# 2012 Auto Club 400

The 2012 Auto Club 400 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on March 25 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. Shortened to 129 laps because of rain showers, it was the fifth race of the 2012 Sprint Cup Series season. The race was won by Tony Stewart for the Stewart-Haas Racing team. Kyle Busch finished second, and Dale Earnhardt Jr., who started fourteenth, clinched third.

## Report
### Background

Auto Club Speedway (previously California Speedway) was a superspeedway located in Fontana, California which hosted NASCAR racing annually from 1997 to 2023. The standard track at Auto Club Speedway featured four turns and was 2 miles (3.2 km) long. The turns were banked at fourteen degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, was banked at eleven degrees. The back stretch had 3 degrees of banking. The racetrack had seats for 92,100 spectators.
Before the race, Greg Biffle was leading the Drivers' Championship with 157 points, nine points ahead of Kevin Harvick in second and twelve ahead of Matt Kenseth. Martin Truex Jr. followed fourth with 139 points, two ahead of Denny Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in fifth and sixth. Tony Stewart, with 130, was in the seventh position ahead of Clint Bowyer and Joey Logano. Paul Menard rounded out the first ten positions with 123 points. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Ford was first with 25 points, one ahead of Chevrolet and four ahead of Toyota. Dodge was in the fourth positions with 18 points. Kevin Harvick was the race's defending winner from 2011.

### Entry list

(R) - Denotes rookie driver.
(i) - Denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Sponsor |
| 1 | Jamie McMurray | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | Bass Pro Shops / Allstate |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Penske Racing | Dodge | Miller Lite |
| 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Quaker State |
| 7 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Dodge | Speed Energy |
| 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | DeWalt / Stanley Tools |
| 10 | David Reutimann | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | Accell Construction |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | FedEx Express |
| 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Ford | GEICO |
| 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | Office Depot / Mobil 1 |
| 15 | Clint Bowyer | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 5-hour Energy |
| 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 3M |
| 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Ford EcoBoost |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Interstate Batteries |
| 19 | Mike Bliss (i) | Humphrey Smith Racing | Toyota | Humphrey Smith Racing |
| 20 | Joey Logano | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | Dollar General |
| 22 | A. J. Allmendinger | Penske Racing | Dodge | AAA Southern California |
| 23 | Scott Riggs | R3 Motorsports | Chevrolet | North Texas Pipe |
| 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Drive to End Hunger |
| 26 | Josh Wise (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | MDS Transport |
| 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | CertainTeed / Menards |
| 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Jimmy John's |
| 30 | David Stremme | Inception Motorsports | Toyota | @TheNascarFans |
| 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Caterpillar |
| 32 | Ken Schrader | FAS Lane Racing | Ford | U.S. Chrome / 1 Less Than 2 Ltc. |
| 33 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa |
| 34 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | Front Row Motorsports |
| 36 | Dave Blaney | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | Tommy Baldwin Racing |
| 37 | Timmy Hill (R) | Max Q Motorsports | Ford | Poynt.com |
| 38 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 1-800-LoanMart |
| 39 | Ryan Newman | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | U.S. Army ROTC |
| 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | Target |
| 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | Medallion Financial |
| 47 | Bobby Labonte | JTG Daugherty Racing | Toyota | Charter |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Lowe's / Jimmie Johnson Foundation |
| 49 | J. J. Yeley | Robinson-Blakeney Racing | Toyota | America Israel Racing |
| 51 | Kurt Busch | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | Phoenix Construction |
| 55 | Mark Martin | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | Aaron's Dream Machine |
| 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | NAPA Auto Parts |
| 74 | Reed Sorenson (i) | Turn One Racing | Chevrolet | Turn One Racing |
| 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | Furniture Row / Denver Mattress |
| 83 | Landon Cassill | BK Racing | Toyota | Burger King / Dr Pepper |
| 87 | Joe Nemechek (i) | NEMCO Motorsports | Toyota | AM/FM Energy Pellet & Wood Stoves |
| 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Diet Mountain Dew / National Guard |
| 93 | Travis Kvapil | BK Racing | Toyota | Burger King / Dr Pepper |
| 98 | Michael McDowell | Phil Parsons Racing | Ford | Curb Records |
| 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | Subway |
| Official entry list |||||

