2017 Auto Club 400

The 2017 Auto Club 400 is a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race that was held on March 26, 2017, at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. Contested over 202 laps, extended from 200 laps due to overtime, on the two-mile (3.2 km) D-shaped oval, it is the fifth race of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

2017 Auto Club 400
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]
Race 5 of 36 in the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Date March 26, 2017 (2017-03-26)
Location Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California
Course Permanent racing facility
2 mi (3.22 km)
Distance 202 laps, 404 mi (646.4 km)
Scheduled Distance 200 laps, 400 mi (640 km)
Average speed 136.359 miles per hour (219.449 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Chip Ganassi Racing
Time 38.493
Most laps led
Driver Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing
Laps 110
Winner
No. 42 Kyle Larson Chip Ganassi Racing
Television in the United States
Network Fox
Announcers Mike Joy, Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip
Nielsen Ratings 2.9/6 (Overnight)[11]
3.2/6 (Final)[12]
5.2 million viewers[12]
Radio in the United States
Radio MRN
Booth Announcers Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace
Turn Announcers Dan Hubbard (1 & 2) and Kurt Becker (3 & 4)

Report

Background

Auto Club Speedway, the track where the race was held.

Auto Club Speedway (formerly California Speedway) is a 2 miles (3.2 km), low-banked, D-shaped oval superspeedway in Fontana, California which has hosted NASCAR racing annually since 1997. It is also used for open wheel racing events. The racetrack is located near the former locations of Ontario Motor Speedway and Riverside International Raceway. The track is owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation and is the only track owned by ISC to have naming rights sold. The speedway is served by the nearby Interstate 10 and Interstate 15 freeways as well as a Metrolink station located behind the backstretch.

Entry list

No. Driver Team Manufacturer
1Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet
2Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord
3Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet
4Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord
5Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
6Trevor BayneRoush Fenway RacingFord
10Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingFord
11Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota
13Ty Dillon (R)Germain RacingChevrolet
14Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord
15Reed SorensonPremium MotorsportsToyota
17Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord
18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota
19Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota
20Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota
21Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord
22Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord
23Gray Gaulding (R)BK RacingToyota
24Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
27Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet
31Ryan NewmanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet
32Matt DiBenedettoGo Fas RacingFord
33Jeffrey EarnhardtCircle Sport – The Motorsports GroupChevrolet
34Landon CassillFront Row MotorsportsFord
37Chris BuescherJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet
38David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord
41Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord
42Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet
43Aric AlmirolaRichard Petty MotorsportsFord
47A. J. AllmendingerJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet
48Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
51Timmy Hill (i)Rick Ware RacingChevrolet
55Derrike CopePremium MotorsportsChevrolet
72Cole WhittTri-Star MotorsportsChevrolet
77Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota
78Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota
83Corey LaJoie (R)BK RacingToyota
88Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet
95Michael McDowellLeavine Family RacingChevrolet
Official entry list

First practice

Kyle Larson was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 38.081 seconds and a speed of 189.071 mph (304.280 km/h).[13]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 42Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet38.081189.071
2 11Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota38.204188.462
3 4Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord38.228188.344
Official first practice results

Qualifying

Kyle Larson scored the pole for the race with a time of 38.493 and a speed of 187.047 mph (301.023 km/h).[14] “It was an interesting qualifying for us,” Larson said. “I ran the bottom in Turns 3 and 4. I knew everybody was running the top in 3 and 4 and my plan was to go up there in the second round, but thought I maybe got through 1 and 2 okay enough to run the bottom. I knew the third round I was going to have to move up. Our Target Chevy was really good, really balanced up there. I was surprised."[15]

