Bruton Smith and racer Curtis Turner broke ground near Concord, North Carolina, in July 1959. Less than 11 months later, in June 1960, the first World 600 ran at their new Charlotte Motor Speedway.
The property has spread outward ever since. Today it hosts racing on asphalt, clay, and concrete, and the drive from Charlotte’s center city to Concord takes roughly 20 minutes in light traffic.
The superspeedway anchors the map. Its 1.5-mile quad oval banks 24 degrees in the turns and 5 degrees on the straightaways, and the frontstretch alone measures 1,980 feet. Published figures list a capacity of about 95,000 spectators and 57 suites across a nearly 2,000-acre complex.
Everything else spreads out from there:
Charlotte’s two big NASCAR weekends typically bring together the Cup Series, the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and the Craftsman Truck Series.
Night racing arrived in 1992 with The Winston, an All-Star race nicknamed One Hot Night. It was the first NASCAR event under lights on a modern superspeedway. The original lighting system bounced light off about 1,700 mirrors instead of relying on tall poles.
On days with no race, NASCAR Racing Experience puts visitors in race cars on the oval. The cars have no doors, so everyone climbs in through the window.
From 2018 through 2025, the fall Cup race ran on the ROVAL as the Bank of America ROVAL 400. That 17-turn layout links the oval’s banking to a winding infield section, and it hosted the first road course race in Cup playoff history. The race moved back to the oval in 2026.
Nearly 14,000 seats ring the clay oval at The Dirt Track at Charlotte, which opened in May 2000. Its calendar runs from sprint cars to monster trucks, with the biggest stretch in the fall.
Next door, zMAX Dragway opened in 2008 as the world’s first four-lane concrete drag strip. It seats 30,000 fans, and two pedestrian tunnels cross beneath the racing surface. The facility earned the nickname the Bellagio of Drag Strips.
Four-wide racing debuted here in 2010 at the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, which returns each spring, and Las Vegas later borrowed the format. Nitro cars race 1,000 feet rather than a full quarter mile, yet four of them together make nearly 50,000 horsepower and top 340 mph. Every ticket doubles as a pit pass, so fans can watch crews work between rounds.
On race weekends, utilities make the biggest difference between campsites.
At dry sites, water delivery and pump-outs cost extra. Published guidelines also require generators to shut off from midnight to 7 a.m.
Every spring, AutoFair brings more than 50 car clubs to the speedway for three days of classics, customs, hot rods, modern muscle, and supercars. Independent owners can register show cars too. Rows of vendor displays and a large flea market sit alongside the cars.
From the Tour Desk on Smith Tower’s second floor, the Feel the Thrill Speedway Tour lasts 45 to 60 minutes. Depending on track availability, it can include these stops:
Anyone under 18 needs a signed parental waiver. Back at the tower, visitors can reserve lunch at the Speedway Club, which serves Tuesday to Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. with a panoramic view of the oval.
Since 2010, Speedway Christmas has lit up the property each winter, from late November until early January. More than 5 million lights line a 4-mile drive-thru route around the oval and across the infield, with synchronized music on 101.3 FM.
A few firm rules apply at the gates:
The speedway works best when the visit matches the reason for coming. Race fans get the biggest crowds and loudest engines in May and October. Car collectors tend to aim for spring, and families with children get the most from December nights among the holiday lights.
A weekday tour shows the garages and banking up close. Dates, hours, and gate rules change from event to event, so the speedway’s calendar is the place to start.
