Sears Point renamed Infineon Raceway

SONOMA, Calif. -- Fans arriving into Sonoma on Saturday morning were greeted with signs pronouncing Sears Point Raceway as Infineon Raceway.

Speedway Motorsports Inc., which owns the 1.99-mile road course, sold the naming rights to the track for 10 years to the Infineon Technologies Corporation, which has its North American headquarters in nearby San Jose.

The company counts fiber optics, automotive electronics and wireless technologies among its many facets.

The dollar figure was not announced, but the deal is believed to be similar to the one struck by Lowe's Motor Speedway, which sold its naming rights for 10 years and $35 million in 1999.

Both tracks are owned by Speedway Motorsports.

Track workers spent virtually all night Friday converting track signage from "Sears Point" to "Infineon." The deal has been in the works for 4-5 months, according to track president Steve Page.

The track has recently made $50 million in improvements, including new garages and two reconfigurations of the road course. New grandstands were also added.

Bruton Smith, founder and CEO of Speedway Motorsports Inc., said Infineon Raceway would continue to hold its annual Winston Cup date, as it has since 1989.