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Schedule, Results & Tickets on". Nascar.com. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
- ^ Mark Aumann, NASCAR.COM. "The evolution of race promotion - Nov 06, 2012". Nascar.Com. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
- ^ Cain, Holly (2013-09-23). "Texas Motor Speedway to add largest HD video board". NASCAR. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
- ^ "TMS not selling backstretch tickets". ESPN. Associated Press. November 25, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2013.
- ^ Firestone Firehawk 600 lineup. Usatoday.Com (2001-04-28). Retrieved on 2013-07-18.
- ^ Lone Star Legends Website is und. Lslegends.webhost4life.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-18.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ "Total Driving Experience". Texasdrivingexperience.com. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
- ^ "Team Texas High Performance Driving School". Teamtexas.com. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
- ^ Norton, Casey. (2010-05-17) Prize for blood donor ends in death at Speedway | wfaa.com Dallas - Fort Worth. Wfaa.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-18.
- ^ a b "TRAXXAS TORC Series Hosts Season Opener at Texas Motor Speedway Dirt Track". Who Won.com. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
- ^ "A Behind the Scenes Perspective of the TORC Series Debut in Texas". Race Dezert.com. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
- ^ By B. Duane Cross, NASCAR.COM. "Smith hoping to lure college football to Bristol - Aug 26, 2005". Nascar.Com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-12. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
External links
- Texas Motor Speedway Interactive Map[dead link]
- Trackpedia guide to driving Texas Motor Speedway
- Texas Motor Speedway Official Site
- Texas Motor Speedway Page on NASCAR.com
- GNEXTINC.com: Texas Motor Speedway Page Local area information, track specs, mapping, news and more.
- Jayski's Texas Motor Speedway Page Current and Past Texas Motor Speedway News
- Texas Motor Speedway Fan Page Photographs and articles on past speedway events.
- Dale Jarrett Racing Experience at Texas Motor Speedway
- High Resolution image from Google Maps
Coordinates: 33°0213N 97°1659W / 33.03689°N 97.28309°W
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- Texas Motor Speedway
- American Le Mans Series circuits
- Buildings and structures in Denton County, Texas
- Champ Car circuits
- IndyCar Series tracks
- International Race of Champions tracks
- Motorsport venues in Texas
- NASCAR tracks
- Off-road racing venues in the United States
- Sports venues in Fort Worth, Texas
- Visitor attractions in Denton County, Texas
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