One NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series driver took a visit to an abandoned racetrack, sparking a lot of attention from fans on social media.
In the wake of the sport’s first trip to the Coronado Street Course in San Diego, Sam Mayer took a trip to what is left of the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The 2-mile track shut down after the 2023 Cup Series season.
Sam Mayer talks Auto Club Speedway: ‘Please come back’
In an Instagram post, Mayer shared photos of the abandoned Auto Club Speedway. The track was closed and demolition began in October 2023 as part of a NextGen California racing project.
Mayer, driver of the No. 41 Ford for Haas Factory Team in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, expressed his desire for NASCAR to return to Auto Club Speedway. He wrote:
“I miss you, please come back 🏁”
Unfortunately for Mayer, and for those who enjoyed racing at Auto Club Speedway, it would be impossible to bring the original racetrack back.
By 2025, over 400 acres of the track was sold to build warehouses and an industrial park. While the original plan was to build a new racetrack in the remaining area, it has not come to fruition.
The NASCAR Cup Series began racing at the Auto Club Speedway in 1997 and held at least one race at the track every year until the final year in 2023. One exception to this was in 2021 as the event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jeff Gordon, a native of Vallejo, California, won the inaugural race at the track. Jimmie Johnson, a native of El Cajon, California, held the record for most wins at the Auto Club Speedway with six victories.
Johnson, along with Kyle Busch, were two drivers in the Cup Series that won their first career races at the track. At the time of Busch’s first career win in 2005, he was the youngest Cup Series winner in history at 20 years, four months, and two days.
Busch also won the final race at Auto Club Speedway in 2023, his first win driving the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.
NASCAR continues to race in SoCal despite Auto Club shutdown
Despite the closing of the Auto Club Speedway in 2023, the NASCAR Cup Series has continued to visit southern California for races.
In 2022, the Cup Series circuit headed to the L.A. Colosseum for the season-opening Busch Clash exhibition. Joey Logano won the inaugural event behind the wheel of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford.
The Cup Series raced inside the L.A. Colosseum for two more years. Martin Truex Jr. won the 2023 Busch Clash exhibition, while Denny Hamlin won the final race at the venue in 2024.
NASCAR’s most recent visit to southern California was this past weekend. For the first time in history, the Cup Series raced on a naval base. The Coronado naval base in San Diego, California was the site of Sunday’s Andruil 250.
In just his 13th career start, Corey Heim crossed the finish line first in San Diego for his first career Cup Series win.
NASCAR Driver’s Visit to Abandoned Cup Series Racetrack Turns Heads