Location | St Leonards, Ringwood, Hampshire, BH24 2BT |
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Coordinates | 50°48′27″N 1°49′12″W / 50.80750°N 1.82000°W |
Opened | 1946 |
Closed | 2022 |
The Ringwood Raceway (formerly known as Matchams Park Stadium) was a motorsport venue in Ringwood, Hampshire, England. The site was located in St Leonards, Dorset off the Hurn Road and Matchams Lane.
After World War II, a motorcycle speedway circuit was constructed on the site. [1] During the 1946 and 1947 seasons the site known as Matchams Park Stadium and operated on an open speedway licence. [2] The track was referred to as a training school in 1950 [3] and the stadium was also used for cars in 1950. [4] [5]
Open speedway licence meetings were once again held at the venue from 1951 to 1953 but on a different circuit within the site. [2] [1] A team called the Ringwood Turfs entered league competition for the first time in 1954. [6] [7] The following season in 1955, the team withdrew in late June and had their results expunged. [8]
Further open meetings and training took place sporadically with a last recorded training and long track meetings in 1993. [1] The site continued banger racing, until its closure in 2022. [9]
Future development of the site is pending council approval. [10] A retirement community is planned to be built. [11] Consultation for redevelopment began in October 2021. [12]