The Auto Club Speedway (formerly the California Speedway) is a two-mile, low-banked, D-shaped oval superspeedway in Fontana, California, approximately 40 miles east of Los Angeles on the site of the former Kaiser Steel mill. It is a relatively new race track, opening in early 1997, and has additional configurations and facilities to accommodate "road" races, motorcycle races, vehicle testing, and drag races (Auto Club Dragway), even though the track cannot host NHRA national events, because of International Speedway Corporation's corporate wide deal with Pepsi. (The NHRA has a policy prohibiting certain Pepsi brands to be advertised anywhere at their national events as part of a deal with Coca-Cola.) This racetrack is a stones throw from the old Ontario Motor Speedway and the old Riverside International Raceway. After Riverside's closure in 1988, Southern California did not host a NASCAR race from 1988 to 1997, when the new California Speedway was opened.

In addition to NASCAR, the raceway has also hosted open-wheel events from both CART and the Indy Racing League. In 1999 Canadian driver Greg Moore was killed in a crash at the track, resulting in a major overhaul of the backstretch for safety (it was discovered Moore's car slid in the grass off Turn 2, allowing the car to overturn, and cause the fatal crash; following that, ISC, which had purchased the track, paved that section of backstretch apron in time for the 2000 NASCAR event to prevent cars from sliding in that section, and to allow for drivers to have control of the cars in an incident); in 2003 the Indy Racing League set the highest average speed for any circuit event in motorsports. On Febraury 21,2008 the name was changed to Auto Club Speedway.

Like many modern oval tracks, Fontana also features an infield road-course, which has been used by the Grand American Road Racing Association and by the Japanese Grand Touring Car Championship, with the JGTC race being unique in the fact it was a night race.

The circuit is often used for television commercials.

RecordsEdit

• NASCAR Qualifying (one lap): Kyle Busch, 188.245 mph, February 27, 2005.
• NASCAR Race (500 miles): Jeff Gordon, 155.012 mph, July 22, 1997.

External links Edit

• California Speedway Official Site
• California Speedway Page on NASCAR.com
• GNEXTINC.com: California Speedway Page - Local area information, track specs, mapping, news and more.
• Jayski's California Speedway Page - Current and Past California Speedway News
• Super High Resolution image from [http://local.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=34.08633~-117.500078&style=o&lvl=2&scene=709497 Windows Live Love