A grand opening and ribbon cutting celebration for the new Dennis Albaugh Suite Tower at the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in Knoxville was held Thursday afternoon.

This event which featured a large crowd was a way to celebrate the construction of the new suite tower which is a replica of the Bryan Clausen Suite tower and a book end to the hall of fame. Also at the event there was a rededication of the Knoxville Nationals Wall of Champions in memory of Eddie Leavitt outside of turn two at the racetrack. Honored guests who were in attendance at the ceremony included Dennis Albaugh, the Leavitt Family, Knoxville Mayor Brian Hatch, Fairboard President Dustin DeMoss, Knoxville Raceway General Manager Jason Reed, NSCHoF&M Board President Jeff Savage, reigning Knoxville Nationals Champion Kyle Larson, and others.

The twelve new suites are on the east side of the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum looking out at turn two of the Knoxville Raceway as a bookend to the facility. The new suite tower will provide an additional revenue source for the museum, helping them remain open year-round. Dennis Albaugh tells KNIA/KRLS that he is proud of the project and never imagined having his own tower.

“I was down here for the ground breaking, and the ground breaking, the hosting of the last beam, and the ribbon cutting all happened within a year. That’s unbelievable. I couldn’t be happier. I used to sit next door and look over there and I never dreamed I could have a suite with my name on it because I didn’t know that was possible, but I couldn’t be happier.”

Dennis Albaugh is an Iowa businessman who is the founder and chairman of a pesticides and fertilizer company. He has had several horses compete in the Kentucky Derby and also has one of the largest collections of Chevrolet convertibles in the United States. Albaugh along with former Knoxville Nationals Champion and current NASCAR Cup Series Driver Kyle Larson both have their own suites within the new tower.