Orange County, Ca | |
---|---|
Location | Orange County Fair and Event Center, 88 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626 |
Capacity | 6,500 |
Owner | International Speedway, Inc. |
Operator | International Speedway, Inc. |
Opened | 1969 |
Major events | USA National Championship Jack Milne Cup Fair Derby Warren Russell Cup |
oval - 185 yds. on the pole 1/10 mile Width: Straight 33' Corners: 48' | |
Surface | Clay base with decomposed granite surface |
Costa Mesa Speedway in Costa Mesa, California, US, is a major motorsports venue credited with the renaissance of motorcycle speedway racing in Southern California. The 185 yards (169 metres) long track hosts both Solo and Sidecar speedway.
In 1968, 1937 Speedway World Champion Jack Milne and motorcycle enthusiast Harry Oxley teamed up to promote motorcycle racing at the Orange County Fairgrounds (OC Fair & Event Center). Interest in motorcycle speedway racing was minimal for the first two years, but the sport soon enjoyed a rapid increase in popularity.
When Costa Mesa Speedway opened its doors in the summer of 1969, it was at the height of the surfer craze in Southern California; skateboarding, BMX and motocross were becoming popular with the state's middle class. As such, races at the Costa Mesa Speedway became standing room only at the weekly events by 1971. Top riders including World Champions with 13 titles between them Ivan Mauger (6 times) and Barry Briggs (4 times) from New Zealand and Ole Olson (3 time WC) from Denmark soon made the trip over to challenge the new American speedway riders.
The stadium was a significant venue for important events, including qualifying rounds of the Speedway World Championship, starting in 1977. [1] [2]
In 1981, Orange County native Bruce Penhall won his first Speedway World Championship at the famous Wembley Stadium in England, becoming the first American to do so since Jack Milne in 1937 (Milne had led an American 1-2-3 in 1937, defeating Wilbur Lamoreaux and his younger brother Cordy Milne). Penhall would repeat as World Champion in 1982 when he won at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the only time the World Final was ever held outside of England or Europe before the advent of the Speedway Grand Prix series in 1995. Two other Orange County natives finished in high places in the 1982 World Final, with Dennis Sigalos finishing in third place and Kelly Moran finishing fourth.
The popularity of the sport in North America peaked in the late 1970s and remained strong through the end of the century; it has waned somewhat since then. It has remained popular enough to spawn smaller tracks in California, among them tracks in Auburn, Industry and Victorville. European teams closely monitor the talent at these tracks and many riders are recruited by such teams.
Costa Mesa Speedway has enjoyed a host of track announcers over the years including Bruce Flanders, current announcer Terry Clanton and Motorcycle Hall of Fame inductee Larry Huffman, well known in Southern California radio markets for his "high-powered" motorsports advertising. [3]
Past/Current World Speedway Champions (American):
Other Notable American Speedway Riders:
More Current 1st Division American Riders:
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Bruce Lee Penhall is an American former professional motorcycle speedway racer who later starred in television and in film. He was the World Speedway Champion in 1981 and 1982 and rode for the successful Cradley Heath Heathens speedway team in the United Kingdom. He retired from speedway racing the night he won his second World Championship in 1982 in front of his home crowd at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Scott Brian Autrey is an American former professional motorcycle speedway rider. In 1976, he became the first American rider to reach a speedway world final since Ernie Roccio in 1951.
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Cradley Heathens was a motorcycle speedway team from Dudley, England. The team was founded in 1947 and competed at the top level of British speedway until its closure in 1995. It was revived as Dudley Heathens in 2010, competing in the National League, reverting to the Cradley Heathens name in 2013. It ceased operating after the 2019 season, although a team bearing the Heathens name has operated under the NORA umbrella on the Isle of Wight in 2021 and 2022 and in 2022 won The Michael Richardson Trophy.
John Walter Milne was an international speedway rider. He became the first American to win a motorcycling world championship when he won the Speedway World Championship in 1937. Milne finished as runner-up in the World Championship in 1938.
Kelly Michael Moran was an American professional speedway rider who rode for a number of British clubs and also represented the United States national speedway team. His younger brother Shawn Moran was also a successful speedway rider.
Shawn Moran is an American former professional motorcycle speedway rider who was one of the most popular and talented riders ever to race for Sheffield Tigers who also represented the United States in international speedway competitions.
The United States national speedway team are an international motorcycle speedway team governed by the American Motorcyclist Association. They compete in the major international speedway competitions, including the Speedway World Cup and Speedway of Nations and the former events the Speedway World Team Cup and the Speedway World Pairs Championship.
The World Championship of Speedway is an international competition between the highest-ranked motorcycle speedway riders of the world, run under the auspices of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). The first official championships were held in 1936.
Arthur Dennis Sigalos is an American former professional motorcycle speedway rider.
Robert Benjamin Schwartz is an American professional motorcycle speedway rider. He became World Pairs Champion with Bruce Penhall in 1981 and Dennis Sigalos in 1982.
Ronald Nunan Preston is an American former international motorcycle speedway rider who was the European Junior Champion in 1979.
The 1982 Individual Speedway World Championship was the 37th edition of the official World Championship to determine the world champion rider.
Corydon Clark Milne was an American international motorcycle speedway rider who finished third in the 1937 Speedway World Championship final, behind his brother Jack and second placed Wilbur Lamoreaux. Corydon rose under the name Cordy Milne and all three riders came from Pasadena, California.
The 1980 Intercontinental Final was the sixth running of the Intercontinental Final as part of the qualification for the 1980 Speedway World Championship. The 1980 Final was run on 3 August at the White City Stadium in London, England, and was the last qualifying stage for riders from Scandinavia, the United States and from the Commonwealth nations for the World Final to be held at the Ullevi stadium in Göteborg, Sweden.
The 1982 Intercontinental Final was the eighth running of the Intercontinental Final as part of the qualification for the 1982 Speedway World Championship. The 1982 Final was run on 23 July at the Vetlanda Speedway in Vetlanda, Sweden, and was the last qualifying stage for riders from Scandinavia, the USA and from the Commonwealth nations for the World Final to be held at the Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, USA.
The 1982 Overseas Final was the second running of the Overseas Final as part of the qualification for the 1982 Speedway World Championship Final to be held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in the United States. The 1982 Final was run on 4 July at the White City Stadium in London, England, and was the second last qualifying round for Commonwealth and American riders.
The 2007 AMA National Speedway Championship Series was staged over three rounds, which were held at Costa Mesa, Auburn and Auburn. Billy Hamill took the title, his third in total, winning two of the rounds in the process.
The 2008 AMA National Speedway Championship Series was staged over three rounds, which were held at Costa Mesa, Auburn and Auburn. Defending champion Billy Hamill only raced in the opening round. In his absence, Billy Janniro won the title for the first time, winning all three rounds in the process. It was the first time neither Greg Hancock or Billy Hamill had won the title since Mike Faria in 1997.