Atlanta Motor Speedway:

Atlanta Motor Speedway:

History

·         Originally called Atlanta International Raceway, the track was then a 1.5-mile paved speedway.

·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta was on July 31, 1960, won by Fireball Roberts from the pole.

·         The track was re-measured to 1.522 miles in the spring of 1970.

·         It was renamed Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1990.

·         The track layout was reversed and the track was re-configured to 1.54 miles between the two races in 1997.

 

Notebook

·         There have been 103 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Atlanta Speedway, two races per year except 1961, which had three. This year marks the first season with only one.

·         Fireball Roberts won the pole and race for the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race in 1960.

·         45 drivers have won a pole, led by Buddy Baker and Ryan Newman, each with seven.

• Six of Newman’s seven poles came in consecutive races between March 2003 and October 2005.
• 42 drivers have won a race; 22 have won more than once.
• Dale Earnhardt scored nine victories, more than any other driver. Cale Yarborough is second, with seven.
• Bobby Labonte heads the list of active drivers with six victories. Labonte is tied with Richard Petty for third on the all-time win list at Atlanta.
• The Wood Brothers have 12 victories, more than any organization. They last won there in 1993, with Morgan Shepherd.
• 14 races have been won from the pole. The last to do so was Kasey Kahne in 2006. Both races last season were won from the second starting position.
• 59 races at Atlanta have been won from the first five starting positions.
• Bobby Labonte won the 2001 fall race from the 39th starting position, the deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Atlanta.
• There have been seven season sweeps, most recently by Jimmie Johnson in 2007.

 Atlanta Motor Speedway Data

Race # 25 of 36 (9-4-11)

Track Size: 1.54 miles

Race Length: 325 laps/500.5 miles

·     Banking/Corners: 24 degrees

·     Banking/Straights: 5 degrees

·     Frontstretch: 2,332 feet

·     Backstretch: 1,800 feet

Driver Rating at Atlanta
Jimmie Johnson	110.1
Tony Stewart	102.3
Carl Edwards	101.2
Jeff Gordon	100.2
Dale Earnhardt Jr.	96.9
Kurt Busch	95.6
Denny Hamlin	94.7
Matt Kenseth	94.5
Greg Biffle	93.7
Kasey Kahne	93.1

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2010 races (12 total) at Atlanta.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2010 pole winner: Denny Hamlin (187.38 mph, 29.587 seconds)

2010 race winner: Tony Stewart (129.041 mph, 9-5-10)

Track qualifying record: Geoffrey Bodine (197.478 mph, 28.074 seconds,

11-15-97)

Race record: Dale Earnhardt (163.633 mph, 11-16-97)

 

AdvoCare 500 News and Notes – Aug. 31, 2011

AdvoCare 500 News and Notes – Aug. 31, 2011

News, Notes and Storylines Preceding the AdvoCare 500 on Sept. 4

 

Dirt Background Gives Leg Up at Atlanta Motor Speedway

 

            As the Atlanta Motor Speedway pavement has worn and aged, many drivers in the garage have described racing at AMS as driving on a big dirt track. With tire falloff being so pronounced, racers must handle a car that slides around and has little grip.

 

            When looking at the drivers who have historically been successful on the 1.54-mile speedway, it is no surprise that many come from dirt track roots and can handle a loose race car.

 

            The late Dale Earnhardt is the all-time wins leader at the speedway, taking nine checkered flags during his career. All but one of those wins came before the 1997 reconfiguration of the speedway, but teams who have raced on both layouts say that the ability to handle a sliding car was a must on both surfaces. Earnhardt famously rode the high line to his last win at AMS, a photo finish with Bobby Labonte in 2000.

 

            Dawsonville-native Bill Elliott holds six wins at his home track, and cut his teeth on the dirt of North Georgia early in his career. Four-time champion Jeff Gordon has brought home four Atlanta trophies in his illustrious career, and is another driver whose career was started on the dirt of the Midwest.

