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Track guide · oval

Michigan International Speedway

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Michigan International Speedway at a glanceChecked 2026-09-09

Length
2 mi3.219 km
Turns
4
Opened
1968
Capacity
56,000
Location
Brooklyn, Michigan
Type
oval
Direction
counter-clockwise
Banking
18° in the turns, 12° on the frontstretch, 5° on the backstretch
Surface
asphalt
Owner
NASCAR
Address
12626 US Highway 12
Circuit mapMichigan · United States
USA Michigan International Speedway Race Track
Michigan International Speedway track layout

Track map and layout

Michigan International Speedway is a wide, sweeping 2-mile D-shaped oval, one of NASCAR's fastest tracks thanks to its generous banking and long straightaways. The D-shape gives turns 1-2 and 3-4 different geometry from a true oval, and the wide racing surface, among the broadest on the circuit, allows cars to run three and sometimes four lanes wide, producing high closing speeds and late passes into the corners. Michigan's pole-winning laps in NASCAR's Next Gen era have consistently been the fastest of any track on the schedule, regularly exceeding 190 mph. The infield also carries a set of Stirling Moss-designed road course configurations, used for club and driving-school events rather than NASCAR competition.

Named corners and sections

  1. Turn 1.

    Wide, high-banked entry off the frontstretch where cars carry significant speed into the corner.

  2. Turn 3.

    Similarly wide and fast, frequently used for outside-lane passes given the track's multi-groove racing surface.

Configurations

  • Oval

    2 mi

    Used for all NASCAR national-series racing

  • Road course configurations (1.25/2.25/3.5 mile)

    3.5 mi

    Stirling Moss-designed infield/oval combination layouts used for club racing and driving schools, not NASCAR events

Events and race weekends

Michigan hosts one NASCAR Cup Series weekend a year, typically in June, headlined by the FireKeepers Casino 400, with Xfinity Series support racing on the same weekend. The track has hosted two Cup races a year in past eras but currently runs a single-race Cup schedule. Outside NASCAR, MIS hosts vintage and club racing events on its road course configurations and occasional car shows given its large infield footprint.

  • FireKeepers Casino 400

    NASCAR Cup

    Michigan's Cup Series weekend

    Annual event
    WhenJUNJune

  • NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series race

    NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly Xfinity)

    Support race on the Cup weekend

    Annual event
    WhenJUNJune

Getting there and parking

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport is the nearest major airport, roughly 70-75 minutes east of the speedway via US-12, making it more of a drive than a quick hop for fly-in visitors. The track sits in rural Cambridge Township near Brooklyn, Michigan, off US-12, with Ann Arbor and Jackson closer by car than Detroit.

  • DTWDetroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW)about 70 mindrive

Parking

General parking is available on-site for race weekends; the track advises arriving early given the rural two-lane road access and heavy race-day traffic converging on US-12.

TipGiven the drive from Detroit, many fans base themselves in Ann Arbor or Jackson, both considerably closer to the track than the airport.

Hotels and camping near Michigan International Speedway

The speedway sits in a rural area with limited lodging immediately nearby, so most visitors stay in Ann Arbor, Jackson or Tecumseh, all within roughly 30-45 minutes, or opt for the extensive on-site camping the track is known for. Rates and availability tighten considerably around the June Cup Series race weekend.

Where to look

Ann Arbor, Jackson and Tecumseh for hotels within a 30-45 minute drive; limited lodging directly in Brooklyn itself.

Camping

Multiple named campgrounds (including Turn 4, Turn 2 Retreat, Graves Family and M-50 Creekside) plus an infield campground offer trackside camping for race weekend.

RV

RV rental and delivery service is available through the track's partner MISCamping.com for race weekends; call ahead as sites are reserved.

Track days, driving experiences and lap records

The public cannot bring personal cars onto the NASCAR oval, but ride-along experiences in real stock cars are offered through third-party operators including NASCAR Racing Experience and Xtreme Xperience on select dates, reaching speeds up to around 160 mph with a professional driver. There is no regular open-track HPDE program on the main oval, though the infield road course configurations occasionally host club and school events.

