Auto Club Speedway

Auto Club Speedway
Will Pittenger · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Name	Auto Club Speedway
Location	Fontana, California, United States
Coordinates	34°05′N 117°29′W
Capacity	68,000 (variable)
Broke ground	1996
Opened	1997
Architect	HNTB
Former names	California Speedway

Auto Club Speedway is a motorsports facility in Fontana, California, located in San Bernardino County and part of the Greater Los Angeles area. The oval hosted major events for NASCAR Cup Series, IndyCar Series, CART, ARCA Menards Series and numerous regional series, drawing drivers, teams and manufacturers from Chevrolet, Ford Motor Company, Toyota Motor Corporation and Honda. The venue has been associated with promotional partnerships involving Auto Club of Southern California, Speedway Motorsports, and broadcast partners such as NBC Sports and FOX Sports.

History

Construction began after land transactions involving the City of Fontana and developers with design input from HNTB Corporation. The facility opened as California Speedway in 1997 with inaugural events promoted by NASCAR and corporate partners including NASCAR Winston Cup Series sponsors. Over time, naming rights deals led to rebranding with Auto Club of Southern California and commercial arrangements resembling those at Daytona International Speedway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The track has hosted headline events in the same era as races at Talladega Superspeedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and Auto Club Speedway (former)-adjacent circuits. Ownership changes and management transitions involved entities like International Speedway Corporation and ISC-related corporate structures before periods of local municipal negotiation.

Track Layout and Facilities

The primary configuration was a 2.0-mile D-shaped oval modeled after modern superspeedways used by NASCAR Cup Series teams and tested by IndyCar teams during open-wheel racing seasons. Infield paddock areas served crew chiefs, engineers and pit crews from teams such as Joe Gibbs Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Team Penske, and Chip Ganassi Racing. The property included grandstands, garages, hospitality suites used by corporate partners like Coca-Cola and Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, a media center for outlets such as ESPN, and fan amenities comparable to Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Homestead–Miami Speedway. Temporary road course overlays were considered for sports car racing and IMSA events, while access roads connected to Interstate 10 and regional infrastructure projects in San Bernardino County.

Racing Events and Series

Auto Club Speedway staged events across multiple categories: headline NASCAR Cup Series weekends including support from NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, open-wheel contests like IndyCar Series rounds formerly under the Champ Car World Series and CART banners, stock car classics echoing races at Darlington Raceway and Martinsville Speedway, and regional competitions such as SCCA club races and NHRA testing sessions. Manufacturers used the venue for driver development programs tied to teams like Stewart-Haas Racing and promotional races involving celebrities tied to Sports Illustrated events. Television rights involved contracts with NBC Sports, FOX Sports, and cable partners including USA Network for ancillary coverage.

Safety and Renovations

Safety upgrades mirrored practices at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Daytona International Speedway, including installation of SAFER barriers developed in collaboration with NASCAR safety engineers and researchers from institutions similar to West Virginia University motorsports safety programs. Track resurfacing projects addressed tire wear issues cited by pilots representing Goodyear and teams like Team Penske. Renovations included grandstand modifications, updated pit lane facilities for CART and IndyCar compliance, and paddock improvements used by series governed by FIA-aligned standards. Ongoing compliance with sanctioning bodies required coordination with officials from organizations like SRO Motorsports Group when considering sports car events.

Records and Notable Moments

The venue produced memorable results involving championship contenders such as Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Will Power, and Simon Pagenaud across different series. Notable moments paralleled dramatic finishes at venues like Bristol Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway, including last-lap passes, multi-car incidents investigated by NASCAR Competition officials, and qualifying runs that drew comparisons to record laps at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Pole positions, fastest laps and race wins were recorded in statistical archives alongside entrants from teams such as Richard Childress Racing and Roush Fenway Racing.

Ownership and Management

Ownership history involved corporate entities and stakeholders comparable to International Speedway Corporation and Speedway Motorsports, Inc., with operational oversight by executives familiar to promoters of Daytona 500-class events. Commercial agreements included naming rights with Auto Club of Southern California and vendor contracts with suppliers like Sunoco and Mobil 1. Track management worked with sanctioning partners such as NASCAR and INDYCAR to align schedules, licensing and broadcast arrangements with networks including NBC Sports and FOX Sports.

Community and Economic Impact

The facility influenced local development in Fontana, California and San Bernardino County through job creation, tourism tied to race weekends and partnerships with regional civic organizations and chambers of commerce like the Fontana Chamber of Commerce. Economic assessments compared visitor spending and tax receipts to impacts observed for events at Angel Stadium of Anaheim and Staples Center (now Crypto.com Arena) in Southern California. Community outreach included charitable initiatives with groups such as United Way and youth programs that partnered with local schools and trade organizations in San Bernardino County Fire and municipal services.

Category:Motorsport venues in California