Jacksonville racetrack awarded with ‘Top Race for 2024’ by World of Outlaws racing series
By Eric Thomas
One thing is certain in Jacksonville on Friday nights from April through October — the roar of race cars can be heard throughout the city as Jacksonville Speedway comes alive. This past racing season also brought national recognition from a premier racing series in America.
Jacksonville Speedway hosts approximately 15 dirt racing events each April-October season. “Since 2014, World of Outlaws, the premier racing series has held competition racing four separate times out at the Speedway,” said Kenneth Dobson, spokesperson for Jacksonville Speedway. “At the end of the racing season they always issue a ‘top 10’ racing events out of a total of roughly 90 nationwide.”
Although Jacksonville Speedway had not received a top 10 ranking from World of Outlaws in those years, the speedway has now been awarded with “TOP RACE for 2024.” Dobson shared, “This honor is a tribute to the atmosphere our fans create, and our race teams, sponsors and staff.”
The icing on the top of the cake for Jacksonville Speedway is that World of Outlaws will be coming back this upcoming racing season. “This will be the first time since appearing that they will make back-to-back appearances,” Dobson remarked. “Hopefully, this return will be the first of many.”
They are scheduled for April 25, 2025 at Jacksonville Speedway.
In 2025, the 48th season of World of Outlaws, also known as ‘The Greatest Show on Dirt!’ will hit 41 tracks in 21 states, and they will go into Canada for the first time in the last eight years. According to their website, worldofoutlaws.com, the racing series refers to the quarter-mile track as never failing to deliver thrilling action with its tight confines.
In 2024, tickets for this anticipated event were sold out by the Tuesday leading up to race night on Friday. In the end, David Gravel prevailed as the winner in front of the largest crowd in Speedway history.
Jacksonville Speedway is one of five dirt raceways in Central Illinois. Others include Quincy Raceway; Spoon River near Canton; Lincoln Speedway in Lincoln; and Macon Speedway, south of Decatur in Macon. Jacksonville Speedway can hold at least 500 to 1,500 people in the grandstand and 300 to 800 in the pit, depending on the event.
For nearly 100 years, the Jacksonville Speedway has been hosting many races on the grounds of Morgan County Fairgrounds. These include various forms of racing from motorcycles to automobiles. In addition to World of Outlaws, Jacksonville Speedway hosts MOWA – Midwest Open Wheel Association; POWRi — Performance Open Wheel Racing Inc.; SN Late Models and All-Star Sprints.
For more on the Jacksonville Speedway, visit them at jacksonvillespeedway.com or via Facebook.
