A 20-year ground lease-to-purchase agreement for Virginia's Southside Speedway has been finalized by the Chesterfield Economic Development Authority, paving the way for investor group Competitive Racing Investments, LLC (CRI), led by Lin O'Neill and Jeff Oakley, to revitalize the historic venue. The group is focused on bringing racing back to Southside Speedway for the first time since 2019.
O'Neill and Oakley both hold distinguished racing careers, and have now joined forces to return racing to the Midlothian, VA facility. Additional CRI investors include Scott Banton and Josh Lief.
"I would like to welcome everyone to Southside Speedway," said Oakley. "We are excited, and we are back."
Once rivals, O'Neill and Oakley are now partners in the next chapter of racing at the track located just southwest of Richmond, Virginia.
"I received a phone call from Lin, and he asked me if I wanted to work with him to bring stock car racing back to Southside Speedway," said Oakley. "It was a great phone call to receive, and I accepted."
"I reached out to Jeff because I knew he was passionate about racing, as I am, and let the past be the past in our rivalry, to save the track." said O'Neill. "I think Jeff and I have the same goals for the track. If not, we might have to put our helmets back on and take it out on the track again."
The 1/3-mile Southside Speedway opened in 1959, and has seen plenty of racing royalty compete at the venue over the years. Legends such as Richard Petty, Bobby Allison and Junior Johnson all raced at the track, while current NASCAR Cup Series star Denny Hamlin cut his teeth at the Virginia track.
However, racing has not been held at Southside since the conclusion of the 2019 season. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 season, with the track sold in December of that year.
The Chesterfield Economic Development Authority acquired the property in June 2021, with the hopes of finding an entity interested in operating and investing in the speedway.
“We appreciate all the efforts, not only crossing the finish line on an agreement that’s aimed at bringing racing back to this property, but one that will honor the history of Southside Speedway," said Jim Ingle, who serves on the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors.
“When Southside closed, the county purchased this property in 2021. Many had written off a future including racing on this site. However, the county saw an opportunity to facilitate an expansion of sports tourism in this corridor, and that included racing here at Southside Speedway.”
There is no definitive timeline for the return of racing to Southside, as the first step for CRI will be extensive upgrades to the racing surface and the facility.
"I don't know about this year," said O'Neill. "Jeff and I have to go over some things on how much we're going to spend in this thing to get it all going. I don't really know at this point. Probably 2026 to 2027, somewhere in that area."
"We're going to develop this entire 47 acres, every single acre," said Oakley. "We want to develop this property for sports and fun that all of the residents of Chesterfield County will appreciate and love. The only thing that will look the same in the future as it does now is this one-third-of-a-mile bullring known as the toughest short track in the south."
For more information about the future of Southside Speedway as it approaches its return to racing, visit southsidespeedwayvirginia.com.
