| | | | | | | | | | Pocono Raceway | The Tricky Triangle |
| | Long Pond, PA Pocono Raceway, located in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, is the site of two NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races held annually in June and July. The unique 2.5-mile tri-oval has challenged drivers since it hosted its first Cup Series race in 1974.
Pocono Raceway, one of few NASCAR tracks that are not owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc. or International Speedway Corporation, is owned by the Mattioli family. The Mattioli family, which also owns South Boston Speedway in South Boston, Virginia, has battled through ups and down to make the racetrack a success. Hurricane Agnes hit the area soon after the first IndyCar race at Pocono in 1971. Between the economic crunch and energy crisis, many tracks didn’t survive and owners Joe and Rose Mattioli thought about selling.
After meeting with Bill France Sr., and eventually getting a second NASCAR race, the track has continued to grow. The Mattioli family hosts almost 100,000 ticket-holders in the Poconos twice a year.
Besides NASCAR races, sports car and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools use Pocono Raceway. The raceway has three separate infield sections of track – each section uses a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. On non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different sections of the infield.
Some fans as well as drivers think that the 500-mile races at Pocono Raceway take too long and would like to see 400-mile races run instead. Also, it is one of only two NEXTEL Cup oval tracks that is not on either the Busch or Craftsman schedule – the only support event is the ARCA series. Some would like to see a Busch Series or Craftsman Truck Series support race at the raceway.
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