Richmond International Raceway

Motorsport venue
Name = Richmond International Raceway


Location = Blue Cross Blue Shield Township, Virginia
Broke_ground =
Opened = 1946
Owner = International Speedway Corporation
Operator = International Speedway Corporation
Former_names = Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway 1969-1988
Virginia State Fairgrounds 1964-1968
Atlantic Rural Fairgrounds 1955-1963
Atlantic Rural Exposition Fairgrounds 1946-1955
Events = NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400
Chevy Rock & Roll 400
NASCAR Nationwide Series
Circuit City 250 presented by FUNAI
Emerson Radio 250
IRL IndyCar Series
SunTrust Indy Challenge
Capacity = 112,029
Layout1 = D-shaped oval
Surface = Asphalt
Miles_first = True
Length_km = 1.2
Length_mi = 0.75
Banking = 14° in turns
8° on frontstretch
2° on backstretch
Record_time = 0:15.564
Record_driver = Helio Castroneves
Record_team = Penske Racing
Record_year = 2006
Record_class = IRL IndyCar Series

Richmond International Raceway (RIR) is a 3/4-mile (1.2 km), D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series. "America's Premier Short Track" also hosts the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series, and the United States Auto Club Silver Crown and National Sprint Car Series.

Richmond International Raceway is one of a few race tracks to host all of its events under the lights. The track has sold out the last 32 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races. [ http://www.rir.com/track_info/timeline/ ] ]

Richmond is also well known for hosting the final race leading up to the start of the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Richmond Raceway Complex

Richmond International Raceway is located at the Richmond Raceway Complex, which is an 1000-acre, multi-purpose facility.

Richmond Raceway Complex also hosts the Intergalactic Bead Show, Virginia Golf Show, Bassarama, Richmond Home and Garden Show, RV and Camping Expo, Richmond Boat Show, Richmond Classic Sports Card Show, East Coast Sawmill and Logging Equipment Expo, Craftsmen Classic Spring and Christmas Shows, Bizarre Bazaar Spring and Christmas Shows and other various arts and craft events.

Outdoor festivals hosted by Richmond Raceway Complex in 2004 included the Virginia State Fair, Richmond Highland Games & Celtic Festival, March of Dimes Bikers for Babies, K95 Country Music Festival, [http://www.1021thex.com] 102.1 The X] , ACCA Temple Pork Festival, the VA Food Festival and concerts featuring local and national recording artists.

The former name for RRC was "Strawberry Hill" until RIR bought out the Virginia State Fairgrounds in 1999. The Strawberry Hill Races, which are a series of steeplechase horse races were formerly held the third Saturday of April at the Richmond Raceway Complex. In 2001, the Races were moved to Colonial Downs in New Kent County, Virginia's first Thoroughbred racetrack. [ http://www.strawberryhillraces.com/2007/tradition.shtml Strawberry Hill Races Traditions ] ]

tatistics

*October 12, 1946 Driving an open-wheel car, Ted Horn wins the first race at Atlantic Rural Exposition Fairgrounds over a ½-mile dirt track.
*April 19, 1953 Lee Petty wins the first NASCAR "Grand National Division" race with an average of 45.535 mph at “Atlantic Rural Exposition Fairgrounds.
*1955 Paul Sawyer and legendary racer Joe Weatherly buy the property. Track is known as “Atlantic Rural Fairgrounds.”
*March 10, 1964 race run under temporary lights
*The track operated as a 0.5 mile oval through the spring race of 1988. During the spring and summer of 1988, the track was reconfigured to its current layout of 0.75 miles. The first race under the new configuration was in September 1988. Lights were added for the fall 1991 race.
*The track was previously called Strawberry Hill [ http://www.strawberryhillraces.com/2007/tradition.shtml Strawberry Hill Races Traditions ] ] , Virginia State Fairgrounds, and Richmond Fairgrounds Speedway, the annual fair made the track a popular venue.
*Richard Petty holds the record of most wins at Richmond with 13 victories, Darrell Waltrip and Rusty Wallace are tied with six.
*Richmond is the site of the famous battle between Dale Earnhardt and Darrell Waltrip in 1986. Earnhardt tapped Waltrip in turn 4 and both drivers hit the wall, handing the win to Kyle Petty who avoided the crash and won.
*In 2001 to 2002, the fall event was sponsored the Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 presented by the Looney Tunes and in 2003, the event was renamed the Chevy Rock and Roll 400.
*Until 2005, RIR was home to a fall Craftsman Truck Series race. Starting with the 2006 schedule, that date was transferred to Talladega Superspeedway.
*RIR hosted an International Race of Champions event in 2004 and 2005, won by Matt Kenseth in 2004 and Mark Martin in 2005. The series has folded as of the 2008 Season
*Site of Kasey Kahne's first career Sprint Cup Series win in 2005.
*Site of Tony Stewart's first career Sprint Cup Series win in 1999.
*Spring Race Sponsor Crown Royal held a promotion in 2007 where the winner would be the Grand Marshal and Louisiana's Jim Stewart was the contest winner.

