2012 Auto Club 400

2012 Auto Club 400

Race details[1][2]
Race 5 of 36 in the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Track map of the speedway at Auto Club Speedway AKA California Speedway
Date	March 25, 2012 (2012-3-25)
Official name	Auto Club 400
Location	Auto Club Speedway, Fontana, California
Course	Permanent racing facility
Course length	2 miles (3.2 km)
Distance	129 laps, 258 mi (415.2 km)
Scheduled distance	200 laps, 400 mi (643.7 km)
Weather	A few showers; wind out of the SSW at 9 mph.
Average speed	160.166 miles per hour (257.762 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Denny Hamlin	Joe Gibbs Racing
Time	38.626
Most laps led
Driver	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps	80
Winner
No. 14	Tony Stewart	Network	Fox Broadcasting Company
Announcers	Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds

The 2012 Auto Club 400 was a

Three practice sessions were held before the Sunday race—one on Friday and two on Saturday. The first session lasted 90 minutes. The Saturday morning session lasted 50 minutes, and the final practice session lasted 60 minutes.[8] During the first practice session, Bowyer was quickest with a time of 38.896, ahead of Mark Martin and Kasey Kahne in second and third. Brad Keselowski followed in the fourth position, ahead of Hamlin in fifth.^[9]

During qualifying, forty-six cars were entered, but only forty-three were able to race because of NASCAR's

Hamlin was quickest in the second practice session with a time of 38.706 seconds. Kenseth and Ryan Newman followed in second and third, ahead of Tony Stewart in the fourth position. Kevin Harvick was fifth, less than five-hundredths of a second quicker than Kyle Busch. Keselowski, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, and Kahne rounded out the first ten positions.^[14] During the third and final practice session, Hamlin, with a fastest time of 39.553, remained quickest.^[15] Jeff Gordon and Bowyer followed in second and third with times of 39.700 and 39.732 seconds.^[15] Jamie McMurray was fourth fastest, ahead of Kyle Busch and Johnson.^[15] Harvick, Kenseth, Martin Truex Jr., and Stewart completed the first ten positions during the session.^[15]

The race, the fifth in the season, began at 3:12 p.m.

Pole position winner, Hamlin maintained the lead throughout the first lap, but was overtaken by Kyle Busch on the following lap. As the weather became worse for racing conditions, many teams adjusted their cars during the first set of green flag pit stops. On the 85th lap, Stewart claimed the lead from Kyle Busch. Shortly after, Stewart moved back into the lead ahead of Hamlin and Kyle Busch after pitting.

The race ran 250 miles without incident, with the first caution on Lap 125 for rain. During pit stops, Stewart refused to pit, while Hamlin in the second position and a few others did. Also during the caution, Johnson, who had been in the top-ten for most of the race, began having problems with a potential oil leak, causing the smoke to run out of under the car. Afterward, the caution flag turned to a red flag, stalling the race because of the rain shower. Afterward, NASCAR decided the end the race, making Stewart the winner. Kyle Busch finished second, ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Harvick and Edwards. Biffle, Ryan Newman, Martin Truex Jr., Kurt Busch, and Johnson rounded out the first ten positions.^[16][17]

It was the first time a NASCAR race in the premiership had gone without an incident-related safety car since the October 2002 Talladega race.