The Great California Race Chase: Will NASCAR Return to the Golden State?
NASCAR’s absence from Southern California has left a void. Since the 2023 Pala Casino 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, the roar of engines and the thrill of stock car racing have been missing from the Golden State. While NASCAR sold a large portion of the Fontana track’s land in 2023, the organization still clings to a sliver, professing a desire to keep the California dream alive.
However, the path back to Southern California is paved with challenges. The most prominent hurdle is financial. As motorsport journalist Jordan Bianchi, writing for The Athletic, recently noted, the cost of doing business in California is exceptionally high.
"From the conversations I’ve had with people at the very high levels of NASCAR — they want to be Southern California. They want the Fontana project to happen, but it is so expensive,” Bianchi shared. “Not only do you have normal operating costs to build a racetrack, but in California alone, it’s even more expensive. The cost to do business out there is so high right now. And many people tell you this inside NASCAR and outside of NASCAR, unreasonably high to such a degree it handcuffs you.
So, you almost have to overspend to do whatever you want to do, and it comes down to money. It’s not a matter of desire or want to or anything like that. They want that project to happen. There’s a reason they still have that sliver of land there earmarked for a short track. There’s a reason they haven’t sold it off yet. They want to do it, but it costs money. … My understanding is they’re gonna wait. And they’re gonna hold off as long as they can until they can’t just hold out anymore. Until things change in California and the cost of doing business goes down, I don’t know."
The role of Fontana, even in its downsized configuration, remains a point of contention. NASCAR initially planned to return to the reconfigured short track in 2025, but delays have pushed the timeline indefinitely.
"NASCAR needs a race in Southern California," Bianchi asserted on The Teardown podcast. "You look at the options they have there, they’re just not there. I would say keep an eye on Long Beach and see what happens there now that Roger Penske owns it. Never say never.
If you’re NASCAR and you gotta race in Southern California, you don’t have many options. San Diego, maybe. It’s a street course race, OK, but then what? That’s only gonna be a couple years. Like, you’re going to need something beyond that. That’s why I say keep an eye on Long Beach, you never know."
Perhaps the key lies in seeking out alternatives. Bianchi suggests several possibilities, including exploring the reshaped Long Beach Grand Prix circuit now under the ownership of racing legend Roger Penske or venturing into the streets of San Diego. A championship spectacle at Fontana, with its proposed blend of Martinsville and Bristol fast-paced thrills, would fuel fan excitement and emulate the intensity of races on other famed tracks.
"And so, your idea of having Fontana be around is great because you’d have a championship race on a short track," Bianchi mused. "Let’s presume they’re going to go with the configuration they announced back in 2020 which is basically like a Martinsville-Bristol hybrid if you will. Long straightaways and really big banking in the corners, that kind of configuration in the LA market for your championship? Oh, man, that solves a lot of problems, and it puts a focus on your sport in a great way. Drivers racetrack it sounds like, none of this Phoenix crap of go there and this race is just whatever."
NASCAR executives, while acknowledging the costs involved, remain committed to California.
"[Our] goal is really to be in Southern California long-term," stated Ben Kennedy, NASCAR’s executive vice president and chief venue & information officer. "We’ve continued to work on our plans for Fontana. We have a number of different configurations and variations the team has been working on for what that track might look like. [And] what are the other activities that could happen on that parcel of land that we have there?”
Only time will tell whether NASCAR can overcome the financial hurdles and logistical complexities to bring the thunder back to Southern California. For now, the future of stock car racing in the Golden State hangs in the balance.
