What’s Happening?

From above, Talladega Superspeedway looks almost exactly like Daytona, just slightly bigger. However, one key feature sets Talladega apart from Daytona, and it often changes races. The start/finish line is not in its’ normal location in the middle of the frontstretch, but, why?

• Bill France, the founder of the track, came up with the idea to move the finish line while constructing the track. He did it to try to help ticket sales.
• Talladega Superspeedway was built in 1969 by France. The track is 2.66 miles long with 33 degrees of banking, just slightly longer with slightly more banking than Daytona.
• The start/finish line spot is always a topic of conversation when heading to Talladega. It’s what sets it apart from Daytona.

Building Talladega

When Daytona International Speedway was built in 1959, it was a big hit. The track featured the start/finish line in the middle of the front straightaway, just like other tracks.

However, Daytona did not only have stands around the start/finish line like many tracks at the time had. The stands stretched all along the front straightaway, and the seats down towards turn 1 were tough to sell. Fans could not see much of the track, and the pit lane was impossible to see.

That’s when, according to NASCAR.com Bill France and Talladega Superspeedway General Manager, Roger Bear, had an idea. Instead of placing the line in the middle of the front stretch, move it towards turn 1. That way, the seats towards turn 1 become premier seats, while the seats on the front stretch maintained some value due to their view of pit road. As Bear said to United Press International according to NASCAR.com

This will give the fans two prime places to sit rather than just one. They can sit either in front of the start-finish line or in front of the pits. It simply means more good seats

Roger Bear

The finish line location doesn’t change the actual racing that much. It’s still fundamentally the same product, but, the finish line location has impacted race results before.

Races Won or Lost

The location of the start-finish line means that the final stretch on the final lap is completely different than Daytona. Instead of coming off of turn 4 with a short sprint to the line, Talladega’s final sprint feels like a marathon in comparison. This means that a race is never over until it is over.

Many Talladega races throughout history have been won or lost between the middle of the front stretch and the start/finish line. This includes one of the closest finishes in NASCAR history in 2011.

Perhaps the most surprising instance came back in 1981. Darrell Waltrip and Terry Labonte were fighting hard for the win, but, the pair forgot about Ron Bouchard behind them. Bouchard snuck underneath to take home the win, his only career win.

Whether France and Bear intended to or not, Talladega Superspeedway’s finish line has rewritten the history books. A lot of that is thanks to the strange decision to move the finish line to a different spot on the track.