At Dover Motor Speedway, the racing truly never stops.
While NASCAR fans know The Monster Mile as one of the most intense and demanding tracks in the country, another racing tradition keeps the property buzzing long after the roar of stock cars fades.
Each fall, crews construct a massive temporary bridge over the NASCAR oval to the harness racing track at Bally’s Dover Casino Resort. The bridge allows horses, drivers and equipment to cross the Speedway's backstretch, which features nine degrees of banking and reach the 5/8-mile limestone harness oval located in the infield.
And when that bridge goes up, it means another racing season in Dover is right around the corner!
From Horsepower to Horse Power
As autumn settles in, the thunder of NASCAR engines gives way to a different sound: the rhythmic pounding of hooves as Standardbred racehorses take center stage.
From late October through mid-April, Bally’s Dover hosts one of the nation's premier harness racing meets, continuing a tradition that has spanned more than five decades.
Every fall, crews move hundreds of tons of dirt and gravel to construct the temporary bridge across the Speedway's high-banked concrete surface. It's quite the transformation for a facility that hosted NASCAR's biggest stars just months earlier.
The horse paddock sits near the Speedway's backtretch, placing two very different forms of racing just steps apart. On one side, NASCAR drivers battle for position on The World's Fastest One-Mile Oval, and on the other, harness racing drivers guide their horses around the limestone.
Different horsepower. Same competitive spirit.
A Harness Racing Tradition
Bally's Dover has long been one of the most respected venues in North American harness racing, welcoming some of the sport's finest drivers, trainers and horses to Delaware each season.
The live racing schedule features multiple nights of competition each week, while the simulcasting facility inside the adjacent Bally's Dover Casino gives fans opportunities to follow racing from tracks across the country throughout the year.
One of the highlights of the season is the annual Progress Pace, a prestigious event that attracts some of the world's top three-year-old pacers. With substantial purses and a history of elite competition, the race remains one of the biggest dates on Dover's harness racing calendar.
The Monster Awakens Again
Of course, Miles the Monster® never stays quiet for too long.
As the harness racing season winds down in the spring, crews dismantle the temporary bridge, clearing the way for NASCAR's stars to return to Dover Motor Speedway.
And in 2027, there's plenty to look forward to!
Following a historic 2026 NASCAR All-Star Weekend that saw Denny Hamlin capture the $1 million prize, NASCAR Cup Series points racing returns to The Monster Mile on Sunday, May 16, 2027!
The weekend also features the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series BetRivers 200 on Saturday, May 15, setting the stage for another exciting weekend of racing in Delaware.
The 2027 season will mark 58 consecutive years of NASCAR Cup Series racing at Dover, a tradition dating back to the track's opening in 1969. And just like that, the same concrete surface that served as a crossing for racehorses throughout the winter becomes a battleground for NASCAR's biggest superstars once again.
A Place Where Racing Never Stops
Few racing facilities can claim a calendar quite like Dover's.
For generations, The Monster Mile has welcomed NASCAR legends like Richard Petty, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin, while the harness racing oval has hosted some of the finest trotters and pacers in the sport.
Two completely different styles of racing. Two proud traditions. One home in Dover, Delaware.
As another harness racing season approaches, the temporary bridge serves as a reminder of something that makes this facility so special.
At Dover Motor Speedway, the racing never really ends. The roar of engines simply gives way to the rhythm of hooves, until it's time for Miles the Monster® to roar again!
Don't miss NASCAR's return to The Monster Mile, May 14–16, 2027! Tickets for the NASCAR Cup Series race and BetRivers 200 are on sale now at DoverMotorSpeedway.com/tickets or calling 1-800-441-RACE.
