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Date: Saturday, March 23
Start Time: 5 p.m. ET
Site: Auto Club Speedway (1997) -- Fontana, Calif.
Track: 2-mile oval - 3,100 feet (Frontstretch); 2,500 feet (Backstretch)
Laps: 150
Miles: 300
Capacity: 90,988 (Grandstand Seating)
Total purse:
Payouts:
Year: 17th
On TV: ESPN
Announcers:
On Radio: Motor Racing Network (MRN)/SIRIUS NASCAR Radio
Race record: Hank Parker Jr, 2001 (155.957 mph)
Qualifying record: Tony Stewart, 2005 (185.941 mph)
2012 Finish
Defending champion: Joey Logano (not defending)
Runner up: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Pole winner: Joey Logano (178.984 mph)
Top 10:
1. Joey Logano (Start: 1)
2. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (10)
3. Brad Keselowski (3)
4. Brian Scott (7)
5. Austin Dillon (4)
6. Brad Sweet (14)
7. Kenny Wallace (6)
8. Kyle Busch (15)
9. Elliott Sadler (5)
10. Brendan Gaughan (8)
Average speed: 142.330 mph
Time of race: 2 hrs., 6 mins., 28 secs.
Margin of victory: 1,066 secs.
Caution flags: 4 for 18 laps
Lead changes: 15 among 7 drivers
Past winners
2012 Joey Logano, Toyota, 142.330 mph
2011 Kyle Busch, Toyota, 140.772 mph
2010 Kyle Busch, Toyota, 143.886 mph
2009 Kyle Busch, Toyota, 138.479 mph
2008 Tony Stewart, Toyota, 141.769 mph
2007 Matt Kenseth, Ford, 127.871 mph
2006 Greg Biffle, Ford, 147.501 mph
2005 Mark Martin, Ford, 117.251 mph
2004 Greg Biffle, Ford, 138.978 mph
2003 Matt Kenseth, Ford, 129.419 mph
2002 Scott Riggs, Ford, 131.403 mph
2001 Hank Parker Jr, Chevrolet, 155.957 mph
2000 Matt Kenseth, Chevrolet, 126.375 mph
1999 Matt Kenseth, Chevrolet, 119.960 mph
1998 Dale Earnhardt Jr, Chevrolet, 148.597 mph
1997 Todd Bodine, Pontiac, 145.083 mph
Last race
Race: Jeff Foxworthy's Grit Chips 300 (March 16)
Site: Bristol Motor Speedway -- Bristol, Tenn.
Miles: 159.9
Laps: 300
Finish line order: Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, Brian Vickers, Sam Hornish Jr., Kevin Harvick
Time of Race: 1 hr., 57 mins., 11 secs.
Average speed: 81.872 mph
Margin of victory: 0.023 secs.
Caution flags: 8 for 54 laps
Lead changes: 5 among 5 drivers
Lap leaders: J. Allgaier 1-62; T. Bayne 63-75; K. Busch 76-167; B. Keselowski J. Allgaier 1-62; T. Bayne 63-75; K. Busch 76-167; B. Keselowski 168-193; K. Harvick 194-236; K. Busch 237-300.
