The International Drone Racing Association (IDRA), which hosted the World Drone Prix in Dubai a year ago,has announced a new partnership with Dover (Del.) International Speedway. The IDRA will hold its USA event at the track famously known as “The Monster Mile” June 2-4, 2017, in conjunction with their NASCAR tripleheader race weekend. The event will be free and open to the public to watch in Dover’s FanZone. With the ability to display the sport to over 100,000 NASCAR fans, the race at Dover has the greatest capacity for growing the community and legitimizing Drone Racing’s continual growth.
The race will feature 16 professional teams from around the world, competing to earn points toward the World Championship. The three-year agreement provides IDRA with the opportunity to showcase the growing sport of drone racing in Dover during its spring event weekend.
“Dover International Speedway is an incredible opportunity for IDRA,” said Justin Haggerty, the founder and CEO of IDRA. “Showcasing the sport, during a major NASCAR weekend, to over tens of thousands of motorsports fans is the best opportunity that IDRA could ask for. To IDRA, the drone racing community is the sport’s most valuable asset and it is set to grow after the Dover race.”
“We’re excited to host an IDRA event in Dover,” said Mike Tatoian, Dover International Speedway president and CEO. “The Monster Mile provides race fans in the mid-Atlantic with a chance to experience NASCAR in person, and we’re looking forward to introducing those same passionate fans to a different kind of racing during our June 2-4 event.”
The 2017 IDRA Drone Racing Series is a professional series of six international events. The season begins in the United States and concludes with the IDRA Finals in Amsterdam. Contestants compete for the IDRA Drone Racing Series World Championship on the basis of total points earned at IDRA international events, including the IDRA Finals.
UAS/Drone racing is a worldwide sport that utilizes Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) and Virtual Reality (VR) technology to allow a new breed of innovators to compete on the international stage. There are roughly 100 drone competitions in the U.S. annually and 200 worldwide competitions, highlighted last year by IDRA’s World Drone Prix in Dubai that awarded its first $1 million prize to a 15-year-old from the United Kingdom in 2016.
For tickets or more information about race weekend, call 800‐441‐RACE or visit DoverSpeedway.com. You can also keep up with the Monster Mile here.
Frank Schroth is editor in chief of DroneLife, the authoritative source for news and analysis on the drone industry: it’s people, products, trends, and events.
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