WSCC Round of Texas

{{{year}}} Round of Texas

Race {{{race_no}}} of {{{season_no}}} in the [[{{{year}}} World Stock Car Championship]] season
← [[{{{previous}}}|Previous race]]		[[{{{next}}}|Next race]] →
200px World Stock Car Championship Race
Date	{{{date}}}
Location	{{{location_city}}}, {{{location_country}}}
Venue	Houston Superspeedway
Course	{{{course}}}
Circuit Length	{{{track_length}}}
Distance	150 Laps, 469.2 km (300.0 mi)
Weather	{{{weather}}}
Average Speed	{{{average_speed}}}
Pole Position
Driver	[[File:{{{pole_flag}}}.png|25px]] [[{{{pole_driver}}}]]	[[{{{pole_owner}}}]]
Most Laps Lead
Driver	[[File:{{{most_flag}}}.png|20px]] [[{{{most_driver}}}]]	[[{{{most_owner}}}]]
Laps	{{{most_laps}}}
Podium
First	[[File:{{{first_flag}}}.png|20px]] [[{{{first_driver}}}]]	[[{{{first_owner}}}]]
Second	[[File:{{{second_flag}}}.png|20px]] [[{{{second_driver}}}]]	[[{{{second_owner}}}]]
Third	[[File:{{{third_flag}}}.png|20px]] [[{{{third_driver}}}]]	[[{{{third_owner}}}]]

The WSCC Round of Texas is a race on the calendar for the World Stock Car Championship. It is currently held at Houston Superspeedway in Houston, Texas. The race was first held in 1999 and was on the schedule until 2014. It returned in 2017, replacing the Round of Brazil. The race was formerly held at Texas Motor Speedway and Texas World Speedway.

History

Texas Motor Speedway (1999 - 2008)

Texas Motor Speedway, which hosted the WSCC from 1999 until 2008.

The first running of the race was controversial, as many drivers criticized the track as "Atlanta with half a groove". Race winner Stephen Glass was especially harsh, declaring the racing surface "the worst oval surface in the series by far," while Frank Stafford was more positive, noting that "the groove opened up once the tires started to wear; I think the mistake was with Cooper bringing the Atlanta tires here." This proved to be the case, as the next running saw improved speeds and more frequent passing.

The Round of Texas quickly gained a reputation for carnage, as the high speeds and smaller groove created more opportunity for crashes. Two-time WSCC Lites champion and Rookie of the Year contender Tim Austin was killed during the 2003 running of the race, after his car flipped in Turn 3 and struck the wall directly over the windshield. The speedway had already planned on installing SAFER walls prior to the 2004 race, a project welcomed by drivers who began to feel the track was too unsafe to race on.

Despite the safety improvements the track underwent, series officials announced that the track would not appear on the calendar after the conclusion of the 2008 season.

Texas World Speedway (2009 - 2014)

Texas World Speedway, which hosted the WSCC from 2009 until 2014.

Texas World Speedway was chosen as the host of the Round of Texas due to its more centralized location between the Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin and Houston metropolitan areas. Greg Bush won the race three consecutive times from 2010 to 2012, and in doing so became the only driver to win the race three times. The race was removed from the schedule prior to the 2015 season due to the sale of the track to a private ownership group who wished to redevelop the site.

Houston Superspeedway (2017)

The race returned for 2017 at the new Houston Superspeedway due to the cancellation of the Round of Brazil.

Sponsors

• 1999 - 2007: Pep Boys 300
• 2008 - 2011: Chipotle Mexican Grill 300
• 2012 - 2014, 2017: Shell Texas 300