Martinsville Speedway Tickets

Martinsville Speedway

The Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Virginia, is the only original NASCAR-sanctioned track in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. At only .526 miles in length, the track at the Martinsville Speedway is one of the shortest tracks in NASCAR. The track is also the first ?paved? superspeedway.

H. Clay Earles opened the Martinsville Speedway on September 7, 1947. When NASCAR was sanctioned a year later, the first race at Martinsville Speedway was July 4th. In 1949, Martinsville Speedway hosted the sixth race in the series, which eventually led the NASCAR Nextel Cup Circuit.

Capacity of Martinsville Speedway stands at 63,000 people; it opened with 750 seats in 1947. Other than when it was paved in 1955, the track configuration has not changed since the first race at Martinsville Speedway. The track features 800-foot straights, and short, tight turns banked at only 12 degrees. An entrance for race-day traffic was constructed off of the U.S. 58 Bypass.

The track was sold to International Speedway Corp. in 2004 in what has been referred to as the ?biggest deal in NASCAR.? Martinsville Speedway celebrates its 59th anniversary in 2006. Races held at the Martinsville Speedway are the Advance Auto Parts 500 and the Subway 500. The Richard Petty Driving Experience is set to be hosted for the first time at Martinsville Speedway March 18 and 19.