Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Las Vegas Driver Previews

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 will make his 10th start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend. In his previous nine starts he has accumulated one top-five finish and three top-10 finishes. McMurray has zero DNFs (did not finish) and has completed 2,404 of 2,424 laps (99.2%) at the 1.5 mile speedway. He has an average starting position of 22.1 and an average finishing position of 19.9, with his best start and finish of fourth coming in 2004.


#2- Brad Keselowski -After two points-paying events, Keselowski and the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team are ranked 12th in the 2012 driver and owner points standings. The team is coming off a fifth- place finish last weekend in the Subway Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix. In 3 Cup races at Las Vegas, Brad has yet to score a pole, top 10 or a win but also does not have a DNF.

#5- Kasey Kahne -  In eight NASCAR Sprint Cup starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Kasey Kahne has collected two top-five finishes, four top-10s and has led 58 laps. In his first start on the 1.5-mile oval in 2004, he earned runner-up honors and overall has achieved an average finish of 14.9. Kahne, who has an average start of 13.4 at Las Vegas, has started from the pole position twice (2004 and 2007).


#9- Marcos Ambrose -    Marcos Ambrose has made three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Las Vegas. Ambrose’s best career finish in Vegas (fourth) came in last year’s event. Ambrose enters the 267-lap event in 21st place in the driver point standings.


#10- David Reutimann - David Reutimann has made four starts at the 1.5-mile speedway. In three of his four starts, he finished in the top-15. His best start and finish of fourth came in 2009. The Zephyrhills, Fla., native is ranked eighth in the field for quality passes at LVMS.


#11- Denny Hamlin - Hamlin is making his seventh career Sprint Cup Series start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday. He has four top-10 finishes in six starts at the 1.5-mile oval, including a career-best third-place result in 2007. Last year, Hamlin started from the back of the pack after a post-practice engine change and worked his way to the front for a seventh-place run. He finished 10th as a rookie at Las Vegas in 2006.


#14- Tony Stewart  -The Kobalt Tools 400 will mark Stewart’s 467th career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start and his 14th career Sprint Cup start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 
Stewart has career totals of 44 wins, 13 poles, 162 top-fives, 266 top-10s and 12,111 laps led in 466 career Sprint Cup races. His most recent Sprint Cup win came three races ago in the 2011 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. His last Sprint Cup pole came eight races
ago in October at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Stewart has won at least one race in each of his 13 previous years in Sprint Cup, the longest such streak among active drivers.



#15- Clint Bowyer - Clint Bowyer will make his seventh career NSCS start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday. In six previous starts, he has one top-five and two top-10 finishes. He finished a career-best second in 2009. He has led at least one lap in each of his last three races at LVMS.

#16- Greg Biffle - Biffle has an average starting position of ninth and average finish of 14.8 at Las Vegas. Greg has One top five, five top 10s; one pole, average finish of 14.8 and average Running Position of 10.5, third-best at Las Vegas.

#17- Matt Kenseth - Kenseth is rated fourth among active drivers for the best average finish at LVMS with a 11.7 average. Kenseth’s 450 laps led are the second most in track history at LVMS. Kenseth has an average starting position of 17.7 and an average finishing position of 11.7 at Las Vegas. In 12 starts, Kenseth has achieved one pole, two wins, five top-five and six top-10 finishes at Las Vegas in the Sprint Cup series


 #18- Kyle Busch - The Kobalt Tools 400 will mark Busch’s 260th career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start and his ninth Sprint Cup start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  Busch has one win, three top-five finishes and four top-10s, and he’s led a total of 113 laps in his eight career Sprint Cup starts at Las Vegas. His average Las Vegas finish is 15.0. 


#22- A J Allmendinger - In his three career starts at LVMS, Dinger is still looking for his first top-10 finish. His seventh-place start and 19th-place finish in last year's Vegas visit rate as his best qualifying and finishing performances to date entering this week's return to "Sin City." In his three career Vegas races, he has a 22.0 average start and 25.7 average finish. He has completed 813 of 819 possible laps (99.3%).
#24- Jeff Gordon - At Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Jeff Gordon has scored One win, six top fives, seven top 10s. He has an average finish of 14.9, a  Series-best Average Running Position of 7.9 and Series-best Driver Rating of 112.1


#27- Paul Menard - This weekend marks Menard’s sixth start at the 1.5-mile speedway. In his five previous starts, he has completed 98.4 percent of his laps (1,332 of 1,353) and has led for three paces. He has an average starting position of 37.8 and an average finishing position of 23.6, earning both his best finish of 12th and his best start of 18thin last year’s NSCS event (March 2011). 

#29- Kevin Harvick -  Harvick has made a total of 11 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at LVMS. In that span, he’s earned three top-five and four top-10 finishes. Harvick has completed 99.8 percent of the laps run in those 11 races (2,953 of 2,958) and he’s led 54 laps at the 1.5-mile track. Harvick has an average starting position of 23.9 and a 13.2 average finish at LVMS.