### Practice and qualifying

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. 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.
During qualifying, forty-six cars were entered, but only forty-three were able to race because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure. Hamlin clinched is tenth career pole position, with a time of 38.626. After his qualifying run, Hamlin commented, "We're four weeks in, and we've had two good weeks and two bad weeks. There's light at the end of the tunnel. I feel like this weekend we've got a little bit more speed than we had in Vegas. We're getting better, and we've got some good stuff coming with our team. We're obviously heading in the right direction." He was joined on the front row of the grid by Kyle Busch. Martin qualified third, Biffle took fourth, and Kahne started fifth. The three drivers that did not qualify were Robby Gordon, Joe Nemechek and Timmy Hill.
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. During the third and final practice session, Hamlin, with a fastest time of 39.553, remained quickest. Jeff Gordon and Bowyer followed in second and third with times of 39.700 and 39.732 seconds. Jamie McMurray was fourth fastest, ahead of Kyle Busch and Johnson. Harvick, Kenseth, Martin Truex Jr., and Stewart completed the first ten positions during the session.

### Race

The race, the fifth in the season, began at 3:12 p.m. EDT and was televised live in the United States on Fox. The conditions on the grid were dry before the race while cloudy skies were expected. Jeff Hamilton, of Motor Racing Outreach, began pre-race ceremonies, by giving the invocation. Next, Night Ranger performed the national anthem, and the trio of Sean Hayes, Chris Diamantopoulos, Will Sass (from the film The Three Stooges) gave the command for drivers to start their engines.
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.
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.

## Results
### Qualifying

| Grid | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 38.626 | 186.403 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 38.807 | 185.534 |
| 3 | 55 | Mark Martin | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 38.807 | 185.534 |
| 4 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 38.812 | 185.510 |
| 5 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 38.812 | 185.510 |
| 6 | 39 | Ryan Newman | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 38.850 | 185.328 |
| 7 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 38.877 | 185.199 |
| 8 | 20 | Joey Logano | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 38.878 | 185.195 |
| 9 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 38.880 | 185.185 |
| 10 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 38.893 | 185.123 |
| 11 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 38.908 | 185.052 |
| 12 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 38.919 | 185.000 |
| 13 | 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 38.977 | 184.724 |
| 14 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 39.018 | 184.530 |
| 15 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 39.062 | 184.322 |
| 16 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 39.116 | 184.068 |
| 17 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Penske Racing | Dodge | 39.121 | 184.044 |
| 18 | 10 | David Reutimann | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 39.149 | 183.913 |
| 19 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 39.185 | 183.744 |
| 20 | 30 | David Stremme | Inception Motorsports | Toyota | 39.259 | 183.397 |
| 21 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 39.263 | 183.379 |
| 22 | 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 39.333 | 183.052 |
| 23 | 51 | Kurt Busch | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 39.413 | 182.681 |
| 24 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 39.439 | 182.560 |
| 25 | 22 | A. J. Allmendinger | Penske Racing | Dodge | 39.443 | 182.542 |
| 26 | 47 | Bobby Labonte | JTG Daugherty Racing | Toyota | 39.464 | 182.445 |
| 27 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 39.481 | 182.366 |
| 28 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 39.540 | 182.094 |
| 29 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 39.559 | 182.007 |
| 30 | 26 | Josh Wise | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 39.760 | 181.087 |
| 31 | 83 | Landon Cassill | BK Racing | Toyota | 39.812 | 180.850 |
| 32 | 98 | Michael McDowell | Phil Parsons Racing | Ford | 39.865 | 180.610 |
| 33 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Ford | 39.880 | 180.542 |
| 34 | 36 | Dave Blaney | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 39.904 | 180.433 |
| 35 | 23 | Scott Riggs | R3 Motorsports | Chevrolet | 39.921 | 180.356 |
| 36 | 49 | J. J. Yeley | Robinson-Blakeney Racing | Toyota | 39.934 | 180.297 |
| 37 | 33 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 40.087 | 179.609 |
| 38 | 34 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 40.119 | 179.466 |
| 39 | 19 | Mike Bliss | Humphrey Smith Motorsports | Toyota | 40.157 | 179.296 |
| 40 | 74 | Reed Sorenson | Turn One Racing | Chevrolet | 40.194 | 179.131 |
| 41 | 93 | Travis Kvapil | BK Racing | Toyota | 40.254 | 178.864 |
| 42 | 38 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 40.313 | 178.602 |
| 43 | 32 | Ken Schrader | FAS Lane Racing | Ford | 40.374 | 178.333 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| | 7 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Dodge | 40.343 | 178.470 |
| | 87 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports | Toyota | 40.349 | 178.443 |
| | 37 | Timmy Hill | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 40.464 | 177.936 |
| Source: |||||||

