| Race details[1][2][3][4] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 2 of 36 in the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series | |||
_-_Speedway.svg) Track map of the speedway at Auto Club Speedway AKA California Speedway | |||
| Date | February 21, 2010 | ||
| Official name | Auto Club 500 | ||
| Location | Auto Club Speedway, Fontana, California | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.0 mi (3.23 km) | ||
| Distance | 250 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Weather | Sunny with a daytime high around 62; wind out of the ENE at 3 mph. There was a zero percent chance of precipitation. | ||
| Average speed | 141.911 miles per hour (228.384 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing | ||
| Time | 39.185 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Laps | 101 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox Broadcasting Company | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds | ||
The 2010 Auto Club 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held on February 21, 2010 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. Contested over 250 laps, it was the second race of the 2010 Sprint Cup Series season. The race was won by Jimmie Johnson for Hendrick Motorsports. Kevin Harvick finished second and Jeff Burton clinched third.
Polesitter driver Jamie McMurray maintained his lead into the first corner, but outsider Juan Pablo Montoya took the lead before the first lap was over. Afterward, Johnson became the leader, and would eventually lead to the race-high of 101 laps. During the final pit stops, Johnson was on pit lane as the caution flag came out. Burton, who led the race during Johnson's pit stop, did not pass Johnson to put him a lap down. Therefore, Johnson retained the first position upon the completion of pit stops. On the final lap, Harvick was gaining on Johnson, but Johnson maintained his position to win his first race of the season.
There were six caution flags and 28 lead changes among 14 different drivers throughout the course of the race. The result moved Johnson up 23 spots to tenth in the Drivers' Championship, 78 points behind of leader Kevin Harvick and one ahead of Kyle Busch. Chevrolet maintained its lead in the Manufacturers' Championship, eight points ahead of Toyota and nine ahead of Ford, with 34 races remaining in the season.
- ^ "Sprint Cup Series Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved August 14, 2010.
- ^ Spencer, Reid (February 19, 2010). "McMurray maintains torrid pace with Fontana pole". Sporting News. Archived from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved April 19, 2010.
- ^ "Race Information". Fox Sports. February 21, 2010. Archived from the original on April 18, 2010. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
- ^ Peltz, Jim (February 22, 2010). "Jimmie Johnson's victory at Fontana is NASCAR business as usual". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 30, 2010. Retrieved April 19, 2010.