Latest news with #attendancerecord
Yahoo
03-08-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
MLB Speedway Classic: 10 of the best photos from record-setting event at Bristol Motor Speedway
Major League Baseball set an all-time attendance record for a single game with the MLB Speedway Classic held at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee with 91,032 tickets sold for the event originally scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 2. However, the event was postponed by rain with less than one inning completed after a 2 1/2-hour rain delay, forcing the game to be played on Sunday afternoon. Noticeably fewer games returned to Bristol when the game resumed, which casts doubt on the actual attendance figure. Nonetheless, the setting created a spectacle for MLB and those who attended the historic event. Pregame pageantry Organizers took major steps to make the Speedway Classic feel like a special event. Pregame introductions were far more extravagant than what would be seen for a typical regular-season MLB game. Festivities included a flyover by four U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets from Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach. Great spectacle, not a great view Fans sitting behind the outfield wall were further from the field than usual with the Bristol Motor Speedway track between the fence and seating sections. Hall of Famers in the rain Reds icon Johnny Bench and Braves legend Chipper Jones threw out the ceremonial first pitch for Saturday's event under soggy conditions. The setting became even less than ideal when the game was postponed until Sunday due to rain. Fewer fans returned after postponement Understandably, many fewer fans returned to Bristol Motor Speedway when the MLB Speedway Classic resumed on Sunday after being postponed due to rain. Travel arrangements and lodging accommodations surely compelled several spectators to return home, especially with workdays looming on Monday. Bristol Motor Speedway swallows the baseball field Just how big is the race track at Bristol Motor Speedway? For those unfamiliar with auto racing or the venue itself, the baseball field that the Braves and Reds played on took up half of the infield. That created a unique visual setting, while also allowing other events surrounding the game — including concert performances by Tim McGraw and Pitbull — to be held inside the arena. The Colossus looms Some might have questioned why the baseball field was built on one side of the infield at Bristol Motor Speedway, rather than positioned in the middle of the racetrack. Besides allowing for the outer bowl of the venue to be situated behind the outfield, the playing surface also had to be placed away from "Colossus," the enormous scoreboard and LED screen suspended above the infield. Colossus was in foul territory, where it couldn't interfere with balls in play. The Home Run Car goes racing The combination of auto racing venue and baseball game may have best been displayed by the Home Run Car that raced around the Bristol Motor Speedway track after a home run. The car, with a flag saying "HOME RUN" waiving out of the passenger side window, drove around the track twice on Sunday with Eli White hitting two home runs for the Braves. Checkered flag waves for Eli White Braves outfielder Eli White was responsible for all four runs in Atlanta's 4-2 win over the Reds with two home runs. He received the MLB Speedway Classic trophy with a checkered flag signifying the event's race track setting waving behind him. Though rain dampened the MLB Speedway Classic, the setting at Bristol Motor Speedway created a spectacle for many memorable images that established a new standard for future showcase events in non-traditional settings for Major League Baseball games.
Yahoo
03-08-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Braves defeat Reds in MLB Speedway Classic, event sets attendance record for tickets sold
The MLB Speedway Classic between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds set the all-time regular-season single-game attendance record on Saturday with 91,032 tickets sold for the event at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee. With that figure, the event surpassed the crowd of 84,587 who were in attendance to see Cleveland host the New York Yankees at Municipal Stadium on Sept. 12, 1954. However, Saturday's game was postponed after a 2 1/2-hour rain delay and resumed on Sunday. Under MLB rules, a game does not become official until after five innings have been completed. An official attendance figure for the event was not announced by Major League Baseball, but a noticeably lesser amount of fans returned to the Speedway on Sunday. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] On the FOX broadcast, John Smoltz estimated that half of the fans ("maybe three-quarters") from Saturday returned to Bristol on Sunday, but that was obviously not an official count. According to MLB, fans from the U.S., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, nine countries and four continents purchased tickets for the game at Bristol Motor Speedway. Pregame festivities included a flyover by four U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets from Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach and a ceremonial first pitch featuring Hall of Famers Chipper Jones and Johnny Bench. Braves won Speedway Classic, 4-2 Reliever Austin Cox ended up starting the game after a 2 1/2-hour rain delay scratched Spencer Strider from pitching for the Braves. The Reds took a 1-0 lead on an Austin Hays RBI single when the game was postponed after the first inning. The game resumed on Sunday with Elly De La Cruz and Hays stealing bases. De La Cruz was tagged out at home attempting to score on a sharp Miguel Andujar grounder to third base. However, Atlanta third baseman Austin Riley appeared to hurt himself while stretching to make the tag. He left the game with what the Braves announced as lower abdominal pain. Riley just returned from the injured list with a lower abdominal strain, so it's possible he re-aggravated that injury. Eli White gave Atlanta the lead in the top of the second with a 3-run homer off a high changeup from Brent Suter. Cincinnati closed the margin to 3-2 on a sacrifice fly following Hurston Waldrep loaded the bases on two walks and a single. However, White restored Atlanta's 2-run lead with his second homer of the game in the seventh inning, taking Scott Barlow deep. As the Braves' social media account put it, White is the only MLB player to ever hit two home runs in the state of Tennessee. The Reds put the tying run on base in the ninth with Braves closer Raisel Iglesias giving up consecutive singles to TJ Friedl and Matt McLain. But Iglesias retired the next three batters to close out the win for Atlanta. The Braves improved to 47-63, while Cincinnati dropped to 58-54, 3.5 games behind the San Diego Padres for the National League's final wild-card playoff berth. Sixth time MLB has had 80,000-plus for a regular-season game Only five other games in MLB regular-season history have broken the 80,000 attendance mark, according to the Hall of Fame, with the first happening on Sept. 9, 1928, during a doubleheader between the Philadelphia Athletics and New York Yankees. The most recent occurrence was in 1993, when 80,277 watched the Colorado Rockies play their first game at Mile High Stadium in Denver. As for the postseason single-game attendance record, that is owned by the Los Angeles Dodgers. During the 1959 World Series, 92,706 packed Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to watch the Dodgers play the Chicago White Sox in Game 5.
Washington Post
28-07-2025
- Automotive
- Washington Post
Bristol Motor Speedway game tops 85,000 in ticket sales, will break MLB attendance record
BRISTOL, Tenn. — The Speedway Classic will break Major League Baseball's single-game, regular-season attendance record. The game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Atlanta Braves, which will be played Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway, already has sold more than 85,000 tickets. The first American or National League game ever played in Tennessee will eclipse the previous paid attendance record of 84,587, set on Sept. 12, 1954, when Cleveland Stadium hosted the New York Yankees.
Reuters
28-07-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Speedway Classic to break MLB attendance record
July 28 - Saturday's MLB Speedway Classic will break Major League Baseball's all-time single-game attendance record, the league announced on Monday. More than 85,000 tickets have been sold for the game between the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves at Bristol Motor Speedway, the first MLB game ever played in Tennessee. The current record for paid attendance is 84,587 set on Sept. 12, 1954, for a doubleheader at Cleveland Stadium between the then-Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees. Fans from all 50 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and nine countries across four continents have purchased tickets for the game. Hall of Famers representing both teams will throw out the ceremonial first pitches, Chipper Jones for the Braves and Johnny Bench for the Reds. The Speedway Classic will be televised nationally by FOX Sports with the first pitch scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET. --Field Level Media
