The Automotive Racing Products Turkey Night Grand Prix is an annual race of midget cars. It is the third oldest race in the United States behind the Indianapolis 500 and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.[1] It has been held on Thanksgiving night most years since 1934, where it was founded by Earl Gilmore at his Gilmore Stadium in Los Angeles. It stayed at this location until 1950. Since that time it has been held at various southern California race tracks. Since 1955, the race has been promoted by J. C. Agajanian and later his descendants, currently by son Cary. Traditionally a dirt track event, it has sometimes been on asphalt during the turn of the 21st century, although it returned to dirt in 2012. The feature race was held over 98 laps in the modern era, the same number that Agajanian used for his racecars.[2]
The race is the traditional end of the midget and sprint car racing season in North America, although many top stars typically take a few weeks off before returning to racing in Australia or New Zealand, with the Southern Hemisphere summer leading to an "international season" that starts Boxing Day.
There was no race in 1942–44 (World War II) nor 2020 (California state pandemic restrictions).
The expansion of the USAC Midget schedule around Thanksgiving week with the Hangtown 100 in Placerville the week before, and the Merced County Fairgrounds meeting on the Tuesday and Wednesday of Thanksgiving week led promoters in 2021 to move the Turkey Night Grand Prix to a two-day format away from Thanksgiving, with practice and support division races on Friday, and the heat races and feature on Saturday, creating a "California Midget Week" with three feature races in eight day, similar to the summer "Indiana Sprint Week" for USAC's non-winged sprint cars.
The Turkey Night is regarded as one of three major midget races during the year, with the Chili Bowl in Tulsa, OK, and the Bryan Clauson Classic at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Drivers
The event is considered a major event in the midget cars series. It frequently attracts drivers from other disciplines, especially former drivers that have moved to the highest levels of auto racing; the major auto racing circuits in the United States end their seasons prior to Thanksgiving, so major drivers do not have any schedule conflicts with their main circuits. Drivers that have competed in the event include Parnelli Jones, A. J. Foyt, Johnnie Parsons, Bill Vukovich, Danny Oakes, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, J. J. Yeley, Jason Leffler, Kasey Kahne, and Kyle Larson.[3]
After Kaylee Bryson qualified fastest for the 2021 event, she became the first woman to start on the pole position in the 80th event.[4] Her Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian teammate Taylor Reimer qualified second, and they became the first women to start first and second in USAC National Midget history.[4] Bryson led the first 17 laps to become the first woman to lead the event.