Knoxville Raceway

Knoxville Raceway

Sprint Car Capital of the World
Location	1000 N Lincoln St Knoxville, Iowa 50138
Capacity	24,172
Owner	Marion County Fair Association
Operator	Marion County Fair Association
Opened	late 1800s as horse racing track
Major events	Goodyear Knoxville Nationals Lucas Oil Late Model Nationals Arnold Motor Supply 360 Nationals USAC Non-wing Knoxville Nationals
Oval
Surface	Dirt
Length	0.5 mi (0.8 km)
Banking	8 degrees
Race lap record	0:14.407 (Brooke Tatnell, Rush Racing, 2006)

Knoxville Raceway is a semi-banked 1/2 mile dirt oval raceway (zook clay) located at the Marion County Fairgrounds in Knoxville, Iowa, United States. Races at the "Sprint Car Capital of the World" are held on Saturday nights from April through September each year. Some special events may start as early as Wednesday and build up to Saturday. Regular events include 305 cubic inch, 360 cubic inch and 410 cubic inch sprint car racing. Each August, the Raceway holds the paramount sprint car event in the United States, the Knoxville Nationals.^[1] The track is governed by the 24-member fair board elected by Marion County residents.

History

The first weekly races were held at the Knoxville Raceway in 1954. After internal issues with the sanctioning body—the Southern Iowa Stock Car Racing Association—in 1956, Marion Robinson of Des Moines, Iowa was appointed as race promoter. During Robinson's tenure, the cars progressed from stock cars to modifieds to supermodifieds to sprint cars. Robinson created what would become the Knoxville Nationals in 1961. The event took place over two days and featured a $5,000 purse where today it is now nearly one million dollars. ^[2]

Timeline

• Late 1800's - Race track is built for horse racing.
• 1901 - First automobile race staged with 2 cars owned by Well's Manufacturing and Tone's Spices Co.
• 1914 - First race.
• 1917 - Old wooden grandstand was built (2,000 capacity).
• Until late 1930's: Infield is used for Knoxville high school football games.
• 1950-1954 - Stock car racing becomes popular after WWII and a few races per year are sanctioned by Newton Stock Car Association.
• 1954 - Weekly racing begins, banking, fencing, and lights are added to the track.
• 1955 - Weekly racing sanctioned under the Oskaloosa's Southern Iowa Stock Car Racing Association.
• 1956 - Marion County Fair Board begins sanctioning its own racing and hires Marion Robinson as race promoter.
• 1959 - Wooden bleachers were added to the west of existing grandstand. (5,000)
• 1961 - First Knoxville Nationals held, and won by Roy Robbins.
• 1969 - Wood grandstand was razed.
• 1970 - New steel and aluminum grandstand. (8,139 seats)
• 1974 - Promoter Marion Robinson leaves May 1974.
• 1974 - P. Ray Grimes named promoter, later expands the Nationals to 4 days and creates Nationals scoring point system.
• 1978 - Remainder of wooden bleachers replaced with steel and aluminum.
• 1978 - Ralph Capitani named Race Director and Promoter.
• 1981 - New lighting.
• 1982 - Wings on sprint cars becomes mandated for safety.
• 1983 - 360 sprint cars begin competing.
• 1984 - Grandstands expanded to higher rows in sections A-J.
• 1987 - First year Nationals were on TNN television.
• 1987 - Grandstand expansion completed upper tier in sections K-N (11,584).
• 1990 - Temporary seating added to backstretch for Nationals.
• 1991 - NSCHoF&M built (400 additional seats).
• 1991 - Backstretch permanent grandstand added, Sections P-Z (17,224).
• 1991 - First year of 360 Nationals.
• 1994 - Backstretch grandstand expanded, sections P-ZZ (19,400).
• 1995 - Knoxville Nationals broadcast live for first time on TNN.
• 1996 - Main grandstand upper tier addition, VIP suites, new Musco Lighting. (23,200).
• 2002 - Concrete added to infield pit area.
• 2003 - Main grandstand sections AA & BB refitted, added handicap seating (24,192).
• 2004 - First year of Late Model Knoxville Nationals.
• 2010 - First points season for 305 sprint cars.
• 2011 - Ralph Capitani retires at the end of the 2011 season.
• 2012 - Toby Kruse named GM & Promoter, John McCoy named Race Director.
• 2013 - Brian Stickel named GM & Promoter.
• 2014 - New video boards added by Impact Signs.^[3]
• 2015 - McKenna Haase became the first woman to win a feature Sprint Car race at Knoxville Raceway.^[4]
• 2015 - GM Brian Stickel resigns.
• 2016 - John McCoy given the Promoter and Race Director title. Gary Schumacher named as Business Manager. Spire Sports + Entertainment's Kendra Jacobs, named as Marketing Director.
• 2017- Additional fencing constructed in turn 1 and 2

Records

• The current 410 one-lap track record of 14.407 seconds was set by multiple Australian champion Brooke Tatnell on May 7, 2006.^[5]
• The current 360 one-lap track record of 15.520 is held by Joe Beaver on June 15, 2013.
• The driver with the most 410 feature wins at the Knoxville Raceway is Danny Lasoski of Dover, Missouri with 112 feature wins.^[6]
• The driver with the most 360 feature wins is David Hesmer of Marshalltown, Iowa with 65 feature wins.
• The driver with the most consecutive wins is Doug Wolfgang of Sioux Falls, SD with 10 wins to start the 1977 season. He won 13 of the 18 events that year including the Knoxville Nationals.

List of Knoxville Raceway Sprint Car Track Champions

National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum

The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum is located just outside Turn 2 of the Knoxville Raceway. It features rotating exhibits to highlight the history of both winged and non-wing sprint cars.

References

External links

• Knoxville Raceway

Coordinates: 41°19′38.97″N 93°6′42.27″W / 41.3274917°N 93.1117417°W / 41.3274917; -93.1117417