New Smyrna Speedway is a 1/2-mile asphalt oval racetrack located near New Smyrna Beach,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

, that races the

NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series The NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series (formerly the Whelen All-American Series, Winston Racing Series and the Dodge Weekly Series) is a points championship for NASCAR sanctioned local short track motor racing around the United States and Ca ...

every Saturday night. It also has a smaller track, known as "Little New Smyrna Speedway" in the infield. This track races

quarter midgets Quarter midget racing is a form of automobile racing. The cars are approximately one-quarter (1/4) the size of a full-size midget car. The adult-size midget being raced during the start of quarter midget racing used an oval track of one-fifth of ...

on Friday nights.

Overview

New Smyrna Speedway hosts the annual World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing, featuring nine consecutive nights of racing that runs during Speedweeks every February. The World Series has seen many of the current and former top names in

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

competing on the high-banked half-mile including Ryan Newman,

Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is ...

Kyle Busch Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and part-tim ...

Mark Martin Mark Anthony Martin (born January 9, 1959) is a retired American stock car racing driver. He has the second most wins all time in what is now the Xfinity Series with 49. He scored 40 Cup Series wins. He finished second in the NASCAR Cup Series s ...

Geoff Bodine Geoffrey Edwin Bodine (born April 18, 1949) is a retired American motorsport driver and bobsled builder. He is the oldest of the three Bodine brothers (with Brett Bodine and Todd Bodine), and sister Denise. Bodine lives in West Melbourne, Florid ...

, Rick Wilson, Richie Evans, Jimmy Spencer, and

Pete Hamilton Peter Goodwill Hamilton (July 20, 1942 – March 21, 2017) was an American professional stock car racing driver. He competed in NASCAR for six years, where he won four times in his career (including the 1970 Daytona 500), three times driving ...

, and continually draws the top talent from around the United States and Canada. The event features NASCAR tour-type modifieds, "SK" type modifieds, Florida/IMCA-type modifieds, David Rogers super late models, late models, crate engine late models, winged sprint cars, and pro-trucks. Only Geoff Bodine and Ryan Newman have won a championship at the annual event, and gone on in their career to win the Daytona 500. The event incldued the Race to Stop Suicide 200, the

ARCA Menards Series East The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly Busch East Series, Busch North Series, Camping World East Series, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) an ...

season opener, from 2014 to 2022. The

NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (NWMT) (previously the NASCAR Winston Modified Tour and NASCAR Featherlite Modified Series from 1985 until 2005) is a modified stock car racing series owned and operated by NASCAR in the Modified Division. The Mod ...

has a race during the event since 2022. New Smyrna Speedway also hosts the annual Florida Governor's Cup 200 David Rogers super late model race each November. Regarded as the second-most prestigious super late model race in Florida only behind the Snowball Derby, it is among the elite short track racing events in the country, it is a prep event for teams that aspire to participate in the Snowball. The racing surface was repaved in January 2007.

History

Daytona Raceway

In 1966, Auto Racing Enterprises, Inc., leased and broke ground on what was to become "Daytona Raceway", in Samsula, Florida. The organizations secretary, Benny Corbin, designed the half-mile dirt oval with 13 degree banks and construction was completed by the East Coast Paving Company out of Palatka. After months of delays, leadership of Auto Racing Enterprises, Inc., shifted to Dan Epps and the track held its first event on April 23, 1967. The Sunday afternoon races provided space for 4,000 race fans with an admission price of $2 for adults, $1 for students, and free entry for children. The opening heats and the feature sportsman division event were both won by 27-year-old Budweiser route salesman Jimmy Sapp of Gainesville. Charley Brown of St. Augustine took the win in the late model division. Following the second week of operations, the track shut down for three weeks due to "powder dry" conditions of the track. Despite installing sprinklers systems, using water trucks, and starting races later in the day, dust issues persisted. Facing an unrelenting drought, the dirt oval became asphalt and the first race on the new surface was held on Labor Day of the same year with a 200-lap feature. Racing continued through the end of the season in November.

New Smyrna Speedway

Following disagreements with the members of Auto Racing Enterprises Inc., Benny Corbin and Dan Epps founded Florida Motor Speedways Inc., leased the property, and started the 1968 season with another major change. In an effort to avoid confusion with the nearby

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NASC ...

(often referred to as the Daytona Raceway), the track changed its name to New Smyrna Speedway. Afterwards, Corbin partnered with racing promoters Bob Bartel and Ed Otto to launch the World Series of Asphalt Auto Racing at New Smyrna Speedway. The track's schedule traditionally starts the new

club racing championship. Drivers across the country participate in the track's annual Ally Red Eye held on the first weekend of January, where drivers can earn points towards the annual national and Florida state championships. The Ally Red Eye was traditionally a 100 lap super late model race, but is now split as twin 50-lap features for the late models and David Rogers super late models, as the track renamed the premier class in memory of a local racer and former NASCAR Weekly Series national champion who died of cancer in 2020.

References

External links

*
Smyrna Speedway race results
at Racing-Reference
New Smyrna Speedway race results
at The Third Turn
FASCAR official site

New Smyrna Race Track Features Future Stars
Daytona Beach Morning Journal, Aug. 10, 1968.
Where's Pete Hamilton Now?
Daytona Beach Sunday News-Journal, Feb. 16, 1975.
Pit Stop
Morning Record and Journal (Meridan, CT), Feb. 11, 1977.
Allison Back in Spotlight
St. Petersburg Times, Feb. 16, 1977.
Sunday, It'll be 7 Hours of Country
Daytona Beach Morning Journal, June 23, 1977.
Racing Thrives at Local Level
The Madison Courier, Feb. 18, 1981.
New Smyrna Speedway May be Movie Site
Daytona Beach Morning Journal, Oct. 9, 1981. {{American Canadian Tour late model racetracks Motorsport venues in Florida Sports venues in Volusia County, Florida Buildings and structures in New Smyrna Beach, Florida Sports venues completed in 1967 NASCAR tracks 1967 establishments in Florida