NASCAR's short track vision for Auto Club Speedway site faces uncertainty citing cost concerns

Earlier today, it was announced that NASCAR will be halting its plans to build a short track in Fontana, California, on the site of the Auto Club Speedway. The project, known as Next Gen California, remains in an unknown state. Due to the association's concerns regarding the cost of building the half-a-mile-long short track at the speedway location, it has been paused. Steve Phelps, commissioner of NASCAR, shared an update regarding the creation of the track, which included a lack of commitment to a timeline for the project, despite relaying his strong intention to have a short-track in Fontana.

According to Phelps, based on the space available at the location, the only thing possible to build there was a short track. NASCAR sold off 433 out of 522 acres of the land, which is now a home to warehouses and an industrial park. The commissioner also spoke about wanting to be in the California region, citing its importance to the motorsport business.

“That market … is an important market for us. What the future of that particular facility is, I’m still unsure. Would I like to build a new facility at Fontana? I would. It would be a short track because we don’t have room for anything else, frankly,” Phelps said, via Racer.com.

Speaking also about the specifics of the capital that would be invested in the project, Phelps was unsure whether the investment would be worth it at this point.

“With that said, it’s $300 million to build that facility. Is that the best use of that money? That is the big question. The cost of capital right now is still really high, so for us to just press pause right now is essentially what we’re doing.

“But, yeah, I’d love to build a facility out there. When that is going to happen or if that is going to happen, I don’t have a timeline,” he added.

The Speedway at Fontana has hosted races for all three levels of NASCAR's national series from 1997 to 2023, with the exception of Truck Series races, as those haven't been held at the California site since 2009.

Last 10 NASCAR Cup Series winners of the Auto Club Speedway Race

Jimmie Johnson (48) celebrates his win at the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway, March 20th 2016 - Source: Imagn

From the Cup Series' first race at the track in 1997 to its last in 2023, the Auto Club Speedway has seen many NASCAR drivers take the checkered flag to take victory at the Fontana, California location. Looking back at the last 10 race winners, there have been drivers that have had the honor of taking the win at the track multiple times.

2013: Kyle Busch

2014: Kyle Busch

2015: Brad Keselowski

2016: Jimmie Johnson

2017: Kyle Larson

2018: Martin Truex Jr.

2019: Kyle Busch

2020: Alex Bowman

2022: Kyle Larson

2023: Kyle Busch

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, a race wasn't held at the speedway in 2021.

Jimmie Johnson's 2016 win put him at the top of the list of highest number of wins at the track, having driven into victory lane six times in total.