About the Las Vegas Motor Speedway

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By Brian Brown
eHow Contributing Writer

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Las Vegas Motor Speedway is a raceway outside of Nevada's largest city. It opened in 1996 and holds a variety of races, including NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series events. The track, dubbed The Diamond in the Desert, became the focal point of NASCAR's radical scheduling realignment during the late 1990s that brought the sport into new markets and helped it reach the popularity it enjoys today.

Geography

Las Vegas Motor Speedway is located on a 1,500-acre site in Clark County Nevada, about 15 miles from the Las Vegas Strip.

Size

The speedway is a 1.5-mile D shaped oval that features progressive banking in its corners. It has a seating capacity of 132,000.

History

The first race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was an Indy Racing League event on September 15, 1996. Since 1998, it has annually hosted a race in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series, which typically comes to the track in early March.

Ownership

The track is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., which owns eight other tracks around the country.

Features

In addition to the 1.5-mile oval, the speedway also features a 1/2-mile dirt track, a 3/8-mile bullring, a drag strip and a road course. Each of these tracks holds a variety of events and series.

Effects on NASCAR

Las Vegas Motor Speedway was part of NASCAR's westward expansion, which shifted races from older tracks in the southeastern United States to newer super speedways in the Midwest and Western United States. This helped the sport reach its record popularity but also caused it to lose some of its southern roots.

Future

Because of its popularity with team owners, drivers and fans, Las Vegas Motor Speedway has long been considered a candidate to earn a second Sprint Cup race date.