Stafford Speedway (formerly known as Stafford Motor Speedway and Stafford Springs Motor Speedway) is a paved oval located in
Stafford Springs, Connecticut. Stafford Speedway holds weekly racing every Friday night May through September. This track is known as the home of the SK Modifieds and drivers such as
Ryan Preece and
Ted Christopher. The track hosts weekly events throughout the season previously including 3
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events yearly. Stafford Motor Speedway is the track that had hosted the second most ever races in the modern era of the
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour with 135 races from 1985 to 2021.
The speedway also had hosted 5
NASCAR North Tour events from 1979 until 1985 and 30
NASCAR K&N Pro Series East races, between 1987 and
2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
.
Stafford Motor Speedway was the site of the first ever
Superstar Racing Experience event on June 12, 2021. The main event was won by track regular
Doug Coby.
In December 2020, the track announced that it would end its 60-year affiliation with
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
, "due to a conflict regarding ownership of streaming and broadcast rights of weekly racing events". Stafford began live streaming on
FloRacing in 2021.
History

Originally known as the Stafford Springs Agricultural Park, the facility was used as a half-mile horse racing facility up to the end of World War II when it switched to automobile racing. The facility became a
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
track in 1959 as a dirt track, under the ownership of Rockville auto dealer Mal Barlow, Barlow paved the track in 1967. It was purchased by the Arute brothers, Chuck and
Jack Arute in 1970. Jack's son Mark Arute continues to own and manage the track.
Notable drivers

*
Geoff Bodine
*
Brett Bodine
*
Ron Bouchard
*
Ken Bouchard
*
Greg Sacks
*
Doug Coby
*
Jerry Cook
*
Dale Earnhardt
*
Richie Evans[Bourcier, Bones. ''RICHIE!: The Fast Life and Times of NASCAR's Greatest Modified Driver'' (1st ed., 2004). Newburyport, Massachusetts, USA: Coastal 181. .]
*
Jimmy Spencer
*
Mike Stefanik
*
Ted Christopher
*
Don McTavish
*
Ryan Preece
*
Donny Travaglin
*
Martin Truex Jr.
*
Steve Park
References
External links
Stafford Motor Speedway websiteStafford Motor Speedway archiveat Racing-Reference
{{Valenti Modified Racing Series racetracks
NASCAR tracks
Motorsport venues in Connecticut
Stafford, Connecticut
Sports venues completed in 1870
1870 establishments in Connecticut