Pocono 400 Renamed Pocono 400 Presented by #NASCAR

Pocono Raceway (@PoconoRaceway) announced today a relationship with Twitter.  The June 10, Pocono 400 will be renamed the Pocono 400 Presented by #NASCAR. The renaming of the first of two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events annually held at “The Tricky Triangle,” comes two weeks after @NASCAR and @Twitter announced a unique digital partnership with the creation of twitter.com/#NASCAR, launching this week at Pocono Raceway. The twitter.com/#NASCAR event page will feature Tweets that bring fans closer to everything that unfolds during the Pocono 400.


“We are very excited about the opportunity to be associated with the new partnership between NASCAR and Twitter,” said Pocono Raceway President & CEO, Brandon Igdalsky (@bigdalsky). “Once it was announced the platform would launch during our June race weekend, we immediately began planning the name change. We firmly believe the NASCAR and Twitter partnership will take our industry to a whole new level, and our Raceway is thankful to be the first track to showcase the #NASCAR initiative! Twitter lets every fan experience the thrill of being at Pocono Raceway, even if they can’t be here in person.”


Pocono Raceway will launch several Twitter-based initiatives throughout the Pocono 400 Presented by #NASCAR race weekend. One such program will be a “Tweet Your Seat” contest, occurring during pre-race activities on Sunday, June 10, where one randomly-selected fan will become the Honorary Starter and wave the green flag to start the race. Additionally, “The Tricky Triangle” will be hosting a Fan Fair Scavenger Tweet Hunt, with a Tweet Up to follow, on Sunday, June 10, starting at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Tweet Hunt, open to the first 50 teams of two to arrive at the Flag Pole, located outside Fan Fair and behind the Grandstands, will  be solely Twitter-based, meaning all participants must have a mobile device connected to their Twitter accounts. More information will be explained throughout the race weekend via the Raceway’s Twitter handle and website.


“During the Pocono 400, Twitter will give fans an all-access pass to all of the excitement happening at Pocono Raceway. The raceway’s creative Twitter campaign offers fans at the race a new way to connect with each other and get even closer to the action of race day,” said Omid Ashtari (@omid), head of Sports & Entertainment at Twitter.


@NASCAR becomes the first professional sports organization to partner with @Twitter and will give fans a behind-the-scenes look at what takes place, at respective race tracks, during each NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race weekend. The Twitter.com/#NASCAR page will create a platform for millions of fans to view the best-possible content directly from the drivers, television personalities, race teams, media members tracks and race fans in attendance, all utilizing #NASCAR in their tweets. The tweets displayed on the newly-created page will be drawn using several algorithmic and editorial signals, bringing fans closer to everything taking place on a race day.


- Pocono Raceway Press Release 

Pocono Raceway History and Notes

At Pocono Raceway:

History:

· Opened in 1968 as a three-quarter-mile track, Pocono Raceway held the first race on the 2.5-mile track in 1971.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was in 1974.


Notebook:
· There have been 68 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Pocono Raceway.

· There was one race from 1974 through 1981, and two per year since.

· This season will mark the first time the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono will be scheduled for 400 miles. Prior to 2012 all NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races were 500 miles at Pocono Raceway.

· Buddy Baker won the first pole.

· There have been 38 different pole winners, including David Pearson who won the pole there in June 1984 but did not race; 16 drivers have more than one pole there.

· The pole has been swept just three times: Bill Elliott (1985), Ken Schrader (1993) and Denny Hamlin (2006).

· Richard Petty won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Pocono.

· 30 different drivers have won races at Pocono, led by Bill Elliott and Jeff Gordon, each with five victories; 20 drivers have won more than once there.

· There have been six season sweeps at Pocono, the last by Denny Hamlin in 2006.

· Bobby Allison (1982, ’83) and Tim Richmond (1986, ’87) each won three consecutive races at Pocono.

· 47 of 68 Pocono races have been won from a top-10 start.

· The June 2005 race was won by Carl Edwards from the 29th starting position, the deepest in the field that a race winner has started.

· 13 of 68 races have been won from the pole, Bill Elliott (1985, 2002) and Denny Hamlin (2006 sweep) are the only drivers to have done it twice. Tony Stewart is the most recent driver to win from the pole in 2009.

