Chicagoland Speedway: History

Chicagoland Speedway:
History

• Construction of the Chicagoland Speedway began in August 1999.
• The first NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Chicago was July 14, 2001.
• The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was held on July 15, 2001 – won by Kevin Harvick.
• This weekend marks the fourth year Chicagoland Speedway has been included in the 10-race Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup – Sept. 18, 2011.

Notebook

• There have been 13 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Chicagoland Speedway, one race per season since the first event in 2001.
• 108 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway; 84 in more than one. 
• Eight drivers have competed in all 13 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events at Chicagoland Speedway; four of which are Chase Contenders: Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick.
• Todd Bodine won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Chicago in 2001 with a speed of 183.717 mph. 
• 10 drivers have Coors Light poles at Chicago, led by Jimmie Johnson with two. 
• Youngest Chicago pole winner: Joey Logano (09/15/2013 – 23 years, 3 months, 22 days).
• Oldest Chicago pole winner: Matt Kenseth (09/19/2011 – 39 years, 6 months, 9 days).
• 10 different NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have won at Chicagoland Speedway, led by Tony Stewart with three; followed by Kevin Harvick with two (first two series events at speedway). 
• Six Chase Contenders are former winners at Chicagoland Speedway: Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, Brad Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
• Kevin Harvick (2001, 2002) is the only driver to post consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins at Chicagoland Speedway
• Youngest Chicago winner: Kyle Busch (07/12/2008 – 23 years, 2 months, 10 days).
• Oldest Chicago winner: Mark Martin (07/11/2009 – 50 years, 6 months, 2 days).
• Joe Gibbs Racing has the most wins at Chicago in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with four: Tony Stewart (two), Kyle Busch (one) and Matt Kenseth (one). Richard Childress Racing, Penske Racing and Hendrick Motorsports each have two.
• Three different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Chicago; led by Chevrolet with eight victories; followed by Toyota with three and Dodge with two each. Ford has yet to win at Chicago.
• One of the 13 (7.6%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Chicago have been won from the Coors Light pole; Kyle Busch in 2008.
• Five of the 13 (38.4%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Chicago have been won from a top-10 starting position.
• Three of the 13 (23.0%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Chicago have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.
• The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Chicago is 32nd, by Kevin Harvick in 2002.
• Kyle Busch swept the weekend at Chicagoland Speedway winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup and NASCAR Nationwide Series races in 2008.   
• Jimmie Johnson leads the series in runner-up finishes at Chicago with three; followed by Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth with two each.
• Tony Stewart leads the series in top-five finishes at Chicago with eight; followed by Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick with seven each and Jeff Gordon with six.  
• Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart lead the series in top-10 finishes at Chicago with 10 each; followed by Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick and Ryan Newman with eight each.
• Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Chicago with a 7.667.
• Tony Stewart leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at 8.500.
• Seven of the eight active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners at Chicagoland Speedway participated in at least one or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Kevin Harvick won at Chicago in his first two appearances (2001, 2002). Ryan Newman won in his second appearance (2003).     
• Kurt Busch and Matt Kenseth lead the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Chicago without visiting Victory Lane at 13.
• Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Chicagoland Speedway was the July 12, 2008 race won by Kevin Harvick over Jimmie Johnson with a MOV of 0.159 second. It is the 75th closest finish scored by electronic scoring in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
• Nine out of the 13 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Chicagoland Speedway have had a Margin of Victory less than a second.
• Only one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race has resulted with a green-white-checkered finish at Chicagoland Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): 7/9/2006 (267/270).
• None of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Chicagoland Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions.   
• Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Chicagoland Speedway once – the 2008 event.  
• Two active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted their first career start at Chicagoland Speedway: Justin Allgaier (09/15/2013) and Josh Wise (9/19/2011).
• Jimmie Johnson leads all drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Chicago with 537 laps led in 12 starts.
• Danica Patrick is the only female driver that has competed at Chicagoland Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series; Shawna Robinson attempted to in 2001 but failed to qualify for the event

Richmond International Raceway: History

Richmond International Raceway:
History

• Originally known as the Atlantic Rural Exposition Fairgrounds, Richmond International Raceway held its first race in 1946 as a half-mile dirt track.
• The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was April 19, 1953 won by Lee Petty.
• The spring 1964 race was run on a Tuesday night under temporary lighting.
• The track name changed to Virginia State Fairgrounds in 1967.
• The track surface was changed from dirt to asphalt between races in 1968.
• The track name changed to Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway in 1969.
• The track was re-measured to .542-mile for 1970.
• The track was rebuilt as a three-quarters-mile D-shaped oval following the Feb. 21, 1988 race.
• The first race under permanent lights was Sept. 7, 1991.
• The first season with both races as night races was 1999.

