Without a doubt Indianapolis, and Indiana more broadly, is the heart of motorsports racing. Sure, Florida has Daytona, and North Carolina has NASCAR, and Southern California built the hot rod car culture, but Indiana has it all and more.
The greatest spectacle in all of sports (not just motorsports), the Indianapolis 500, has been hosted in Speedway, Ind., at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on 108 occasions. This event is so big INDYCAR, from time-to-time, has awarded double points for the race.
The allure of Indianapolis brought NASCAR to IMS in 1994. It quickly became a crown-jewel event, being out shadowed by only the Daytona 500. In the years following NASCAR’s arrival at Indy, both Formula 1 (2000-2007) and MotoGP (2008-2015) ran at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Sportscar racing has also has a long history at Indy. The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) has a yearly event and there are future plans for IMS to host a World Endurance Championship (WEC) event, possibly as early as 2026.
What is amazing is that the highest form of almost every motorsport division has raced at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
And if it hasn’t raced at IMS, it likely competed right down the street. For example, the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) has its biggest event of the year at Indianapolis Raceway Park in Brownsburg, Ind. The U.S. Nationals, held annually over Labor Day weekend, is the “Super Bowl” of drag racing. The U.S. Nationals begin on the Thursday and concludes on Labor Day. The weekend of racing features over 900 competitors.
Additionally, Indiana is home to the United States Auto Club (USAC), which has its corporate offices in Speedway. Every year in June there is the USAC Indiana Midget Week that features a week of racing on tracks throughout Indiana. Likewise, at the end of July there is the USAC Indiana Sprint Week that features the USAC sprint cars. And if that isn’t enough for you, there are iconic racing events such as the Hoosier Hundred at Indianapolis Raceway Park, the Little 500 at Anderson Speedway, and the Winchester 400 at Winchester Speedway.
This week featured just another example of Indiana motorsports glory when the 20th annual Hot Rod Drag Week rolled into Indianapolis Raceway Park. The drag week features “drive and drag” competition. Meaning the competitors drive their race cars from track to track. The goal is to log over 1,000 miles on the road while competing at five different tracks in five days. After the competitors race at IRP, they rolled through Hamilton County on their way to US 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Mich. For those who got to see it, it was a sight to behold – dozens of dragsters with trailers in tow making their way north to Michigan.
The 20th annual Hot Rod Drag Week brought a slew of interesting custom rigs to the Indianapolis Raceway Park . . . some far stranger than others. (ABOVE) We’ve heard of off-roading, but would you call this “off-watering”? (Reporter photo by Bill Miller)
Indiana is home to the greatest motorsports competition in the world. Prove me wrong.
Zech Yoder is a local resident, an attorney at Adler Attorneys in Noblesville, and a lifelong race fan.
Reporter photo by Bill Miller