More About Brickyard 400

The inaugural race was the first time a race that was not the Indianapolis 500 was held at the Brickyard. Since this first race, the Brickyard 400 has become the best-attended race in NASCAR, demonstrated by the 250,000 fans that show up annually. The track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is 2 ½ miles and the Brickyard 400 is 400 miles long. Race officials and race fans fondly refer to Indianapolis Motor Speedway as 'the Brickyard'. This nickname originated in 1910 because at this time the entire track was paved in brick. To keep tradition in tact, to this day a three-foot strip of brick, called the yard of bricks, still crosses the start finish line. In NASCAR the winning driver and his team carry out the tradition of 'kissing the bricks' after the race. They all kneel reverently in front of the yard of bricks, twirl their hats backwards and kiss the bricks. This shows what an honor they consider it to be to win at this storied track. Fans usually purchase their Allstate Brickyard 400 tickets well in advance because this race and the speedway itself are so special. These tickets are in very high demand and can be purchased through our website. There are many reasons that this race draws so many fans. The grandstands at the Brickyard are famous throughout racing, drivers who are the best-of-the-best participate in this race, and the prize money is higher than most of the other Sprint Cup races of the year. Elite drivers and a big purse make for great racing. From 2005-2009 Allstate Insurance bought the naming rights and the race at the Brickyard has consequently been called Allstate Brickyard 400. Jimmy Johnson won this year's Allstate Brickyard 400 race. Jeff Gordon, who won the inaugural NASCAR race at the Brickyard, holds many NASCAR records at the Brickyard, including most poles, most wins, and most top 5 finishes.