 

            Midwestern dirt is a common denominator for several drivers, many of whom have had success at Atlanta. Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards, Kasey Kahne and Tony Stewart all come to mind when thinking of drivers that have had dirt success in the heartland of America.

 

            Newman has a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win to his credit at AMS. He is also tied for the most poles in Sprint Cup competition with seven, clearly showing he knows how to get around Atlanta’s slick banking. Edwards has three Sprint Cup wins and one Nationwide win to his credit at AMS. Kahne is a two-time AMS winner and Stewart has claimed three checkered flags at AMS, including last year’s Labor Day weekend event.

ATLANTA TRACK RECORDS AND DATA

TRACK RECORDS
Most Wins: 9 – Dale Earnhardt
Most Poles: 7 – Buddy Baker, Ryan Newman
Most Top Fives: 26 – Dale Earnhardt
Most Top 10s: 33 – Richard Petty
Most Lead Changes: 45 – 11/7/82
Fewest Lead Changes: 6 – 3 times,
most recently 6/30/63
Most Leaders: 17 – 3/12/00
Fewest Leaders: 3 – 3/20/77
Most Cautions: 14 – 10/28/07
Fewest Cautions: 1 – 2 times, most recently 8/2/70
Most Caution Laps: 99 – 11/6/77
Fewest Caution Laps: 7 – 11/2/86
Most on the Lead Lap: 32 – 11/8/98
Fewest on the Lead Lap: 1 – 11 times,
most recently 11/2/86
Most Running at the Finish: 41 – 3 times,
most recently 3/9/08
Fewest Running at the Finish: 10 – 4/5/64
Most Laps Led by a Race Winner: 308 – 3/30/69
Fewest Laps Led by a Race Winner: 1 – 9/17/61
Most Wins by a Manufacturer: 36 – Chevrolet
Closest Margin of Victory: 0.006 Seconds – 3/11/01
Greatest Margin of Victory: 5.660 Seconds – 11/14/93
Margins of Victory under electronic timing since 1993.

STARTING POSITIONS OF RACE WINNERS
Races won from Pos. No. 1...............14
Races won from Pos. No. 2...............12
Races won from Pos. No. 3.................9
Races won from Pos. No. 4...............10
Races won from Pos. No. 5...............14
Races won from Pos. No. 6.................4
Races won from Pos. No. 7.................5
Races won from Pos. No. 8.................6
Races won from Pos. No. 9.................6
Races won from Pos. No. 10...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 11...............4
Races won from Pos. No. 12...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 13...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 14...............2
Races won from Pos. No. 15...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 17...............2
Races won from Pos. No. 18...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 19...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 20...............2
Races won from Pos. No. 21...............2
Races won from Pos. No. 22...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 31...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 35...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 37...............1
Races won from Pos. No. 39...............1
RACES WON FROM POLE (14 of 103)
Fireball Roberts ............................1960
Fred Lorenzen ..............................1964
Marvin Panch ...............................1965
Cale Yarborough ...........................1967
A.J. Foyt .......................................1971
Bobby Allison................................1972
Richard Petty ......................1975, 1977
Buddy Baker.................................1979
Bill Elliott ......................................1987
Rusty Wallace ...............................1988
Dale Earnhardt..............................1990
Bobby Labonte .............................1996
Kasey Kahne.................................2006

Goodyear Concludes Tire Test At Phoenix

goodyear concludes two-day TIRE test ON new surface at PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson & Tony Stewart drive new track

  (PHOENIX, Ariz.) – Five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers – Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch and Kyle Busch – completed a two-day Goodyear tire test at Phoenix International Raceway on August 29-30. The tests ran from 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. each day and provided NASCAR’s official tire manufacturer with data and feedback on PIR’s new racing surface following the August 12 completion of the track’s first major paving project since 1990. The research gathered from the tests will assist Goodyear in selecting a tire for the Kobalt Tools 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at PIR on November 13.

 

In February, Phoenix International Raceway announced details related to the 47-year old NASCAR facility’s first major track pavement project since 1990. Construction began in March with the removal of the facility’s former racing surface and the subsequent installation of a new race track.

