The NASCAR Xfinity Series moves to Fontana, California and the Auto Club Speedway for the California 300 this week. Austin Dillon won here a year ago despite leading for just one lap. It was the most important lap of the season for Dillon as it marked his only win of the year. It looked like Dillon could miss this year’s event after he deliberately wrecked Cole Custer in last week’s Solar 200. However, Dillon will not face any addition discipline, so he should be in this week’s field as the defending race winner.
Event Details
Event: California 300
Category: Xfinity Series
Date: Saturday March 25, 2017
Location: Auto Club Speedway, Fontana, California
Last Race Recap
Justin Allgaier absolutely dominated last week’s race at Phoenix. Allgaier started fifth and led for 85 of the 200 laps on his way to victory. It was his second top-five finish and enough to move Allgaier to fourth in the Xfinity standings. Ryan Blaney, Erik Jones, William Byron and Elliott Sadler rounded out the top-five.
Taking a look at the standings, Sadler is our leader heading into this week’s race with 144 points. William Byron in the No. 9 car has 133 points. Ryan Reed is third with 121 points, Allgaier is fourth with 115 points and Darrell Wallace Jr. is sixth with 109 points. Four different drivers have won the four different races and while Sadler leads the standings, he has yet to win. He has two top fives and three top 10’s.
Past Five Winners
2016: Auston Dillon
2015: Kevin Harvick
2014: Kyle Larson
2013: Kyle Busch
2012: Joey Logano
What To Know About The Track
The Auto Club Speedway at Fontana is a two-mile track. The Speedway has 14 degrees of banking in the turns, 11 degrees down the front stretch and three degrees down the backstretch. The lack of banking makes this a tough track to pass on. That means good starting position should be considered that much more important. The last winner that started outside of the top 10 on the grid was Greg Biffle in 2004. Every winner since 2005 has started in eighth place or better so keep that in mind when evaluating this week’s race field.
The Field
Kyle Busch has absolutely dominated at this course over the years. If he enters this week he will undoubtedly be the sports betting favorite to win. Busch led a race-high 133 laps a year ago. However, he was held off by Dillon down the stretch and ultimately denied what would have been his fourth win in a row. Darrell Wallace Jr. and Daniel Suarez both has strong outings with top-five finishes a year ago. Meanwhile, Elliott Sadler finished fifth in last year’s race and he is coming off a fifth place finish at the Solar 200 last week.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Elliott Sadler over Darrell Wallace Jr.
Wallace has registered three top-10 finishes already this season. He could be in line for another this week at Fontana. However, he will have a tough time finishing ahead of Sadler, who has opened the Xfinity Series season on fire. Sadler has three top-10’s including two top-five finishes. He finished fifth at this race a year ago, so we are banking on another strong performance from Sadler.
Another matchup you might want to consider is Sadler versus Justin Allgaier. Allgaier is coming off a win, though, and is now fourth in the standings so far. Sadler is a +110 underdog in that spot and could be offering some good value.
Top-Five Pick: Kyle Busch
Busch has absolutely dominated at this race in the past. His last victory here came back in 2013, but he came close last year and should be motivated for redemption. Busch will attempt to break his tie with Matt Kenseth for the most Xfinity wins at Auto Club Speedway. Busch and Kenseth both have four Xfinity wins at this track, while no other driver has more than two.
Odds To Win California 300
Kyle Busch +225
Kyle Larson +450
Joey Logano +450
Erik Jones +600
Paul Menard +900
William Byron +900
Justin Allgaier +1200
Elliott Sadler +1500
Darrell Wallace Jr +2500
Casey Mears +2500
Ty Dillon +2500
Daniel Hemric +3000
Cole Custer +4000
Brendan Gaughan +4000
Ryan Reed +5000
Brennan Poole +5000
Field +2000
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