Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-formed speedway situated off U.S. Thruway 12 on 1,400 acres of land (5.7 km2) around four miles (6.4 km) south of the town of Brooklyn, in the picturesque Irish Hills zone of southeastern Michigan.
The track is 70 miles (110 km) west of the focal point of Detroit, 40 miles (64 km) from Ann Arbor, and 60 miles (97 km) south and northwest of Lansing and Toledo, Ohio separately. The track is primarily used for NASCAR races. It is, at times, known as a sister track to Texas World Speedway and was used as the premise of Auto Club Speedway.
The track is owned by International Speedway Corporation (ISC). Michigan International Speedway is perceived as one of the motorsports' chief facilities in view of its wide hustling surface and high banking.
Michigan is the quickest track in NASCAR because of its wide, clearing corners, long straightaways, and absence of a restrictor plate prerequisite; ordinary qualifying speeds are more than 200 MPH (320 KM/h) and corner section speeds are somewhere in the range of 215 to 220 MPH (346 to 354 KM/h) after the 2012 repaving of the track.
The groundbreaking began on September 28, 1967. Over 2.5 million cubic yards (1,900,000 m3) of soil were moved to frame the D-formed oval. Opened in 1968 with an all-out limit of 25,000 seats, the track was initially constructed and possessed by Lawrence H. LoPatin, a Detroit-territory land engineer who assembled the speedway at an expected expense of $4–6 million.
LoPatin was President of American Raceways and had a controlling revenue in Trenton Speedway, Texas World Speedway, and Riverside International Raceway until the organization failed in 1971. Thomas W Itin. masterminded financing. Its first race occurred on Sunday, October 13, 1968, with Ronnie Bucknum winning the USAC 250 mile Championship Car Race.
In 1972, Roger Penske bought the speedway for $2 million. During Penske's proprietorship, the track was overhauled a few times from the first ability to 125,000 seating limit. From 1996 to 2000, the track was alluded to as Michigan Speedway. This was to keep consistency with different tracks possessed by Roger Penske's Motorsports International before its consolidation with ISC.
In 1999, the speedway was bought by International Speedway Corporation (ISC) and in 2000 the track was renamed to its unique name of Michigan International Speedway.
Location | 12626 US Highway 12 Brooklyn, Michigan, 49230 |
Operator | International Speedway Corporation |
Former Names | Michigan Speedway (1996–2000) |
Major Events | NASCAR Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 NASCAR Xfinity Series LTi Printing 250 ARCA Menards Series VizCom 200 |
Length | 2.0 mi (3.2 km) |
Most Wins | David Pearson (9) |
Most Starts | Bill Elliott (61) |
Most Poles | David Pearson (10) |