Nazareth Speedway: the derelict oval that made Mario Andretti

Nazareth, in eastern Pennsylvania, is synonymous with American motor racing, the town steeped in the history of the sport. Mario Andretti still lives there and when he won the Indy 500 in May 1969 the street where he lived at the time was renamed Victory Lane. Two months later he won the USAC Dirt Champ car race at the Nazareth Speedway.

“It’s where it all started for me and my brother Aldo,” he says.“It was a tough, tricky track, short oval with elevations, one for the brave. I learnt a lot there.”
The town is all about horsepower, but not just the cars. The track was originally for horse racing but in the early 1900s a new half-mile dirt oval was created on the edge of town and the folk with cars came for a sport known as Auto Polo.

The first proper race on four wheels was in 1947, attracting 35 cars and a huge crowd. By the mid-1960s a new bigger track, 1.125 miles with five turns, brought modified events, and this was the birth of the Nazareth National Speedway.

The track was closed for periods in the 1970s and ’80s due to financial problems but in 1986 Roger Penske came to the rescue and built a new paved oval to replace the old dirt track. Renamed Pennsylvania International Raceway, the track was the first oval to feature a warm-up lane, designed by Rick Mears, to enter and exit the pits and new retaining walls, catch fencing and grandstands were built. By 1993 the place had regained its original name.

The last CART race was held in 2001 and the Speedway finally closed in 2004. Attendances were dropping as other tracks were running the bigger races and the land was zoned for commercial development. The old Speedway fell into disrepair, the grandstands were taken to Watkins Glen, and the site became a dilapidated reminder of glory days gone by.

“It’s just so sad – it was such a big part of my early career,” says Andretti. “And it will always be remembered as a chapter in American racing history.”

Nazareth Speedway
In use 1910-2004
Fastest race Lap 19.514sec, Greg Moore, Reynard-Mercedes-Benz 98I, CART Champ Car, 1998

My top 3 tracks: Riccardo Patrese

My first race in Formula Italia was at Imola, close to home in Padua. The old circuit was a special pleasure but there were ups and downs. I won the F1 San Marino Grand Prix in 1990 but in ’83 in the Brabham I crashed out of the lead at Acque Minerali with six laps left.

I loved Monaco because you need absolute precision and I had my first Formula 1 victory there in 1982 after I’d spun on oil at Loews, stalled and bump started the car down the hill. The place has a lot of glamour and such a long history of racing on those streets.

Suzuka is a fantastic circuit, very challenging and there are always so many Japanese fans. Japan is beautiful and I have good memories, winning in F2 in ’77 and the Grand Prix in ’92 in the Williams-Renault– the last win for an Italian driver for more than 10 years.

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