Welcome to The 2009 Auto Club Speedway Fan Guide for the second week of the NASCAR 2009 season. This will be a brief guide covering many items pertaining to Auto Club Speedway.
Auto Club Speedway History
Auto Club Speedway of Southern California has a history that you might expect a track just 50 miles from Hollywood to have.
The speedway, formerly known as California Speedway, sits on a 568-acre site that once hosted the first steel mill located west of the Rocky Mountains, Kaiser Steel Mill. The mill produced the steel that helped build the Liberty ships used by the Allies to win World War II.
Kaiser Steel went out of business in 1983. Following that, the site fell into such disrepair that it was used in the movie The Terminator to portray a post-Apocalyptic world where men and machines battled each other for supremacy and survival.
Penske Motorsports Inc. purchased the land and completed the track in 1997. The first race held on the track was a Winston West Series race won by Ken Schrader on June 21, 1997. Later that day, Mark Martin won an International Race of Champions event at the new facility. Jeff Gordon won the track's first Cup race the following day.
Auto Club Speedway has also hosted races in the Nationwide and Craftsman Truck series, as well as events in the IndyCar Series and what is now the Champ Car World Series on its oval and road racing and motorcycle events on its road courses.
In 1999, Penske Motorsports Inc. merged with International Speedway Corporation, bringing California Speedway into the ISC family of tracks. Beginning in 2004, California Speedway's 2-mile oval became the host of two Cup Series races each year, adding a Labor Day weekend event to its roster of activities.
The track was renamed in February 2008.
Jeff Gordon won the first Cup race at California in 1997
Auto Club Speedway
Configuration
Location
9300 Cherry Ave., Fontana, CA 92335
Completed
1997
Shape
D-shaped oval
Distance
2 miles
Banking
Turns: 14 degrees; Frontstretch: 11 degrees; Backstretch: 3 degrees
Frontstretch
3,100 feet
Backstretch
2,500 feet
Seating
92,000
Track Records
Qualifying Record
Kyle Busch – 188.245 mph (38.248 seconds); Set February 25, 2005
Race Record
Jeff Gordon (155.012 mph); Set June 22, 1997
Aerial view of Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California
Previous Winners (1999-2008)
| Year | Driver | Car | Avg. Speed |
| 1999 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | 150.276 |
| 2000 | Jeremy Mayfield | Ford | 149.378 |
| 2001 | Rusty Wallace | Ford | 143.118 |
| 2002 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | 150.088 |
| 2003 | Kurt Busch | Ford | 140.111 |
| 2004 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | 137.268 |
| 2005 | Greg Biffle | Ford | 139.697 |
| 2006 | Matt Kenseth | Ford | 147.852 |
| 2007 | Matt Kenseth | Ford | 138.451 |
| 2008 | Carl Edwards | Ford | 132.704 |
Most Wins
3
Jeff Gordon; Jimmie Johnson
Most Top 5s
8
Jeff Gordon
Most Top 10s
9
Matt Kenseth
Most Starts
17
Jeff Gordon; Jeff Burton; Bobby Labonte
Most Poles
3
Kurt Busch
Most Laps Led
527
Jeff Gordon
Avg. Start
8.1
Kasey Kahne
Avg. Finish
5.9
Jimmie Johnson
TV Broadcast Schedule For Auto Club Speedway Events
Camping World Truck Series
Thursday, February 19, 2009
No TV Coverage Practice – 3:30 PM (EST)
No TV Coverage Final Practice – 6:00 PM (EST)
Friday, February 20, 2009
Qualifying – 4:30 PM (EST)
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Race – San Bernardino County 250 – 3:00 PM (EST)
Nationwide Series
Friday, February 20, 2009
Practice – 12:30 PM (EST)
Final Practice – 8:30 PM (EST)
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Qualifying – 12:30 PM (EST)
Race – Stater Bros. 300 – 7:00 PM (EST)
Sprint Cup Series
Friday, February 20, 2009
Practice – 3:00 PM (EST)
Qualifying – 6:30 PM (EST)
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Final Practice – 5:00 PM (EST)
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Race – Auto Club 500 – 5:00 PM (EST)
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