Monday and Tuesday’s tests offered all five drivers their first runs on a new surface that included a series of changes implemented to promote side-by-side racing. One such change, the alteration of PIR’s signature back-stretch dog-leg to include banking and elevation variances, improved what Kurt Busch referred to as the “fun factor” at PIR.

 

“It’s exciting to feel something new like this,” Busch said. “And to have that exhilarating back straightaway … like a roller coaster, you drive up the banking off of Turn 2 and then you drop down. It’s a nice, light feeling when you get up top – a really interesting back straightaway. I’m also glad they kept many of the old, signature characteristics of Phoenix.”

 

Busch and the rest of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will compete at PIR on November 13 in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup when the green flag drops for the Kobalt Tools 500 at 1 p.m. local time. Tickets for the Kobalt Tools 500 are available now and start at just $25. For Phoenix International Raceway tickets and information,

AdvoCare 500 News and Notes – Aug. 30, 2011

AdvoCare 500 News and Notes – Aug. 30, 2011

News, Notes and Storylines Preceding the AdvoCare 500 on Sept. 4

 

Local Flavor on Track This Weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway

 

            This weekend’s AdvoCare 500 weekend will feature several drivers and teams with local ties to the area or the state of Georgia.

 

            The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race features a tribute to a local driver, as Ryan Newman will pilot the No. 08 Chevrolet to honor Macon-native Beau Slocumb. The No. 39 Chevrolet will feature Tucker-native Ryan Sieg behind the wheel. Colin Braun will drive the No. 51 for Georgia businessman Billy Ballew, a truck that has won at AMS three times with Kyle Busch. All four of Busch’s CWTS wins at Atlanta have been in Ballew equipment.

 

            In the Great Clips 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race Saturday night, a couple of local drivers will do battle on the 1.54-mile high banks of Atlanta Motor Speedway. Peachtree City native Reed Sorenson will be behind the wheel of the No. 32 as he looks to move up in the championship battle. Sorenson is currently third in the points standings, only 10 markers out of the lead. Meanwhile Chase Miller, who hails from Canton, will wheel the No. 46 for Key Motorsports.

 

            Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series AdvoCare 500 features a couple of drivers with local sponsorship. Unadilla native David Ragan will race the No. 6 with the familiar colors of UPS, while Joey Logano, a graduate of the AMS Legends series, will look for the checkered flag in his No. 20 Home Depot Toyota. Both of the Michael Waltrip Racing entries feature local sponsorship, with David Reutimann driving the Aaron’s colors and Martin Truex, Jr. sporting the NAPA scheme. Carl Edwards will feature his familiar Aflac look for the Columbus-based company. And Andy Lally will be behind the wheel of the No. 71. While not a native of the Peach State, Lally now resides in Dacula when not on the road.

 

Manufacturer Breakdown of Sprint Cup Action at AMS

 

            With this weekend’s AdvoCare 500 featuring entries from all four of NASCAR’s current manufacturers, Atlanta Motor Speedway takes a look at what makes have made up the fields during competition at AMS.

 

            Of 4,270 entries (not including DNQs) for the 103 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races that have been held at Atlanta from 1960-2010, Chevrolet has the most starts with 1,366. Ford follows behind with 1,236, which includes six entries by the T-Bird. Dodge has 492 starts, followed by Pontiac with 447, Buick with 179 and Oldsmobile at 174 starts. Following these are Mercury’s 137 entries, Plymouth with 133 starts, Toyota with 78 Cup races, Chrysler with 20 and the Matador (AMC) with eight starts.

 

            This year’s AdvoCare 500 entry list features 47 cars vying to make the 43-car field. Among them are 18 Chevrolets, 14 Fords, 12 Toyotas and three Dodges.

 

            Chevrolet leads all makes in victories at AMS with 36 wins. Ford has 29, followed by Pontiac’s 11, nine for Dodge and eight by Mercury. Buick and Plymouth have both won four races, while Oldsmobile and Toyota each have one win apiece.

