Daytona International Speedway History and Notes

At Daytona International Speedway:

History
· Groundbreaking for Daytona International Speedway was Nov. 25, 1957. The soil underneath the banked corners was dug from the infield of the track and the hole filled with water. It is now known as Lake Lloyd.

· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona was a 100-mile qualifying race for the Daytona 500 on Feb. 20, 1959 – won by Bob Welborn.

· The first summer race at Daytona International Speedway was held on July 4, 1959 – won by Fireball Roberts (140.581 mph).

· NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty won his 200th career race on July 4, 1984 at Daytona.

· Lights were installed in the spring of 1998. However, the July race was delayed until October that year due to thick smoke from wildfires. The second Daytona race has been held under the lights ever since.

· The track underwent a repave in 2010.

Notebook
· There have been 132 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona International Speedway since the track hosted its first race in 1959: 55 have been 500 miles, 50 were 400 miles and four 250 miles. There were also 23 qualifier races that were point races.

· 436 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ July race at Daytona International Speedway; 273 in more than one.

· Richard Petty leads the series in July race starts at Daytona with 32. Terry Labonte leads all active drivers with 29 starts; followed by Mark Martin with 26.

· Fireball Roberts won the inaugural Coors Light pole for the July race at Daytona in 1959 with a speed of 144.997 mph.

· 36 drivers have Coors Light poles at Daytona for the July event, led by NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough with eight. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers in poles, with three.

· Three drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles for the July race at Daytona: Cale Yarborough (1970-’71; 1980-’81, 1983-’84), Sterling Marlin (1991-’92) and Dale Earnhardt (1994-’95).

· Youngest Daytona pole winner: Jeff Gordon (07/06/1996 – 24 years, 11 months, 2 days).

· Oldest Daytona pole winner: Mark Martin (07/02/2011 – 52 years, 5 months, 23 days).

· 33 different drivers have won the July race at Daytona International Speedway, led by NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson with five wins. Tony Stewart leads all active drivers with four.

· Five drivers have posted consecutive wins in the July race at Daytona International Speedway, including three consecutive by David Pearson (1972 - 1974). Tony Stewart (2005-’06) is the only active driver to win consecutive July races at Daytona.

· Youngest Daytona winner: Trevor Bayne (02/20/2011 – 20 years, 0 months, 1 day).

· Oldest Daytona winner: Bobby Allison (02/14/1988 – 50 years, 5 months, 23 days).

· The Wood Brothers have the most wins at Daytona in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 15.

· Seven different manufacturers have won the July NSCS race at Daytona; led by Chevrolet with 17 victories; followed by Ford with 16.

· A driver has swept both races (Daytona 500 and Coke Zero 400) at Daytona only four times, most recently - Bobby Allison in 1982. Jimmie Johnson won the 2013 Daytona 500.

· Eight of the 54 (14.8%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Kevin Harvick in 2010.

· The Coors Light pole is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (eight) than any other starting position in the July race at Daytona International Speedway.

· 15 of the 54 (27.7%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona have been won from the front row: eight from the pole and seven from second-place.

· 40 of the 54 (48.1%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Daytona have been won from a top-10 starting position.

· Four of the 54 (7.4%) July NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

· The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Dover was 42nd, by Tony Stewart in last season’s race.

· Buddy Baker leads the series in runner-up finishes in the July race at Daytona with five; followed by Richard Petty and Sterling Marlin with four. Jeff Burton, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Terry Labonte lead all active drivers with two each.

· NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson leads the series in top-five finishes in the July race at Daytona with 13; followed by Richard Petty with 12. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with seven.

· David Pearson leads the series in top-10 finishes in the July race at Daytona with 19; followed by Dale Earnhardt with 18. Terry Labonte leads all active drivers with 14.

· Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Daytona with a 9.609.

· Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at Daytona with a 14.037.

· Nine of the 10 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series July race winners at Daytona International Speedway participated in at least one or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Greg Biffle won the July race at Daytona in his first appearance.

· Michael Waltrip competed in the July race at Daytona International Speedway 16 times before winning in 2002; the longest span of any the 10 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners.

· Terry Labonte leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Daytona without visiting Victory Lane at 60; followed by Mark Martin with 55.

· Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway for the July race was the July 7, 2007 race won by Jamie McMurray over Kyle Busch with a MOV of 0.005 second.

· Three of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series July races have resulted with a green-white-checkered finish at Daytona International Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): 2008 (160/162), 2010 (160/166) and 2011 (160/170).

· Only one of the 54 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series July races at Daytona International Speedway has been shortened due to weather conditions – July 6, 1996 – the race was called on Lap 117, 43 circuits shy of the 160 scheduled laps.

· Qualifying for the July race has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway three times: 2007, 2009, and 2010.

· Six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series active drivers have made their first career start at Daytona International Speedway, though none were during the July race: Tony Stewart (2/14/99), Casey Mears (2/16/03), Scott Riggs (2/15/04), Kasey Kahne (2/15/04), Brian Keselowski (2/20/11) and Danica Patrick (2/27/12).

· Five active drivers have posted their first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Daytona International Speedway: Greg Biffle (2/15/04), Kevin Harvick (7/6/02), Jimmie Johnson (2/17/02), Paul Menard (7/5/08) and Danica Patrick (2/24/13).

· Four active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted their first career win at Daytona International Speedway: Trevor Bayne (2/20/11), Greg Biffle (7/5/03), David Ragan (7/2/11) and Michael Waltrip (2/18/01).

· Tony Stewart leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Daytona with 665 laps led in 29 starts.

· Five female drivers have competed in the July event at Daytona International Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Janet Guthrie, Christine Beckers, Lella Lombardi, Patty Moise and Shawna Robinson.

Daytona International Speedway Data

Season Race #: 18 of 36 (07-06-13)

Track Size: 2.5-mile

Banking/Turns 1 & 2: 31 degrees

Banking/Turns 3 & 4: 31 degrees

Banking/Straights: 3 degrees

Banking/Tri-Oval: 18 degrees

Frontstretch Length:  3,800 feet

Backstretch Length:  3,000 feet

Race Length: 160 laps / 400 miles

Top 12 Driver Rating at Daytona

Kyle Busch................................. 97.0

Matt Kenseth.............................. 93.2

Tony Stewart.............................. 93.1

Dale Earnhardt Jr....................... 89.3

Jeff Gordon................................ 88.3

Kurt Busch................................. 88.0

Clint Bowyer............................... 86.6

Jimmie Johnson......................... 85.3

Jeff Burton................................. 84.9

Denny Hamlin............................. 84.5

Ryan Newman............................ 82.8

Carl Edwards............................. 82.7

Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2013 races (17 total) among active drivers at Daytona International Speedway.

Qualifying/Race Data

2012 pole winner:

Matt Kenseth, Ford, 192.386 mph, 46.781 secs. 7-5-12

2012 race winner:

Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 157.653 mph, (02:32:14), 7-7-12

Track qualifying record (July race):

Cale Yarborough, Ford, 203.519 mph, 44.222 secs. 7-2-86

Track race record (July race): Bobby Allison, Mercury, 173.473 mph, (02:18:21), 7-4-80