· Rick Hendrick leads all car owners with 12 Pocono victories.

· Mark Martin leads all drivers in top fives (19) and top 10s (33), but has yet to win at Pocono. His best finish was second, six times (most recently in August 2004). Martin is tied with Bobby Allison for most runner-up finishes at a track without winning. Allison also had six at Martinsville.

· Jimmie Johnson (9.0) and Denny Hamlin (9.7) are the only active drivers to average a top 10.

· Youngest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Pocono Raceway winner: Jeff Gordon (06/16/1996 – 24 years, 10 months, 12 days).

· Oldest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Pocono Raceway winner: Harry Gant (06/17/1990 – 50 years, 5 months, 7 days).

Pocono Raceway Data

Race #: 14 of 36 (06-10-12)

Track Size: 2.5 miles

Race Length: 200 laps / 500 miles

·     Banking/Turn 1: 14 degrees

·     Banking/Turn 2: 8 degrees

·     Banking/Turn 3: 6 degrees

·     Frontstretch: 3,740 feet

·     Backstretch:  3,055 feet

·     Shortstretch: 1,780 feet 

Top 12 Driver Rating at Pocono

Denny Hamlin............................ 118.6

Jimmie Johnson........................ 107.0

Kurt Busch................................ 105.8

Jeff Gordon.............................. 100.8

Tony Stewart............................... 99.5

Carl Edwards.............................. 98.4

Ryan Newman............................. 94.8

Mark Martin................................. 93.2

Kevin Harvick.............................. 91.4

Kasey Kahne.............................. 89.5

Jeff Burton................................. 89.2

Kyle Busch................................. 87.6

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2011 races (seven total) at Pocono.

Qualifying/Race Data

2011 pole winner: Kurt Busch, (171.579 mph, 52.454 seconds)

2011 race winner: Matt Kenseth, (125.578 mph, 05-15-11)

Track qualifying record: Kasey Kahne, (172.533 mph, 52.164 seconds, 06-11-04)

Track race record: Jeff Gordon, (145.384 mph, 06-12-11)

- NASCAR Statistics

Kurt Busch suspended, probation extended

NASCAR has suspended driver Kurt Busch until June 13 of this year and extended his NASCAR probation until Dec. 31 for his actions following the NASCAR Nationwide Series race June 2 at Dover International Speedway.

Kurt Busch violated Section 12-1 (Actions detrimental to stock car racing; violation of probation; verbal abuse to a media member) of the 2012 NASCAR Rule Book. Kurt Busch had previously been placed on NASCAR probation May 15 for his actions during the May 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Darlington Raceway. That probation was originally scheduled to end July 25 but has now been extended through the end of this year.

-NASCAR PR

FedEx 400 NASCAR HotPass Lineup

Ride Along with Hamlin, Harvick, Johnson and Earnhardt at Dover on DIRECTV 


Event:     FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks

Previous Winner:   Matt Kenseth (beat Mark Martin by 2.122 seconds on May 15, 2011) 

Date / Time:    Sunday, June 3, at 1 p.m. EDT 

Track:     Dover (Del.) International Speedway 

Configuration:    1-mile concrete oval (400 laps = 400 miles) 

Banking in Turns:   24 degrees 

Banking on Frontstretch:   9 degrees 

Banking on Backstretch:   9 degrees 

Frontstretch:    1,076 feet 

Backstretch:    1,076 feet 

First Sprint Cup Series Race:  July 6, 1969 – Mason-Dixon 300 (Winner – Richard Petty) 

Grandstand Seating Capacity:  135,000 

NASCAR HOTPASS on DIRECTV is back, and it’s FREE to all DIRECTV customers. Four dedicated driver channels offering viewers multiple camera angles, real-time statistics and audio of the network broadcast augmented by live communication between the drivers and their pit crews are available for all 36 points-paying races during the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. 
The NASCAR HOTPASS lineup for the FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover (Del.) International Speedway is as follows:   

DIRECTV Channel 795: Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 FedEx Autism Speaks Toyota team of Joe Gibbs Racing.

DIRECTV Channel 796: Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 Jimmy Johns Chevrolet team of Richard Childress Racing.