 

Fans Can Receive Discount by Letting Everyone Know You Are at AMS

 

            Race fans that visit Atlanta Motor Speedway during this year’s race weekend can gain a discount on merchandise by simply letting your friends and family know you are at the track.

 

            During race weekend, fans are encouraged to check-in on Foursquare or Facebook with their mobile devices. Customers that do this will receive at 10 percent discount off the purchase of regularly priced merchandise at the Atlanta Motor Speedway gift shop. Simply show the cashier the check-in at the time of purchase the discount will be applied. The discount is only valid at the AMS gift shop and is valid through Sept. 4. The discount does not include sales tax.

 

NASCAR night racing returns to Atlanta Motor Speedway this Labor Day weekend, Sept. 2-4. Tickets for the AdvoCare 500 start at $39 and $19 for students. Children 12 and under admitted free for the Great Clips 300 and the Atlanta 200 with an adult ticket. For more information, call the Atlanta Motor Speedway Ticket Office at (877) 9-AMS-TIX, (770) 946-4211 or visit www.atlantamotorspeedway.com.

 

-AMS-

SMI to Expand Kentucky Speedway

SMI to Expand Kentucky Speedway Parking, Streamline Event Traffic Flows

8/30/2011

SPARTA, Ky. - Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (SMI) announces the acquisition of a 143-acre parcel of land that will be used to greatly expand Kentucky Speedway parking and the hiring of professional parking and engineering services to best manage automotive and pedestrian traffic flows during venue event days.

Because of the actions taken by the Speedway, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) pledged to improve surrounding highways to allow faster access to expanded parking areas.

“We learned meaningful lessons during our inaugural NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race weekend and we committed that the traffic congestion that occurred on race day would not happen again. It was important for us to act quickly and I am thrilled to report this solution, which was formed in only seven short weeks. I compliment and thank SMI Chairman and CEO Bruton Smith, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear and KYTC Sec. Mike Hancock for working collaboratively on this plan,” Kentucky Speedway General Manager Mark Simendinger said.

The expansive parcel located east of the 107,000 capacity facility and state Highway 35 is expected to increase available event parking by 35 percent. The speedway will further improve its parking operation by reinforcing all areas with gravel and painting guidelines to help maximize available space.

Veteran’s Security and Patrol Co., which has extensive experience managing parking during events at prominent motorsports venues such as Daytona International Speedway, Pocono Raceway and Watkins Glen International, will begin servicing the speedway in October. Kentucky Speedway will additionally retain the services of a traffic engineering company that will employ sophisticated modeling techniques to assimilate the new improvements with existing infrastructure to create the best possible traffic management plan.

SMI will invest an estimated $7.5 million in its service and parking improvements. The company has already begun engineering the newly-acquired land.

“Kentucky Speedway is a premier destination for the country’s best racing, and it’s clear that tens of thousands of people want to be right here to experience those events. The NASCAR race weekend this July was a huge success, but it did experience traffic problems, caused largely by inadequate parking,” said Gov. Beshear. “To assure visitors have an even better experience next year, we’ve worked hand in hand with SMI to plan improvements that will benefit fans on race day and Gallatin County residents year-round.”

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) complemented the SMI commitments by approving several enhancements to existing infrastructure that will assist in moving traffic more quickly during future race events. Enhancements will:
• Improve the Interstate 71 Exit 57 southbound ramp shoulder to allow three lanes of traffic to exit to KY 35 and directly access staggered speedway entrances during event days;
• Improve nearly one mile of KY 35 from the I-71 interchange. Approximately 0.6 of a mile of KY 35 will be widened to five lanes with two full width shoulders to better service two primary speedway access roads and improve daily traffic flow to Warsaw;
• Construct a tunnel beneath state KY 35 to safely and efficiently route pedestrian traffic to shuttles
which transport fans to speedway gates.

The Cabinet will support the $3.6 million project with its contingency fund, and plans to present the project for bid by the end of 2011 to ensure work will be complete before the summer of 2012.