Who runs days here

Typical cost: Ride-along experiences from roughly $79-$220 depending on operator and package

New to track days? Our beginner guides, costs and gear →

Lap records

CategoryTimeDriverCarYear
NASCAR Cup qualifying—Chase BriscoeNASCAR Cup car2025

Drive Michigan International Speedway in a sim

These racing games and simulators include Michigan International Speedway as official content. Mods and community tracks are not listed.

  1. iRacing

    PC

    paid track

    Layouts—

Building a sim rig? Four example setups from $279 → · Every real track in sim racing games

Checked against each publisher’s track list in October 2026 (read 19 Oct 2026).

Spectator guide

Michigan's wide, sweeping layout gives grandstand seats an unusually clear view of multi-lane racing, since cars run several lanes wide through the corners rather than following a single groove. The track's size also means longer walks between grandstands and parking than at smaller venues.

Seating

Frontstretch grandstands overlook the start/finish line and pit road; turn grandstands at both ends of the oval offer wide views of the high-banked, multi-groove racing.

Best places to watch

Frontstretch seating for pit stops and the widest overall sightline; turn 1 or turn 3 for close views of side-by-side passing given the track's broad racing surface.

Bag policy

Up to two bags per person, each no larger than 18 x 18 x 14 inches, plus one soft-sided cooler up to 14 x 14 x 14 inches, which may contain ice. Foam and hard-sided coolers, glass and dry ice are prohibited; insulated cups must be empty at the gate.

Weather

  • Jun: Warm summer conditions, highs typically in the mid-70s to low 80s°F with a chance of afternoon storms

History of Michigan International Speedway

Origins

Michigan International Speedway broke ground in September 1967 under founder Lawrence LoPatin's American Raceways company and opened in October 1968 as a 2-mile D-shaped superspeedway, one of the fastest and widest tracks built for the era. Financial troubles at LoPatin's parent company led to the track changing hands within a few years of opening.

The Penske era

Roger Penske bought the speedway in 1973 for roughly $2.7 million and transformed it into one of the sport's premier facilities, investing heavily in the track surface, grandstands and infrastructure over more than three decades of ownership. Under Penske, Michigan became known as one of the fastest ovals on the NASCAR calendar, with wide, sweeping turns that support genuine multi-groove racing rather than the single-file pack racing seen at restrictor-plate tracks.

Expansion and contraction

The track expanded dramatically through the 1990s and early 2000s, at one point holding a listed capacity above 137,000 in 2006, before a broader industry pullback in the 2010s led to the removal of excess seating and a shift toward more modern, amenity-focused grandstands and infield facilities in keeping with declining NASCAR attendance nationwide.

Present day

International Speedway Corporation, and later NASCAR itself after its 2019 corporate consolidation, has continued to operate Michigan as a single-Cup-race-weekend venue each June, with the FireKeepers Casino 400 as the headline event. The track's broad, high-banked layout keeps it among the fastest ovals NASCAR visits, and its large infield continues to host road-course club racing and driving-school activity on Stirling Moss-designed layouts separate from the main oval.

Frequently asked questions

How long is Michigan International Speedway?

The oval is 2 miles per lap, one of the largest and fastest tracks on the NASCAR Cup schedule.

Why is Michigan considered NASCAR's fastest track?

Its wide, sweeping 18-degree banked turns and long straights consistently produce the fastest pole-winning speeds of any track on the Next Gen-era schedule, often over 190 mph.

When is the NASCAR race at Michigan International Speedway?

The FireKeepers Casino 400 runs in June as Michigan's single NASCAR Cup Series weekend.

What is the nearest airport to Michigan International Speedway?

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), about 70-75 minutes east of the track via US-12.

Can I drive on the Michigan oval myself?

There is no public HPDE program on the oval; ride-along experiences in real stock cars are available through operators like NASCAR Racing Experience on select dates.

Is there camping at Michigan International Speedway?

Yes, several named campgrounds and an infield campground offer trackside RV and tent camping for race weekend.

Which racing games and sims have Michigan International Speedway?

Michigan International Speedway is officially available in iRacing. Some of these include it in the base game and others sell it as paid content; the table above shows which.

Other tracks nearby

Facts checked against 8 sources including the official circuit website. Last reviewed 2026-09-09.