Notebook

• There have been 116 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Richmond International Raceway, one NSCS event from 1953 - 1958 and two races per year since 1959.
• 477 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond; 308 in more than one.
• NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty leads the series in starts at Richmond with 63. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 43 starts.
• Buck Baker won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Richmond in 1953 with a speed of 48.465 mph.
• 52 drivers have Coors Light poles at Richmond, led by Richard Petty and Bobby Allison with eight each. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with six.
• Seven drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Richmond. Bobby Allison holds the record for most consecutive poles at Richmond with five (1972 - 1974).
• Youngest Richmond pole winner: Brian Vickers (05/15/2004 – 20 years, 6 months, 21 days).
• Oldest Richmond pole winner: Mark Martin (04/28/2012 – 53 years, 3 months, 19 days).
• 49 different drivers have won at Richmond International Raceway, led by Richard Petty with 13. Kyle Busch leads all active drivers with four.
• Petty Enterprises has the most wins at Richmond in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 15; followed by Hendrick Motorsports with 10, Joe Gibbs Racing and Richard Childress Racing with nine each.
• Chevrolet leads the series in wins at Richmond with 36 victories; followed by Ford with 30 wins and Toyota with seven.
• 22 of the 116 (18.9%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Richmond International Raceway have been won from the Coors Light pole. Only three active drivers have been able to accomplish the feat: Kasey Kahne (2005), Jimmie Johnson (2007) and Kyle Busch (2010). 
• The pole starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing the more winners than any other starting position at Richmond (22). 
• 35 of the 116 (30.1%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Richmond have been won from the front row: 22 from the pole and 13 from second-place.
• 90 of the 116 (77.5%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Richmond International Raceway have been won from a top-10 starting position.
• 13 of the 116 (11.2%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Richmond International Raceway have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.
• The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Richmond International Raceway was 31st, by Clint Bowyer in the spring of 2008.
• Youngest Richmond winner: Richard Petty (04/23/1961 – 23 years, 9 months, 21 days).
• Oldest Richmond winner: Harry Gant (09/07/1991 – 51 years, 7 months, 28 days).
• Bobby Allison and Richard Petty are tied for the lead in runner-up finishes at Richmond with nine each. Jeff Gordon, tied with Dale Earnhardt, leads all active drivers with seven.  
• Richard Petty leads the series in top-five finishes at Richmond with 34.
  Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 17; followed by Kyle Busch with 13.
• Richard Petty leads the series in top-10 finishes at Richmond with 41. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 27; followed by Tony Stewart with 19.
• Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Richmond International Raceway with an 8.047.
• Kyle Busch leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at Richmond International Raceway with a 7.000.
• Two active drivers have a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series average finish in the top 10 at Richmond: Kyle Busch (7.0) and Denny Hamlin (9.7).

Atlanta Motor Speedway: History

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 106 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Atlanta Motor Speedway since the first race there in 1960. Until 2010 there have been two races per year except 1961, which had three. This year marks the third season with only one event.

·         544 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway; 364 in more than one.

·         Richard Petty leads the series in starts at Atlanta with 65. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 40 starts, followed by Joe Nemechek with 37.

·         Fireball Roberts won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Atlanta in 1960 with a speed of 133.870 mph.  

·         47 drivers have Coors Light poles at Atlanta, led by Buddy Baker and Ryan Newman with seven each.  

·         Winning consecutive Coors Light poles has happened eight times at Atlanta, among six drivers.

·         Ryan Newman holds the record for most consecutive poles at Atlanta with six; spring of 2003 through 2005.

·         Youngest Atlanta pole winner: Terry Labonte (03/15/1981 – 24 years, 3 months, 27 days).

·         Oldest Atlanta pole winner: Harry Gant (11/14/1993 – 53 years, 10 months, 4 days).

·         43 different NSCS drivers have won at Atlanta Motor Speedway, led by NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt with nine wins. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with five.  

