Verizon IndyCar Series | |
---|---|
Venue | Auto Club Speedway (1997–2005, 2012–2015) |
Corporate sponsor | Marlboro (1997–2001) Toyota (1998–2005) Yamaha (2002) King Taco (2003) Lucas Oil (2012–2015) |
First race | 1997 |
First ICS race | 2002 |
Last race | 2015 |
Distance | 500 mi (800 km) – 1997–2002 CART, 2012–2015 IRL 400 mi (640 km) – 2002–2005, IRL |
Laps | 200 (2002–2005) 250 (1997–2003, 2012–2015) |
Previous names | Marlboro 500 Presented by Toyota (1997, 1999–2001) Yamaha Indy 400 (2002 IRL) The 500 presented by Toyota (1998 & 2002 CART) King Taco 500 (2003 CART) Toyota Indy 400 (2003–2005) MAVTV 500 (2012–2015) |
Most wins (driver) | Sam Hornish Jr. (2) Adrian Fernández (2) |
Most wins (team) | Chip Ganassi Racing (2) Newman-Haas Racing (2) Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (2) Panther Racing (2) |
Most wins (manufacturer) | Chassis: Dallara (7) Engine: Chevrolet (5) |
The MAVTV 500 was an IndyCar Series race held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. The event represented a continuous lineage of open wheel oval racing in the Southern California-area that dates back to 1970. Since 2012, the event had been sponsored by MAVTV, a motorsports cable channel owned by Lucas Oil.
For many years in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the race served as the season finale for the CART series. From 2012 to 2014, it served as the finale for the IndyCar Series.[1]
In 2015, the race was moved to June. Despite several journalists calling the 2015 edition one of the best IndyCar races, the race did not return on the schedule for 2016.[2]