Entry list
#00 Jason White (Richmond, VA) Toyota/Headrush
#01 Mike Wallace (St. Louis, MO) Chevrolet/TBA
#2 Brian Scott (Boise, ID) Chevrolet/White Tail
#3 Austin Dillon (Welcome, NC) Chevrolet/AdvoCare
#4 Danny Efland (Irmo, SC) Chevrolet/TBA
#5 Brad Sweet (Grass Valley, CA) Chevrolet/Great Clips
#6 Trevor Bayne (Knoxville, TN) Ford/Cargill
#07 Daryl Harr (Alberta, Canada) Chevrolet/TBA
#7 Regan Smith (Cato, NY) Chevrolet/taxslayer.com
#10 Jeff Green (Owensboro, KY) Toyota/TriStar Motorsports
#11 Elliott Sadler (Emporia, VA) Toyota/One Main Financial
#12 Sam Hornish Jr. (Defiance, OH) Ford/Wurth
#14 Eric McClure (Chilhowie, VA) Toyota/Hefty/Reynolds Wrap
#15 Juan Carlos Blum (Guadalajara, Mex.) Ford/VMP Nutrition
#19 Mike Bliss (Milwaukie, OR) Toyota/Double Tree
#20 Brian Vickers (Thomasville, NC) Toyota/Dollar General
#22 Brad Keselowski (Rochester Hills, MI Ford/Discount Tire
#23 To Be Announced Chevrolet/Rick Ware Racing
#24 Blake Koch (West Palm Beach, FL) Toyota/I am Second
#27 Michael McDowell (Glendale, AZ) Toyota/Teamboom
#30 Nelson Piquet Jr. (Brasilia, Brazil) Chevrolet/Qualcomm
#31 Justin Allgaier (Riverton, IL) Chevrolet/Brandt
#32 Kyle Larson (Elk Grove, CA) Chevrolet/Eveready
#33 Dakoda Armstrong (New Castle, IN) Chevrolet/Winfield/Mudd.com
#40 Josh Wise (Riverside, CA) Chevrolet/Curtis Key Plumbing
#42 J.J. Yeley (Phoenix, AZ) Chevrolet/Curtis Key Plumbing
#43 Reed Sorenson (Peachtree City, GA) Ford/Pilot Travel Centers/Flying J
#44 Hal Martin (Galliano, LA) Toyota/American Custom Yachts
#46 Chase Miller (Canton, GA) Chevrolet/Curtis Key Plumbing
#51 Jeremy Clements (Spartanburg, SC) Chevrolet/USS James E. Williams
#52 Joey Gase (Cedar Rapids, IA) Chevrolet/TBA
#54 Kyle Busch (Las Vegas, NV) Toyota/Monster Energy
#55 Jamie Dick (Albuquerque, NM) Chevrolet/Viva Auto Group
#60 Travis Pastrana (Annapolis, MD) Ford/Roush Fenway Racing
#70 Johanna Long (Pensacola, FL) Chevrolet/TBA
#74 Mike Harmon (Birmingport, AL) Chevrolet/Dave Novak Racing
#77 Parker Kligerman (Westport, CT) Toyota/Kyle Busch Motorsports
#79 Paulie Harraka (Wayne, NJ) Ford/Crackle "It's On"
#87 Joe Nemechek (Lakeland, FL) Toyota/AM FM Energy Wood & Pellet
#92 Dexter Stacey (Kahnawake, Canada) Ford/Maddie's Place
#98 Kevin Swindell (Germantown, TN) Chevrolet/Carroll Shelby Engines
#99 Alex Bowman (Tucson, AZ) Toyota/TBA
Leading contenders
| Name | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brad Keselowski | 32 | 32 | 27 | 3 | 10 | 3 | |||
| Brian Scott | 10 | 13 | 4 | ||||||
| Austin Dillon | 5 | ||||||||
| Brad Sweet | 6 | ||||||||
| Kyle Busch | 7 | 23 | 3 | 2 | Won | Won | Won | 8 | |
| Elliott Sadler | 32 | 27 | 5 | 9 | |||||
| Sam Hornish Jr. | 35 | 13 | |||||||
| Trevor Bayne | 11 | 6 | 14 | ||||||
| Justin Allgaier | 14 | 9 | 12 | 32 | |||||
| Brian Vickers | 9 | 12 | 8 | ||||||
| Regan Smith | 28 | 9 |
Notes
Joey Logano won the Nationwide race at this track one year ago. Logano started on the pole and led 92 laps, but had to fend off numerous challengers for the lead throughout the 300-mile event. He ran in the third spot for the final restart with 12 laps remaining but quickly drove past Elliott Sadler and Trevor Bayne to take the top position for good. He then beat Ricky Stenhouse Jr. to the finish line by one second for the win. Logano is not competing in the Nationwide event there this weekend.
ACS has been on the Nationwide schedule each year since 1997. Todd Bodine won the inaugural race there that year.
There have been 23 Nationwide events held at Auto Club Speedway. The track hosted one race each season from 1997-2003 and then two events per season from 2004-10. ACS returned to a single-race season two years ago.
Kyle Busch holds the record for most Nationwide wins at Auto Club Speedway with five. All of his victories have come within the last seven races there.
Joe Gibbs Racing has won eight consecutive Nationwide races at this track: Busch (5), Logano (2) and Tony Stewart (1). Logano drove for JGR in the series from 2008-12.
Four Nationwide races at Auto Club Speedway have been won from the pole position: Busch (2008 and '10) and Logano (2009 and '12).
The closest margin of victory in a Nationwide event at this track happened in February 2010 when Busch beat Greg Biffle to the finish line by just 0.051 seconds.
The next race is the April 12 O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 at Texas Motor Speedway. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won last year's event there.
