Auto Club 400 Tag

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer It was far from a pretty race for Denny Hamlin, who managed to escape Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway with a less than satisfying sixth-place finish. The three-time Daytona 500 champion had two infamous moments happened in the 200-lap race where outside of race winner Alex Bowman, he was the focal point of the event. Earlier in the race, a three-car battle between Hamlin, Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick nearly went awry on the frontstretch when the trio drafted together. Harvick slightly bumpedRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service Jimmie Johnson enjoys strong run in swan song at Auto Club Speedway FONTANA, Calif. – Before the green flag waved Sunday at Auto Club Speedway, Jimmie Johnson took prime position behind the pace car as the rest of the NASCAR Cup Series field fanned out five-wide behind him in a respectful salute to the seven-time champion. When the green flag waved to signal the beginning of the Auto Club 400, Johnson saw his wife Chandra and daughters Genevieve and Lydia doing the honors fromRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FONTANA, Calif. – Alex Bowman had a new nose for the finish line Sunday at Auto Club Speedway. Driving the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet—a sleeker version of the Camaro with a new front fascia—Bowman ran away with the final stage of the Auto Club 400 at the two-mile track in the Inland Empire. In picking up his second career victory and his first at Fontana, Bowman led five times for 110 of the 200 laps in the third NASCAR Cup event of theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FONTANA, Calif. – It’s far too early to be thinking about Christmas, but Clint Bowyer was the Grinch whole stole the thunder from local favorite Jimmie Johnson during Saturday’s time trials at Auto Club Speedway. With a stronger run off Turn 4 on his qualifying lap, Bowyer edged Johnson by .007 seconds to earn the pole position for Sunday’s Auto Club 400 (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The last driver to turn a lap, Johnson had the edge atRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service Jimmie Johnson brings vivid memories in return to home track FONTANA, Calif. – Eighteen years ago, Jimmie Johnson came to Auto Club Speedway with no job security. This weekend, Johnson returns to the two-mile track for his last ride as a full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver with 83 victories, seven championships and nothing left to prove. That wasn’t the case in 2002 in his first season with Hendrick Motorsports. Despite assurances to the contrary, Johnson thought he was on a short leash with theRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service It has certainly not been the season start to a robust defense of his 2019 NASCAR Cup Series championship for Kyle Busch. A pair of sub-par showings in the opening two races have placed the driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in a rather unfamiliar position – not even among the top-20 in the NASCAR Cup Series points standings. But he arrives at California’s Auto Club Speedway for Sunday’s Auto Club 400 (3:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) withRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor The annual NASCAR Goes West campaign enters its second week as the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Southern California for Sunday’s running of the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway. Built on the site of an old steel mill featured in the movie “Terminator”, the two-mile oval has been a part of the NASCAR schedule since opening in 1997. During its 20+ years on the circuit, the track has gone through ownership changes, as well as expanding to two race dates in 2004 and thenRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Heading into the March 2016 running of the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway, two drivers in the field went to battle with each other in what would be dubbed the #HeroFaceOff in promotion of the upcoming Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice movie. Hendrick Motorsports teammates Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jimmie Johnson each sported a superhero paint scheme, with Earnhardt carrying the Batman colors on his No. 88 Chevrolet and Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet adorned with the familiar red and blue colors of Superman.Read More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Correspondent A pit road speeding penalty and an ill-timed caution could not keep Denny Hamlin from a top-10 finish in the Auto Club 400. Hamlin used the wave-around under the final caution to his advantage. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Driver restarted on the lead lap, and inside the top-10. Hamlin surged forward in the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry during the final 30 laps. He held off charges from his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex, Jr., as well as Ricky Stenhouse to crossRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor If there’s one Chevrolet team that has stood out above the rest of the Bowtie Brigade in 2019, it has been the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing team piloted by Kurt Busch. Following a 25th place finish in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season opener, Busch and company have rebounded in the races since, piling up top-10 finish after top-10 finish. In Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway, it was more of the same with the elder Busch brother bringing home a sixth-placeRead More