Could Racing Return to Palm Beach International Raceway in Florida? Property Goes Up for Sale, and a Current Track Owner Expresses Interest
In a state that has seen several dozen tracks since the 1950s, Palm Beach International Raceway (PBIR) looked to have the staying power, even going through a complete revamp in 2008 to become an all-concrete track.
Fourteen years later, April of 2022, the track saw its last action, and the land was going to be repurposed for warehouses. And although the southeast Florida area has been devoid of an operational quarter-mile track since, there’s been a good bit of news that could return PBIR to its former glory.
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Originally opened in 1965, PBIR went through a couple owners before the head of Moroso Performance Products, Dick Moroso, purchased the track and re-named it Moroso Motorsports Park.
In 2008, the track was sold once again after Moroso passed away, and it was closed for a re-model. This included a new all-concrete quarter-mile, changes to the two-mile road course, a seven-tenths of-a-mile go kart track, and better lighting.
After nearly thirteen years of operation with these new features, it was announced the track would be closing in 2022. The timing system, grandstands and multiple other necessities were sold off, and the rumor mill was heavy that racing at the facility was in serious doubt of ever returning.
However, thousands of racing community enthusiasts, and even elected officials came together, multiple battles were waged, several commission meetings held, and after a year of battles, the track’s owner’s plans to redevelop the land for use as industrial warehouses have been halted.
But on May 25th, 2023, the county commission approved plans to allow the race track to redevelop the land, and most everyone thought the track’s racing history would be forever removed. But the sale never went through due to a variety of factors, and the track has continued to sit vacant and unused.
The owner at the time of the closure, IRG Sports and Entertainment (owned by Sixth Street Investments), has since fallen into bankruptcy and liquidation of their assets, and as of a few weeks ago, the 174-acre property was listed on the open market with a “call for price” listing. Could the track possibly be saved from re-development, and brought back to its former glory?
Recently, the current owner of South Georgia Motorsports Park, Raul Torres, visited the track and filled us in the current situation with bidding for the track. “We wanted to get the message out there as soon as possible so other potential buyers can work with us,” said Torres. “Rest assured, we will do everything we can to bring PBIR back as a race track.”
Torres made a short video about the likelihood of the track coming back:
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Sick the Magazine, BME Photography and Madelyn Marconi.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com