Texas Motor Speedway - Fast, Modern, Huge and Still Improving

Located near Fort Worth, Texas Motor Speedway is the host of two NASCAR Sprint Cup races every year, but also hosts NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series, as well an IndyCar Series race. It is considered as one of the fastest tracks in the US on which the cars are not using restrictor plates. During the qualifying session, cars were exceeding speeds of 309 km/h, while Brian Vickers, in qualifying for the Dickies 500 race in 2006, set the record speed of almost 316 km/h.

Video – 2014 Texas Motor Speedway Highlights

Same as the ovals in Atlanta and Charlotte

The oval track was opened in February of 1996 after 10 months of constructing and cost of works of $250 million. Texas Motor Speedway is a 2.4 km long asphalt track similar to the ones in Charlotte and Atlanta, with a banking of 24 degrees on turns and 5 degrees on straightaways. The front stretch at this counter-clockwise ran circuit is 686 meters long, while the backstretch has a length of 405 meters. In the pit road, 45 garages are available for NASCAR teams and 35 for IndyCar Series.

IndyCar race at Texas Motor Speedway

Texas Motor Speedway infield has a track with four layouts

There are also four configurations of the infield course with a number of turns going from 8 to 15, depending on the variation. Lil’ Texas Motor Speedway with the length of only 320 meters is also available, mainly for the Legends race. Finally, there is also a bit longer clay-surfaced dirt track for the off-road vehicle events.

Texas Motor Speedway is the regular host of NASCAR races

Huge Grandstand and ‘Big Hoss TV’

Texas Motor Speedway, owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc, has a capacity of almost 182,000. The Grandstand located at the front straightaway can accommodate 112,522 spectators, including places in luxury suites, while the Infield capacity is approximately 53,000. For NASCAR Sprint Cup events, approximately 60,000 — 70,000 vehicles are parked on the properties of the speedway while 30,000 — 40,000 fans are camping on the speedway grounds during racing weekends. This huge venue is also very suitable for many non-racing events like concerts and festivals.

Grandstand at Texas Motor Speedway

One of the attractions of the Texas Motor Speedway is the largest HD LED video board in the world called ’Big Hoss TV’. This 66-meter wide and 29-meter tall screen was unveiled in March of 2014 in front of 8,000 fans and many legends of NASCAR and IndyCar Series.

Big Hoss screen at Texas Motor Speedway

Johnson and Castroneves are the most successful drivers at this venue

By the end of 2015, the driver who scored the most wins in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Texas Motor Speedway is Jimmie Johnson who has six wins on his account. In the IndyCar Series, Helio Castroneves is the most successful driver with four wins. An interesting fact is that the Texas Motor Speedway hosted the first ever IndyCar night race in 1997.

NASCAR events at the venue in Fort Worth

Texas Motor Speedway hosts two NASCAR event races per season: in the early spring and in the late autumn. The Duck Commander 500 and AAA Texas 500 are the names of the Sprint Cup racesXfinity series race are called O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 and O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge, while the World Camping Truck Series events are named Rattlesnake 400 and Longhorn 350.

Video : Jimmie Johnson explains his success at Texas Motor Speedway

Address: 3545 Lone Star Circle, Fort Worth, TX 76177, United States
Phone: +1 817 215 8500
Website: texasmotorspeedway.com

Photos: ntsmotorsports.com, sportingnews.com, f1fanatic.co.uk, texasmotorspeedway.com, dimensionpronline.com.