Road Atlanta

History

In 1969, David Sloyer, Earl Walker, and Arthur Montgomery purchased a 750 acre plot of farmland in Braselton, Georgia, with the intent to build a world-class road racing facility. When a Can-Am race had to be canceled due to flood damage, the series organizers chose Road Atlanta to replace it. The track then began to take form quickly, taking only six months to excavate, grade, and pave the road course.

The first race was held on September 13, 1970. Vic Elford, in a Chaparral 2J, won pole and Tony Dean, in a Porsche 908/02, won the 300 km Can-Am event, with Stirling Moss as the Grand Marshal. Throughout the 1970s, more top-level series came to Road Atlanta, including Can-Am, Formula 5000, IMSA Camel GT, and Trans-Am. The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) held their annual national championship, the SCCA Runoffs, at Road Atlanta from 1970 to 1993. The first road race in NASCAR Busch Grand National Series history took place at Road Atlanta in 1986.

The track was sold in 1978, and was passed from one owner to the next—culminating in bankruptcy in 1993 under the Whittington Brothers (Don and Bill). Business executives Frank Drendel, Jim Kanely, Eddie Edwards, George Nuse, and Bill Waddell formed a partnership to purchase the track. They spent the next three years making gradual improvements to the facility. New buildings were constructed, others were renovated, the track was widened and resurfaced and the grounds were landscaped.

In November 1996, Don Panoz purchased the track and made Braselton the base of operations for his motorsports-related ventures. Panoz introduced the first major changes to the track, removing the Dip and creating a chicane at the end of the long back straight. These changes brought the track up to FIA standards, so that international events could be held. A new pit and paddock area was also constructed on the infield side of the track, allowing for larger events, and a 10,000-seat terrace area was constructed around the new Turn 10 complex.

In 1998, major racing resumed at Road Atlanta with the first edition of the Petit Le Mans endurance race. The race attracted worldwide attention, and included entries from the Le Mans-winning Porsche factory team. The race would be the first race of the American Le Mans Series and included a spectacular "blowover" accident where a Porsche 911 GT1 lifted its front while driving over the hump, backflipped in mid air, and flew into the side barriers. A similar incident had occurred there in the 1972 Can-Am season to the McLaren M20 of Denny Hulme, and again in the 2000 race to one of the open top BMW V12 LMR that had won the 1999 Le Mans in which Mercedes-Benz CLR somersaulted no less than three times.

Petit has continued to be an annual event at Road Atlanta, and a marquee event in the ALMS. Prior to the 2007 Petit Le Mans, the entire track surface was repaved. The works also included moving the walls in the esses away from the track, with the intention of improved driver safety and better sight lines for spectators. In the late winter of 2007–2008, the circuit was again modified with the reconfiguration of turns 4 and 12, for the ostensible safety benefit of motorcycle racers (the racing line for cars remained essentially unchanged).

In April 2008, Road Atlanta hosted the 4th stage of the Tour de Georgia, one of the largest cycling stage races in the United States. The stage was run using standard racing bikes instead of the more aerodynamic time trial bikes. Slipstream Chipotle won the stage with a time of 19:38.86, while Astana and Team High Road finished second and third respectively. Used in local cycling events, the circuit is run counterclockwise (in reverse), owing to safety issues from the downhill Turn 11 to Turn 12, creating a steep climb from Turn 12 to Turn 11, and a much safer route for cycling.

The October 2008 Petit Le Mans had a four-day crowd of 113,000 people with an average weekend crowd of nearly 80,000 fans. The race entry list includes a number of new and returning cars.

In September 2012, the track was purchased by IMSA Holdings as part of its acquisition of Panoz Motor Sports Group. The intention was to combine the Grand AM and American Le Mans Series. NASCAR K&N series has announced a return to the track in October 2013 as part of the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.

In December 2017, the track hosted its first 24 Hours of LeMons event, the Kim Harmon Scrotium 500. The series is also scheduled to return in 2018.

In 2019, the track became Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta after Michelin and IMSA Holdings announced the naming rights agreement.