·         11 drivers have posted consecutive wins at Atlanta Motor Speedway: Marvin Panch (1965 sweep), Bobby Allison (1972 sweep), David Pearson (1973 sweep), Richard Petty (1974 fall, 1975 spring), Cale Yarborough (1980 fall, 1981 spring), Bill Elliott (1985 sweep; 1992 sweep), Dale Earnhardt (1989 fall, 1990 spring; 1995 fall, 1996 spring), Bobby Labonte (1997 fall, 1998 spring), Jeff Gordon (1998 fall, 1999 spring), Carl Edwards (2005 sweep), Jimmie Johnson (2007 sweep)

·         Youngest Atlanta winner: Kyle Busch (03/09/2008 – 22 years, 10 months, 7 days).

·         Oldest Atlanta winner: Morgan Shepherd (03/20/1993 – 51 years, 5 months, 8 days).

·         The Wood Brothers have the most wins at Atlanta in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 12: Cale Yarborough (three), David Pearson (three), Marvin Panch (two), Neil Bonnett (two) A.J. Foyt (one) and Morgan Shepherd (one). Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports are tied for the second most wins at Atlanta with 11 each.

·         Nine different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Atlanta; led by Chevrolet with 37 victories; followed by Ford with 29. Toyota has three wins at Atlanta.

·         14 of the 106 (13.2%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Atlanta have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Kasey Kahne in 2006.

·         The fifth starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (15) than any other starting position at Atlanta Motor Speedway; the most recent was Jeff Gordon in 2011.   

·         26 of the 106 (24.5%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Atlanta have been won from the front row: 14 from the pole and 12 from second-place.

·         60 of the 106 (56.6%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Atlanta have been won from a top-five starting position.

·         84 of the 106 (79.2%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Atlanta have been won from a top-10 starting position.

·         Seven of the 106 (6.6%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Atlanta have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

·         The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Atlanta is 39th, by Bobby Labonte in the fall of 2001.

·         No driver has swept the weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway across all three NASCAR national series. Two drivers have won in multiple NASCAR national series in the same weekend at Atlanta: Carl Edwards (2005, NSCS/NNS); (fall 2008, NSCS/NNS) and Kyle Busch (spring 2008, NSCS/NCWTS)

·         Dale Earnhardt and David Pearson lead the series in runner-up finishes at Atlanta with seven each; Jeff Gordon leads all active driverswith five.

·         Dale Earnhardt leads the series in top-five finishes at Atlanta with 26; Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 16.   

·         Richard Petty leads the series in top-10 finishes at Atlanta with 33; Jeff Gordon leads all active driverswith 25.

·         Ryan Newman leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Atlanta with a 7.571.

·         Tony Stewart leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at 11.654.

·         Nine of the 10 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners at Atlanta Motor Speedway participated in at least one or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Kevin Harvick won at Atlanta in his first appearance (2001). Carl Edwards won in his second appearance (2005).      

·         Denny Hamlin competed at Atlanta Motor Speedway 12 times before winning in the spring of 2012; the longest span of any the 10 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners.

·         Among the 10 active NSCS Atlanta winners Denny Hamlin (12) is the only driver to have made 10 or more attempts before his first win.

·         Joe Nemechek leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Atlanta without visiting Victory Lane at 37; followed by Matt Kenseth with 25.

·         Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway was the March 11, 2001 race won by Kevin Harvick over Jeff Gordon with a MOV of 0.006 second.

·         There have been three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races resulting with a green-white-checkered finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): fall of 2007 (325/329); spring of 2010 (325/341) and fall of 2012 (325/327).

·         Four of the 88 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Michigan International Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was the event on 6/18/2006.    

·         Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway five times; most recently the fall of 2010.   

·         One active driver has posted his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Atlanta Motor Speedway: Terry Labonte (3/15/1981).

·         Two active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted their first career start at Atlanta Motor Speedway: Jeff Gordon (11/15/1992) and Martin Truex Jr. (10/31/2004).

·         Two active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted their first career win at Atlanta Motor Speedway: Kevin Harvick (3/11/2001) and Carl Edwards (3/20/2005).

·         Cale Yarborough leads all drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Atlanta with 3,283 laps led in 47 starts. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers in laps led at Atlanta with 1,297.    

·         Three female drivers have competed at Atlanta Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Janet Guthrie, Shawna Robinson and Danica Patrick.