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Matt
Kenseth won last February in Fontana
Bob
Heathcote |
The almost two week juggernaut known as
‘Speedweeks at Daytona’ has come to an end. Now it’s time to
take that trip out west to California Speedway as NASCAR’s elite
invade Fontana for a full weekend of racing with all three top
NASCAR series in action, culminating with the Auto Club 500 on
Sunday afternoon.
This two-mile D-shaped oval opened in 1997 has
been the site of many different events over the last 10 years
including NASCAR, Champ Car, IRL, and AMA Superbike series.
While the infield has not changed since its inception the outer
midway had a facelift last year as the ‘California Fan Zone’
opened and they welcomed Wolfgang Puck’s Apex Restaurant as well
as many different fan friendly events to make their race
weekends exciting.
For the competition, the racing has come into its own, as at the
Sony HD500 last Labor Day weekend there was much more two and
three wide racing throughout the event prompting positive
feedback from many of NASCAR’s elite. “The good thing is that
the racing has become two-and three- wide and you can run on
different spots on the race track,” two-time NASCAR Champion
Tony Stewart said.
|
A large
crowd was on hand last February
Bob
Heathcote |
“What you do at California is solely based on
what you and your team can do with your race car, not what
drafting line you’re in or how the car behind you is going to
affect your next move. Once we get away from Daytona everything
kind of settles into a groove. We’re back in the weekly grind. I
enjoy going to California because I really feel that’s where our
season starts. That’s a track where you don’t really worry about
what everybody else’s car is doing. You worry about what your
car is doing. You’re racing the race track. You’re not racing
everybody else. It’s a good opportunity to get back into the
swing of things. Once you leave California, you feel like the
season has officially started.”
Stewart, driver of the #20 Home Depot Chevrolet, who finished
43rd at the Daytona 500 hopes to rebound at California, but
knows that there is a long way to go in the season, after all in
2002 he finished 43rd in the Great American Race but went on at
the end of the year to collect his first NASCAR Nextel Cup
Championship.
Along with Stewart, there are three other past Champions who
have begun their 2007 season in the bottom half. Last year's
Nextel Cup Champion, Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s
Chevrolet, and California native, 2004 Champion Kurt Busch,
driver of the #2 Miller Lite Dodge, and 2003 Champion Matt
Kenseth, driver of the #17 DeWalt Tools Ford are all in
unfamiliar territory as they are all outside of the top 25.
Joining them is a handful of drivers who have vied for
championships in the past, as Dale Earnhardt Jr., Greg Biffle,
Ryan Newman and Stewart’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin
are also 25th or worse in the championship standings.
This will also be the first race on the two-mile oval for the
new Toyota Camrys. Dale Jarrett, driver of the #44 UPS Toyota
is eager to put the new manufacturer to the test. “It’s a great
track for racing and we’re obviously anxious to get there and
see where we are with our downforce program,” Jarrett said. “We
feel like we learned some things at the Las Vegas test that will
help us at California.”
Jarrett is one of a handful of drivers that have competed in all
13 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series races at California Speedway since
its inception. His career best at Fontana is a fifth place in
1999.
When NASCAR comes to California Speedway twice a year (they also
host the NEXTEL Cup and Busch Series races Labor Day weekend),
the stars come out to shine. This weekend will be no exception
as Sammy Hagar will bring his high energy rock n roll to the
stage for the West Coast Premiere of NASCAR on FOX on Sunday.
Hagar will also serve as the Grand Marshal for the Busch Series Stater Bros 300 Race on Saturday. Acclaimed actor, Kevin
Costner, known for his roles in Bull Durham, Field of Dreams,
and Dances with Wolves will serve as the Grand Marshal of the
Auto Club 500.
All of the weekend’s festivities kick off Thursday with a free
concert by Hagar at the ‘Fontana Racefest’.
The author can be contacted
at
nascar@autoracing1.com
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