Fontana track sets date for IndyCar return in 2012

Auto Club Speedway in Fontana set Saturday Sept. 15, 2012, as the date that IndyCar racing will return to Southern California for a 400-mile night race.

The two-mile speedway had said in July that the Izod IndyCar Series, whose drivers include Dario Franchitti, Marco Andretti and Helio Castroneves, would return to the track next year after a seven-year absence but had not immediately set a date.

Tickets for the 200-lap race go on sale next Monday, and prices range from $30 for general admission to $60 for reserved club seats. Kids 12 and under are free in the general admission area, and camping packages also are available.

Auto Club Speedway also hosts a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock-car race, which next year is scheduled for March 25.

ALSO:

Pau Gasol optimistic there will be an NFL season

USC falls out of AP top 25 rankings

Will Rod Barajas be back with the Dodgers next season?

-- Jim Peltz

Photo: Driver Will Power speeds toward winning the Izod IndyCar Series race Sunday on a street course in Baltimore. Credit: Patrick Semansky / Associated Press