#31- Jeff Burton -  Sunday’s event marks Burton’s 15th start at the Las Vegas-based facility and 622nd -career Sprint Cup Series entry. He has amassed two wins, five top-five and eight top-10 finishes and has led 280 laps at the 1.5-mile oval.


#33- Brendan Gaughan - Gaughan has one previous Sprint Cup Series start at the 1.5-mile oval, along with two Nationwide Series starts (best finish of seventh in 2009) and 11 Camping World Truck Series starts, earning one race win in 2003 after starting from the pole position. His lone Sprint Cup Series start at the Las Vegas facility came in March 2004 where he started eighth and finished 22nd. The Las Vegas native has made 38 total appearances in the Sprint Cup Series that includes running a full schedule in 2004.


#36- Dave Blaney - Dave Blaney has made 10 starts at the 1.5-mile track in his NSCS career. His best start came in 2002 when he started from the 10th spot in a Jasper Motorsports machine. His best finish came with Richard Childress Racing in 2005 where he finished 13th. The Hartford, Ohio native is ranked as the seventh-best closer among the field at LVMS. This weekend’s start will mark Blaney’s 400th NSCS career start. The 1995 World of Outlaws Champion has raced in over 1,700 races in NASCAR and sprint car racing throughout his career.


#39- Ryan Newman - Newman’s best finish at the 1.5-mile Las Vegas oval is a fourth-place effort during his rookie season in 2002. He started on the outside pole and led 50 laps before finishing fourth. It was his third top-five finish in just 11 Sprint Cup starts to that point.


#42- Juan Pablo Montoya - This weekend will mark Montoya’s sixth start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. In his five starts at the track, Montoya has one top-five finish, one top-10 finish and zero DNFs. He has an average starting position of 18.2, an average finishing position of 22.4 and has completed 1,327 of 1,353 laps (98.1%). Montoya’s best start of fourth came in 2007 and his best finish came in last spring’s race, where he led seven laps and finished third.


#43- Aric Almirola - This weekend will be Almirola’s fourth Sprint Cup Series start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He also has one start in the Nationwide Series and three starts and three top-10 finishes in the Camping World Truck Series at the track. The famed No. 43 Ford will race with the colors and messaging of the Richard Petty Fantasy Racing Camp. The Richard Petty Fantasy Racing Camp is the ultimate stock car experience for racing enthusiasts ,and this year’s 12 participants names will be on the hood of the No. 43 this weekend.


#48- Jimmie Johnson - Johnson has four wins at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, including three consecutive wins (2005-2007) in 10 starts. His most recent win came in 2010. He has earned four top-five and five top-10 finishes in 10 starts. His average start is 15.2 and average finish is 10.6. He has completed 2,688 of 2,691 laps (99.9 percent) and has led 320 laps. He has finished every race in which he has competed at the 1.5-mile oval. He has the second-highest driver rating. In 14 statistical categories, he is ranked first or second in seven and in the top-five in 12.


#51- Kurt Busch - Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 400 mark’s Busch’s 403rd career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start and his 12th Sprint Cup start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Busch has one top-five finish, three top-10s and has led 54 laps in 11 career Sprint Cup starts at Las Vegas. Busch’s average Las Vegas finish is 20.7


#55- Mark Martin - Sunday’s Las Vegas race will be Mark Martin’s 833rd career start. He finished 10th in the Daytona 500 and ninth at Phoenix. He is tied for sixth in the points. Mark has one win, six top fives, 10 top 10s at Las Vegas. Mark has an average finish of 13.1, average Running Position of 14.4, and Driver Rating of 92.3, ninth-best. 


#56- Martin Truex Jr. -  No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. plans to continue his strong start to the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup season this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The Michael Waltrip Racing driver is tied for sixth place in the standings with MWR teammate Mark Martin. The No. 56 team has picked up in 2012 where it left off in 2011. Truex has posted five top-10 finishes in the last seven races. In Phoenix, he led 29 laps on his way to a seventh-place finish.


#88- Dale Earnhardt Jr - In 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has scored two top-five finishes, five top-10s and has led 162 laps. He has a ninth-place average finish behind the wheel of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet during the last four Cup events at the track. Earnhardt matched his career-best result there with a runner-up finish in 2008. Earnhardt originally earned second place at the track in 2003.

#99- Carl Edwards - Carl Edwards enters Vegas 10th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings, 26 markers behind the point leader. He has earned one top-10 finish and one pole this season. In seven starts at the 1.5-mile Vegas track, Edwards has two wins, two top-five and three top-10 finishes. His average start is 12.4, and his average finish is 11.0. Edwards has completed every lap of Cup competition attempted at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and is the defending winner of this race.


- Reported in Team News/Press Releases

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