DIRECTV Channel 797: Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 Lowe’s Madagascar Chevrolet team of Hendrick Motorsports.

DIRECTV Channel 798: Dale Earnhardt Jr., and the No. 88 AMP Energy / National Guard Chevrolet team of Hendrick Motorsports.

About NASCAR HOTPASS on DIRECTV:
NASCAR HOTPASS is available free to all DIRECTV customers. More information is available at www.directv.com/hotpass.



- TrueSpeed Communications Press Release

DuPont Unveils No. 24 Chevrolet 20th Anniversary Paint Scheme

Four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon helped DuPont unveil a new 20th Anniversary paint scheme on his No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet this morning at the headquarters of DuPont Performance Coatings during the 2012 DuPont NASCAR Day celebration. Gordon, a NASCAR legend, will drive the new Hot Hues™ Cosmic Dust Silver Metallic No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet in the season finale at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida this November marking his famous long-standing partnership with DuPont. 

Gordon’s historic NASCAR Cup Series career started 20 years ago at Atlanta Motor Speedway as the young driver burst onto scene in the rainbow-colored Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet. The following season, Gordon started to take the motorsports world by storm. Now, 20 years later with four championships and 85 career victories under his belt, Gordon will race the commemorative No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet only one time at the last race of the 2012 season. Gordon, Hendrick Motorsports and DuPont are celebrating their 20th full season together - the longest current running driver,owner, sponsor partnership in NASCAR. 

Gordon’s historic NASCAR Cup Series career started 20 years ago at Atlanta Motor Speedway as the young driver burst onto scene in the rainbow-colored Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet. The following season, Gordon started to take the motorsports world by storm. Now, 20 years later with four championships and 85 career victories under his belt, Gordon will race the commemorative No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet only one time at the last race of the 2012 season. Gordon, Hendrick Motorsports and DuPont are celebrating their 20th full season together - the longest current running driver/owner/sponsor partnership in NASCAR. 

“I’m very fortunate to have an incredible sponsor like DuPont that has invested so much in me and this No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team. To stick with one driver and one team and to still be here with us today celebrating our 20th full season, is really incredible,” said Gordon.

DuPont Performance Coatings products have been a constant during the storied career of Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports. The new paint scheme uses the popular DuPont™ ChromaPremier® Pro high performance paint finishes and was designed by NASCAR’s first officially licensed artist Sam Bass.

“We are proud to have our DuPont™ ChromaPremier® Pro paint on the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet with one of NASCAR’s all-time greats,” said John McCool, president of DuPont Performance Coatings. “Twenty years is a unique relationship in NASCAR and it shows that the business of racing has been good business for DuPont and our customers.”

DuPont, a global Fortune 500 company best known for brands such as DuPont™ Kevlar®, Nomex®, Teflon® and Tyvek®, took a chance on a young, unproven rookie driver to showcase its automotive finishes in brilliant fashion. Over 20 years of sponsorship, Gordon has been recognized by DuPont as a valuable corporate asset and spokesman.

“Jeff Gordon has been the ideal ambassador for the DuPont brand for nearly two decades,” said Scott Coleman, chief marketing and sales officer for DuPont. “He is a consummate professional and a true champion both on and off the track.”

Gordon has his sights set on one thing when racing the 20th Anniversary paint scheme on the No. 24 Chevrolet later this year – winning. 

“I’m looking forward to hopefully taking this special DuPont 20 Years paint scheme to Victory Lane in November to thank all of the amazing DuPont employees and customers who I’ve come to know like family and who have supported me loyally over the past two decades", said Gordon.


- DuPont Press Release

Dover Chassis Selections

Not all teams announce their weekly race chassis'. Here is a list of those teams that do reveal the chassis in the teams race preview:


#1- Jamie McMurray - Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion and the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops®/Allstate team will bring Chassis #1104 to Dover International Speedway this weekend. This chassis made its debut last spring at Charlotte Motor Speedway finishing 17th in the All-Star Race and 37th in the Coca-Cola 600. This chassis also raced in both Michigan races last season (19th, 23rd) the fall race at Dover International Speedway (15th) and this season at Texas Motor Speedway (14th).


