Pocono Raceway (formerly known as the Pocono International Raceway in early years) is a tri-oval track in Blakeslee, Pennsylvania. The track has held a variety of events since its opening in 1969, including NASCAR, IndyCar Series, and IMSA GT Championship races. The facility is owned by Mattco, Inc. and led by track chief executive officer Nick Igdalsky.
After over a decade of planning and construction delays, Pocono Raceway opened in 1969 under the control of David Montgomery. Montgomery quickly left any involvement with the speedway after him and investor Joseph Mattioli disagreed with the facility's future plans, with Mattioli taking over control of the venue. Under Mattioli's tenure, the main tri-oval opened two years after the venue's initial opening. Pocono Raceway initially faced heavy financial turmoil throughout much of the 1970s, but was able to recover starting in the mid-1980s with the success of its NASCAR races. Pocono Raceway received major expansion and upgrades in the 1990s and 2000s with the addition of seating and renovation of various amenities at the track.
Description
Configurations
Pocono Raceway's main track in its current form is measured at , with 14° of banking on the track's first turn, 8° of banking on its second turn, and 6° of banking on its third turn. Compared to other NASCAR tracks, the track is the only one on the schedule that has three turns. All turns are based on turns from other racetracks; track designer and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Rodger Ward designed the first turn after Trenton Speedway, the second turn after Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the third turn after the Milwaukee Mile. In addition to the tri-oval, the venue features various infield road course layouts according to current Pocono Raceway CEO Nick Igdalsky.
Amenities Pocono Raceway is located in Blakeslee, Pennsylvania, and is served by Interstate 80 and Pennsylvania Route 115. Although the venue does not release official seating capacity figures due to its private ownership, Frontstretch estimated a seating capacity of 76,812 in 2021.
Track history
Planning and construction In 1957, Racing, Inc. was formed by disgruntled fans in Pennsylvania who criticized the poor quality of racing amenities in the state. After searching more than 30 tracts of land, on April 6, 1962, the Pocono Record reported that Racing, Inc., led by David Montgomery, began purchasing tracts of land near Blakeslee, Pennsylvania, totaling over at a price "in excess of $114,000" (adjusted for inflation, $) in hopes of building a multi-million dollar racing facility then known as the "Pocono Mountains International Raceway". The following month, the company began issuing common stock; further plans were also released by Montgomery within the month, with proposals of 110,000 grandstand seats being made. The following month, the track layout was revealed to be a oval. In January 1963, the first events on an improvised circuit of the track was held; the event was deemed a success by organizers, with plans to host future improvised races "every two to three weeks".
Persistent delays Developers began clearing land on November 9, 1964. By this point, Montgomery stated to the Record that the track layout had changed to a new "top secret" design. In April 1965, the Record reported that plans expanded for the multi-layout complex to include a oval, which was slated to host the complex's first race. Two months later, the secret design was revealed to be a tri-oval shaped layout; additional plans for a road course layout using parts of the oval, a dragstrip, and a road course layout using portions of both ovals were made. Groundbreaking on the now-named Pocono International Raceway (PIR) took place on July 8, 1965, with plans to open the facility on September 5. However, the opening was delayed until the spring of 1966 due to constant rain.
In May 1966, a United States Auto Club (USAC) Indy-car race was announced to inaugurate the facility on August 28 of that year; however, after further rain and a self-described "tight money situation" according to Montgomery, the race and the track's opening was postponed, with the latter being delayed until the spring of 1967. A $176,219 (adjusted for inflation, $) lien was filed by construction contractor Schartz and Baker in December 1966 due to alleged unpaid dues, placing doubts on the project's financial stability; Montgomery refuted the claim in January, and four months later, Racing, Inc. filed a lawsuit against Schartz and Baker for filing the lien "without basis". The lien was dismissed on August 23, 1967, and the lawsuit was settled on May 25, 1968, with both ending in victories for Racing, Inc. The legal battles with Schartz and Baker halted all construction for nearly two years; construction did not resume until early July. Two months later, track officials announced a 200-lap "preview race" on the oval for October 20 featuring supermodifieds; however, after three postponements due to weather, the opening was delayed until the spring of 1969.
