Story By: BRYAN HULBERT / ASCS – DRUMRIGHT, OK – Ready to dive into the 32nd season of touring, the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series is set for a 48-night run in 2023 that will see the tour at 28 facilities across ten states.
Similar to the 2022 layout, the increase in car counts, and the ability for nearly all teams that started the season able to finish, series owner Terry Mattox will again keep that formula in play while adding new high-paying dates and focusing on weekend events.
“It’s the formula that built ASCS during the early 2000s, and it brought teams out that otherwise would have never considered running the National Tour,” commented Mattox of the 2022 season.
“When I was talking with teams at the end of the season, I got a lot of good feedback and suggestions on what they wanted to see schedule-wise, and one of those was keeping the races more focused on the weekends and limiting the number of mid-week events we run, and I feel like the 2023 schedule accomplishes that.”
With familiar favorites like the Devil’s Bowl, Creek County, Knoxville, Lucas Oil Speedway, and more dotting the schedule, the 2023 lineup will also see the addition of five new facilities.
First on the list of new stops is Rocket Raceway Park in Petty, Texas. On the lineup in 2022, tires and mother nature kept the series at bay. Shelby County Speedway in Harlan, Iowa, features a one-third-mile oval and would be the ninth Iowa oval to host the tour.
A highly requested track over the years is Rush County “Bullring” Speedway in La Crosse,
Kan. Living up the hype during URSS events over the year, the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series will rank among the largest events to roll into the five-sixteenths-mile oval.
Completely redone from its former Flint Creek Speedway days, the track that now sits in Colcord, Okla., is Arrowhead Speedway. Another track that was set to see action in 2022, the new owners pushed back the opening of the track in order to make sure the facility was ready. Paired with another new oval, the three-eighths-mile Longdale Speedway sits just the other side of Stillwater and will return to life in 2023 with several special events dotting their schedule.
With new tracks on the lineup, returning tracks cannot be overlooked.
Formerly Randolph County Raceway, the ultra-high-banked Missouri oval has a new lease on life and a new name; Moberly Motorsports Park. Last on the lineup in 2012, Dodge City Raceway Park returns with a pair of nights in July.
A couple of dates are still in the works as Mattox looks to secure a couple more venues in addition to dates marked at TBA. The 2023 season will again see a season-ending payout of $50,000 to the champion. Nightly payout and appearance money will stay the same for the 2023 season.
Major events on the 2023 lineup include the Capital City Clash at Jackson Motor Speedway ($15,000 to win), the Mickey Walker Memorial ($5,000 to win), West Kansas Showdown at WaKeeney Speedway ($5,000 to win), Knoxville 360 Nationals ($15,000 to win), Hockett/McMillin Memorial ($10,000 to win), and the COMP Cams Short Track Nationals, which will have a venue announced soon. Other events will be announced as the season nears.
2023 Lucas Oil ASCS Event Lineup:
Date – Track – City, State
3/17/2023-Devil’s Bowl Speedway – Mesquite, TX
3/18/2023-Devil’s Bowl Speedway – Mesquite, TX
3/31/2023-Jackson Motor Speedway – Byram, MS
4/1/2023-Jackson Motor Speedway – Byram, MS
4/7/2023-Super Bee Speedway – Chatham, LA
4/8/2023-Super Bee Speedway – Chatham, LA
4/21/2023-TBA
4/22/2023-Boothill Speedway – Greenwood, LA
5/12/2023-Moberly Motorsports Park – Moberly, MO
5/13/2023-Moberly Motorsports Park – Moberly, MO
5/19/2023-Tri City Speedway – Granite City, IL
5/20/2023-Tri City Speedway – Granite City, IL
5/26/2023-Lakeside Speedway – Kansas City, KS
5/27/2023-Lake Ozark Speedway – Eldon, MO
5/28/2023-Lake Ozark Speedway – Eldon, MO
6/2/2023-Creek County Speedway – Sapulpa, OK
6/3/2023-Creek County Speedway – Sapulpa, OK
6/16/2023-WaKeeney Speedway – WaKeeney, KS
6/17/2023-81 Speedway – Park City, KS
6/23/2023 – TBA
6/24/2023-Rocket Raceway Park – Petty, TX
6/30/2023-Boone County Raceway – Albion, NE
7/1/2023-Shelby County Speedway – Harlan, IA
7/7/2023-Dodge City Raceway Park – Dodge City, KS
7/8/2023-Dodge City Raceway Park – Dodge City, KS
7/14/2023-Thunderbird Speedway – Muskogee, OK
7/15/2023-Batesville Motor Speedway – Batesville, AR
7/21/2023-Rush County Speedway – La Crosse, KS
7/22/2023-81 Speedway – Park City, KS
8/3/2023-Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA
8/4/2023-Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA
8/5/2023-Knoxville Raceway – Knoxville, IA
8/25/2023-Lakeside Speedway – Kansas City, KS
8/26/2023-TBA
9/1/2023-Arrowhead Speedway – Colcord, OK
9/2/2023-Longdale Speedway – Longdale, OK
9/12/2023-Clay County Fair Speedway – Spencer, IA
9/14/2023-Lucas Oil Speedway – Wheatland, MO
9/15/2023-Lucas Oil Speedway – Wheatland, MO
9/16/2023-Lucas Oil Speedway – Wheatland, MO
9/22/2023-TBA
9/23/2023-TBA
10/6/2023-Short Track Nationals – Location TBA
10/7/2023- Short Track Nationals – Location TBA
10/13/2023-Devil’s Bowl Speedway – Mesquite, TX
10/14/2023-Devil’s Bowl Speedway – Mesquite, TX
10/27/2023-Lake Ozark Speedway – Eldon, MO
10/28/2023-Lake Ozark Speedway – Eldon, MO