The site's racing history begins with the St. Louis International Raceway, a drag strip built in 1967 on dormant swampland beside the Mississippi River — a location that earned the facility the nickname "The Swamp." The strip was extended to a full quarter mile in 1971. In 1985, a road course of up to 2.600 miles was added, welcoming ARCA, IMSA, and the Trans-Am Series in its inaugural year.
In 1994 Chris Pook, promoter of the Grand Prix of Long Beach, acquired the facility for $21.5 million. Over 1995–1996 the existing tracks were demolished and a new 1.250-mile oval and drag strip were constructed at a cost of $25 million. Dover Motorsports purchased the renamed Gateway International Raceway in 1998, adding it to a portfolio that also included Nashville Superspeedway and Dover International Speedway.
The 1.250-mile oval is distinctively egg-shaped, with Turns 1 and 2 carrying a tighter radius than Turns 3 and 4 because the backstretch must run parallel to Illinois Route 203. The asymmetric geometry has drawn comparisons to both New Hampshire Motor Speedway (tight end) and Phoenix Raceway (sweeping end), and the overall silhouette echoes the legendary Darlington Raceway. Banking in each corner pair differs accordingly, rewarding setup experimentation and producing unpredictable racing.
The first major event at the revitalised facility was a CART Series round on 24 May 1997 — scheduled the day before the Indianapolis 500 to give open-wheel fans a Memorial Day weekend alternative without direct conflict with the rival IRL. The race stayed on CART's calendar through 2000, then switched to the IRL for 2001–2003 before being dropped due to mediocre attendance.
IndyCar returned in 2017 after a multimillion-dollar oval resurfacing, with the annual Bommarito Automotive Group 500 quickly becoming one of the series' most competitive short-oval events. Josef Newgarden won the race four times, including three in a row. At the conclusion of the 2021 event the series announced a renewed five-year contract. The 2021 edition also saw former Formula One driver Romain Grosjean make his first career oval start, finishing fourteenth. At qualifying for the 2022 race, Will Power's two-lap average of 189.642 mph tied Mario Andretti's all-time IndyCar pole record of 67 front rows. In 2023 Scott Dixon won the event by a 22.2-second margin, shattering the previous record set by Juan Pablo Montoya in 2000.
After Dover Motorsports closed the facility on 3 November 2010, local real estate developer and former Indy Lights driver Curtis Francois re-opened it in 2011 under the name Gateway Motorsports Park. Francois finalised ownership on 1 May 2013. The track steadily rebuilt its calendar, welcoming NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series racing from 2014 and Formula Drift events.
On 15 September 2021 it was announced that the facility would host a NASCAR Cup Series race for the first time, added to the 2022 schedule as the Enjoy Illinois 300 on 5 June 2022 — a debut that sold out in advance, the first sellout in track history. From 2025 onwards the NASCAR Cup event moved to September, placing it inside the playoff Round of 16.
On 19 April 2019, technology services company World Wide Technology acquired naming rights, rebranding the venue to World Wide Technology Raceway. A 2.000-mile road course configuration using Turns 1 and 2 of the oval was completed on 26 June 2019, intended primarily for Formula Drift and Trans-Am. More than $40 million in additional upgrades were committed following the NASCAR Cup announcement, covering SAFER barrier extensions, suite modernisation, infield camping, and concourse renovation.
Evel Knievel used the drag strip as a runway for his private plane before performing two successful motorcycle jumps over ten cars on consecutive days in June 1972. The 2004 NHRA event was marked by tragedy when Top Fuel driver Darrell Russell was killed in a second-round crash; one of the drag strip grandstands is named in his memory. In 2008, John Force secured his 1,000th competitive round NHRA win at the facility on his 59th birthday.
World Wide Technology Raceway's survival story — from days away from demolition in 2011 to hosting three of North American motorsport's premier championships simultaneously — is one of the more striking turnarounds in oval racing's recent history. The facility's unusual oval geometry continues to generate entertaining multi-groove racing that distinguishes it from standardised superspeedways of similar length.