Qualifying results

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2 R3
1 42Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet38.55138.67938.493
2 11Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota38.55238.51938.507
3 2Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord38.45438.84738.606
4 78Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota38.77538.81838.630
5 31Ryan NewmanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet38.73538.94838.684
6 20Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota38.64638.57038.702
7 4Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord38.24538.54938.710
8 1Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet38.81838.62838.768
9 18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota38.48738.66838.835
10 19Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota38.89038.79938.958
11 3Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet38.93738.86038.980
12 5Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet38.80538.91039.139
13 24Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet39.92338.954
14 77Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota39.31138.973
15 41Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord38.87839.005
16 17Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord38.92339.050
17 14Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord38.85539.152
18 88Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet38.82939.180
19 21Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord39.14139.207
20 37Chris BuescherJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet39.13039.286
21 13Ty Dillon (R)Germain RacingChevrolet38.93539.322
22 10Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingFord38.90139.341
23 27Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet39.2170.000
24 47A. J. AllmendingerJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet39.2400.000
25 95Michael McDowellLeavine Family RacingChevrolet39.408
26 34Landon CassillFront Row MotorsportsFord39.409
27 38David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord39.640
28 72Cole WhittTriStar MotorsportsChevrolet39.708
29 15Reed SorensonPremium MotorsportsToyota40.028
30 83Corey LaJoie (R)BK RacingToyota40.039
31 43Aric AlmirolaRichard Petty MotorsportsFord40.948
32 33Jeffrey EarnhardtCircle Sport – The Motorsports GroupChevrolet41.128
33 55Derrike CopePremium MotorsportsChevrolet41.455
34 51Timmy Hill (i)Rick Ware RacingChevrolet41.783
35 22Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord0.000
36 6Trevor BayneRoush Fenway RacingFord0.000
37 48Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet0.000
38 32Matt DiBenedettoGo Fas RacingFord0.000
39 23Gray Gaulding (R)BK RacingToyota0.000
Official qualifying results

Practice (post-qualifying)

Second practice

Erik Jones was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 38.451 seconds and a speed of 187.251 mph (301.351 km/h).[16]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 77Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota38.451187.251
2 24Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet38.535186.843
3 31Ryan NewmanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet38.558186.732
Official second practice results

Final practice

Chase Elliott was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 38.404 seconds and a speed of 187.480 mph (301.720 km/h).[17]

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 24Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet38.404187.480
2 78Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota38.425187.378
3 21Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord38.489187.066
Official final practice results

Race

First stage

Kyle Larson led the field to the green flag at 3:50 p.m. On the initial start, Denny Hamlin spun his tires and forced Brad Keselowski to check up.[18] He backed into Ryan Newman – and Kevin Harvick, who was lined up behind Newman – and was turned up the track, damaging the left-rear quarter panel in the process.[19] Keselowski kept going, but got loose exiting Turn 4, with help from Jimmie Johnson, and spun through the frontstretch grass, bringing out the first caution of the race on the third lap.[20]

The race restarted on the eighth lap. Harvick made an unscheduled stop for damage on lap 23. A cycle of green flag stops started on lap 30 and resulted in Martin Truex Jr. cycling to the lead. Larson took it back exiting Turn 4 on lap 49, won the first stage and the second caution flew for the completion of the stage on lap 60. Truex exited pit road first. Ryan Blaney (removing equipment from the pit box) and Austin Dillon (speeding) restarted the race from the tail end of the field for pit road infractions.[21]

Second stage

The race restarted on lap 68. The second stage was only broken up by green flag stops on lap 91, which resulted in Truex retaining the lead. It ended with him winning the stage and the third caution flew on lap 120 for its completion.[21]

Final stage

Kyle Larson won the race from the pole position.

The race restarted with 73 laps to go. Larson powered by Truex on the bottom in Turn 1 to retake the lead on the restart. For most of the stage, it was a repeat of the second stage. It was broken up with 49 to go when cars started pitting under green, Larson and Truex pitted together with 45 to go and Larson regained it with 37 to go. During the cycle, Kyle Busch led for a few laps, followed by Ty Dillon and Johnson was turned by Truex on pit road.[22] Gray Gaulding suffered a right-front tire blowout and slammed the wall in Turn 1, bringing out the fourth caution with 20 to go. Truex, who entered pit road under the caution second, left seventh after he "stopped too deep in the box."[23]

The race restarted with 16 to go. Exiting Turn 2 on the restart, Truex hooked the left-rear corner of Matt Kenseth, then sent him spinning down the track and into the inside retaining wall, bringing out the fifth caution.[24]

The race restarted with 11 to go. Two laps later, Corey LaJoie spun out in Turn 2, bringing out the sixth caution. Hamlin, taking the lead as a result, Truex and Jamie McMurray elected to stay out under the caution, while everyone else hit pit road.[21]

The race restarted with five to go. Larson quickly took second from Truex on the backstretch and had a run on Hamlin, but found himself boxed in by Truex to his left and the outside wall to his right. He made the pass for the lead exiting Turn 2 with three to go seconds before the seventh caution flew for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. spinning out in Turn 2.[21]

Overtime

The race restarted in overtime with two to go and Larson drove on to score the victory.[25]

