Iowa Speedway facts for kids
"The Fastest Short Track on The Planet "
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| Location | Newton, Iowa |
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| Time zone | GMT-6 |
| Capacity | 30,000 |
| Owner | Iowa Speedway, LLC (subsidiary of NASCAR) |
| Operator | Iowa Speedway, LLC |
| Broke ground | June 21, 2005 |
| Opened | September 15, 2006 |
| Construction cost | $70 million |
| Architect | Paxton Waters Architecture Rusty Wallace |
| Former names | Quad Cities International Raceway Park (planning stages name) |
| Major events | IndyCar Series Iowa Corn 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series CircuitCity.com 250 U.S. Cellular 250 NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series M&M's 200 |
| D-shaped oval | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 0.875 mi (1.4 km) |
| Turns | 4 |
| Banking | Turns: 12°-14° (Progressive) Frontstretch: 10° Backstretch: 4° |
| Race lap record | 17.2283 (Hélio Castroneves, Team Penske, 2014, IndyCar Series) |
| Road Course | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 1.3 mi (2.09 km) |
| Turns | 9 |
| Banking | Turns 1–2: 12–14° Frontstretch: 10° Backstretch: 4° |
| Race lap record | 41.709 (Jon Fogarty, GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, 2007, Daytona Prototype) |
Iowa Speedway is a 7/8-mile (1.4 km) paved oval motor racing track in Newton, Iowa, United States, approximately 30 miles (48 km) east of Des Moines. It has over 25,000 permanent seats as well as a unique multi-tiered Recreational Vehicle viewing area along the backstretch.
History
The track opened in September 2006 with the Soy Biodiesel 250, won by Woody Howard, for the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Four Champions playoff. The Indy Racing League announced a race there on June 24, 2007, the Iowa Corn Indy 250, which was won by Dario Franchitti, who barely nipped Marco Andretti at the finish line. The track also secured a combined NASCAR Camping World East-West race where results counted towards both series' championships. That race delivered a dramatic battle between 17-year-old Joey Logano from the Busch East Series, who defeated Daytona 500 champion Kevin Harvick, 1998 West Series champion, who represented the West Series at the end of the race. The track was awarded a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race and a NASCAR Nationwide Series race in 2009.
On July 5, 2011, it was announced that the Manatt family, builders and primary owners of the Iowa Speedway, through the holding company U.S. Motorsports Corporation, had sold their majority interest to the Clement family, owners of Featherlite Incorporated. "It was our privilege to help build the track five years ago, and like a proud parent, we've enjoyed watching it thrive and grow," said company president Brad Manatt. Featherlite Incorporated already has a long-standing relationship with NASCAR. Many race teams use Featherlite Trailers and Featherlite Coaches for the transport of cars and staff. Rusty Wallace will remain a minority owner in the track.
Following news of financial issues at the track, the facility was purchased by NASCAR by November 2013.
The track has periodically been rumored as a candidate for a NASCAR Cup Series race; in 2013, a bill to allow $8 million in upgrades to the speedway toward that goal began circulating in the Iowa Legislature.
In April 2020, the NASCAR-sanctioned races at Iowa for the 2020 Xfinity and Truck seasons were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Only the ARCA Menards Series and IndyCar races were held in July, with an extremely reduced number of spectators. After the races, it was reported that the track is for sale following the 2020 season. Iowa Speedway will not host an IndyCar, NASCAR Xfinity Series or NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race in their 2021 seasons.
In December 2020, the ARCA Menards Series announced that Iowa Speedway will host one race on their 2021 schedule in July.
Other events
The facility also hosts several driving schools year-round, such as the Rusty Wallace Racing Experience and The Formula Experience, where visitors have the opportunity to experience the speedway from behind the wheel of a race car.
Track length and layout
The track was designed with influence from Rusty Wallace and patterned after Richmond Raceway as a D-shaped oval, a short track where Wallace was very successful.
The track length is disputed by the two major series that run at Iowa. The NASCAR timing and scoring use a length of 0.875 miles (1.408 km). The IndyCar Series timing and scoring use a length of 0.894 miles (1.439 km).
Races
Former
- IndyCar Series – Iowa 300 (July)
- NASCAR Xfinity Series
- CircuitCity.com 250 (June)
- U.S. Cellular 250 (July)
- NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series –
- M&M's 200 (June)
- Fan Appreciation 200 (September)
- ARCA Racing Series – Iowa ARCA 150 (July)
- NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (July)
- Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series
- USAC Silver Crown
- USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car Championship
- USAC NOS Energy National Midget Championship
- NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and West (July)
- USAR Pro Cup
- Indy Lights
- Indy Pro 2000 Championship
- U.S. F2000 National Championship
- Iowa Speedway race results at Racing-Reference
See also
In Spanish: Iowa Speedway para niños