#2- Brad Keselowski - The No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-816 during Sunday’s FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway (DIS). Brad Keselowski last drove this chassis to an 18th-place finish at Auto Club Speedway in March.


#5- Kasey Kahne - Crew chief Kenny Francis has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-717 for Sunday’s race at Dover.  Kahne started ninth and finished eighth in this car at Kansas Speedway in April.


#9- Marcos Ambrose - The No. 9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 754 for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race at Dover International Speedway. This Stanley Ford was run previously this season at Martinsville.


#10- David Reutimann - CHASSIS NO. 356 – TBR bought Chassis No. 356 in the off-season from Richard Childress Racing. Reutimann drove the chassis at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway this season. He had his best showing in the chassis at Texas Motor Speedway when he drove from the 31ststarting spot to finish in 26th place. His best qualifying effort was at Kansas Speedway where he qualified in the 16th spot.


#14-Tony Stewart - Chassis No. 14-708: This car debuted three weeks ago in the Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C) Raceway where Stewart rallied Chassis No. 14-708 from its 17th-place starting spot to finish third. Prior to Darlington, the car spent numerous hours in the wind tunnel.


#15- Clint Bowyer - Primary Chassis No. 724 started 16th and finished fourth at Bristol Motor Speedway. Chassis No. 718 is the backup and previously served backup duty at Phoenix, Bristol and Richmond but never raced.


#16- Greg Biffle - Primary: RK-807 Last ran Martinsville – finished 13th; Backup: RK-759 Last ran Phoenix in the Fall of ’11 as the No. 6 – finished 33rd.


#17- Matt Kenseth - Primary: RK-802 (Last run at Richmond)


#22- A J Allmendinger - Allmendinger and crew will be racing their "PRS-817" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger in this weekend's FedEx 400. This chassis has been raced only once; in the March 25 Auto Club 400 at Fontana, Calif. Dinger started 25th and finished 15th in the rain-shortened race. The "PRS-807" will serve as the backup Dodge Charger.


#24- Jeff Gordon - Jeff Gordons team will bring HMS chassis #24-712 to Dover. The car finished 26th at Fontana, fourth at Texas and 35th at Darlington in 2012.


#27- Paul Menard - Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 386 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This No. 27 Chevrolet was built new for 2012 competition and was last seen on track at Texas Motor Speedway in April where Menard finished 19th after starting from the 11th position. 


#29- Kevin Harvick - Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 383 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. Built new for competition during the 2012 season, Harvick raced this chassis at Phoenix International Raceway where he earned a second place finish in March.


#31- Jeff Burton - Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 393 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend. This is a brand new No. 31 Chevrolet that will turn its first laps at the “Monster Mile” this weekend. 


#39- Ryan Newman - Chassis No. 39-655: Chassis No. 39-655 has just two starts to its credit – last season’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and the Food City 500 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway earlier this season. At Charlotte last spring, Newman was making a run for the top-10 when he got tangled in a multi-car melee on lap 303. The accident forced Newman to take his No. 39 to the garage for extensive repairs. He returned to the track more than 40 laps down and finished the race 31st. After the incident at Charlotte, the car underwent extensive work and updates in the shop before making its 2012 debut at Bristol, which resulted in a 12th-place finish.


#42- Juan Pablo Montoya - Crew Chief Chris “Shine” Heroy and the No. 42 Target team will bring Chassis #1111 to Dover International Speedway this weekend. This chassis made its debut in last season’s finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, leading two laps and finishing 31st after an accident put the No. 42 four laps down. This season, this chassis has seen track time at Bristol Motor Speedway and Darlington Raceway finishing eighth and 27th, respectively.


#43- Aric Almirola - The #43 team has prepared chassis No. 710 for the Dover race.  Almirola drove this car to a 19th-place finish earlier this season at Bristol.


#48- Jimmie Johnson - Chassis No. 728 is a new chassis and serves as the primary for Johnson at Dover. Chassis No. 669 serves as the backup. No. 669 last ran at Las Vegas where it started 6th and finished 2nd with Johnson.


