One Last Time: Historical Auto Club Facts

This weekend's Pala Casino 400 will mark the end of an era. the 2 mile race track in Southern California is going to be torn down over the next year or so and in its place, a 1/2 mile short track with a world class fan experience in its place.

Here are some of the cool facts from the 26 year history of California Speedway!

A Southern California Track:

• 1994, Roger Penske announced the track on top of the old Kaiser Steel Mill site in Fontana, California
• In the 1940s the Kaiser Steel Mill produced steel nearly specifically for the production of Liberty Ships for WW2
• In 1990, Kaiser Steel Mill was the site of the final showdown in Terminator 2 Between the T-101 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) & the T-1000 (Robert Patrick) 

The New Track:

• Ground was broken on the racing facility in November 1995
• Construction ended in 1996
• Paul Tracy was the first driver to test on the new track January of 1997 with NASCAR holding open tests later in May
• The 82 year old Landmark Kaiser water tower still stands at 100ft in height in the center of the track 
• It cost $100 million to build the facility 
• The first race at the California Speedway was the NASCAR West Series race 1 day after the ribbon cutting ceremony on June 20, 1997
• NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon won the inaugural California 500 on June 22, 1997 in front of 85,000 home track fans
• The track was known as California Speedway from 1997-2008
• The Automobile Club of Southern California purchased naming rights thus the name Auto Club Speedway 2008-2023
• The Track hosted 1-2 Races in the NASCAR Cup Series from 1997-2019 until Covid restrictions in the state of California kept racing from the track until 2022

Track Facts:

• The track is a 2-mile 4 turn oval
• 14 degree banking in the turns with 3 degrees down the backstretch and 11 degrees down the frontstretch 
• The track has 3 major layouts including the 2-mile oval, a 1.55-mile 17 turn interior road course, a 2.8-mile 18 turn Sports Car course 

EVENTS:

• The track had hosted CART/ Indy Car races from 1997-2005, then again from 2012-2015
• It hosted AMA Superbikes from 2002-2010
• It hosted the Rolex Sports Car Series from 2002-2005
• It hosted the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series from 1997-2009

Records

• Fastest lap in track history: 1997, 236.389mph, Greg Moore: CART with a 30.9 second lap
• NASCAR Cup Series: Kyle Larson 2017 38.76 Second Lap
• NASCAR Xfinity Series: Joey Logano 2018 40.247 Second Lap
• Rolex Sports Cars Series: Didier Theyes, 2002, 1:29:322 Lap

NASCAR Records:

• 7x NACAR Cup Series Champion Jimmie Johnson holds the record for 6 Cup Series Victories at the track
• Kyle Busch holds the record for most wins for an active Cup Series Driver @ 4
• Most Starts (Tie will be broken Sunday): Kurt Busch & Kevin Harvick @ 27 
• Poles: Kurt Busch @ 4
• Most Top-5: Jimmie Johnson @ 13
• Most Top-10: Jimmie Johnson @ 18
• Laps Led: Jimmie Johnson @ 990
• Laps Completed: Jimmie Johnson @ 5906
• Closest finish: Kevin Harvick by 0.144 Seconds over Jimmie Johnson

By: Tom Luttermoser   Image Credit: Brendan Littell