Driver comments

In victory lane, Larson said of the final two restarts that he was "staying as calm as [he] could," but he was "frustrated" as well. "It seems like every time I get to the lead at the end of one of these things, the caution comes out and I've got to fight people off on restarts," he added. "Our Target Chevy was amazing all day. We were able to lead a lot of laps today. Truex was better than us that second stage by quite a bit. We were able to get the jump on him the following restart and led pretty much the rest of the distance. I had to fight them off there after the green flag stops (before the final caution), and that was a lot of fun. This is just amazing. We've been so good all year long, three seconds in a row. I've been watching all the TV like 'He doesn't know how to win,' but we knew how to win today, so that was good."[26]

"Great perseverance from this team," Keselowski said on pit road after rallying from a Lap 3 spin to finish runner-up. "I got out of the car and looked at the damage. It's torn to pieces. I feel lucky to finish second and curious what we could have done if we weren't torn up. Great day for us to persevere, despite adversity. You'll have that in a 36-race season, so proud of team for that."[27]

Clint Bowyer, who earned his first top-five finish since the 2015 Irwin Tools Night Race with a third-place finish, said his team is "getting closer. This is a good track for me. I wanted to win that damn thing, but to come home with a wild finish and everything that it was, we’ll take it.”[28]

Truex, who finished fourth after electing not to pit under the penultimate caution, said it was "not the situation we wanted to be in, but we thought more guys would stay out there. I think we only ran a few laps. It was definitely a disadvantage at the end and just really tight. Holding on for fourth was good for points.”[29]

Stage results

Stage 1 Laps: 60

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
142Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet10
278Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota9
324Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet8
41Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet7
518Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota6
614Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord5
722Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord4
877Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota3
921Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord2
1011Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota1
Official stage one results

Stage 2 Laps: 60

Pos No Driver Team Manufacturer Points
178Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota10
242Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet9
324Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet8
414Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord7
577Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota6
61Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet5
718Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota4
822Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord3
911Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota2
102Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord1
Official stage two results

Final stage results

Stage 3 Laps: 82

Pos Grid No Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1142Kyle LarsonChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet20259
232Brad KeselowskiTeam PenskeFord20236
31714Clint BowyerStewart-Haas RacingFord20246
4478Martin Truex Jr.Furniture Row RacingToyota20252
53522Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord20239
681Jamie McMurrayChip Ganassi RacingChevrolet20243
71019Daniel Suárez (R)Joe Gibbs RacingToyota20230
8918Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota20239
91921Ryan BlaneyWood Brothers RacingFord20230
101324Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet20243
11113Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet20226
121477Erik Jones (R)Furniture Row RacingToyota20234
1374Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord20224
14211Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota20226
15531Ryan NewmanRichard Childress RacingChevrolet20222
161888Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet20221
172447A. J. AllmendingerJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet20220
182113Ty Dillon (R)Germain RacingChevrolet20219
193143Aric AlmirolaRichard Petty MotorsportsFord20218
20125Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet20217
213748Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet20216
221617Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord20215
23366Trevor BayneRoush Fenway RacingFord20214
241541Kurt BuschStewart-Haas RacingFord20113
252037Chris BuescherJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet20112
262210Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingFord20011
272634Landon CassillFront Row MotorsportsFord20010
282327Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet2009
293832Matt DiBenedettoFas Lane RacingFord2008
303083Corey LaJoie (R)BK RacingToyota2007
312738David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord1996
322872Cole WhittTriStar MotorsportsChevrolet1995
332595Michael McDowellLeavine Family RacingChevrolet1984
342915Reed SorensonPremium MotorsportsToyota1973
353451Timmy Hill (i)Rick Ware RacingChevrolet1930
36620Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota1841
373923Gray Gaulding (R)BK RacingToyota1731
383355Derrike CopePremium MotorsportsChevrolet1171
393233Jeffrey EarnhardtCircle Sport – The Motorsports GroupChevrolet991
Official race results

Race statistics

  • Lead changes: 8 among different drivers
  • Cautions/Laps: 7 for 29
  • Red flags: 0
  • Time of race: 2 hours, 57 minutes and 46 seconds
  • Average speed: 136.359 miles per hour (219.449 km/h)

Media

Television

The race was the 17th race Fox Sports covered at the Auto Club Speedway. Mike Joy, three-time Auto Club winner Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip had call in the booth for the race. Jamie Little, Vince Welch and Matt Yocum will handle the pit road duties for the television side.