- over -



Kentucky Speedway Parking and Infrastructure Improvements / 2


The speedway will close out its 2011 campaign Oct. 1-2 with NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights events. The action-packed weekend opens Saturday, Oct. 1 with a full day of IZOD IndyCar Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practice and qualifying before truck competitors engage a 225-mile tilt at 8:00 p.m. Racing continues Sunday, Oct. 2 when Firestone Indy Lights talents take the green flag for a 100-mile race at noon before IZOD IndyCar Series stars Helio Castroneves, Dario Franchitti, Danica Patrick and Will Power open a 300-mile tilt at 3:00 p.m.

Tickets, campsites and infield Fan Zone passes for all weekend events can be reserved by visiting http://www.kentuckyspeedway.com or calling 888-652-7223.

Bristol Motor Speedway:

History

·         Groundbreaking for Bristol International Speedway, as Bristol Motor Speedway was originally known, took place in 1960. The track was an exact half-mile.

·         First NASCAR Sprint Cup race was July 30, 1961.

·         In the fall of 1969, the track was reshaped and re-measured to .533-miles.

·         The name changed to Bristol International Raceway in 1978.

·         The first night race was held in the fall of 1978.

·         The surface was changed from asphalt to concrete in 1992.

·         The name changed to Bristol Motor Speedway in May 1996.

·         The track was resurfaced between races in 2007.

 

Notebook

·         There have been 101 NASCAR Sprint Cup races since the first race there in 1961, two races each season.

·         All races have been scheduled for 500 laps, except for both races in 1976 and the second in 1977, which were 400 laps.

·         Fred Lorenzen won the first pole.

·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was won by Jack Smith (with relief from Johnny Allen).

·         There have been 44 different pole winners, led by Cale Yarborough and Mark Martin (nine). Martinswept both poles at Bristol in 2009.

·         38 different drivers have won, led by Darrell Waltrip (12).

·         Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon each have five wins, most among active drivers.

·         The race winner has started from the pole 22 times, the most productive starting position. The last driver to win from the pole was Carl Edwards, in the night race of 2008.

·         80 of 101 races have been won from a top-10 starting position, including 52 from the first four spots.

·         The deepest in the field that a race winner has started is 38th, by Elliott Sadler in 2001.

·         The 2009 night race had a margin of victory of .098 seconds, the second-closest MOV at Bristol since the advent of electronic scoring in May of 1993.

·         The last five Bristol races had a margin of victory under one second.

 

NASCAR in Tennessee

·         There have been 162 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Tennessee.

·         101 drivers all-time in NASCAR’s three national series have their home state recorded as Tennessee.

·         There have been 13 race winners from Tennessee in NASCAR’s three national series:

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Darrell Waltrip	84	13	0
Sterling Marlin	10	2	0
Bobby Hamilton	4	1	10
Joe Lee Johnson	2	0	0
Paul Lewis	1	0	0
Trevor Bayne	1	0	0
Bobby Hamilton Jr.	0	5	0
Jeff Purvis	0	4	0
L.D. Ottinger	0	3	0
Mike Alexander	0	2	0
Casey Atwood	0	2	0
Brad Teague	0	1	0

 

Bristol Motor Speedway Data

Race #: 24 of 36 (8-27-11)

Track Size: .533 miles

·     Race Length: 500 laps/266.5 miles

·     Banking/Corners: 26 to 30 degrees

·     Banking/Straights: 4 to 9 degrees

Driver Rating at Bristol
Kyle Busch	108.1
Greg Biffle	99.4
Jeff Gordon	97.6
Matt Kenseth	97.5
Kurt Busch	96.8
Tony Stewart	92.8
Kevin Harvick	91.8
Carl Edwards	91.7
Jimmie Johnson	91.1
Ryan Newman	88.7

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2011 races (13 total) at Bristol.

