AMA Pro Racing released the final version of its 2012 schedule, with three races promoted by M1 Powersports (formally known as M1 Entertainment) added to the series. Modeled after the successful “Big Kahuna” events that the organization promoted at several tracks in the southeast for many years, the three additions are a return to Road Atlanta after a year hiatus; a return to the Homestead/Miami Speedway after its last single event back in 1996; and a season-ending visit to the newly constructed NOLA Motorsports Park just outside of New Orleans, LA. This brings the 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing schedule to a total of 11 races, and fills in many of the gaps that existed in previous years (although there is still a five-week break between the traditional season opener at Daytona and the next round at Road Atlanta).
While the return to Road Atlanta will be a welcome one for both spectators and racers alike (the event was a staple on the AMA roadracing calendar for years), it will be interesting to see how things pan out at Homestead/Miami Speedway. The series previously visited the facility only once back in 1996, and the event suffered issues that doomed it from the start. Spectator attendance was sparse, and there were also questions about safety, specifically the proximity of walls on the outside of the entrance onto the front straight, as well as pavement breaking up on other points on the 2.2-mile road course fashioned from the interior of a NASCAR oval. However, the facility has undergone massive revisions since then, including a majority ownership purchase by ISC (International Speedway Corp, owners of Daytona and other NASCAR tracks) and Roger Penske in 1997, as well as major changes to the oval configuration and banking in 2003 and 2007.
The NOLA Motorsports Park facility, located just 20 minutes outside of downtown New Orleans, is still under construction, but much of the 16-turn, 2.75-mile north racetrack is already completed, and the rest of the layout (including an interconnected 2.8-mile, 13-turn south racetrack) is slated to be finished well before the series visits in October. All of the tracks were designed by Alan Wilson, the man responsible for Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama and Miller Motorsports Park, Utah, track layouts, so it’s a given that the track will be challenging for the racers and have good viewing for the spectators. The season-ending AMA Pro Road Racing banquet will also be held in New Orleans in 2012.
AMA Pro Racing announced that pre-race testing at Homestead and NOLA will be held after race events run nearby in order to reduce travel costs for the teams. Thus, a test at Homestead is slated to be held soon after Daytona, and the NOLA Motorsports Park test will be hosted soon after the nearby Barber Motorsports Park race. The actual test dates and related details will be released soon, according to AMA Pro Racing.
Complete 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing Schedule:
March 15 - 17, 2012
Daytona 200
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona Beach, FL
April 20 - 22, 2012*
Road Atlanta
Braselton, GA
May 4 - 6, 2012
Infineon Raceway
Sonoma, CA
May 26 - 28, 2012
Miller Motorsports Park
Tooele, UT
June 1 - 3, 2012
Road America
Elkhart Lake, WI
June 22 - 24, 2012
Barber Motorsports Park
Birmingham, AL
July 13 - 15, 2012
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Lexington, OH
July 27 - 29, 2012
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Monterey, CA
September 7 - 9, 2012
New Jersey Motorsports Park
Millville, NJ
September 21 - 23, 2012*
Homestead-Miami Speedway
Homestead, FL
October 5 - 7, 2012*
NOLA Motorsports Park
New Orleans, LA
* Events promoted by M1 PowerSports