Fox
Booth announcersPit reporters
Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy
Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon
Color commentator: Darrell Waltrip
Jamie Little
Vince Welch
Matt Yocum

Radio

MRN had the radio call for the race which was also simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and 2001 race winner Rusty Wallace called the race from the booth when the field was racing down the front stretch. Dan Hubbard called race from a billboard outside turn 2 when the field was racing through turns 1 and 2. Kurt Becker called the race from a billboard outside turn 3 when the field was racing through turns 3 and 4. Alex Hayden, Winston Kelley and Steve Post worked pit road for MRN.

MRN
Booth announcersTurn announcersPit reporters
Lead announcer: Joe Moore
Announcer: Jeff Striegle
Announcer: Rusty Wallace
Turns 1 & 2: Dan Hubbard
Turns 3 & 4: Kurt Becker
Alex Hayden
Winston Kelley
Steve Post

Standings after the race

References

  1. "2017 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 5, 2016. Archived from the original on February 4, 2017. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  2. "Auto Club Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  3. "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 20, 2017. Archived from the original on March 21, 2017. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
  4. "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 24, 2017. Archived from the original on March 25, 2017. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  5. "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 24, 2017. Archived from the original on March 25, 2017. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  6. "Second Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 25, 2017. Archived from the original on March 26, 2017. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  7. "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 25, 2017. Archived from the original on March 26, 2017. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  8. "Auto Club 400 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 26, 2017. Archived from the original on March 27, 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  9. "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. March 27, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
  10. "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. March 27, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
  11. Paulsen (March 27, 2017). "Overnights Down Yet Again For NASCAR, This Time at Fontana". SportsMediaWatch.com. Sports Media Watch. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
  12. Paulsen (March 28, 2017). "NASCAR Fontana Ratings Lowest Since At Least 1998". SportsMediaWatch.com. Sports Media Watch. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  13. Spencer, Lee (March 24, 2017). "Larson tops lone Friday practice session, Johnson wrecks". Motorsport.com. Fontana, California: Motorsport Network. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  14. Beacham, Greg (March 24, 2017). "Kyle Larson claims pole at Fontana, edging Denny Hamlin". Associated Press. Fontana, California: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 25, 2017. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  15. Mayes, Robbie (March 24, 2017). "Larson Scores Second Career Pole". MRN.com. Fontana, California: Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on March 26, 2017. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  16. DeGroot, Nick (March 25, 2017). "Erik Jones leads second practice as Harvick finds the wall". Motorsport.com. Fontana, California: Motorsport Network. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  17. Spencer, Lee (March 25, 2017). "Chase Elliott tops action-packed final practice". Motorsport.com. Fontana, California: Motorsport Network. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  18. White, Tucker (March 27, 2017). "Keselowski rallies from spin to finish runner-up". SpeedwayMedia.com. Speedway Media. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  19. Spencer, Lee (March 26, 2017). "Keselowski rebounds from early wreck to nearly win in California". Motorsport.com. Fontana, California: Motorsport Network. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  20. Crandall, Kelly (March 26, 2017). "Keselowski's good breaks outweigh bad luck". Racer.com. Fontana, California: Racer Media & Marketing, Inc. Archived from the original on March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  21. Engle, Greg (March 26, 2017). "The NASCAR Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway as it happened". CupScene.com. Cup Scene. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  22. Peltz, James (March 26, 2017). "Jimmie Johnson can't quite pull off another comeback". Los Angeles Times. Fontana, California: Tronc. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  23. James, Brant (March 26, 2017). "Kyle Larson breaks through, wins Auto Club 400 in Fontana". USA Today. Fontana, California: Gannett Company. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  24. Brewster, Louis (March 27, 2017). "NASCAR to study Auto Club Speedway retaining wall placement after Matt Kenseth crash". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. Fontana, California: Digital First Media. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  25. Beacham, Greg (March 26, 2017). "Second to none: Kyle Larson hangs on to win at Fontana". Associated Press. Fontana, California: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  26. Spencer, Reid (March 26, 2017). "Larson breaks runner-up streak with win at Auto Club". NASCAR.com. Fontana, California: NASCAR Wire Service. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  27. Cain, Holly (March 26, 2017). "Keselowski, No. 2 team persevere to second-place finish". NASCAR.com. Fontana, California: NASCAR Media Group, LLC. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  28. Haverlin, John (March 26, 2017). "BOWYER: "We're Getting Closer"". PopularSpeed.com. Fontana, California: POPULAR SPEED. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  29. Spencer, Lee (March 26, 2017). "Truex falls short of victory with late-race gamble". Motorsport.com. Fontana, California: Motorsport Network. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
Previous race:
2017 Camping World 500
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
2017 season
Next race:
2017 STP 500
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