HATTIESBURG — As legal racetracks close across Mississippi, some racers are turning to city streets — a trend drawing both safety concerns and debate about access to controlled racing environments. 

Hattiesburg’s Hub City Dragway, once a longtime outlet for legal drag racing, closed in 2018. Since then, some local racers say they have turned to street racing — despite the legal and safety risks. 

“We’re losing racetracks all over the country. They’re closing faster than people can build them,” said Donald Parker, owner of Hattiesburg Speedway. “At any given day, this here is in jeopardy.” 

Parker operates a legal dirt track, which works for dirt-track vehicles but isn’t suitable for street cars. He said the nearest legal drag strips for street cars are at least an hour away for Hub City racers like “Nathan” who insisted on anonymity for this story due to past citations from the Hattiesburg Police Department. 

Limited options, long drives 

Nathan is one of many who started racing illegally through city streets, he said, because of the lack of legal venues in the area. 

“If there was access to … an airstrip that’s usable part-time or some kind of drag strip, I think that people would definitely transition to that, because it would be more accessible than what we have,” he said.  

Nathan said he’s been charged for street racing before and now avoids organized events because of frequent run-ins with law enforcement. 

“The police like to give us problems pretty much every time we go out to race, and nobody likes that,” he said. 

He said it’s unrealistic to expect racers to always drive to the closest legal tracks, which are in Gulfport or Leakesville.  

“A lot of people in the scene have jobs, families, responsibilities — they can’t just drop everything and drive across the state to race legally on a Saturday,” he said. 

Gulfport Dragway operator Gaylon Rolison said his facility hosts regular races with 50 to 100 participants as well as events that have drawn more than 375 racers and nearly 4,000 spectators. 

He said racing has become a part of the community, and he’s glad they have a safe venue where they can do it. 

“This racetrack is 50 years old. There’s a lot of tradition that this facility carries, and it’s very important to the community,” Rolison said. “Tracks are closing left and right, and we have to do what we need to do to preserve our racetracks.” 

Rolison said he’s already seen an increase in Forrest County racers making the trip to Gulfport. He and Parker said they worry the lack of local tracks could lead more drivers to race on public roads. 

“So, if the track closed down, those guys — where are they going to go? They’re going to go back to the street racing,” he said.  

Noise complaints and neighborhood concerns 

GetDriversEd, an online driver’s education platform, warns street racing endangers the public, with racers often speeding, weaving through traffic and performing sudden turns or stunts. 

While legal tracks like Gulfport Dragway and Street Racin’ Haven in Leakesville offer controlled spaces for racing, Parker said there is sometimes still strong resistance from people who live near tracks.  

“You’d be surprised at the people against this kind of place,” Parker said. “They claim it’s noisy — but that’s only one night a week.” 

Parker said Hub City Dragway closed in 2018 because of noise complaints, pointing to the city and county ordinance as significant barriers for tracks. While there have been talks of reopening Hub City Dragway, the Roy Howard Community Journalism Center could not confirm substantial progress toward that goal since 2023. 

While Parker agreed street racing isn’t an appropriate alternative, he said a dedicated place to race street cars in Hattiesburg could help prevent illegal racing. 

“When (racetracks) close, people lose something to be part of,” he said. “A lot of young people and college students have nothing to do — and when there’s nothing, they look for excitement elsewhere.” 

Parker pointed to a July 4 incident in Hattiesburg involving street racing and a shooting, after which the city imposed a youth curfew. 

At the time, Mayor Toby Barker addressed the city via social media, tackling the assumption that a lack of activity is to blame for illegal behavior. 

“We will always endeavor to provide more programming opportunities for all ages as a local government, and our Parks team continues to provide more and more (current available programming is at an all-time high),” Barker wrote. “However, the city can’t (and shouldn’t) supervise every young person 24 hours a day. That responsibility starts at home. Know where your kids are. Know who they’re with. Know what they’re doing.” 

Next steps

Without a legal track in Hattiesburg, Nathan said street racing will likely continue.  

“If there’s no place to go, people are going to keep racing on the streets. It’s not going to stop — it’s just going to get more dangerous,” he said. 

He said support from cities and counties to preserve remaining tracks or help open new ones could be a way to get racers off the street and in a safe environment. 

In the meantime, city officials said street racing will continue to be prosecuted as a public safety issue, urging residents to report dangerous driving to law enforcement. 

“The Hattiesburg Police Department takes illegal street racing and reckless driving seriously,” a city spokesperson wrote in a statement released to the center. “These behaviors endanger lives and have no place on our roadways. All motorists are expected to follow traffic laws and operate their vehicles responsibly. Our officers will continue to enforce all applicable laws to keep our streets safe, and we encourage anyone who witnesses dangerous driving to report it.” 

Crime in the city of Hattiesburg can be reported anonymously to Crimestoppers at 601-582-STOP.