2022 Ross Chastain Trackhouse Racing Auto Club Advance

The Alva, Florida native is making his fourth Cup Series start at Auto Club after making six starts at the Fontana track in the Xfinity Series. He led four laps in Xfinity competition and has a highest finish of eighth, earned in February 2020.

Auto Club is the first of three consecutive west coast tracks the Cup Series will race at in the coming weeks. The last time the Cup Series raced at the Fontana, California track was in 2020. 

Fox will broadcast Sunday’s 400-mile race at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Ross Chastain, Driver of the No. 1 Casa Del Sol Chevrolet Camaro

Describe Auto Club Speedway?

Fontana is a little outside of Los Angeles. It’s the coolest two-mile track we go to as a driver. If you’re a fan of racing and enjoy watching guys struggle to drive cars, then Auto Club is the place. 

You’ve driven an Xfinity car and know what it can do as far as flexibility. How do you see that playing out for the Cup cars this year?

“I think that’s to be determined. This car is evolving. Generally speaking, when we have a fender knocked in, it should hold up a lot better.”

What lessons did you learn from last season that can carry over to 2022?

“I felt like I took a lot of things on the chin. It wasn’t just the race craft in the Cup Series. I had 70-something starts in the Cup Series going into the 2021 season. I was always just a guy in the pack though. Always a guy racing in the 20s and 30s, and through attrition we would get up in the high 20s. When I was driving the No. 42 car in 2021 it was just different. I had no idea how hard it was. I watched stuff and thought, I’ll make this move or that move and watch film back and SMT, but until you get out there, there’s just no way to know. Especially when it comes to how to race people and make passes. Cup races are long races mentally, you have to be sharper, stay as close to 100 percent as you can, and stay good across 500 miles and not just be good for 200 miles and make a mistake.”