 

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2010 pole winner: Jimmie Johnson, 123.475 mph, 15.540 seconds

2010 race winner: Kyle Busch,

99.071 mph, 8-21-10)

Track qualifying record: Ryan Newman (128.709 mph, 14.908 seconds, 3-21-03)

Track race record: Charlie Glotzbach (101.074 mph, 7-11-71)

 

Kyle Busch Qualifies for Sprint Summer Showdown at Atlanta Motor Speedway

Kyle Busch Qualifies for Sprint Summer Showdown at Atlanta Motor Speedway

HAMPTON, Ga. (Aug. 21, 2011) – Kyle Busch’s win at Michigan International Speedway was a big achievement, and for several reasons. Busch not only clinched his place in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, but it also made him eligible for the Sprint Summer Showdown that culminates at the AdvoCare 500 held Sept. 4 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

 

Busch appeared to be cruising to victory when a late caution flew, setting up a green-white-checkered overtime finish for the 43-car field. Busch held of five-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson on the restart to escape the Irish Hills with his first-career Sprint Cup win at Michigan.

 

Busch joins Paul Menard, Brad Keselowski and Marcos Ambrose as the drivers currently eligible for the $1,000,000 payday if any of these drivers can take the checkered flag at the AdvoCare 500 at AMS over Labor Day weekend.

 

“I can’t say enough about Sprint,” said Busch, in victory lane after the race. “Being in the Sprint Summer Showdown, I hope we get a chance at Atlanta to run up front and win the thing, and bring home some extra money for charity, for a fan and for all of us here at Joe Gibbs Racing.”

 

Busch visited Atlanta earlier in the week to promote the AdvoCare 500 and said that being eligible for a $1,000,000 bonus would encourage him and other qualified drivers to hang it all out at the end of the race. With Busch’s Chase fate being locked up, he’ll certainly be looking to do whatever it takes to put his No. 18 in position to win at Atlanta.

 

Non-eligible drivers like Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon have one more opportunity to punch their ticket for the Sprint Summer Showdown by taking the checkered flag next weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway.

 

The Sprint Summer Showdown was introduced earlier this summer as a way to up the level of competition for the five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events leading up to Atlanta Motor Speedway’s Sept. 4 AdvoCare 500.

 

The five Sprint Summer Showdown winning drivers will have more than their wallets on their mind when the Sprint Cup circuit hits Atlanta. Each eligible driver will be paired up with a lucky fan, and both the fan and a charity of the driver’s choice will have a chance to win $1,000,000. Busch’s charity is his personal charity, the Kyle Busch Foundation.

Fans that would like to enter the contest can visit sprint.com/speed.

NASCAR night racing returns to Atlanta Motor Speedway this Labor Day weekend, Sept. 2-4. Tickets for the AdvoCare 500 start at $39 and $19 for students. Children 12 and under admitted free for the Great Clips 300 and the Atlanta 200 with an adult ticket. For more information, call the Atlanta Motor Speedway Ticket Office at (877) 9-AMS-TIX, (770) 946-4211 or visit www.atlantamotorspeedway.com.

-AMS-

SAFER walls to be installed at the Rock

SAFER walls to be installed at the Rock: The Rockingham Speedway, which hosted NASCAR Sprint Cup races from 1965 to 2004, is taking a huge step toward once again hosting big-league racing as SAFER "soft wall" barriers will be installed next month. The energy-absorbing system will be installed in two phases, in mid-September and late December, covering all four turns of the one-mile oval and the inside of the backstretch wall. The most common estimate of the SAFER barrier cost is $1 million per mile. "Yes, that's expensive," said Robert Ingraham, the track's general manager, "but nothing's more expensive than having someone hurt." NASCAR requires racetracks to have the SAFER barrier in place before they can host one of the sanctioning body's top three national series -- Sprint Cup, Nationwide, or Camping World Trucks. Rockingham, then known as North Carolina Motor Speedway, hosted 78 Sprint Cup events and 42 Nationwide Series races, but it hasn't held a NASCAR event since Matt Kenseth's victory in the Subway 400 on Feb. 22, 2004. The track and the 244 acres it sits on were dormant for nearly four years before it was purchased by veteran racer Andy Hillenburg at auction on Sept. 27, 2007. Rockingham officials have had discussions with NASCAR, albeit informal, about the possibility of a Nationwide or Truck Series event returning to the track more commonly known as The Rock. A source within NASCAR, speaking on condition of anonymity, admits as much. However, the lack of a SAFER barrier had always been an insurmountable issue. Without the promise of a NASCAR race, Hillenburg wasn't confident enough to try and secure funds for SAFER installation. That now appears to have changed. Just last month, Nashville Superspeedway announced it was closing, essentially orphaning four NASCAR events, two each in Nationwide and Trucks. Since that announcement, speculation has run rampant as to where those races might end up in 2012. Next season's NASCAR schedules have not yet been finalized.(ESPN)(8-17-2011)

