CALIFORNIA SPEEDWAY SITTING PRETTY.

Byline: BILL SCHLOTTER Motor Sports

It was that rarest of brainstorms, an idea that seemed good at conception and has looked even better with each passing day.

Looking back at the decision to build California Speedway and bring NASCAR auto racing back to Southern California, Penske Motor Sports president Greg Penske speaks with equal parts pride and amazement at the two-mile speedway's accomplishments in its first season and a half:

Three premier racing events run, three sellout crowds. About 115,000 fans at May's NASCAR Winston Cup race, making it the best-attended sporting event in California this season. And a racing public that is clamoring for the track to build more seats.

``It definitely shows that we brought motor racing back at the right time in the right place to the right market,'' Penske said. ``To have the largest crowd in the state to see a sporting event - that's pretty good.''

With that kind of fan support, Penske said the track is likely to build more grandstands next year.

``We have permits to go up to 107,000 seats,'' said Penske, whose track now seats 86,000, with potential for up to 115,000 total in the house. ``But I think next year we'll probably go up to around 100,000.''

Though the track's 1999 schedule is not official, Penske figures it will be nearly identical to 1998's.

A NASCAR Winston Cup date is expected in spring, with the Busch cars and Craftsman trucks coming in summer and the FedEx CART Indy cars finishing the season in late October or early November.

``I don't see much change for next year,'' Penske said.

Rumors earlier this season had Penske moving one of the Winston Cup dates from the Penske Motor Sports track at Rockingham, N.C., to California Speedway, a notion he called false.

``In fact, we just put in 27,000 new seats in North Carolina,'' he said. ``We feel that Rockingham is in the heart of NASCAR country and is a good market.''

Penske would like to get another Winston Cup date for California, joining 12 other tracks that host two Cup appearances. And he could doubtless sell it out, too.

But with Florida's Metro Dade race track - 45 percent owned by Penske - apparently in line for a Cup date next year, he can afford to be patient.

Meanwhile, the FedEx CART date later this year is moving toward becoming a sell-out with 96 percent of the infield tickets sold. And Penske is working on coming up with new concepts for keeping his race fans happy.

``You're only as good as your last race,'' he is fond of saying. ``There is a lot of competition for the entertainment dollar. But if we keep taking care of people, I don't see any reason why this (success) should stop.''

Zanardi rolling: With rumors abound that driver Alex Zanardi will return to Formula One racing next season, his competitors on the FedEx CART tour must secretly be thinking, ``Why wait, Alex. Why not go now?''

Even if Zanardi was to make such an impetuous move, he might still win the series title. He has won the last three series races and has a 59 point lead over runner-up Greg Moore as the tour prepares to run the Molson Indy race Sunday in Toronto.

A Zanardi win would tie the Italian driver with Al Unser Jr. for the series consecutive win record with four. Unser Jr. did it in 1990.

Zanardi has finished second in his previous two races in Toronto in 1996 and 1997.

Unofficial test: With veteran FedEx CART driver Bobby Rahal retiring after this season, the race is on, so to speak, for the job driving his Miller Lite racer.

Names rumored to be in the running for Rahal's seat include Zanardi teammate Jimmy Vasser and Arciero-Wells driver Robby Gordon.

One name not mentioned is that of La Canada product Tom Kendall, the four-time Trans-Am champion. Kendall said he has talked to Rahal about the opening but was not offered a chance to test drive.

``He was polite, but not particularly encouraging,'' Kendall said. ``But I'm going to keep after it.''

Kendall will have an unexpected to chance to make an impression when the FedEx tour goes to Michigan in a few weeks. In his part-time role as an ESPN/ABC television race commentator, Kendall will take Rahal's racer for a couple of laps around the track to show television fans what it's like. Along the way, Kendall would like to show Rahal a few things.

``Those are going to be some fast laps for TV,'' Kendall said. ``They may not know it, but that's going to be my test.''

Nuts and bolts: Round four of the SCORE off-road series goes off today, the Fireworks 250 in Barstow. . . . Tickets are on sale for next year's FedEx CART Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Race date is April 18. . . . The latest in a spate of bad luck has trimmed M.K. Kanke's NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Tour series lead to just 12 points. Kanke's lead was over 100 points just three races ago. . . . Buddy Lazier and Arie Luyendyk are each poised to become the Indy Racing League's first $3 million career winner with a win at the IRL VisionAire 500 July 25.

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