Richmond Raceway
“Richmond International Speedway”
by Eric Duff is under public domain
Nickname
Strawberry Hill
Location
Henrico County, Virginia
Length
0.75-mile (1.21 km)
Type
Short D-Shaped Oval
Seating
51,000
Opened
1946
Series
Monster, Xfinity
Bio
Richmond Raceway (RR) is a 0.75 miles (1.21 km), D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series. Known as “America’s premier short track”, it has formerly hosted such illustrious events as the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, IROC series, IndyCar Series, and the USAC sprint car series. Due to Richmond Raceway’s unique “D” shape which allows drivers to reach high speeds, Richmond has long been known as a short track that races like a superspeedway. With its multiple racing grooves, and proclivity for contact Richmond is a favorite amongst NASCAR drivers and fans.[2]
Richmond Raceway is the only track in NASCAR with multiple races on the schedule that hosts all of its events at night. The “Action Track” is noted for having sold out an incredible 33 consecutive NASCAR Cup Series races. The sellout streak ended in September of 2008 partially due to the economic downturn, though the major factor in ticket sales was the impact of Tropical Storm Hanna.[3]
Richmond has hosted the final “regular-season” race, leading up to the start of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, each year since the concept was introduced in 2004. However, it was announced late in 2017 that Richmond would be moved into the playoffs for the 2018 season.
In 2010, the track introduced a state-of-the-art video scoring tower that boasts more LED square footage than any other in the motorsports industry. The cap features four high definition LED screens that measure 38-feet wide by 24-feet high. The screens broadcast live race action and pre-produced video and graphics. The stem shows the running order and has the ability to rotate through the entire field.