The story
Founded by Bill France in 1953.1
Bill France Racing
International Speedway Corporation (ISC) was founded as Bill France Racing, Inc. (later Daytona International Speedway Corporation) in 1953 and in 1957 the company signed a contract for the use of land on which to build Daytona International Speedway, one of the world's first superspeedways. A decade later, France decided to build another superspeedway, this time on a 2,000-acre (8.1 km2) site near Talladega, Alabama and after its completion Talladega Superspeedway became NASCAR's fastest track. These two tracks were the fastest on the series schedule until the advent of restrictor plates in 1988. In 1968, the company assumed its later name to reflect its more ambitious scope. Two years later, ISC created the Motor Racing Network, a play-by-play radio network for NASCAR races, with MRN's first race coverage coming at the 1970 Daytona 500.
Transition
The early 1980s saw NASCAR's popularity increase, not only among fans, but also with sponsors. Companies like Ford, General Motors, Winston and Gatorade were willing to put up advertising dollars and holding auto races became a much more profitable venture. To capitalize on this, the company began pursuing expansion through the purchase of existing tracks. In 1982, the company bought one of the series' most popular and traditional ones, Darlington Raceway which has been in operation since 1950, as well as Tucson Raceway Park, a.375 miles (0.604 km) dirt oval (since paved) in Arizona. The following year they partnered with Corning Glass Works to purchase the Watkins Glen International road course in upstate New York. In 1987, Bill France Sr. stepped down as president of the company with Jim France replacing him. Two years later, ISC incorporated its food service company, Americrown.
Penske merger
By this time ISC was profitable, but most of their races were still in the South and in mostly rural areas, with many of the country's major cities like Los Angeles, Detroit, Miami and Chicago lacking a nearby track. ISC began looking for ways to change this in the late 1990s. Homestead–Miami Speedway was built in 1995 by Ralph Sanchez and Wayne Huizenga and in 1997 ISC and Penske Motorsports (owned by motorsports magnate Roger Penske) partnered with the track's owners. In 1999, the company continued its push into the country's urban centers when it merged with Penske, who at the time owned four speedways: Nazareth Speedway, North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham, North Carolina, Michigan International Speedway and the newly constructed Auto Club Speedway (which opened as California Speedway). Chairman Bill France Jr. cited the company's "attractive markets" as one of the major reasons for going ahead with the deal. The new company retained the ISC name, with Penske's son Gregory Penske joining the board of directors. Not all of the new tracks from the Penske merger fit into the company's plans however, as Nazareth was soon closed down and Rockingham was sold. The merger also gave ISC a 90% stake in Homestead-Miami Speedway and the company soon bought out the final 10% to acquire complete control over the track.
In the same year, ISC formed the Motorsports Alliance with the owners of the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway; this company would go after another huge market in Chicago by building the new Chicagoland Speedway in nearby Joliet, Illinois and by buying out the smaller Route 66 Raceway dragstrip. In 2007, ISC bought out its partners in the company to take control of both tracks.
In 2001, ISC would continue its trend towards modern facilities by constructing Kansas Speedway near Kansas City. In 2003, Lesa France Kennedy took over from Jim France the role of president of the company. On June 1, 2009, John R. Saunders took over as President of ISC, becoming the first ISC president without a "France" surname. Saunders held the position of executive vice president of operations prior to becoming president.
On January 28, 2019, it was revealed on ISC's 2018 annual report that a total of 78,000 seats were removed from Chicagoland, Darlington, Kansas, Martinsville, Michigan, Phoenix, and Richmond.
Final years and acquisition by NASCAR
When it merged with NASCAR, the company owned 13 active tracks which collectively held 18 of the 36 events on the schedule of the NASCAR Cup Series. In addition to the stock car racing that NASCAR is famous for, ISC tracks also hosted IndyCar Series races, USCC, Grand-Am, IMSA GT and SCCA sports car races, WKA go-kart races and AMA motorcycle races. Besides NASCAR, other stock car series like IROC and ARCA used their tracks.
The company's other holdings included the Motor Racing Network, a radio network that broadcasts NASCAR events, and Americrown, a food service business that operates concession stands at its tracks. In 2005, ISC partnered with Speedway Motorsports, Inc. to form Motorsports Authentics, a company that markets and distributes NASCAR-related souvenirs and collectibles.
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Prior to 2019, ISC was a separate company from NASCAR, but was also controlled by the France family. About 35% of the stock in ISC was owned by the heirs of NASCAR founder Bill France and the remainder traded on the stock market. Lesa France Kennedy is CEO and Jim France is Chairman. On May 20, 2019, it was announced that NASCAR would fully acquire ISC and take it private. The sale was completed on October 21, 2019.
From Wikipedia’s article on International Speedway Corporation, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3