Current Races

* Sprint Cup Series - Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400
* Sprint Cup Series - Chevy Rock and Roll 400
* Nationwide Series - Circuit City 250
* Nationwide Series - Emerson Radio 250
* Indy Racing League - SunTrust Indy Challenge

Records

* NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying: Brian Vickers, 20.772 sec. (129.983 mph, 209.187 km/h); 2004
* NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race: Dale Jarrett, 2 hrs. 45 min. 4 sec. (109.047 mph, 175.494 km/h); 1997
* NASCAR Nationwide Series Qualifying: Kyle Busch, 20.874 sec. (129.348 mph 208.165 km/h); 2004
* NASCAR Nationwide Series Race: Dale Jarrett, 1 hr. 47 min. 13 sec. (104.928 mph, 168.685 km/h); 1995
* Indy Racing League IndyCar Series Qualifying: Sam Hornish Jr., 15.3197 sec. (176.244 mph, 283.637 km/h); 2005

Race Past Winners

1953 Lee Petty
1955 Tim Flock
1956 Buck Baker
1957 Paul Goldsmith
1958 Speedy Thompson
1959 Tom Pistone
1959 Cotton Owens
1960 Lee Petty
1960 Speedy Thompson
1961 Richard Petty
1961 Joe Weatherly
1962 Rex Wright
1962 Joe Weatherly
1963 Joe Weatherly
1963 Ned Jarrett
1964 David Pearson
1964 Cotton Owens
1965 Junior Johnson
1965 David Pearson
1966 David Pearson
1966 David Pearson
1967 Richard Petty
1967 Richard Petty
1968 David Pearson
1968 Richard Petty
1969 David Pearson
1969 Bobby Allison
1970 James Hylton
1970 Richard Petty
1971 Richard Petty
1971 Richard Petty
1972 Richard Petty
1972 Richard Petty
1973 Richard Petty
1973 Richard Petty
1974 Bobby Allison
1974 Richard Petty
1975 Richard Petty
1975 Darrell Waltrip
1976 Dave Marcis
1976 Cale Yarborough
1977 Cale Yarborough
1977 Neil Bonnett
1978 Benny Parsons
1978 Darrell Waltrip
1979 Cale Yarborough
1979 Bobby Allison
1980 Darrell Waltrip
1980 Bobby Allison
1981 Darrell Waltrip
1981 Benny Parsons
1982 Dave Marcis
1982 Bobby Allison
1983 Bobby Allison
1983 Bobby Allison
1984 Ricky Rudd
1984 Darrell Waltrip
1985 Dale Earnhardt
1985 Darrell Waltrip
1986 Kyle Petty
1986 Tim Richmond
1987 Dale Earnhardt
1987 Dale Earnhardt
1988 Neil Bonnett
1988 Davey Allison
1989 Rusty Wallace
1989 Rusty Wallace
1990 Mark Martin
1990 Dale Earnhardt
1991 Dale Earnhardt
1991 Harry Gant
1992 Bill Elliott
1992 Rusty Wallace
1993 Davey Allison
1993 Rusty Wallace
1994 Ernie Irvan
1994 Terry Labonte
1995 Terry Labonte
1995 Rusty Wallace
1996 Jeff Gordon
1996 Ernie Irvan
1997 Rusty Wallace
1997 Dale Jarrett
1998 Terry Labonte
1998 Jeff Burton
1999 Dale Jarrett
1999 Tony Stewart
2000 Dale Earnhardt Jr
2000 Jeff Gordon
2001 Tony Stewart
2001 Ricky Rudd
2002 Tony Stewart
2002 Matt Kenseth
2003 Joe Nemechek
2003 Ryan Newman
2004 Dale Earnhardt Jr
2004 Jeremy Mayfield
2005 Kasey Kahne
2005 Kurt Busch
2006 Dale Earnhardt Jr
2006 Kevin Harvick
2007 Jimmie Johnson
2007 Jimmie Johnson
2008 Clint Bowyer
2008 Jimmie Johnson

References

External links

* [http://www.rir.com Richmond International Raceway Official Site]
* [http://www.nascar.com/races/tracks/rir/index.html Richmond International Raceway Page] on [http://www.nascar.com NASCAR.com]
* [http://www.rir.com/uploads/assets/fans/rir_05guestguide.pdf RIR visitor's guide]
* [http://www.richmondracewaycomplex.com/ Richmond Raceway Complex website]
* [http://www.richmond.com/news/output.aspx?ID=595083&Vertical_ID=2&tier=1&position=24 richmond.com article on Strawbery hill]
* [http://www.journalnow.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSJ%2FMGArticle%2FWSJ_ColumnistArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031782731032 Winston-Salem Journal Op-ed piece on the history of RIR]
* Super High Resolution image from [http://local.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=37.591608~-77.41921&style=o&lvl=2&scene=3374284 Windows Live Local]