Today we announced the 2013 racing schedule and a new promotional theme for Texas Motor Speedway -- No Limits Wild Asphalt Circus!

The theme could have just as easily been, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” The 2013 schedule is exactly the same as it was in 2012 and should draw 1.2-1.3 million people. There probably isn’t another speedway in America that draws that many fans in the course of a season. And that says a lot, considering the relative youth of Texas Motor Speedway compared to the age and tradition of this country’s other speedways.

So a NASCAR Sprint Cup weekend under the lights in April, a nighttime Indy Car race in June and a twilight NASCAR Sprint Cup race in November highlights the schedule at “The Great American Speedway!”

The theme?

Well it was dropped on me by a fan almost two years ago in a conversation during race weekend in November 2010. We had just rolled out the uber-successful “No Limits” campaign just a couple months before and our fans quickly identified with the program.

“ 'No Limits' is perfect for us here in Texas because it perfectly reflects our excitement for racing here,” said the fan.

And then he dropped the line on me.

“Man, every race weekend is just a wild asphalt circus,” he said.

And while this anonymous fan may not have realized the gold that came from his mouth, I did. And I filed it away for use in August 2012 when we roll out the next season’s schedule.

Whether it’s an all-out battle between two racers like we saw Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards stage last year or the pace car being delivered in a Chinook helicopter or an inexplicable incident such as Kyle Busch wrecking Ron Hornaday Jr., in a NASCAR Truck race UNDER CAUTION or a man flying into the speedway with a jet pack, fans know the “Wild Asphalt Circus” is always center ring.

Craziness. Mayhem. Drama.

2013 TMS Schedule At A Glance

Texas 500 NASCAR Doubleheader Weekend, April 11-13
* Fri., April 12 – O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 Nationwide Series race
* Sat., April 13 – Texas 500, the first Saturday night race of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season

Firestone 550 NASCAR/INDYCAR Doubleheader, June 6-8
* Fri., June 7 – WinStar World Casino 400 race
* Sat., June 8 – Firestone 550, “America’s Original Nighttime IndyCar Race”

AAA Texas 500 NASCAR Tripleheader Weekend, Oct. 31-Nov. 3
* Friday, Nov. 1 – WinStar World Casino 350 race
* Sat., Nov. 2 – O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge race
* Sun., Nov. 3 – AAA Texas 500; eighth race in the 10-event Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup