Marlboro Motor Raceway

Marlboro Motor Raceway (MMR) is a now-defunct motorsports park located in Prince George's County, just outside Upper Marlboro, Maryland. MMR closed after the 1969 season and local Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) racing moved to the more advanced Summit Point Motorsports Park due to safety concerns and issues with MMR's management. The remains of the track are still visible from U.S. Route 301 and the entire track layout can still be seen in modern satellite imagery.

Marlboro Motor Raceway existed in three notable forms—a dirt oval, a paved oval ("The Bowl"), and various paved road courses, including a karting track in the infield. Existing track maps do not show the oval as a distinct feature of the track but rather as an integrated series of turns. The general layout, however, is clearly discernible. MMR hosted SCCA, NASCAR and other regional, national and international racing events. Its proximity to Washington, D.C. made it the default venue for the President's Cup (which later became the Governor's Cup).

Originally built in 1952 by Eugene Chaney (of Chaney Enterprises, a large Maryland-based sand, gravel and concrete producer), MMR started life as an all-dirt oval track. For the 1954 season, a road course (which was later expanded) was added and the track was paved. The facility also featured a karting track in the infield of the oval.

The development of this road course was heavily influenced by the Lavender Hill Mob, a Washington, D.C.-based affiliate of the SCCA. Until 1954, most large-scale road races held in the Capital area took place at airfields and other such temporary facilities. MMR was in operation during the height of Maryland motorsports. Between MMR, Beltsville Speedway (an oval track outside northeast D.C.) and Aquasco Speedway (one of the first 1/4-mile drag strips on the east coast and the first in the Mid-Atlantic area), Maryland played host to many high-profile motorsports events and welcomed many historic figures in automobile racing. Motorsports entrepreneur Roger Penske got his start at Marlboro and many other greats in oval and road racing made their way to "The Grand Lady of the East" to test their stock cars and grand prix racers on its challenging curves and intimidating straights.

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