The Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s racing surface today is asphalt, with a one-yard strip of original bricks preserved at the start-finish line. That surviving brick strip explains the venue’s enduring nickname, “The Brickyard,” but the oval’s main racing surface is asphalt.
The speedway opened in 1909 with a rough crushed-stone-and-tar surface. In the fall of that year, the track was covered with approximately 3.2 million paving bricks to improve safety and durability. Asphalt was introduced in stages during the 1930s, and by 1961 the remaining racing surface was paved with asphalt except for the symbolic brick strip.
This history creates a common quiz trap: “brick” is strongly associated with Indianapolis, but it is not the answer for the modern oval’s primary surface. The original bricks remain beneath layers of later paving, while the exposed finish-line bricks are a ceremonial landmark that race winners traditionally kiss.