In 2020, Michelin Raceway hosted the PNC Atlanta 10 Miler: Extreme Hill Edition and 4k Races because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In video games

The track was first included in the 1985 Commodore 64 game Racing Destruction Set. Road Atlanta is featured in the 1999 PC racing simulator Sports Car GT and the Xbox video game Forza Motorsport and all its subsequent entries.

The track was also digitally created for Electronic Arts' F1 series ('01 – '02), then modded to be compatible with multiple PC games. Scratch-made versions of the track have also been created for rFactor, Papyrus' NASCAR Racing 2003 Season, and BeamNG.drive. It also appears in the PlayStation 2 game Le Mans 24 Hours and on iRacing.com.

In November 2022, the track was added to the PlayStation game Gran Turismo 7. The track was added to the game as part of update 1.26, which was released to mark the series' 25th anniversary.

Events

Current

• February: ChampCar Endurance Series
• March: Trans-Am Series Road Atlanta SpeedTour, SCCA Super Tour, Atlantic Championship Series, F2000 Championship Series, F1600 Championship Series, Sportscar Vintage Racing Association
• April: MotoAmerica MotoAmerica Superbikes at Road Atlanta, Historic Sportscar Racing Classic Motorsports Mitty
• May: Formula D Drift Atlanta
• June: GT World Challenge America, GT America Series, GT4 America Series, TC America Series, McLaren Trophy America, Toyota Gazoo Racing Cup North America
• July: Sports Car Club of America Summer Sizzle
• September: Historic Sportscar Racing Classic 10 Hour at Road Atlanta, Porsche Sprint Challenge North America
• October: IMSA SportsCar Championship Petit Le Mans, Michelin Pilot Challenge Fox Factory 120, IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, Porsche Carrera Cup North America, Global MX-5 Cup
• November: Sports Car Club of America American Road Race of Champions
• December: 24 Hours of LeMons, National Auto Sport Association

Former

• AMA National Championship (1971–1974, 1980, 1986–1988)
• AMA Superbike Championship (1980, 1986–1990, 1993–1994, 1998–2010, 2012)
• American Le Mans Series
  • Grand Prix of Atlanta (1999, 2003, 2005)
  • Petit Le Mans (1999–2013)
• Barber Pro Series (1987–1994, 1998, 2000)
• Can-Am
  • Road Atlanta Can-Am (1970–1974, 1978–1979, 1982, 1984)
• European Le Mans Series
  • Petit Le Mans (2012)
• Ferrari Challenge North America (1995–1996, 1998, 2000–2002, 2004, 2008–2009, 2018, 2020, 2023)
• Formula 4 United States Championship (2016, 2018–2019, 2021)
• Formula BMW USA (2005)
• Formula Regional Americas Championship (2018–2019, 2021)
• IMSA GT Championship
  • Grand Prix of Atlanta (1973–1992, 1994–1998)
  • Petit Le Mans (1998)
• Indy Lights (2001)
• Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America (2014–2015, 2020)
• NASCAR Busch Series (1986–1987)
• NASCAR K&N Pro Series East (2013)
• North America Talent Cup (2022)
• PNC Atlanta 10 Miler (2020)
• Pro Mazda Championship (1999–2010, 2012)
• Rolex Sports Car Series
  • Grand Prix of Atlanta (2013)
• SCCA/USAC Formula 5000 Championship (1972–1973, 1975)
• SCCA Formula Super Vee Championship (1971–1975, 1979, 1989–1990)
• SCCA National Championship Runoffs (1970–1993)
• Star Mazda Series - East Championship (1999–2004)
• U.S. F2000 National Championship (2010)
• Z Nationals (2015–2020)

Lap records

The outright unofficial all-time track record is 1:01.200, set by Marc Gené in a Ferrari F2003-GA, during a 2018 Ferrari Corsa Clienti event. As of October 2025, the fastest official race lap records at Road Atlanta for different classes are listed as:

Track configurations

File:Road Atlanta track map until 1998.svg|Grand Prix Circuit (1970–1997) File:Road Atlanta club circuit map.svg|Short Circuit (1998–present) File:Road Atlanta track map.svg|Grand Prix Circuit (1998–present) File:Road Atlanta moto circuit map 2003-2008.svg|Motorcycle Circuit (2003–2007) File:Road Atlanta bike circuit map 2008.svg|Motorcycle Circuit + Turn 4 Chicane (2008–present)

References

References

1. (October 12, 2018). "'Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta,' new track developments for 2019".
2. "History of Road Atlanta".
3. (January 6, 2005). "SCCA Runoffs Moves To Heartland Park Topeka In 2006".
4. (8 May 2006). "Busch Series champions and milestones". [[Yahoo! Sports]].
5. "Road Atlanta News". Road Atlanta.
6. (9 October 2012). "ALMS News | American Le Mans Series". [[American Le Mans]].
7. "The 24 Hours of Lemons - Road Atlanta". Road Atlanta.
8. Klein, Jennifer. (12 October 2018). "Michelin And Road Atlanta Announce Naming Rights Agreement To Begin in 2019".
9. "Stadium 64 - Maps Archive: Racing Destruction Set".
10. Brown, Joe. (April 2005). "Race Against Reality".
11. "Road Atlanta". [[Fandom (website).
12. (23 November 2022). "Four new cars and a new track coming to Gran Turismo 7 this week!".
13. (20 March 2018). "Watch a V10 Ferrari Formula 1 Car Obliterate the Road Atlanta Lap Record".
14. (17 March 2018). "Watch Marc Gene Smash the Road Atlanta Track Record in a Ferrari F1 Car".
15. (19 March 2018). "Watch A V10 F1 Car Annihilate Road Atlanta's Lap Record In This Stunning Footage".
16. (4 October 2008). "2008 Petit Le Mans".
17. (15 October 2019). "2019 Motul Petit Le Mans - Race Official Results (10 Hours)". [[IMSA.
18. (20 October 2023). "2023 Motul Petit Le Mans - Race Official Results (10 Hours)". [[IMSA.
19. (30 September 2000). "2000 Petit Le Mans".
20. (11 October 2025). "2025 Motul Petit Le Mans - Race Results by Driver Fastest Lap". [[IMSA.
21. (19 September 1999). "Petit Le Mans 1999".
22. (12 October 2002). "Petit Le Mans 2002".
23. (12 October 2016). "2016 Petit Le Mans Presented by Harrah's Cherokee Casino - Result - Race Official Results (600')". [[IMSA.
24. (10 October 1998). "Petit Le Mans 1998".
25. (21 June 1998). "Road Atlanta IMSA 1998".
26. (25 September 2009). "2009 Formula Atlantic Le Petit Le Mans Road Atlanta, September 25 Septembre 2009".
27. (16 November 2021). "2021 Motul Petit Le Mans - Race Official Results (10 Hours)". International Motor Sports Association (IMSA).
28. (5 October 2001). "2001 Indy Lights Atlanta 75".
29. (23 September 2018). "2018 F3 Americas Championship powered by Honda Road Atlanta - Round 11 Official Race Result".
30. (22 March 2025). "Trans Am Series Presented by Pirelli - Road Atlanta - March 20–22, 2025 - Round 2 - Official Race Results".
31. (16 October 2024). "2024 Motul Petit Le Mans - Race Official Results (10 Hours)". International Motor Sports Association (IMSA).
32. (3 October 2008). "2008 Indy Pro 2000 Atlanta Race Statistics".
33. (9 September 2020). "2020 Michelin Endurance Challenge Weekend at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta - Lamborghini Super Trofeo - Race 1 Official Results (50 Minutes)". [[IMSA.
34. (16 November 2021). "2021 Motul Petit Le Mans - Porsche Carrera Cup North America - Race 2 Official Results (45 Minutes)". [[IMSA.
35. (19 September 1999). "Petit Le Mans 1999".
