The Mid-Ohio course has 15 turns over its 2.400mi (3.862km) length, and is known to favor drivers with technical expertise, finesse, and plenty of patience. The features of the track include rolling terrain and elevation changes.
Its grandstand seats 12,000 and three observation mounds alongside the track raise the capacity to over 75,000. Mid-Ohio is classified as an FIAGrade Two circuit.
The track
IMSA GTP cars compete at Mid-Ohio in 1991
The track opened in 1962 as a 16-turn road course run clockwise. After only one year, the "Oak Tree Bend" series of turns (in the northeast corner) was removed due to being too slow. It was replaced by the "Thunder Valley" downhill straight, which remains to the present day.
The current 15-turn, 2.400mi (3.862km) layout debuted in 1963. The back portion of the track allows speeds approaching 200mph (320km/h). A separate starting line and flagstand is situated on the backstretch to allow for safer and more competitive rolling starts. The regular start/finish line is located on the pit straight.
In 1990, the track underwent a refurbishment: a new retaining wall was built, the entire track was resurfaced, widened, and concrete was paved in the apexes of the turns to prevent asphalt deterioration. In addition, a straightaway segment was paved through the chicane, allowing for two different track layouts, the original 2.400mi (3.862km) circuit and a new 13-turn, 2.258mi (3.634km) circuit which bypasses the chicane. Major series including CART/Champ Car, IndyCar, IMSA, and NASCAR have mostly elected to bypass the chicane, while motorcycles and amateur/club racing typically use the 2.400mi (3.862km) layout (with the chicane).
In 2006, another major refurbishment saw several improvements. The entire circuit was repaved and the concrete patches in the turn apexes were removed. A new motorcycle "short course" was created by connecting turn one with the backstretch and another motorcycle/autocross oval was created by connecting the chicane straight with the backstretch. The additional layouts allow simultaneous use of the multiple courses for instructional and competitive uses. The improvements also included a motocross facility, that has since been used for the AMA Vintage Motorcycle days event. These changes resulted in a faster, safer, more competitive and attractive facility for drivers, riders and race fans.
In 2019, the ARX came to the track which was the first time rallycross had come to the circuit. The course was a 10-turn, 0.7mi (1.1km) lap and utilized the keyhole section of the track.
At the conclusion of the 2023 season, the track was once again fully repaved after utilizing a test section in turn one.
In 2024, Turn 4 was refurbished. Its original 4-degree banking was reduced to 2 degrees, its runoff area, known as “China Beach,” was regraded to the same level as the track. Additionally, new access roads were added near the runoff to better accommodate maintenance and safety vehicles. Catch basins were installed in the turn to facilitate drainage.
History
Emerson Fittipaldi navigates the Keyhole section of the course in a Penske Racing IndyCar in 1992
The track was opened in 1962 by Les Griebling and several Mansfield-area businessmen as a location for weekend sports car racing. The track hosted Can-am and F5000 through the 1970s and its first CART race was in 1980, with Johnny Rutherford taking victory with Chaparral.
In 1982, Mid-Ohio was purchased by Jim Trueman, a renowned road racer and the founder of Red Roof Inns. Trueman added permanent grandstands, amphitheater-style seating, garages with spectator balconies, a five-story media and hospitality center, tunnels and an updated paddock area. In addition, a tall, three-sided scoreboard tower was constructed in the infield, strategically placed such that it was visible from nearly all spectator areas around the track.
In 1986, Trueman passed away from cancer, with his wife and daughter taking over the management of the facility. In 1989, Truman's daughter Michelle, was named the president of the circuit and oversaw the day-to-day operations of the track.
On March 2, 2011, it was announced that the track had been purchased from Truesports by Green Savoree Racing Promotions, which also promotes other IndyCar races, ending Truesports' 29 years of ownership.
The course first hosted SportsCar racing in 1963 as part of the United States Road Racing Championship. The race was 168mi (270km) and was won by Ken Miles. The race would be held until the race series was folded in 1968, but the race would return as a 6-hour enduro under the IMSA GT championship in 1972. The track would also hold the U.S. Formula 5000 series from 1970 to 1976 and was replaced by the revived Can-Am series in 1977–1980.
The track continued to host IMSA GT until 1993, then the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series in 2000. The track also added the American Le Mans series the next year. The track continued to host the two series until 2012 when ALMS dropped the race and Grand-Am followed suit the next year. In 2018, track hosted the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar championship.
Mid-Ohio hosted its first CART race in 1980 as a 156-mile (251km), 65-lap race. After a brief hiatus, the race returned in 1983 and was extended to a 200-mile (322km) race. CART appeared annually until 2003, when CART president Chris Pook hinted at dropping Mid-Ohio from the CART schedule going forward, citing various issues.
For many years, Mid-Ohio was on the schedule alongside the Grand Prix of Cleveland, and Pook stated it was not viable to have two races in such close proximity, and favored keeping the race at Cleveland instead. In addition, some observers felt that the powerful Champ Cars had "outgrown" the narrow, winding course, citing a lack of passing and competition over the previous years.
The race would return in 2007 under the Indy Racing league and would partner as a doubleheader with the American Le Mans Series until 2012 when ALMS dropped the circuit from the calendar. The race has also featured support series such as the Road to Indy, Mazda MX-5 Cup, and Stadium Super Trucks. In 2015, hometown favorite Graham Rahal won at Mid-Ohio for the first time, thirty years after his father, Bobby Rahal, won his first race at the track. Scott Dixon has the most wins at the track with seven.
In 2013, the track hosted its first NASCAR event as a 200-mile (322km) race with the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The length of the race was shortened to 170 miles (274km) in 2018. The race has partnered with Trans-Am, Stadium Super Trucks, F4 United States Championship and partnered ARCA in 2020. Unlike most of the events held at the track, the Xfinity Series uses the normal start/finish line located on the pit straight to start the races, instead of the start line on the back straight. NASCAR realigned the race in 2022, moving it to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
The unofficial lap record is 1:03.8700, set by Simon Pagenaud during the qualifying of the 2016 Honda Indy 200. As of August 2026, the fastest official race lap records on the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course are listed as:
Category
Time
Driver
Vehicle
Event
Second Road Course (without Chicane before The Keyhole) (1990–present): 2.258mi (3.634km)
Founded in 1993, The Mid-Ohio School offers licensed drivers and motorcycle riders programs in defensive driving, high performance driving and performance track riding programs. Students in each course partake in classroom and private instruction and group drills. Participants test their newly refined skills in the controlled environment of the facility's Vehicle Dynamics Center and on the track.
The Mid-Ohio School is AAA Approved and recognized as a recent recipient of the Ohio State Highway Patrol's Partners for Safety award. 18 programs are available to drivers and riders of all ages and ability levels from defensive driving programs for teens and adults, on-track high performance courses for the automotive enthusiasts to current and aspiring racers.
There have been over 50,000 graduates from the Mid-Ohio School, including 18,500 teenagers and 13,300 motorcycle riders.
Notes
123Both drivers took the same lap time independently.
1234All three drivers set the same lap time in this race independently.
Will Power, Dallara DW12, 2016, IndyCar)
Roberto Guerrero, March 87C, 1987, CART)
