Rest in Peace Auto Club

SpeedPagan

SpeedPagan

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I know there were plans to create a short track in place of the two mile race track, but honestly I haven't heard anything about those plans for a long time. Damn, it is hard to keep a track going in Southern California for longer than a couple of decades.
 
SpeedPagan said:


I know there were plans to create a short track in place of the two mile race track, but honestly I haven't heard anything about those plans for a long time. Damn, it is hard to keep a track going in Southern California for longer than a couple of decades.
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As of a few weeks ago, they were saying the plan is still to build the short track.

I still think it’s 50/50 if this happens.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
As of a few weeks ago, they were saying the plan is still to build the short track.

I still think it’s 50/50 if this happens.
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I think it'll depend on how much money commercial developers are willing to put up to buy the land.
 
Supposed to have straights like Martinsville and banked turns like Bristol when it is finished. Penske and Kaiser Steel built it after they tore the mill down and got rid of the toxic waste in 1996. Nascar bought it, and the attendance has to put it mildly been lacking. They went from two dates to one in 2011.
 
SpeedPagan said:


I know there were plans to create a short track in place of the two mile race track, but honestly I haven't heard anything about those plans for a long time. Damn, it is hard to keep a track going in Southern California for longer than a couple of decades.
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You stated: Damn, it is hard to keep a track going in Southern California for longer than a couple of decades.

It is hard to keep any business going in California, period.
 
sdj said:
You stated: Damn, it is hard to keep a track going in Southern California for longer than a couple of decades.

It is hard to keep any business going in California, period.
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If this were true, would California have the 4th largest economy in the world? Also, if this were true, would the land in Fontana had appreciated to the point that it’s more profitable to sell? Every economic indicator behind the sale is incredibly positive for California.

BobbyFord said:
Another example of NASCAR not being able to see with their heads up their asses.
Greed wins over quality racing every time.
Last I heard, they are continuing with plans for a short track.
They killed a great racetrack.
How much is enough money?
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Rose colored glasses. Auto Club mostly produced lackluster racing until the pavement aged. I am sorry for the fans in SoCal but that track would’ve been pure **** after the repave.
 
The same thing that killed Auto Club almost killed Greenville Pickens and did kill Myrtle Beach Speedway. It’s hard to keep a track going in a “booming real estate market” or a place where land is valuable. This has been the case for decades.

Funny how the usual suspects want to make political statements about California but are silent when the same thing happens in South Carolina.
 
IDK whether another track will rise from the ashes of Fontana but I would be surprised if it did. The appetite for NASCAR racing has changed since the track was built and the real estate is like too valuable to remain undeveloped.
 
AlTerego said:
IDK whether another track will rise from the ashes of Fontana but I would be surprised if it did. The appetite for NASCAR racing has changed since the track was built and the real estate is like too valuable to remain undeveloped.
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If I were NASCAR, I would just buy Irwindale Speedway and upgrade it. The only pause I have would be the value of the land. It's closer to LA than Fontana so the land is probably pretty expensive, but still probably cheaper than building a whole new track.

But the cycle may repeat itself again when a real estate developer comes knocking...
 
The Nature Boy said:
If I were NASCAR, I would just buy Irwindale Speedway and upgrade it. The only pause I have would be the value of the land. It's closer to LA than Fontana so the land is probably pretty expensive, but still probably cheaper than building a whole new track.

But the cycle may repeat itself again when a real estate developer comes knocking...
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Irwindale was supposed to close years ago. I'm not sure the latest on that. But I agree, Irwindale would be a great track instead of building an oversized Coliseum track at Fontana.
 
MRM said:
Irwindale was supposed to close years ago. I'm not sure the latest on that. But I agree, Irwindale would be a great track instead of building an oversized Coliseum track at Fontana.
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Irwindale closure has been extended but is inevitable.
 
The Nature Boy said:
If I were NASCAR, I would just buy Irwindale Speedway and upgrade it. The only pause I have would be the value of the land. It's closer to LA than Fontana so the land is probably pretty expensive, but still probably cheaper than building a whole new track.

But the cycle may repeat itself again when a real estate developer comes knocking...
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I would just keep going to the Los Angeles Coliseum and/or go to Long Beach.
 