#51- Kurt Busch - Chassis No. 557: This weekend’s FedEx 400 will be the second race of the 2012 season for this chassis. It raced three weeks ago at Darlington, where Busch competed in the top-10 during the majority of the event before settling for a 21st-place finish due to a late-race spin. Additionally, the team used this particular chassis during the mid-April tire test at Dover International Speedway. Prior to the 2012 season, the car was used as a road-course car. Hendrick Motorsports built this chassis with a universal clip, which allows for greater adjustments with the geometric points on the chassis. As such, the team converted the car from a road-course car to an intermediate-track car for this season. 

#88- Dale Earnhardt Jr - Crew chief Steve Letarte and the No. 88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-617 this weekend at Dover. Earnhardt most recently raced this chassis to a 19th-place finish at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway in October 2011.

#99- Carl Edwards - The No. 99 Subway team will be unloading chassis RK-814 this weekend. This car was new at Kansas where Edwards finished ninth.


- Reported in Team News/Press Releases

Dover Driver Statistics

Not all teams announce their weekly race previews'. Here is a list of those teams that do reveal the information in the teams race preview: 

#1- Jamie McMurray - McMurray looks to make his 19th start at Dover International Speedway this weekend. In his previous 18 starts at the Monster Mile, McMurray has accumulated one top-five, five top-10s and led 131 laps. The driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet has an average start of 16.2 and an average finish of 17.6. His best start was fifth in 2008 and his best finish was second in 2006. McMurray has zero DNFs (did not finish) and has completed 7,101 of 7,204 laps (98.6%) at Dover.


#2- Brad Keselowski - Keselowski will make his 5th Cup start at Dover. Keselowski ranks at or near the top in several loop data statistics following Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600. He easily leads the series in Quality Passes (passing a car inside the top 15) with 1,001 passes. He also ranks in the top five in Fastest Speed in Traffic (speed when there is a car within one car length). After 12 points-paying events, Keselowski and the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team are ranked 11th in the 2012 driver and owner point rankings. The team is coming off a fifth-place finish in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway last Sunday night.


#5- Kasey Kahne - Kahne, driver of the No. 5 Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet, has one top-five finish, four top-10s and has led 88 laps in 16 Cup starts at Dover (Del.) International Speedway.  He earned his best finish of fourth at the track last October after starting ninth.  Kahne has seven starts inside the top 10 at the one-mile concrete oval and lined up fourth in this race last May. 


#9- Marcos Ambrose - The Australian native has one top-five, two top-10 and three top-15 finishes at Dover. His best finish (third) came in last year's spring event and his best start (12th) came in last year's fall race. He has completed 2,616 of 2,800 laps attempted at the one-mile speedway. Ambrose enters this weekend's 400-mile race in 20th place in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings.


#10- David Reutimann - Reutimann made nine starts at the Delaware speedway since his debut in 2007. He tallied one top-five, three top-15s and a pole. He started from the pole in the summer event in 2009 and secured his best finish of fifth in the summer race in 2010. He is ranked as the fourth best closer at the one-mile track.


#14-Tony Stewart - Stewart has two wins, three second-place finishes, 10 top-fives, 15 top-10s and has led a total of 1,072 laps in his 26 career Sprint Cup starts at Dover. His average start is 20th, his average finish is 13th and he has a lap completion rate of 96.3 percent.


#15- Clint Bowyer - Bowyer will make his 13th NSCS start at Dover International Speedway on Sunday. In his previous 12 starts Bowyer has five top-10 finishes. He finished sixth last May and led 29 laps. Bowyer has led a total of 33 laps in his 12 starts, averages a 20th place starting position and finish of 14th. 


#16- Greg Biffle - At Dover Biffle has two wins, six top fives, 10 top 10s; one pole,an average finish of 12.3, average Running Position of 9.4, third-best and a Driver Rating of 105.4, fourth-best.


#17- Matt Kenseth - Kenseth has an average starting position of 16.7 and an average finishing position of 12.2 at Dover, and has achieved two poles, two wins, 12 top-five’s and 17 top-10’s at Dover in the Cup series.


#18- Kyle Busch - The FedEx 400 will mark Kyle Busch’s 270th career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start and his 15th Sprint Cup start at Dover. Busch has two wins, seven top-five finishes, nine top-10s and has led a total of 448 laps in 14 career Sprint Cup starts at 
Dover. His average Dover finish is 13.3.