### Race results

| Pos | Grid | Car | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| 1 | 9 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 129 | 47 |
| 2 | 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 129 | 44 |
| 3 | 14 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 129 | 41 |
| 4 | 7 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 129 | 40 |
| 5 | 12 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 129 | 39 |
| 6 | 4 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 129 | 38 |
| 7 | 6 | 39 | Ryan Newman | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 129 | 37 |
| 8 | 13 | 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 129 | 36 |
| 9 | 23 | 51 | Kurt Busch | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 129 | 35 |
| 10 | 10 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 129 | 35 |
| 11 | 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 129 | 34 |
| 12 | 3 | 55 | Mark Martin | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 129 | 32 |
| 13 | 11 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 129 | 31 |
| 14 | 5 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 129 | 30 |
| 15 | 25 | 22 | A. J. Allmendinger | Penske Racing | Dodge | 129 | 29 |
| 16 | 15 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 129 | 28 |
| 17 | 24 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Earnhardt-Genassi Racing | Chevrolet | 128 | 27 |
| 18 | 17 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Penske Racing | Dodge | 128 | 26 |
| 19 | 27 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 128 | 25 |
| 20 | 22 | 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 128 | 24 |
| 21 | 29 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 128 | 23 |
| 22 | 19 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 128 | 22 |
| 23 | 33 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Ford | 128 | 21 |
| 24 | 8 | 20 | Joey Logano | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 128 | 19 |
| 25 | 28 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 128 | 19 |
| 26 | 21 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 128 | 19 |
| 27 | 18 | 10 | David Reutimann | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 127 | 17 |
| 28 | 26 | 47 | Bobby Labonte | JTG Daugherty Racing | Toyota | 127 | 16 |
| 29 | 40 | 93 | Travis Kvapil | BK Racing | Toyota | 127 | 15 |
| 30 | 41 | 38 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 127 | 14 |
| 31 | 38 | 34 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 127 | 13 |
| 32 | 16 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Earnhardt-Genassi Racing | Chevrolet | 126 | 12 |
| 33 | 34 | 36 | Dave Blaney | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 126 | 11 |
| 34 | 42 | 32 | Ken Schrader | FAS Lane Racing | Ford | 125 | 10 |
| 35 | 36 | 49 | J. J. Yeley | Robinson-Blakeney Racing | Chevrolet | 125 | 9 |
| 36 | 31 | 83 | Landon Cassill | BK Racing | Toyota | 124 | 8 |
| 37 | 30 | 26 | Josh Wise | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 51 | 7 |
| 38 | 32 | 98 | Michael McDowell | Phil Parsons Racing | Ford | 40 | 6 |
| 39 | 20 | 30 | David Stremme | Inception Motorsports | Chevrolet | 36 | 5 |
| 40 | 39 | 19 | Mike Bliss | Humphrey Smith Motorsports | Toyota | 18 | – |
| 41 | 35 | 23 | Scott Riggs | R3 Motorsports | Chevrolet | 17 | 3 |
| 42 | 43 | 74 | Reed Sorenson | Turn One Racing | Chevrolet | 6 | – |
| 43 | 37 | 33 | Brendan Gaughan | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 1 | 1 |
| Source: ||||||||

## Standings after the race

| Pos | Driver | Points |
| 1 | Greg Biffle | 195 |
| 2 | Kevin Harvick | 188 |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 178 |
| 4 | Tony Stewart | 177 |
| 5 | Martin Truex Jr. | 175 |
* Pos
* 1
* 2
* 3
* 4