Early years
PIR officially opened on May 4, 1969, for a supermodified program won by Jim Shampine on the venue's oval. During the program, the venue experienced its first fatality after Troy Ruttman Jr. crashed during the feature event, suffering a fractured skull. The venue's short road course layout, now measured at , opened approximately four months later. In February 1970, USAC agreed to host their second attempt at an event at the speedway, this time with a race on the venue's tri-oval. Along with the USAC race, the deal also promised a 500-mile race with "late model stock[s]". According to PIR board member and eventual future long-time track CEO Joseph Mattioli, PIR did not make a profit in both 1969 and 1970, with Mattioli and Montgomery disagreeing over how to expand the facility.
Six months after USAC's announcement, Montgomery resigned from his position as CEO, with Mattioli, a former Philadelphia dentist who helped paid off much the facility's finances in its construction phase, being named as his replacement by the start of 1971. In late October, paving of the tri-oval was completed, with testing runs conducted on November 2 by Jim McElreath, Jim Hurtubise, and Al Loquasto. To accommodate the newly built track, seating capacity was increased from 10,000 to "more than 69,000" according to The Philadelphia Inquirer'''s Bill Simmons. According to a June 1971 interview given by Mattioli, the entire facility cost $6 million (adjusted for inflation, $).
An official ribbon-cutting ceremony for the tri-oval was held on June 19, 1971. It held its first race on July 3, with Mark Donohue winning the 500-mile USAC-sanctioned event. PIR held its first major stock car race later that year on September 25, with Butch Hartman winning a 500-mile USAC-sanctioned event. In 1973, parts of the road course layout were repaved by April, including the second and third turns of the main speedway. Two months later, the venue's road course held its first race. After USAC's stock car racing contract expired in 1973, the facility was in heavy financial turmoil, with Mattioli considering selling off the track. He was convinced otherwise by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr., who was able to convince Mattioli by giving him a business card with an inspirational quote from American politician Adlai Stevenson II. The venue later hosted its first NASCAR Cup Series event the following year on August 4, with Richard Petty winning the event. In 1978, the tri-oval's second turn was repaved twice in the same year after complaints were raised by drivers about the bumpiness of the track surface.
Financial troubles in midst of CART–USAC split In 1979, the track suffered numerous financial blows. After numerous car owners in USAC split to create their own racing league named Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) the year prior, the USAC-sanctioned 1979 Pocono 500 faced numerous issues, including Schaefer Beer ending their title sponsorship of the race after eight years, numerous CART-affiliated drivers boycotting the event, and the 1970s energy crisis all caused economic downturn for the event. In addition, the inaugural major drag races at the venue scheduled for May 18–20 were cancelled; a dispute began between the raceway and the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA), the event's sanctioning body, for refunds. In August, PIR sued CART in an antitrust suit for $6.3 million (adjusted for inflation, $).
The following year, in response to venue's financial hit in 1979, the venue was leased out by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a year to help the track's financial situation. In February 1981, The Morning Call reported that Mattioli was considering selling the track, admitting that he was negotiating with three separate groups interested in purchasing. After a chaotic 1981 Pocono 500 that saw another CART boycott, another lawsuit was filed by the venue against the organization; this time for $9 million. In 1982, despite the track being still up for sale, Mattioli admitted in April that they were "looking for recapitalization possibilities" in efforts to retain racing, adding a second annual Cup Series weekend. The following month, CART settled with PIR out of court, agreeing on a five-year contract. The following year, now out of their financial troubles with the success of their events, Mattioli stated to The Citizens' Voice that "we certainly aren't thinking of selling the facility at this time". He later stated in a 1995 Scranton Times interview that the addition of a second Cup Series event saved the facility, stating, "I've been quoted on more than one occasion that Bill France Sr. and Bill France Jr. saved our ass."
Financial recovery, 1990s venue expansion
In 1984, the tri-oval's frontstretch and pit road was repaved alongside the construction of a new victory lane. Two years later, 14 pit road suites and the repaving of the tri-oval's first and second turns was completed. By 1987, the venue's financial state was recovering; Citizens' Voice reporter John Zimich wrote that with increased attendance and sponsor deals, "Pocono has survived a great deal of adversity and the future certainly looks bright". However, in the following couple years, the track received considerable criticism from open-wheel drivers for an unsafe and bumpy track surface. As a result of the complaints, the future of open-wheel racing at the venue was put into jeopardy. Although a contract was signed for the race to run until 1990, the Pocono 500 was removed from the CART schedule starting in 1990 after further safety complaints in 1989. However, Mattioli stated that the event's departure was instead due to its lack of profitability.