#22- A J Allmendinger - In 10 career Sprint Cup starts at Dover, Allmendinger is still looking for his first career win and top-five finish there, but he does have three top-10 finishes to date. He was running at the finish in eight of the races and finished on the lead lap four times. He has completed 83.1 percent of possible laps (3,324 of 4,000). He has led 152 laps at Dover, the most he has led at any track. Overall, Dinger has a 13.7 average start and 23.3 average finish at Dover.


#24- Jeff Gordon - In 38 starts in Sprint Cup at Dover Gordon has scored four wins, 14 top fives, 21 top 10s; four poles, an average finish of 12.2 and an average Running Position of 13.8, 10th-best.


#27- Paul Menard - In his nine previous starts at Dover International Speedway, Menard has finished each contested race and has completed 98.5 percent of his laps (3,547 of 3,600). He has an average starting position of 20.7 and an average finishing position of 20.3. Menard made his best start of third during his last visit to the one-mile race track (October 2011) and claimed his best finish of seventh at the September 2010 event. 


#29- Kevin Harvick - Harvick has made 22 Sprint Cup Series starts at the one-mile track throughout the past 11 seasons, collecting two top-five and nine top-10 finishes. Harvick holds a 21.2 average starting position and a 16.6 average finishing position at the Monster Mile with a best starting and finishing position of third in the fall of 2003 and in the spring of 2006, respectively. Harvick has led 144 of the 8,804 laps he has completed.


#31- Jeff Burton - This weekend’s 400-mile event marks Burton’s 37th start at the one-mile facility and 632nd-career Sprint Cup Series entry. Burton garnered one win, eight top-five and 15 top-10 finishes at the track, leading 136 laps.


#39- Ryan Newman - The FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks will mark Newman’s 381st NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start and his 21st Sprint Cup start at Dover International Speedway. Newman has three wins, four poles, six top-five finishes and 11 top-10s in 20 starts at Dover.


#42- Juan Pablo Montoya - Montoya will make his 11th start at Dover International Speedway this weekend. In 10 starts at the Monster Mile the driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet has earned one top-five, two top-10s and led five laps. His average start is 16.9, while his average finish is 22.9. Montoya’s highest starting position is second (2007, 2009) and his best finish is fourth in 2009.


#43- Aric Almirola - Almirola went to Victory Lane at Dover in the 2010 Camping World Truck Series in just his second start at the one-mile oval.  He also has three Nationwide starts at Dover - all top-15 finishes.


#48- Jimmie Johnson - At Dover, Johnson has six wins in 20 starts (season sweeps in 2002, 2009; September 2005 and 2006).  Three poles (September 2007, 2009 and 2010). Nine top-five finishes (45 percent) and 14 top-10s (70 percent). Average finish of 9.2. Sprint Cup’s best average running position (6.8).


#51- Kurt Busch - Busch has one win, six top-five finishes and eight top-10s and has 418 laps led in 23 career Sprint Cup starts at Dover. Busch scored his lone win at Dover during the most recent Sprint Cup Series race at the mile oval – the fall of 2011. Busch qualified second and led 90 laps en route to the victory. Busch’s average Dover finish is 17.9.

#55- Mark Martin - In 51 Sprint Cup starts at Dover, Martin owns four victories and four poles. He’s led 1,726 laps and posted 23 top-five finishes as well as 31 top 10's.


#88- Dale Earnhardt Jr -  In 24 Cup starts at Dover International Speedway, Earnhardt has one win, four top-five finishes and seven top-10s. He has led 367 laps and completed 99 percent of all laps he's attempted (9,507 of 9,604 total) at the Monster Mile.  Earnhardt's Sprint Cup win at Dover happened Sept. 23, 2001. The victory, which came in the first Cup race following Sept. 11, was the second of his sophomore season. Earnhardt displayed the American flag during his victory lap to pay tribute to the victims. In that race he started third and led 193 laps.


#99- Carl Edwards - In 15 starts at the one-mile track, Edwards has one win, seven top-five and 11 top-10 finishes. Edwards scored his only Cup win there in Sept. ’07.  He has an average start of 14.7 and an average finish of 7.3.



- Reported in Team News/Press Releases