Following a few years of rumors about the track's demise, yesterday Irwindale Speedway officially announced that its final day of operation will be January 31, 2018. We've known for some time that the land the race track sits upon had been sold off with plans to build a shopping mall in its place, but the confirmation of the track closing is still quite sad.
Irwindale Speedway was opened in 1999 and in addition to its regular stock car events it quickly became known as the "House of Drift" after hosting some of the earliest drift events in America and becoming the regular site of the Formula Drift season finale and one of the series' most popular stops.
The track's eighth mile drag strip has also been a popular spot for SoCal racers and is the annual host of events like the Mooneyes X-Mas Party and weekly Thursday night drags.
Whether its drifting, drag racing or anything else, Irwindale Speedway is a place full of great memories and we can't express how disappointed we are to see it go. If you were on the fence about getting out to the track for the Formula Drift season closer in October, you'd better get tickets now if you want to be part of the House of Drift's last show.
It's sure to be one for the ages.
Additional photos courtesy of Formula Drift/Larry Chen