PHOENIX RACEWAY

Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards, Kurt and Kyle Busch
will be first to run on PIR’s new surface as part of Goodyear tire test on August 29-30

 (PHOENIX, Ariz.) – Goodyear, the exclusive tire for NASCAR, will test Phoenix International Raceway’s new surface August 29-30, with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch and Kyle Busch participating. The testing sessions will be closed to the general public,

Michigan International Speedway

Michigan International Speedway:

History

·         Michigan International Speedway sits on more than 1,400 acres in the “Irish Hills” of Southeastern Michigan. Ground-breaking took place on Sept. 28, 1967.

·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan was held June 15, 1969.

·         The track was known as Michigan Speedway during the time Roger Penske was the primary owner (1996-99).

 

Notebook

·         There have been 84 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Michigan International Speedway since the first race there in 1969. Other than 1973, which had just one race, there have been two races each season since 1969.

·         The first race was 500 miles in length; the second was scheduled for 600. The track was re-measured to 2.04 miles for the last race in 1970 and both races in 1971 – with the race distance being 402 miles. All other races have been scheduled for 400 miles.

·         Donnie Allison won the first pole.

·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was won by Cale Yarborough.

·         There have been 40 different pole winners, led by David Pearson with 10. Mark Martin has five poles.  

·         33 different drivers have won races, led by David Pearson (nine); 18 have more than one victory there.

·         The race winner has started from the pole 16 times, the most productive starting position. Brian Vickers (August 2009)was the last driver to win from the pole.

·         65 of 84 races have been won from a top-10 starting position, including 46 from the first four spots.

·         The deepest in the field a race winner has started was 32nd, by Mark Martin in last season’s June race.

·         The Wood Brothers and Roush Fenway Racing both have 11 wins, more than any other car owners.

·         Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin are the only active drivers to average a top-10 finish. Edwards, who has two Michigan wins, has an average finish of 6.2. Coincidentally, Edwards’ first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start came at Michigan. Kenseth, who also has two victories, has an average finish of 9.5. Hamlin’s average finish is 10.0.

 

NASCAR in Michigan

·         There have been 89 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Michigan.

·         96 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as Michigan.

·         There have been eight race winners from Michigan in NASCAR’s three national series:

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Paul Goldsmith	9	0	0
Brad Keselowski	3	14	0
Johnny Benson	1	3	14
Tim Fedewa	0	4	0
Butch Miller	0	2	1
Jack Sprague	0	1	28
Tracy Leslie	0	1	0
Bob Keselowski	0	0	1

 

Michigan International Speedway Data

Race # 23 of 36 (8-21-11)

Track Size: 2 miles

·     Race Length: 400 miles

·     Banking/Corners: 18 degrees

·     Banking/Frontstretch: 12 degrees

·     Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees

Driver Rating at Michigan  

Carl Edwards	110.8
Greg Biffle	106.1
Jimmie Johnson	105.3
Matt Kenseth	103.5
Denny Hamlin	99.1
Tony Stewart	97.5
Kurt Busch	96.5
Dale Earnhardt Jr.	94.5
Jeff Gordon	94.4
Brian Vickers	93.9

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2010 races (13 total) at Michigan.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2010 pole winner: Kasey Kahne, 187.183 mph, 38.465 seconds

2010 race winner: Kevin Harvick, 144.029 mph, 8-15-10)

Track qualifying record: Ryan Newman (194.232 mph, 37.069 seconds, (6-18-05)

Track race record: Dale Jarrett (173.997 mph, 6-13-99)