Sonoma Raceway
Sonoma Raceway (originally known as Sears Point Raceway, Golden State International Raceway and Infineon Raceway) is a road course and dragstrip located at Sears Point in the southern Sonoma Mountains of Sonoma County, California. The road course features 12 turns on a hilly course with 160 ft (49 m) of total elevation change. It is host to one of the few NASCAR Cup Series races each year that are run on road courses. It has also played host to the IndyCar Series, the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, and several other auto races and motorcycle races such as the American Federation of Motorcyclists series. Sonoma Raceway continues to host amateur, or club racing events with some open to the public. The largest such car club is the Sports Car Club of America. The track is 30 mi (48 km) north of San Francisco and Oakland.
| Sears Point | |
|---|---|
Sonoma Raceway's road course layout | |
| Location | 29355 Arnold Drive, Sonoma, California, US |
| Time zone | UTC-08:00 (UTC-07:00 DST) |
| Coordinates | 38°09′39″N 122°27′18″W |
| Capacity | 47,000 |
| FIA Grade | 2 |
| Owner | Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (1996–present) |
| Operator | Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (1996–present) |
| Broke ground | August 1968 |
| Opened | 1 December 1968 |
| Construction cost | US$70 million |
| Former names |
|
| Major events | Current: NASCAR Cup Series |
| Full Course (1968–present) | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 2.520 miles (4.056 km) |
| Turns | 12 |
| Race lap record | 1:22.041 ( Marco Werner, Audi R8, 2005, LMP1) |
| IndyCar Course (2012–present) | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 2.385 miles (3.838 km) |
| Turns | 12 |
| Race lap record | 1:18.3576 ( Simon Pagenaud, Dallara DW12, 2017, IndyCar) |
| WTCC Course (2012–present) | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 2.505 miles (4.032 km) |
| Turns | 12 |
| Race lap record | 1:27.691 ( Daniël de Jong, Lola B05/52, 2012, Auto GP) |
| Club Circuit (2001–present) | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 1.990 miles (3.203 km) |
| Turns | 12 |
| Race lap record | 1:16.854 ( Kevin Harvick, Ford Fusion, 2018, NASCAR) |
| Alternative Motorcycle Course (2008–present) | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 2.300 miles (3.701 km) |
| Turns | 12 |
| Race lap record | 1:35.067 ( Cameron Beaubier, Yamaha YZF-R1, 2018, Superbike) |
| IndyCar Course (2008–2011) | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 2.303 miles (3.706 km) |
| Turns | 12 |
| Race lap record | 1:18.6320 ( Hélio Castroneves, Dallara IR-05, 2008, IndyCar) |
| IndyCar Course (2005–2007) | |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Length | 2.385 miles (3.838 km) |
| Turns | 12 |
| Race lap record | 1:17.5524 ( Tony Kanaan, Dallara IR-05, 2007, IndyCar) |
With the closure of Riverside International Raceway in Moreno Valley, California after the 1988 season, NASCAR wanted a West Coast road course event to replace it, and chose the Sears Point facility. Riverside Raceway was razed for the Moreno Valley Mall.
In 2002, Sears Point Raceway was renamed after a corporate sponsor, Infineon Technologies. On March 7, 2012, it was announced that Infineon would not renew their contract for naming rights when the deal expired in May 2012.