NASCAR

See detailed information on every track used for NASCAR’s top three divisions. Tracks vary in shape, length, and seating capacity.

When Prohibition made alcohol illegal in 1920, it didn’t stop Americans from making and consuming it. The law drove the practice underground. Runners risked their lives to deliver moonshine and began racing among themselves.

From the Winston Cup’s reign from 1971 to 2003, to the Nextel/Sprint Cup awarded from 2004 to 2016, this NASCAR video shows the evolution to the new Bill France Trophy with every track outlined.

Bill France Sr. was the first person to organize stock car racing in America. By the 1940s, the company he created had changed the sport forever.

After several years under construction, the inaugural Daytona 500 at the newly opened Daytona International Speedway was held Feb. 22, 1959. The race was aired on television and featured future star Richard Petty, old-school pit stops, and the infamous photo finish that took days to sort out a winner.

In the 1990s, every NASCAR race was aired live, major Fortune 500 companies were sponsoring teams, and the improved marketing made drivers household names. Attendance grew to 4.9 million in 1994, with merchandise sales topping $400 million.

When Michael Waltrip crossed the finish line at the 2001 Daytona 500, it was his first win. But the celebrations quickly turned to sorrow when everyone learned that Dale Earnhardt Sr. had died in a final-lap crash. Within eight months after the collision, nearly every driver wore head-and-neck restraints before a mandate took effect.

Following the death of Dale Earnhardt Sr. in 2001, NASCAR changed its culture to be safety-first. Part of its changes were to install barriers along tracks that would help absorb the majority of g-forces in a crash. This Daily Downforce article walks through the history of the SAFER barriers, why NASCAR originally chose concrete, and how much of the tracks are covered today.

NASCAR shifted to a safety-first culture and in 2002 opened a research and development center to focus on safety innovation. No driver has died in NASCAR’s top three series since Earnhardt’s death.

In 2022, NASCAR unveiled its Next Gen car, and the changes were some of the most significant in decades. Teams no longer design each car part, but purchase them from a single source, bringing greater parity.