36. (1 October 2010). "13th Annual Petit Le Mans powered by Mazda2 - USF2000 National Championship powered by Mazda - Final Race Report - Round 12".
37. (9 March 2020). "2020 Ferrari Challenge North America - Trofeo Pirelli - Road Atlanta - Race 2 Official Results (30 Minutes)".
38. (6 October 2001). "Petit Le Mans 2001 Race Results".
39. (23 March 2024). "2024 Trans Am Championship Presented by Pirelli - CUBE 3 Architecture TA2 Series, presented by Pirelli - Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta - March 21st-23rd - Round 2 - Official Race Results".
40. (10 October 1998). "1998 Barber Dodge Pro Series - Road Atlanta - Race Results".
41. (1 November 2023). "2023 Fox Factory 120 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta - Race Official Results (2 Hours)". [[IMSA.
42. (18 September 2016). "2016 F4 US Championship Powered by Honda Race 3 - Round 12 - Race (30:00 Time) started at 8:03:30".
43. (30 September 2005). "2005 Formula BMW USA Road Atlanta (Race 2)".
44. (16 October 2024). "2024 Motul Petit Le Mans - Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by Michelin - Race 2 Official Results (45 Minutes)". [[IMSA.
45. (22 April 2023). "2023 MotoAmerica Superbikes at Atlanta - Medallia Superbike - Race 1 Results".
46. (16 April 2016). "2016 Suzuki Superbike Shootout of Georgia - SSP/STK6 - Supersport/Superstock 600 - Race 1".
47. (23 April 2023). "2023 MotoAmerica Superbikes at Atlanta - Rev'It Twins Cup - Race 2 Results".
48. (1 August 2020). "2020 MotoAmerica Superbikes at Atlanta - Liqui Moly Junior Cup - Race 1 Results".
49. (4 September 2022). "2022 North America Talent Cup: Di Mario Wins Race One At Road Atlanta".
50. "Road Atlanta - Racing Circuits".
51. (2 September 2007). "AMA Superbike Championship Presented by Parts Unlimited - Rockstar Suzuki Superbike Showdown - Road Atlanta - Braselton, GA - Round 18 of 19 - August 31–September 2, 2007 - AMA Superbike Championship presented by Parts Unlimited - Individual Times - Final Race #2 Result".
52. (1 September 2007). "AMA Superbike Championship Presented by Parts Unlimited - Rockstar Suzuki Superbike Showdown - Road Atlanta - Braselton, GA - Round 9 of 10 - August 31–September 2, 2007 - Lockhart-Phillips USA Formula Xtreme Series presented by HMR - Individual Times - Final Race Result".
53. (26 April 1992). "Road Atlanta Grand Prix 1992".
54. (20 April 1997). "Road Atlanta 2 Hours 1997".
55. (19 August 1984). "Can-Am Road Atlanta 1984".
56. (16 April 1978). "Road Atlanta 100 Miles 1978".
57. (26 April 1992). "Road Atlanta Grand Prix 1992".
58. (19 August 1973). "1973 Road Atlanta F5000".
59. (17 April 1994). "Exxon Supreme GT Road Atlanta 1994".
60. (30 April 1995). "Road Atlanta 3 Hours 1995".
61. (28 November 1971). "American Road Race of Champions - Classes ASR+BSR 1971".
62. (7 September 1989). "Plainly Smith (Bosch / VW Super Vee Round 7/ Road Atlanta)". On Track.
63. (1 September 1991). "Road Atlanta [GT] 1991".
64. (3 November 1974). "US Champions Road Atlanta [ASR+BSR] 1974".
65. (11 October 1987). "1987 Trans-Am Road Atlanta".
66. (20 April 1997). "SportsCar GTS Road Atlanta 2 Hours 1997".
67. (1 September 1991). "Road Atlanta [GT] 1991".
68. (20 April 1975). "Road Atlanta 100 Miles - Race 2 1975".
69. (15 April 1973). "Road Atlanta 500 Kilometres 1973".
70. (3 November 1974). "US Champions Road Atlanta [BP] 1974".
71. (26 April 1992). "IMSA Supercar Road Atlanta 1992".
72. (19 August 1972). "Trans-Am Road Atlanta - Two Five Challenge 1972".