History
Disney built the one-mile oval with the backing of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's owners, and it was dedicated on November 28, 1995. It held the Indy Racing League's Indy 200 every January from 1996 to 2000, along with a few NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races.
After 2000 the track was used mainly for driving-experience programs such as the Richard Petty Experience. It closed permanently on August 9, 2015, and the land became a large lake and expanded Magic Kingdom parking.
Why it matters: It hosted the Indy Racing League's season-opening Indy 200 from 1996 to 2000.
Timeline
- November 28, 1995Track dedicated[1]
The one-mile oval on the Walt Disney World Resort grounds was dedicated.
- January 27, 1996First Indy 200 at Walt Disney World[1]
The Indy Racing League held its first Indy 200 at the track.
- January 29, 2000
The fifth and final Indy 200 was held; no race was run in 2001 and the event left the IRL schedule.
- February 17, 2015Closure reported[2]
Autoblog reported that Disney was closing the speedway, with the land planned for transportation improvements.
- August 9, 2015Track closes[1]
The speedway closed permanently.
The site today
| Physical status | Site redeveloped |
|---|---|
| Current use | A large lake and expanded Magic Kingdom parking[1] |
| Mapped location | Former venue site |
Street View near the former site · Satellite view (external, current imagery)
Venue facts
| Location | Floridian Way, Walt Disney World Resort, Bay Lake, Florida, Bay Lake, Florida |
|---|---|
| Venue type | Speedway |
| Sports | Motorsports |
| Level | IRL, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series |
| Opened | November 28, 1995[1,3] |
| Last used for sports | August 9, 2015[1,2,3] |
| Physical status | Site redeveloped |
| Original capacity | 51,000[1] |
| Final capacity | 30,000[1] |
| Capacity notes | Wikipedia infobox: 51,000 (1996), 43,000 (1999), 30,000 (2000-2015). |
| Surface | Asphalt[1] |
| Owner / operator | Walt Disney Company (operated by IMS Events, Inc.)[1] |
| Closure | Disney reclaimed the land for transportation improvements; the site became a lake and expanded Magic Kingdom parking. |
Documented details
- The track was 1.000 mile long and built by Disney in 1995 with the backing of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's owners.[1,2]
- Besides the Indy 200, it hosted a few NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races and had not hosted a major professional race since 2000.[2]
- In its later years it was used for the Richard Petty Experience ride-along and driving programs.[2,3]
Sources
- Walt Disney World Speedway, Wikipedia. Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: capacity, closed, coordinates, current land use, events, opened, owner operator, surface
- Walt Disney World Speedway shutting its gates, Autoblog. Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: closed, events
- OpenHistoricalMap/Projects/Ghost Tracks/US/FL, OpenStreetMap Wiki. Accessed 2026-10-19Supports: closed, coordinates, opened
Research confidence
Key facts on this page (opening, closing, status and location) are each supported by sources, with key dates corroborated by at least two independent sources. Last reviewed 2026-10-19.
See something wrong or missing? Suggest a correction or submit a source.