LOS ANGELES — A celebration certainly, a sendoff perhaps, the WISE Power 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana on Sunday will combine elements of a storied past, a dynamic future and a keep-your-eyes-glued-to-the-road focus on the present.
It will be the silver anniversary of the venue originally dubbed the California Speedway, built on the site of a steel mill hard by Interstates 10 and 15. The 25 years were marked by three stretches of dominance, with Jeff Gordon winning the first NASCAR race at the speedway in 1997 and three of the first eight, Jimmie Johnson winning six times in 15 years beginning in 2001 and Kyle Busch winning four times recently, including in 2019.
It also might be the last time a NASCAR race is held on the two-mile track. Plans to shorten it to a half-mile were submitted to San Bernardino County in September 2020 with the expectation that the first race on the short track would take place in 2023. But the process was slowed by COVID-19, giving the NASCAR innovation and development teams more time to brainstorm, so any thoughts of billing Sunday's race as a last hurrah for the two-mile oval were given the caution flag.
