| MAS | |
|---|---|
 Racing image with driving directions | |
| Location | Bob Ward Township, Crittenden County, near West Memphis, Arkansas (LeHi, Arkansas) |
| Time zone | Central Standard Time (GMT UTC−06) |
| Capacity | 15,000 |
| Owner | Clarence Camp, Harold Woolridge and Nat Epstein |
| Operator | Clarence Camp, Harold Woolridge and Nat Epstein |
| Broke ground | 1953 |
| Opened | 1954 |
| Closed | 1957 |
| Major events | NASCAR Grand National Series |
| Oval | |
| Surface | Dirt |
| Length | 2.414 km (1.500 miles) |
| Turns | 4 |
The Memphis-Arkansas Speedway was a dirt oval track located just west of West Memphis, Arkansas, United States, in the community of Lehi.[1]
This speedway had a total distance spanning 1.500 miles (2.414 km), and at the time was the longest oval track visited by NASCAR (and the longest dirt oval track to this day).[2] Its elevation is 200 feet above sea level and all races used the Central Time Zone.[2] While the track opened on October 7, 1954, it soon ran out of money.[2] Paving the track cost $100,000 ($1,084,834.12 when adjusted for inflation) because the dirt surface was unmanageable after a certain number of years.[2] As a result, the track was closed permanently in 1957 when it was sold to local farmer Clayton Eubanks Sr., who used the abandoned race track for catfish, rice, and soybeans for a number of years.[2] The proposed Interstate highway that was being built near the abandoned rack track was not finished in time to save it.[3]
Richard Petty and his father Lee both remember the high banking that this race track had. The dirt was used for the banking and two ponds were on opposite ends of the speedway. Lee Petty finished third at the 1954 Mid-South 250[4] and nineteenth at the 1955 Mid-South 250.[5]
- ^ "Memphis-Arkansas Speedway". CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Central Arkansas Library System. February 19, 2020. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e "Basic information". NA-Motorsports. Archived from the original on 2011-01-04. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
- ^ "The Lost Story of Memphis-Arkansas, NASCAR's Only Dirt Superspeedway". Archived from the original on 2023-08-26. Retrieved 2023-08-26.
- ^ "1954 Mid-South 250 information". Racing References. Archived from the original on 2012-03-02. Retrieved 2010-05-15.
- ^ "1955 Mid-South 250 information". Racing References. Archived from the original on 2012-03-02. Retrieved 2010-05-05.