Las Vegas Motor Speedway: the basics
Las Vegas Motor Speedway is a 1.5-mile tri-oval about 15 miles north of the Strip along Interstate 15, near Nellis Air Force Base. The complex also includes a drag strip, a dirt track, a road course and enough infield and camping ground to host EDC every May. It seats roughly 80,000 for NASCAR and is one of the few tracks in the West that gets two Cup Series race weekends a year: one in early March and one in autumn as part of the playoffs. Check NASCAR's official schedule and the speedway site for this season's dates.
A race weekend is usually three days: practice and qualifying on Friday, the Xfinity or Truck Series race on Saturday and the Cup race on Sunday. The March weekend has become a big driver of hotel demand, with a heavy overlap of race fans and spring-break visitors.
Tickets and seating
As of 2026, single-day Cup race grandstand tickets typically run from around $50 to $60 in the upper turns to a few hundred for prime frontstretch seats near the start-finish line, with weekend packages and premium clubs above that; children's tickets are often steeply discounted. The speedway sells directly through its official site; resale exists but the track rarely sells out, so face value is usually the best price.
- Frontstretch upper rows see the whole track and the pit lane, and are worth the extra money for a first-timer.
- Turn seats are cheaper and closer to the action but see only part of the lap.
- Pre-race pit passes and fan-zone access are sold separately and are worth it for a walk along pit road before the race.
- Bring or rent a scanner or use the app to follow driver radio, and bring ear protection.
Getting to the speedway from the Strip
The speedway is a 25 to 40 minute drive north on I-15 in normal traffic and considerably longer on race day; leave the Strip at least three hours before the green flag. Parking at the track is plentiful and, unlike Allegiant Stadium, is generally free or cheap for general lots, so a rental car is the practical option for many fans. Rideshare is workable outbound but expensive and unreliable for the return, when tens of thousands leave at once.
Official and third-party shuttles run from several Strip resorts on race days; they cost as of 2026 in the tens of dollars round-trip and must be booked ahead through the speedway site or your hotel. If you want to avoid all of it, campgrounds and RV areas at the track are a genuine option for a weekend and put you steps from the grandstands.
Drag racing, dirt and other race weekends
The NHRA brings its national drag-racing tour to the speedway's four-lane drag strip, The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, typically in spring and again in the autumn for a playoff round. Drag racing is loud, fast and easier for a newcomer to follow than a 300-lap oval race, and tickets are generally cheaper than NASCAR. The dirt track hosts sprint-car and late-model events, and the road course is used for club racing, driving schools and manufacturer events. The speedway calendar also fills with car shows and swap meets, and the entire infield becomes the EDC festival grounds each May; see our EDC guide.
Drive a race car yourself
The most popular motorsports activity for visitors is not watching but driving. Several companies operate stock-car and exotic-car driving experiences on the speedway's oval and road course, where after a briefing you drive a NASCAR-style stock car or a Ferrari, Lamborghini or Porsche for a set number of laps, or ride along with a professional driver. As of 2026, ride-alongs start around $100 to $200 and drive-yourself packages run from a few hundred to over a thousand dollars depending on the car and the number of laps; check the operators' official sites and book ahead, particularly in the cooler months.
Off-road experiences in the desert, from dune buggies to trophy-truck ride-alongs, are a separate category and run from the outskirts of the city; see our attractions hub for day-trip ideas. Both types are popular with bachelor groups; see the bachelor and bachelorette itinerary.
Formula 1 on the Strip
The other pillar of Las Vegas motorsport is the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, a night race on a street circuit that uses Las Vegas Boulevard itself as its main straight, held in late November. It is an entirely different animal from a speedway weekend: hospitality-priced tickets, weeks of Strip road closures and grandstands built on the Boulevard. We cover it fully on the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix page, including whether to come for it or avoid the week.
Practical tips for a race weekend
- Weather: the March race can be cold and windy or warm; the autumn race is usually hot. Sunscreen and layers both belong in the bag.
- Bags and coolers: the speedway is more relaxed than the stadiums and allows small soft coolers within size limits; check the current policy.
- Hotels: the Strip is the obvious base and rates rise for the March weekend; North Strip and Downtown hotels shorten the drive. See how to get a hotel deal.
- Time it: the race weekend pairs well with a March Madness or fight weekend when calendars overlap, but expect the city to be full.
- Kids: race weekends are family-friendly with cheap children's tickets and a fan zone; ear protection is essential for small children.
