Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Racing CircuitOval

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indiana is among the most historic and storied venues in motorsport, the first circuit ever to bear the name 'speedway'. It was conceived by businessman Carl Fisher and partners, who incorporated the company in 1909 and built a two-and-a-half-mile rectangular oval on former farmland west of Indianapolis. After a deadly debut on the original crushed-stone surface, the track was repaved with 3.2 million bricks, earning the enduring nickname 'the Brickyard'; a three-foot strip of original bricks survives at the start-finish line as the famous Yard of Bricks. The Indianapolis 500, first run in 1911, became the signature race and remains one of the greatest events in the world, with the venue's permanent and infield seating making it the highest-capacity sports facility on the planet. The Hulman-George family owned the Speedway from 1945 until 2019, when Roger Penske's organisation took control. NASCAR's Brickyard 400 arrived in 1994, and from 2000 a new infield road course hosted the US Grand Prix, won at its inaugural running by Michael Schumacher before Formula One departed after the troubled 2005 and 2007 races. The infield course was reconfigured for MotoGP motorcycle racing from 2008, adding the Snake Pit complex inside Turn 1, and again in 2014 for the IndyCar Grand Prix. The modern 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course combines part of the oval's front straight and Turn 1 with a twisting infield section, and is used by IndyCar and IMSA's Indianapolis 8 Hour. Overlooking it all is the Pagoda control tower, a lavish modern echo of the 1926 original.

Operated by: Penske Entertainment Corp.