While the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series visits Sonoma Raceway this weekend, the other road course on the schedule, Watkins Glen International, stole some of Sonoma’s thunder Friday when it was named the best NASCAR track in a poll of fans by USA Today and 10Best.
WGI barely edged out runner-up Martinsville Speedway.
Tracks were measured by racing style and fan experience. Fans voted for their favorite facilities over the past four weeks.
Surprisingly, not on the top 10 list were some of NASCAR’s most popular or legendary racetracks, including Daytona International Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway.
Daytona is in the midst of a $400 million facelift that is slated for completion in time for the 2016 Daytona 500.
Here’s the “Best NASCAR Track” top 10 list:
- Watkins Glen International - Watkins Glen, N.Y.
- Martinsville Speedway - Ridgeway, Va.
- Michigan International Speedway - Brooklyn, Mich.
- Bristol Motor Speedway - Bristol, Tenn.
- Darlington Raceway - Darlington, S.C.
- Kansas Speedway - Kansas City, Kan.
- Dover International Speedway - Dover, Del.
- Richmond International Raceway - Richmond, Va.
- Talladega Superspeedway - Lincoln, Ala.
- Charlotte Motor Speedway - Concord, N.C.
Seven of the top 10 tracks are owned by NASCAR’s speedway arm, International Speedway Corporation. Two others (Bristol, Charlotte) are owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc., and Dover is independently owned.
Tracks that were also nominated but failed to make the top 10 cut were Atlanta Motor Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Daytona International, Homestead Miami Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Phoenix International Raceway, Pocono Raceway, Sonoma Raceway and Texas Motor Speedway.
Tracks that weren’t nominated on the original list of 20 tracks selected were New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway and Kentucky Speedway.
[polldaddy poll=8951799]
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