The Sonoma Raceway season-opener has been delayed until March 18, due to repaving of the facility’s drag strip. Wednesday Night Drags was originally slated to begin on March 4.

More than a decade has passed since the drag strip was last paved, and with nearly 50 days of drag racing scheduled for 2015, including the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, Sonoma Raceway will take this opportunity to refurbish the second half of its quarter-mile drag strip. The main focus of the improvements is to provide a first-class racing surface and improve drainage around the track.

The process, which will take more than a week to complete, will begin on Tuesday, March 3. The existing asphalt will be removed before the 660-foot stretch is covered with cement and two one-and-a-half inch layers of high-grade asphalt over the following days. The 660-concrete launch pad will not be affected.   

In addition, a new drainage system will be installed around the drag strip, both above and below ground, to redirect water away from the racing surface.

Continuing its commitment to reusable resources, the asphalt grindings from the drag strip will eventually be placed around the property on roads and parking lots.