Summit Motorsports Park, formerly Norwalk Raceway Park and Norwalk Dragway, is a drag racing facility located at 1300 State Route 18 near Norwalk, Ohio. It has been a National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) sanctioned facility since 2007 and annually hosts the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals an NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Event and the Cavalcade of Stars, an NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Regional Event. As well as the national events, the facility holds regular local competition throughout the season.
 | |
 A Pontiac Can Am at the 2007 Pontiac Nationals, held at the park | |
| Location | Norwalk, Ohio, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°14′07″N 82°32′34″W / 41.2352778°N 82.5427778°W |
| Capacity | 40,000 [1] |
| Owner | Bill Bader |
| Address | 1300 State Route 18 |
| Opened | 1963 |
| Former names | Norwalk Raceway Park |
| Major events | NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals |
| Website | www |
| Drag Strip | |
| Surface | Concrete |
| Length | 0.250 mi (0.402 km) |
History
editNorwalk Dragway opened to the public in 1963 but lay dormant for much of the first ten years of its existence. Goodyear briefly used the track for tire testing up to 1973 when the track was sold to a joint venture between Wayne Sergeant and Bill Bader. Sergeant pulled out of the deal the following year and Bader continued as the sole owner. The track was reopened on April 28, 1974.[2]
In 1981, Norwalk hosted the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) World Nationals for the first time. It continued to host this event up to the 2006 season and had become the IHRA's flagship drag racing facility by this time.
In 2007, Ohio-based automotive parts company Summit Racing Equipment purchased the naming rights to the facility. The Pontiac Performance NHRA Nationals, held at National Trail Raceway in Hebron, Ohio between 1972 and 2006, found its new home at Summit Motorsports Park in 2007. In preparation for the facility's NHRA debut, millions of dollars were spent in upgrades and renovations.
In 2008, the last NHRA national event to run the nitromethane classes to 1320' was held here. Since this race, nitromethane classes have only been contested to 1000' to allow for more braking distance at national events.
In 2020, track owner Bill Bader initially refused to shut down the track as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] However, the track was eventually shuttered for the entire 2020 season by government authorities, with only one event held -- the Norwalk High School graduation ceremony.[4][5][6]
NHRA National Event Winners
edit| Year | Top Fuel | Funny Car | Pro Stock | Pro Stock Motorcycle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Tony Schumacher | Mike Ashley | Dave Connolly | Andrew Hines |
| 2008 | Doug Herbert | Tony Pedregon | Greg Anderson | Hector Arana |
| 2009 | Larry Dixon | Jack Beckman | Jason Line | Andrew Hines |
| 2010 | Larry Dixon | Tim Wilkerson | Greg Anderson | Matt Smith |
| 2011 | Del Worsham | Mike Neff | Vincent Nobile | Eddie Krawiec |
| 2012 | Spencer Massey | Mike Neff | Vincent Nobile | Andrew Hines |
| 2013 | Khalid alBalooshi | Johnny Gray | Mike Edwards | Matt Smith |
| 2014 | Antron Brown | John Force | Erica Enders-Stevens | Andrew Hines |
| 2015 | Doug Kalitta | Jack Beckman | Greg Anderson | Karen Stoffer |
| 2016 | Shawn Langdon | Ron Capps | Jason Line | Eddie Krawiec |
| 2017 | Steve Torrence | Jack Beckman | Bo Butner | L.E. Tonglet |
| 2018 | Blake Alexander | Matt Hagan | Tanner Gray | Eddie Krawiec |
| 2019 | Steve Torrence | Bob Tasca III | Chris McGaha | Andrew Hines |
| 2020 | Event | Cancelled | Because | COVID-19 |
| 2021 | Steve Torrence | Cruz Pedregon | Erica Enders | Matt Smith |
| 2022 | Mike Salinas | Robert Hight | Erica Enders | Angelle Sampey |
| 2023 | Leah Pruett | Blake Alexander | Matt Hartford | Hector Arana Jr. |
| 2024 | Antron Brown | Bob Tasca III | Kenny Delco | Gaige Herrera |
| 2025 | Justin Ashley | Austin Prock | Cory Reed | John Hall |
| 2026 | Maddi Gordon | Ron Capps | Aaron Stanfield | Richard Gadson |
Current NHRA Track Records
edit| Category | E.T. | Speed | Driver | Event | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top Fuel | 3.666 | Brittany Force | 2022 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | [7] | |
| 339.79 mph (546.84 km/h) | Maddi Gordon | 2026 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | |||
| Funny Car | 3.853 | Austin Prock | 2024 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | ||
| 337.41 mph (543.01 km/h) | Austin Prock | 2026 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | |||
| Pro Stock | 6.523 | Erica Enders | 2014 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | ||
| 212.63 mph (342.19 km/h) | Erica Enders | 2014 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | |||
| Pro Stock Motorcycle | 6.627 | Gaige Herrera | 2024 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | ||
| 201.58 mph (324.41 km/h) | Matt Smith | 2021 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals |
References
edit- ↑ Don, Gary (6 August 2024). "Summit Motorsports Park 47th Annual Night Under Fire Results". DragChamp.com.
- ↑ "2018 NHRA Media Guide" (PDF). Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ↑ "'We are starving': Summit Motorsports Park says they're opening for the 2020 season no matter what". wkyc.com. 2020-04-16. Retrieved 2024-10-24.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ↑ "Summit Motorsports Park cancels entire 2020 season". sanduskyregister.com. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ↑ "Summit Motorsports Park Not Opening In 2020". Dragzine. 1 June 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ↑ "Summit Motorsports Park cancels 2020 season". norwalkreflector.com. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ↑ "Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals Sunday preview". NHRA. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
External links
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