Auto Club 400
Auto Club Speedway
By Richard Tix
Is this the week that one of the Young Gun's of NASCAR finally gets it done? Last week Ryan Newman and the No. 31 team made a bold call to stay out late in the race and it paid off when the field was shaken up behind them. That call snapped a long win-less streak for Ryan Newman and RCR.
Now NASCAR stay's West one last week with it's final stop of the tour at Auto Club Speedway (Fontana). 2017 has brought an early season shake up by watching the Fords start out hot and two young kids trying to go toe to toe with them.
Those two drivers are Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott and both have had great starts to the newest season. Larson has three straight second place finishes and was running second in the Daytona 500 before running out of fuel on the last lap. Larson is also the current points leader, has scored a stage point in every single stage so far this year, and on the season has averaged a running position of 5.25. So, it's safe to say he has had a phenomenal start to 2017.
Elliott has been no slouch himself. Chase actually has a better average running position then Larson so far this year at 5th, which is crazy to think. Chase's only issue has been finishing the race off strong when other teams are switching up strategies. Yet, he sits 3rd in the standings as we head into a track that he ran well at as a rookie in 2016.
Last year Chase finished 6th sixth at Fontana which at the time was his highest finish of 2016. Larson has a second place finish in 2014, but in the nest two season's he ran into some tough luck. However, both drivers should run well at Fontana considering the track seems to fit both of them as drivers.
So, it's pretty easy to imagine just one week after Ryan Newman pulled off a shocker, to see one of these young guns finally win in 2017 (Larson's second career win or Elliott's first career win). That's not even mentioning Ryan Blaney who has been fast all year and could also be in the mix late in the race.
I think the story of the early season has really been how these young kids have been bringing it and been fast week to week. So, the storyline this weekend will be can one of them pull off a trip to Victory Lane?
Now NASCAR stay's West one last week with it's final stop of the tour at Auto Club Speedway (Fontana). 2017 has brought an early season shake up by watching the Fords start out hot and two young kids trying to go toe to toe with them.
Those two drivers are Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott and both have had great starts to the newest season. Larson has three straight second place finishes and was running second in the Daytona 500 before running out of fuel on the last lap. Larson is also the current points leader, has scored a stage point in every single stage so far this year, and on the season has averaged a running position of 5.25. So, it's safe to say he has had a phenomenal start to 2017.
Elliott has been no slouch himself. Chase actually has a better average running position then Larson so far this year at 5th, which is crazy to think. Chase's only issue has been finishing the race off strong when other teams are switching up strategies. Yet, he sits 3rd in the standings as we head into a track that he ran well at as a rookie in 2016.
Last year Chase finished 6th sixth at Fontana which at the time was his highest finish of 2016. Larson has a second place finish in 2014, but in the nest two season's he ran into some tough luck. However, both drivers should run well at Fontana considering the track seems to fit both of them as drivers.
So, it's pretty easy to imagine just one week after Ryan Newman pulled off a shocker, to see one of these young guns finally win in 2017 (Larson's second career win or Elliott's first career win). That's not even mentioning Ryan Blaney who has been fast all year and could also be in the mix late in the race.
I think the story of the early season has really been how these young kids have been bringing it and been fast week to week. So, the storyline this weekend will be can one of them pull off a trip to Victory Lane?
**This section is just a quick look at some of Cup drivers latest finishes. This is not a tool for fantasy purposes and NBTW only is looking at end results. No deep statistic's are involved, but rather it is just a quick way to get ready for the race and get caught up on who has finished well at each track**
The Good
- Jimmie Johnson- Six career wins here at Auto Club for JJ and he got back on the map last year with his second win of 2016 here on his way to his 7th Cup Championship.
- Kyle Busch- Before last years rough finish (25th), Rowdy had two straight wins at Auto Club in races he participated in -- missed 2015 with his injury.
- Kevin Harvick- In his last eight races here he has a win, five top fives (including three second place finishes), and six top ten's.
The Middle
- Matt Kenseth- Kenseh hasn't won here since 2009. In the nine races after that 2009 win he has an average finish of 14.55 with only four top tens.
The Bad
- Aric Almirola- Nine career races withouth a single top ten. Aric only has two top 15's and two top 20's in his career as well which is where the real struggle is.
- Martin Turex Jr- Only nine top 20's in Martins 16 career starts here at Auto Club. In the No. 78 he also only has one top 10 -- three races -- which is more telling of his struggles here.
- Trevor Bayne- Last year Bayne qualified well here -- 7th -- but failed to finish as well -- 20th. However, last years 20th was his best finish in three tries, which isn't a good thing.
About the Track: Auto Club
Track Stats
- Manufacturer wins here go Chevy 13, Ford 11, Toyota 2, and Dodge 1
- Until 2014 Jimmie Johnson was the only driver to win two times in a row here (2009 and 2010). Kyle Busch won back to back in 2014 and 2013
- Only Jimmie Johnson has won from the Pole: 2008 (26 total races)
- Most career wins here: Jimmie Johnson 6, Jeff Gordon 3, and Matt Kenseth 3
- Most Poles: Kurt Busch with 4
- Ken Schrader ran 17 races here without a top 10. Highest finish was 14th, twice.
- Johnson has the most career top 5's at Auto Club: 13
- Johnson has the most career top 10's with 16
Track Info
- Surface - Asphalt
- Length - 2 miles
- Banking
- Turns- 14 degrees
- Frontstretch- 11 degrees
- Backstretch- 3 degrees
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