Tickets go on sale Sept. 12 (that's 2011 to avoid confusion) and are priced at $60 (Reserved Club), $50 (Reserved), $30 (General Admission). Children 12 and under are free in General Admission with Lefty's Kids Club membership. Camping packages will be available from $255 to $330.
"Auto Club Speedway announced that the IZOD IndyCar Series will return to the 2-mile oval for a 200-lap night race on Sept. 15, 2012."
Dario Franchitti was the race winner in October 2005 - the most recent IZOD IndyCar Series event at then-California Speedway. The series had a four-year run on the oval that also played host to CART from 1997-2002. Current IZOD IndyCar Series drivers Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Alex Tagliani and Franchitti were all pole sitters over the years.
Sam Hornish Jr. won the inaugural IndyCar Series race in 2002 in an exciting finish that saw him beat Jaques Lazier to the finish line by 0.0281 of a second.
Other highlights include:
Oct. 28, 2000: During qualifying, Gil de Ferran set the track record for fastest lap at 241.426 mph. This was also a world speed record for the fastest lap of a closed course.
Nov. 3, 2002: Jimmy Vasser won the final 500-mile race in CART/Champ Car history. The race also set the track record (at the time) for average race speed at 197.995 mph.
Sept. 21, 2003: During the IndyCar Series race (Toyota Indy 400), Sam Hornish Jr. set the track record for fastest average speed during a race at 207.151 mph -- still the track record.
Sept. 20, 2003: During qualifying, Helio Castroneves sets the track one-lap record of 226.757 mph.
To purchase tickets, call 800-944-RACE (7223) or visit www.autoclubspeedway.com. Visit the website to subscribe to the speedway's monthly newsletter to receive pre-sale information, updates and enter to receive a driver-autographed article.
The speedway is a D-shaped oval that features 14-degree turns and a 3,100-foot fronstretch. It sits on 568 acres that once was the site of the first steel mill west of the Rocky Mountains and was completed in 1997 after Penske Motorsports Inc. purchased the land and oversaw construction. In 1999, Penske Motorsports Inc. merged with International Speedway Corp. The track was renamed in February 2008.
