Dover International Speedway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "The Monster Mile" | ||
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| Location | 1131 North Dupont Highway, Dover, Delaware, 19903 |
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| Time zone | GMT-5 | |
| Capacity | 135,000 | |
| Owner | Dover Motorsports | |
| Operator | Dover Motorsports | |
| Broke ground | 1966 | |
| Opened | 1969 | |
| Architect | Melvin Joseph (Melvin Joseph Construction) | |
| Former Names | Dover Downs Int'l Speedway (1969-2001) | |
| Major Events | NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Best Buy 400 Dodge Dealers 400 NASCAR Nationwide Series NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series NASCAR Busch East Series |
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| Oval | ||
| Surface | Concrete | |
| Circuit Length | 1 mi (1.6 km) | |
| Turns | 4 | |
| Banking | Turns: 24° Straights: 9° |
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Dover International Speedway is a NASCAR-sanctioned race track located in Dover, Delaware, owned by, and serving as the corporate headquarters of, Dover Motorsports, Inc. It is co-located with a harness racing track, Dover Downs, and shares the complex with Dover Downs Hotel & Casino. At one time both the entertainment complex and the speedway were owned by the publicly traded Dover Downs Entertainment, but they have since been split into two separate companies.
In February 2002, Dover Downs Entertainment changed its name to Dover Motorsports (NYSE: DVD) following the spin-off of its gaming operations to its existing shareholders. As a result, the name of the track was changed from Dover Downs International Speedway to Dover International Speedway. Dover Motorsports, Inc. continues to maintain its corporate headquarters at the racetrack.
The racetrack is home to the second race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup and will celebrate its 40th anniversary during the 2008 season.
Dover is unique in many ways. It is exactly one mile long; technically this means that it is neither a superspeedway nor a short track. The speedway surface is concrete; most NASCAR track surfaces are asphalt. The concrete surface is notoriously hard on cars, bringing about its nickname of The Monster Mile.
At one time the Winston Cup (now Sprint Cup Series) races held here were 500 miles long until a NASCAR rules change limited 500-mile races to being held only at tracks over a mile in length; the current Sprint Cup Series races here are 400-miles in distance. Dover also hosted Indy Racing League races in 1998 and 1999 won by Scott Sharp and Greg Ray.
Dover Motorsports owns Dover International Speedway and several other motorsports facilities, including Nashville Superspeedway, Gateway International Raceway in St. Louis and Memphis Motorsports Park. The Dover Motorsports ownership is one of only three publicly held ownership groups of NASCAR tracks, the other two being International Speedway Corporation, controlled by NASCAR's founding France family and owners of the Talladega and Daytona tracks, among others, and Speedway Motorsports, Inc., led by Bruton Smith and H. A. "Humpy" Wheeler, which owns Lowe's Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway, among others. Aside from these three ownership groups, NASCAR tracks are privately held by one or a few individuals.
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[edit] 2008 schedule
June 1, 2008 - Best Buy 400, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
May 31, 2008 - Heluva Good! 200, NASCAR Nationwide Series
May 30, 2008 - AAA Insurance 200, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
Sept. 21, 2008 - Dodge Dealers 400, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Sept. 20, 2008 - RoadLoans.com 200, NASCAR Nationwide Series
Sept. 19, 2008 - Sunoco 150, NASCAR Camping World Series
[edit] The Monster Monument at Victory Plaza & The Monster Makeover
New for 2008, Miles the Monster will become the largest attraction at a NASCAR track and will be one of the tallest fiberglass structures in the world. The Monster Monument will stand 46-feet-tall amongst race fans in the newly created Victory Plaza at Dover International Speedway. [[1]]
The Monster Monument at Victory Plaza will be completed prior to the May 30 – June 1, 2008 race weekend and will become a new focal point for race fans visiting the Monster Mile. Nearly five stories tall, the structure depicts the monster bursting out of the concrete ground, carrying with him a full-scale stock car in his right hand that will hover high over race fans below.
The 60-foot-round base of the monument will serve as a tribute to all Dover race winners and legendary drivers who make their mark at the Monster Mile. Special driver dedications will be commemorated around the base of the monument which will also include a chronological listing of Dover winners by race and series.
Located outside Turn 4 of the one-mile oval, Victory Plaza will welcome race fans who are entering the facility from Leipsic Road, the various RV lots, and the parking areas located on the east side of the Speedway. Fans will walk through a new archway and up a colorful walkway as they make their way towards the Monster Monument, new FanZone, souvenir haulers and frontstretch grandstands.
The FanZone has doubled in size since last year and now encompasses 7.8 acres of land at the Speedway. The expansion eliminates the road formerly known as Old Leipsic Road. The FanZone features fan experiences, sampling, interactive attractions, driver appearances and more. It’s free and open to the public every day of race weekend.
In May 2006, Dover International Speedway announced plans for the “Monster Makeover,” a multi-year, multi-million dollar capital improvement project that will provide new offerings and upgraded amenities for fans, competitors and the media that visit the Monster Mile.
The first phase of construction included a new skybox complex, a revamped and expanded media center, and several other capital improvement projects around the facility. Phase I of construction was completed in June 2007.
[edit] Miles the Monster
The speedway's mascot is called "Miles the Monster" which is a concrete monster spawned from the track's nickname, "The Monster Mile." The monster is featured on the winner's trophy, the track's tickets, memorabilia, website, and more. A previous nickname that the track had was the "White Lightning."
[edit] Traditions
- The winner of each race is asked to sign the seat number that matches their respective car number in the Monster Bridge, located near Turn 3. Martin Truex Jr. most recently signed his seat during the Sept. 21-23, 2007 race weekend.
See also: List of NASCAR race tracks
[edit] Current Races
- Sprint Cup Series - Autism Speaks 400 presented by Visa[2]
- Sprint Cup Series - Dodge Dealers 400[3]
- Nationwide Series - Heluva Good! 200
- Craftsman Truck Series - AAA Insurance 200
- Busch East Series - Sunoco 150
[edit] Records
- NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying: Jeremy Mayfield, 22.288 sec. (161.522 mph), 2004
- NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race: Mark Martin, 132.719 mph, September 21, 1997
- NASCAR Nationwide Series Qualifying: David Green, 22.797 sec. (157.915 mph), 2004
- NASCAR Nationwide Series Race: Brian Vickers, 133.154 mph, September 20, 2003
- NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Qualifying: David Starr, 22.846 sec. (157.577 mph), 2005
- NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Race: Ted Musgrave, 104.545 mph, May 31, 2002
[edit] USAC Championship Car history
| Season | Date | Race Name | Winning Driver | Chassis | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | August 24 | Delaware 200 |  Art Pollard |
Gerhardt | Plymouth |
[edit] Indy Racing League history
| Season | Date | Race Name | Winning Driver | Chassis | Engine | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | July 18 | Pep Boys 400K | Scott Sharp |
Dallara | Oldsmobile | Kelley Racing |
| 1999 | August 1 | MBNA Mid-Atlantic 200 | Greg Ray |
Dallara | Oldsmobile | Team Menard |
[edit] External links
- Dover International Speedway Official Site
- Dover International Speedway Page on NASCAR.com
- High Resolution image from Google Maps
- Dover International Speedway is at coordinates Coordinates:
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![[1]](http://www.doverspeedway.com/images/dover/200801/6029.f.jpg){kind=link}