Atlanta Motor Speedway officials today announced the facility's 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup event schedule will include one NASCAR racing weekend on September 2-4.
The track has hosted two of NASCAR's premier event weekends for 50 years, including the upcoming Emory Healthcare 500 slated for Sept. 5.
The 1.5-mile quad-oval is owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc., which recently submitted several scheduling requests to NASCAR.
SMI owner Bruton Smith said recently he would like to have at least one Cup date at each of SMI's NASCAR-sanctioned tracks. The only one currently lacking a Cup race is Kentucky Speedway. A person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Sunday that Kentucky will host a Cup race next July.
Smith said he would like to have two races a season at Las Vegas.
"Atlanta Motor Speedway has provided top-quality racing entertainment to spectators from across the nation and around the world for 50 years," speedway President Ed Clark said in a news release. "While our schedule will change, our commitment to the racing fans who have been the heart and soul of Atlanta Motor Speedway through these years will be stronger than ever. Our entire staff will be even more driven to produce the top annual sporting event in Georgia for many years to come."
Atlanta Motor Speedway hosted its inaugural Labor Day racing weekend in 2009 when the events were moved forward on the NASCAR schedule from the speedway's traditional October date.
"We were thrilled with the acquisition of the Labor Day date two years ago and are proud to host such a prestigious, historical date on the NASCAR schedule," Clark said. "This track produces some of the greatest racing the circuit sees, it remains one of the drivers' favorite tracks and we will continue to build a platform that sets this one date apart from the rest."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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