How fast is your lens? If it is like mine, a Tamron 80-210mm f4.5-5.6 then it is not really fast enough to take the killer shots we all see in the magazines. However, there are ways to trick the lens into doing the things you want.
For night photography of action I would do the following...
1. Remove any filters you normally use. I would probably even remove my 81A skylight as I need all the light I can possibly get and the filter may slightly vignetting the image. I would also remove the lens hood to gather a much light as possible. Be very careful to avoid damaging your lense this way.
2. I would recommend using a 400 speed negative film as it offers the best of everything you can hope for. Good automatic color correction, decent speed at f8.0(where you will probably be at 300mm at night), and low cost of processing.
3. You can have the film push processed. Do this by taping over the ASA/ISO number on the film so your Canon cannot identify it automatically. Set the ASA/ISO for 800 for 400 speed film and shoot it. Tell the processor that you want it push processed as 800 speed. The film will be underexposed but the developer can compensate for this and develop it longer to bring out detail. You will get more grain this way.
4. Avoid taking shots directly into the headlights of the cars. This will burn the film and cause the camera to compensate and the picture will be of two incredibly bright lights in a field of black. No car detail at all.
5. If you have not much practice panning racecars I would suggest a cheap monopod (a single legged post to steady the camera). I have one but rarely use it because it gets in my way now.
6. Remember to follow through when you fire. If you press the button and stop panning the picure will be blurred. Follow the car as you shoot until you see it in the viewfinder again.
7. Unless you have a fast lens with predictive focus your camera cannot automatically keep up at 300mm with the car and keep it in focus. Use manual focus. It takes practice but you are able to predict the car's motion much faster than most consumer lenses.
8. Camera settings I would use on my Canon EOS 2000 for 80-210mm lens and 2x teleconverter and Kodak 400: f8.0, 1/250 sec, panned as steady as I can in dark. You will get a lot of blurry pics this way so be prepeared to take lots of film. It is LeMans and maybe you never get to go back. I would rather take 20 rolls of flim and develop them over a couple of months instead of taking one roll and getting 5 or 6 good shots.
9. Place a blank label on each film roll and write what you did on it so you won't have to remember. Especially if you need push processing.
10. If you want truly awesome pics you will need to shoot slide film. However, any mistake you make (ie: blur, improper exposure, etc.) will be amplified and it is more expensive to get prints from. But Fuji Provia 100F rocks for razor sharp images and brilliant color.
Whatever you do go out and practice taking night shots of highway traffic at different settings to see how you and your camera react. It will take practice to get good shots.
Refer to this article...
http://www.photo.net/photo/sports/overview