The Nature Boy said:
I would think NASCAR would want a points paying race in LA (on top of the Clash). The success of Chicago does show that Long Beach could be a viable idea though.
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I'm saying make Los Angeles a points-paying race.

Is there a rule that says the Daytona 500 has to be the first race of the season? Fox already doesn't give a **** about the Daytona 500 and all signs are Fox isn't going anywhere.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
I'm saying make Los Angeles a points-paying race.

Is there a rule that says the Daytona 500 has to be the first race of the season? Fox already doesn't give a **** about the Daytona 500 and all signs are Fox isn't going anywhere.
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There was a time when Riverside came before the 500 so you might even be able to market it as a “return to tradition.”
 
Doing an exhibition non points race at the the LA coliseum is one thing, but what a sheithole for a points race. They could do better with cones at a Dollar Tree parking lot.
 
Auto Club was my favorite intermediate track. Sad to see it go. Hopefully a good short track rises up in its place, as was the plan. We'll see.
 
This area of the country is relatively over saturated anyway. There's still Phoenix, Las Vegas, LA Coliseum, and Sonoma. If you're in LA, sure you might have to drive 2-4 hours, but there's really a decent number of options if you're in southern California.
 
The Nature Boy said:
If I were NASCAR, I would just buy Irwindale Speedway and upgrade it. The only pause I have would be the value of the land. It's closer to LA than Fontana so the land is probably pretty expensive, but still probably cheaper than building a whole new track.

But the cycle may repeat itself again when a real estate developer comes knocking...
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There's also the issue of NIMBYs, people who are just shocked that the race track they moved next door to would have...racing! They've always posed issues for Nashville Fairgrounds, Freedom Factory, and other speedways.
 
It's a shame seeing another SoCal track die. I never went to Autoclub but as a kid I had multiple trips to Riverside and Ontario. Hope they build the short track but I doubt it- land is just too damn valuable.
 
wi_racefan said:
Well this cleared things up lol

www.nbcsports.com

NASCAR provides update on the future of racing in Fontana, Southern California

President Steve Phelps said NASCAR still wants to build a short track but has no timeframe for completion.
www.nbcsports.com www.nbcsports.com

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk
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Cowards. Just say you took the bag and the Coliseum is going to be the SoCal date. Steve and his corporate bs speak trying to save face, I don’t anticipate we’ll see another race at Fontana ever again.
 
Jorge De Guzman said:
Cowards. Just say you took the bag and the Coliseum is going to be the SoCal date. Steve and his corporate bs speak trying to save face, I don’t anticipate we’ll see another race at Fontana ever again.
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It was mentioned before that Long Beach wouldn't be a bad idea for a points paying SoCal race. NASCAR saw how well the Chicago street race did, especially compared to how Chicagoland had been doing. Fontana is pretty far from LA and Long Beach is both much closer and is a tested street course.
 
The Nature Boy said:
It was mentioned before that Long Beach wouldn't be a bad idea for a points paying SoCal race. NASCAR saw how well the Chicago street race did, especially compared to how Chicagoland had been doing. Fontana is pretty far from LA and Long Beach is both much closer and is a tested street course.
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I’m afraid if nascar goes to Long Beach, Indy Car could lose it.
 
Jorge De Guzman said:
I’m afraid if nascar goes to Long Beach, Indy Car could lose it.
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Correct.

Both F1 and NASCAR have tried to buy the event from Gerry Forsythe and Kevin Kalkhoven in the past and been rebuffed. Last I recall from earlier this spring was that KK’s 50% stake was for sale after his passing last year, but I don’t believe a buyer has been finalized yet. I’d imagine Penske Entertainment has been in talks at least.
 
FLRacingFan said:
Correct.

Both F1 and NASCAR have tried to buy the event from Gerry Forsythe and Kevin Kalkhoven in the past and been rebuffed. Last I recall from earlier this spring was that KK’s 50% stake was for sale after his passing last year, but I don’t believe a buyer has been finalized yet. I’d imagine Penske Entertainment has been in talks at least.
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If Penske buys it Indy car would be safe from losing it…right???
 
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