American Speed Association
| Sport | Auto racing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1968 |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Most recent champion(s) |
Barry Beggarly |
The American Speed Association (ASA) is a sanctioning body of motorsports in the United States formed in 1968. The Association was based in Pendleton, Indiana and currently is headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida. Today, ASA sanctions a variety of asphalt and dirt tracks in their ASA Member Track program along with a variety of racing series in the United States and Canada.
ASA was most famous for a national touring series which began in 1973 but was discontinued in 2004 due to financial difficulties. In 2005, ASA became one of the top short track sanctioning bodies in the United States under the leadership of Dennis Huth.
The cars from the ASA National tour are also raced in England in what is now known as the (formally ASCAR).
The national touring series uses late model racecars body styles. Races are held primarily in the Midwest. Many series races were televised on several cable channels (especially The Nashville Network) from 1991 until 2004.
ASA is notable as the only nationally touring series that used passenger car technology for its racing engines. Unlike NASCAR, which up until 2012 required carbureted engines for all its nationally touring series, ASA requires fuel injection in all of its engines. During the mid-1980s, it also became one of the first stock car groups to offer a six-cylinder, lower-price alternative to the popular V8 engines, designed for less power but more race-capable for drivers. Following the 2000 rule changes, it was also known for introducing crate motors to a national audience. (NASCAR adopted crate motors in 2006 for the Grand National Division.)
In 1991, Gaylord Entertainment (owners of The Nashville Network) and an independent production company, Group Five Sports, signed an agreement where the ASA would add live race broadcasts to their schedule.
The first such live ASA AC-Delco Challenge Series race was held in June 1991 at Nashville Speedway USA. The race featured visiting NASCAR star Darrell Waltrip (who won the ASA's first Challenge of Champions race in 1972) defeating ASA regular Bob Senneker in a furious finish. The exposure led eventually to national television coverage for the entire season by TNN and Group Five doing the production (even though TNN had owned another production company in 1994).
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