Ft. Worth, Texas - The 1999 Indy Racing League's season finale, the Mall.com 500, at the Texas Motor Speedway drew a record crowd Saturday night. Despite afternoon rain showers, nearly two dozen fans showed up, the largest turnout in the series' history. This shattered the old record of fifteen set at September's Vegas.com 500 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where several gamblers mistook the track for a casino. Thousands of free tickets were handed out during the week leading up to the race, and this move is widely regarded as being instrumental in the high attendance.
Those in attendance were generally enthusiastic. "I thought this was a NASCAR race" said one fan. "I like spoons" commented another.
IRL president Tony George was pleased with the crowd on hand. "This shows that we're moving in the right direction" said George. "Hopefully next season," continued George, "the average track attendance could be as high as fifty spectators, plus an additional two-hundred television viewers." George also noted that the 2000 season television package, worth an estimated $500, will be key in drawing new fans to the series. "Next year's races will be same-weekend tape delayed in most markets, except where they are preempted by professional wrestling and reruns of The Dukes of Hazzard."
