Texas World Speedway was built in 1969 and is one of only seven superspeedways of two miles (3 km) or greater in the United States, the others being Indianapolis, Daytona, Pocono, Talladega, Auto Club, and Michigan. TWS is located on approximately 600 acres (2.4 km²) on State Highway 6 in College Station, Texas. There is a 2-mile (3 km) oval, and several road course configurations. The last major race occurred at the track in 1981. The track is still used by amateur racing clubs such as the SCCA, NASA, driving schools and car clubs, as well as hosting music concerts and the like.
During the 1980s the track fell into a state of disrepair, and both NASCAR and the IndyCar Series chose to drop it from the schedule. It continued to operate in a limited role for amateur racing. In 1993, the track reopened after a repaving and moderate refurbishment. It hosted a race for the ARCA series but due to the lack of modern facilities and amenities, it has since served as a circuit for amateur and club racing, along with private testing, and also hosts NASCAR teams' testing for Michigan International Speedway and California Speedway because of NASCAR conducting new 2006 restrictions prohibiting both tracks from being used for tests. With the 2009 NASCAR testing ban, the track expects more testing in the three national series because the track is not on any of the three circuits, and therefore is legal.
During a January 2009 test, Greg Biffle managed to reach 218 miles per hour (351 km/h) in a test for Roush Fenway Racing as part of evading NASCAR's testing ban. This became the fastest time ever achieved on this track by any competitor (amateur or professional).[1]
[edit] Race history
[edit] USAC winners
- Bobby Isaac's 1969 win was his first in a long-distance superspeedway race.
- Richard Petty's 1972 win was his first in a Dodge.
- The 1979 400 was NASCAR's first race at Texas after it shut down for the 1974-5 seasons; USAC stock cars and Indycars returned to Texas in 1976.
[edit] USAC Stock Cars
[edit] IMSA World SportsCar Championship winners
[edit] References
[edit] External links
Coordinates: 30°32′15″N 96°13′14″W / 30.53762°N 96.22058°W / 30.53762; -96.22058
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