The United States is home to some of the world’s most famous racetracks. Certain racetracks come to mind, such as Talladega, Indianapolis, or Barber Motorsports Park, but one in particular continues to captivate visitors from all over the world: Daytona International Speedway.
The legendary Daytona International Speedway is incredibly versatile and hosts a variety of sports and non-sporting events. In addition to the well-known NASCAR tri-oval track, the speedway has two infield road courses, a supercross dirt track, a flat track, a kart track, and a freshly rebuilt short track for lower-tier NASCAR races. On the infield of Daytona, there is a vast body of water named Lake Lloyd, which holds powerboating competitions.
Daytona Speedway has never failed to live up to expectations since it opened. From the first race in 1959, it was the fastest venue in all of stock car racing, and they proudly boasted about it for a decade.
Although construction of the site officially began in 1957, the concept of what the track should look like began much earlier. Daytona International Speedway’s history began in 1953, when Bill France Sr., one of the original founders of NASCAR, realized that the days of racing on the beach were numbered due to expanding land utilization, a rapidly developing population, and massive race crowds.
On April 4, 1953, France proposed building a permanent speedway facility, setting in motion his ambitions for the future of racing in Daytona Beach, Florida. His primary goal was to increase speed and audience visibility by using as much banking as feasible.
On August 16, 1954, France signed a contract with the City of Daytona Beach and Volusia County officials to create what would become the “World Center of Racing,” the Daytona International Speedway. Land clearing for the racetrack began in 1957. The iconic 31-degree highbanks were included in the raceway design to allow for faster speeds and to make it easier for spectators to watch the vehicles race around the 2.5-mile tri-oval.
Once the track was finally ready, racing shifted from the beach-road track to Daytona International Speedway in 1959, and the gates opened to a crowd of over 41,000 spectators during the first Daytona 500. Hardtops and convertibles were among the vehicles entered (it was the only DAYTONA 500 that included convertibles).
The race produced one of the most dramatic finishes in racing history, with Johnny Beauchamp going to Victory Lane, but Lee Petty was named the official winner three days later after a bit of newsreel video indicated that Petty nipped Beauchamp at the line by nearly two feet.
The DAYTONA 200 motorcycle event was moved from the beach to the racetrack in 1961. The following year, DIS held the first edition of what is now known as the Rolex 24, the most prestigious sports car race in North America. The event began as a three-hour race and evolved into the 24-hour race we know today in 1966.
On July 5, 2013, the groundbreaking was laid for the DAYTONA Rising renovation project that would transform the historic speedway into a state-of-the-art motorsports facility at a cost of approximately $400 million. The Speedway now boasts about 101,500 permanent, larger, and more comfortable seats; 40 escalators; 17 elevators; double the number of restrooms; three times the number of food stands; and three concourse levels across the almost mile-long frontstretch.
In addition, the racetrack has over 60 luxury suites with trackside views and a newly redesigned corporate hospitality experience. The project was finished in January 2016 and was awarded the prestigious SportsBusiness Journal Sports Facility of the Year award.
Daytona International Speedway offers daily track visits, and its grounds are widely used for events such as concerts, civic and social gatherings, car exhibits, photo shoots, production vehicle testing, and police motorcycle training. Daytona International Speedway features the most diverse racing schedule in the world, as well as at least nine major event weekends.
