Demolition derby is a type of motorsport usually presented at county fairs and national events. While rules vary from event to event, the typical demolition derby consists of five or more drivers competing by deliberately ramming their vehicles into one another. The last driver whose vehicle is still operational is awarded the victory. Demolition derbies originated in the United States and quickly spread to other Western nations. For example, Australia's first demolition derby took place in January 1963. In the UK and parts of Europe, demolition derbies (sometimes called "destruction derbies") are often held at the end of a full day of banger racing.

In demolition derbies, serious injuries such as whiplash are rare, but they do happen. Drivers are typically required to sign a waiver to release the promoter of an event from liability. At almost all derbies, attempts are made to make the event safer; all glass is removed from the vehicles, and deliberately ramming a driver's-side door area is forbidden. The driver's door is often required to be painted white with black numbers or blaze orange, or with contrasting colors, .

Demolition derbies were first held at various fairs, race tracks, and speedways by independent promoters in the 1950s. There are unconfirmed reports of events occurring as far back as the 1930s utilizing the abundant supply of worn-out Ford Model Ts. The originator of the concept for auto demolition derbies is disputed. One source says that Don Basile is often credited with inventing the demolition derby at the now demolished Carrell Speedway near Gardena, CA, in 1947. Another source states stock car racer Larry Mendelsohn created the concept for demolition derbies at New York State's Islip Speedway in 1958, after realizing many people favored wrecks to racing.

The sport's popularity grew throughout the 1960s, becoming a standard at county fairs and becoming a subculture nationwide. The popularity of demolition derbies also spread overseas. In 1963, a reported crowd of 20,000 packed into the Rowley Park Speedway in Adelaide to see Australia's first demolition derby. Due to the size of the crowd (about twice the venue capacity), the police closed the speedway's gates. The derby itself had over 75 entries and lasted for more than 100 minutes. Demolition derbies in Australia generally take place at speedways (usually on the opening or closing night of the season), with most cars being older model Australian-made sedans and wagons.

ABC's Wide World of Sports televised the World Championship Demolition Derby from the mid-1960s until 1992. In 1972, the Los Angeles Coliseum hosted a demolition derby with mint-condition late model cars driven by Mario Andretti, A. J. Foyt, and Bobby Unser. The popular ABC sitcom Happy Days included the character Pinky Tuscadero, a female professional demolition derby driver and occasional love interest to the show's most popular character, Arthur Fonzarelli. Folk-pop singer Jim Croce wrote and sung about the sport in one of his popular songs, "Rapid Roy (The Stock Car Boy)" on his 1972 album, You Don't Mess Around with Jim.

The sport's popularity peaked in the 1970s. But by the 1980s, the sport's popularity began to wane. With the demise of Wide World of Sports, television exposure of the event became scarce. In addition to safety concerns and the shortage of full-size vehicles, some felt that the sport had shown little change or innovation beyond its original premise.

In 1997, The Nashville Network (later part of CBS) returned demolition derby to national television in its TNN's Motor Madness series of various motor-sport events. Motor Madness derbies were primarily for broadcast and needed to fit into a time frame. Live demolition derbies could last indefinitely. Motor Madness changed the rules from last car running to largest number of offensive hits in a time frame. However, as part of MTV Networks' takeover of CBS Cable operations in 2000, demolition derbies, as well as the rest of the CBS motor-sports operations, were removed from programming as part of MTV's move to shut down the CBS Charlotte operation based at Lowe's Motor Speedway and generalize the network into a more broadly viewed channel. Pay per view was demolition derby's only national television outlet in the 2000s (decade). Two $50,000-to-win derbies were held in Widewater, Canada, from 2000-2001.

Later in the 2000s (decade), a proliferation of cable television shows about vehicle customizing occasionally showcased junked vehicles in bizarre competitions. Spike TV's Carpocalypse was a reality documentary series on variations of demolition derby filmed in Orlando, FLA. The Speed Channel also aired team demolition derbies in 2005. Cable TV's exposure has led to renewed interest in the demolition derby.