Auto Racing Auto racing, one of the most popular sports in the world, hosts races with widespread television coverage, in front of millions of fans. It tests the skills of the drivers, the speed capabilities of the vehicles and the endurance of both. The first racing cars were motorized versions of horse-drawn carriages and carts. The first race was a demonstration of reliability from Chicago to Waukegan, Illinois, in November 1895, while the first American oval track race, held at the Rhode Island State Fairgrounds in Cranston in 1896, was won at an average speed of 27.5 miles (43.1 km). /h. . Racing in the United States became popular two years later, with the opening of the 2.5 mi (4 km) brick-surfaced Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana. Subsequently, the speed of cars increased, and road conditions also improved, so car designers began to design cars specifically for racing. Race cars now fall into two broad categories. The first are open-wheel vehicles, in which the wheels are not under the fenders. The other categories of racing cars are closed-wheel with closed cockpit. Auto racing was only seen in the United States and continental Europe until the 1930s. Then the popularity of this sport began to spread. Because European countries wanted to show off their empires, races were held in Italian and French African colonial outposts, such as Tripoli, Libya, and Casablanca, Morocco. Smaller nations, such as Monaco, San Marino and Macau, also wanted prestige...