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Indianapolis Motor Speedway, located in Speedway, Indiana
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Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indy, The Brickyard,
The Greatest Race Course in the World,
Racing Capital of the World 
Facility statistics
Location:
4790 West 16th Street
Speedway, Indiana 46222
Broke ground March 15, 1909
Opened August 12, 1909
Owner Hulman and Co.
Operator Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation
Construction cost $3 million
Architect Carl G. Fisher, James Allison, Frank Wheeler and Arthur Newby
Major events
IRL IndyCar Series - Indianapolis 500-Mile Race
Formula One - United States Grand Prix
NASCAR Nextel Cup - Allstate 400 at The Brickyard
Seating capacity
257,325
Current dimensions
Track shape Oval/Combined Road Course
Track length Oval - 4.023 kilometers(2.5 miles)
Combined Road Course - 4.192 kilometers (2.605 miles)
Track banking Turns - 9° 12´
Straights - 0°
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(a separate town completely surrounded by Indianapolis) in the United States, is the second-oldest surviving automobile racing track in the world (after the Milwaukee Mile), having existed since 1909, and the original "Speedway," the first racing facility historically to incorporate the word. Capable of seating over 250,000 individuals, it is the highest-capacity sporting facility in human history[2] (by comparison, the world's largest soccer stadium seats 150,000 spectators). The Motor Speedway is a relatively flat (by American standards; considered high-banked by European) two and a half mile oval, almost rectangular in shape. The dimensions have remained unchanged since 1909. There are two 5/8 mile straightaways, two 1/8 mile short straightaways, and four 1/4 mile turns. The infield road course includes parts of the oval to create a 2.6 mile track. Altogether, today the grounds have expanded to cover over a total current area of 559 acres from an original 320 on which the Speedway was first built. With a combined permanent seating and infield spectator capacity of over 400,000, it is the largest sporting facility in the world, and generally recognized as among the most famous and prestigious in motorsport history. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975, and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987, currently the only such landmark to be affiliated with automotive racing history since its inception.
To date, a total of 222 automobile races between August 19, 1909 and July 3, 2006 have been held, with 122 separate drivers winning. After winning the U.S. Grand Prix in 2006 for the fifth time, Formula One driver Michael Schumacher holds the record for most victories at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway between the '500', '400,' and USGP. Schumacher's wins have come on the infield road course. A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears each won four times in the Indianapolis 500 on the rectangular shaped "oval" track. Jeff Gordon has won four times in the Brickyard 400 also run on the oval.
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