After Nearly 60 Years in Operation, Sacramento Raceway Park Could Close By Year’s End
2023 has been a rough year for race tracks, as five tracks across the United States to this point have been closed, or will be closed by year’s end.
The latest one to hit the news waves isn’t as big of a surprise as others, but according to several sources, Sacramento Raceway Park in Sacramento, California could shut their gates to racing for good by the end of 2023.
The track, which was original built in 1964 on a 198-acre parcel of land, has been under the care of the Smith family since 1971. The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) sanctioned track runs a variety of events, including specialty races with funny cars and nitro dragsters, as well as bracket races.
On June 29th of 2023, due to the influx of rumors about the track’s future, Sacramento Raceway Park put out a statement on their Facebook page about the possible future of the facility.
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The post read (in part): “With full transparency for our valued racers and patrons who have supported the track for more than 5 decades. There is a potential buyer lined up for the land that SRP owns and operates. The sale is by no means official yet, and we will issue a statement if and when it is.
We understand how frustrating this can be for you all and we will update you as soon as possible this season. The current timeline is around September of 2023. We will know whether or not the sale is official. If at that point in time it does go through, we will finish out the remainder of the 2023 season and SRP would be officially closed by 2024. If the sale does not go through, we will continue operating for as long as possible.
We appreciate all your support and whether or not the sale goes through, we hope to see you at the track this season!”
The track held its annual Governor’s Cup Championships on September 23rd, which was billed as the “53rd and final” edition. This has once again started the rumors of the track closing by the end of the year, and the track only has two events scheduled on its page at press time.
This is not the first time the track has nearly closed its gates, as in 2017 the track faced an uncertain future.
If Sacramento did close at the end of the year, California would be left with seven NHRA-sanctioned drag strips: In-And-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, Famoso Dragstrip, Redding Motorsports Park, Samoa Dragstrip and Sonoma Raceway, as well as eighth-mile tracks Barona Dragstrip and Irwindale Dragstrip.
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Tyler Crossnoe, Logan Pagano and Sacramento Raceway Park.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com