Auto Club dropped from 2016 IndyCar schedule

Auto Club Speedway is back off the IndyCar schedule. The track opened in 1997, hosting CART (and later IndyCar) from that time until 2005.

In 2012, the two mile D-shaped oval made a comeback, hosting the season finale. Before this news, some thought it would return as the title-decider next season.

This year, the race was moved to late June and hosted what many consider the most enthralling IndyCar race of the season, but that day was not without controversy. Despite the excitement of the 500-miler, there was a disconcerting lack of bodies in the stands.

Who will stay and who will go?

The 2016 schedule will look very different from the current season with the addition of Road America and a Boston street race confirmed.

Phoenix International Raceway in Arizona is set to return after a decade-long hiatus. Motorsport.com understands that a race scheduled for April is in the works.

There are also rumors circulating that series officials are looking at a race in Mexico City at the recently upgraded Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, which will host a Formula 1 Grand Prix later this year.

NOLA Motorsports Park should lose its place on the calendar along with Fontana. The Grand Prix of Louisiana was marred by inclement weather and has also lost promoter Andretti Sports Marketing, who has filed a federal lawsuit against the venue. The future of the famed Milwaukee Mile is also up in the air.

Hulman & Company CEO Mark Miles said in July that the 2016 season will be longer and include more events than 2015.

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