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There have been nine different race winners in 2008 in the NASCAR Nationwide Series: Tony Stewart (four), Kyle Busch (four), Denny Hamlin (two), Mark Martin (one), Matt Kenseth (one), Clint Bowyer (one) and Scott Wimmer (one), along with first-timers Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano.
2008 Season Highlights
• Tony Stewart won the season-opening race at Daytona then repeated his trip to Victory Lane in the second race (California). It was just the third time in NASCAR Nationwide Series history a driver had won the first two races of the season (Dale Earnhardt in 1986 and Chad Little in 1995).
• Mark Martin won the third race of the season (Las Vegas) – ending Stewart’s bid to become the first driver to win the first three races of a season in NASCAR Nationwide Series history.
• Matt Kenseth posted the first victory for Ford in 2008 with his win at Atlanta – making three different manufacturers to win in the first four races.
• Clint Bowyer won at Bristol, becoming the 10th consecutive different race winner at the Tennessee short track.
• Kyle Busch posted his first NASCAR Nationwide Series victory of 2008 with his win at Texas. Busch has won in all three of NASCAR’s national series this season, making this the fourth consecutive season he has done so. Only two other drivers have accomplished the feat and both did so only once – Kevin Harvick in 2003 and Terry Labonte in 1995.
• Kyle Busch became the second repeat winner with his victory at Phoenix. Like Tony Stewart, Busch’s wins came in consecutive races.
• Kyle Busch posted his third consecutive victory of 2008 with his win at Mexico City. Busch’s victories all came on different type tracks.
• Tony Stewart won his second restrictor-plate race with his victory at Talladega.
• Tony Stewart won his fourth race of the season and the sixth consecutive for Joe Gibbs Racing with his win at Darlington – his first there in any NASCAR series.
• Brad Keselowski became the first driver to post his career first victory in 2008 with his win at Nashville.
• Joey Logano won at Kentucky and became the second first-time winner in as many races, and the third consecutive at Kentucky.
First Time Around
Joey Logano posted his first career pole at Nashville. Brad Keselowski followed by winning his first career race. It was the 29th time in series history that a first-time pole and first-time race winner occurred in the same event. Only five of those 29 times did the same driver post both a first pole and first win in the same race.
Rocket Start
Joey Logano posted his second series pole and then won at Kentucky – posting his first career win in just his third NASCAR Nationwide Series race. He became the 19th driver to score his first victory within his first three series races. Eight of the other 18 drivers posted their first series win in 1982, the first year for the series and 14 did so within the first three years of the series. Logano joined Derrike Cope (1994 – third race), Ron Fellows (1998 – second race) and Kurt Busch (2006 - first race) as the only drivers to achieve their first win within their first three races since 1987.
Series Record
Denny Hamlin won at Richmond, scoring the fifth consecutive victory for Joe Gibbs Racing. It was the first time in the history of the NASCAR Nationwide Series that an owner posted five straight wins. Three different drivers registered victories for JGR – Kyle Busch (Texas and Phoenix in the No. 18 and Mexico in the No. 20), Tony Stewart (Talladega in the No. 20) and Hamlin (in the No. 20). Stewart extended the Gibbs streak to six races with his victory at Darlington (the fourth straight for the No. 20).
Roush Fenway Racing recorded four consecutive victories in 2000 (Rockingham through Darlington) with Mark Martin winning Rockingham, Atlanta and Darlington (in the No. 60) and Jeff Burton winning Las Vegas (in the No. 9).
Dominance Rebirth
Tony Stewart has won four of the six NASCAR Nationwide Series races that he has participated in this season. Success in a partial season is not a new concept in the series. Dale Earnhardt and Mark Martin both had very successful partial seasons over the years. Earnhardt won five of the 11 series races he participated in during 1986; three of seven in 1991 and two of four in 1993. Martin won seven of 14 NASCAR Nationwide Series races that he ran in 1993, six of 14 in both 1996 and 1999 and has one victory in his two races this season.
Qualifying
• 113 drivers have attempted to qualify for at least one race this season.
• There have been five different pole winners in 2008: Tony Stewart (two), Kyle Busch (two), Brian Vickers (two), Carl Edwards (two), Joey Logano (two), Colin Braun (one), Kasey Kahne (one).
• Colin Braun won the pole at Mexico City in his third series start; Joey Logano won the pole at Nashville – his second series start.
• Qualifying was canceled at California, Atlanta, Bristol and Texas.
• 42 drivers have posted at least one top-10 start this season, led by Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards – each with 13.
The Races
• 107 drivers have qualified for at least one NASCAR Nationwide Series race.
• 41 drivers have registered at least one top-10 finish in 2008, led by Clint Bowyer with 13.
• Five races have been extended by green-white-checkered finishes in 2008.
• One race has been shortened in 2008: Bristol (171 Laps).
• Kyle Busch has won four races this season – in three different cars, for two different owners. Jamie McMurray won three races in 2004 – each for a different car owner.
First-Timers
Start Pole Win
James Buescher (Phoenix) Colin Braun (Mexico City) Brad Keselowski (Nashville)
Kevin O’Connell (Mexico City) Joey Logano (Nashville) Joey Logano (Kentucky)
Ryan Hackett (Richmond)
Joey Logano (Dover)
Top-10 Finish Laps Led
Bryan Clauson (Daytona) Dario Franchitti (Texas)
Dario Franchitti (Las Vegas) Dwayne Leik (Talladega)
Cale Gale (Nashville) Sam Hornish Jr. (Charlotte)
Steven Wallace (Mexico City) Joey Logano (Nashville)
Chase Miller (Darlington)
Joey Logano (Dover)
The Pole Winner/Race Winner
• The Coors Light Pole winner (or driver that started first in cases of no qualifying) finishing position:
First 4
2nd-5th 3
6th-10th 0
11th-30th 3
31st or beyond 6
• The lap-leader performance of the pole winner (or driver that started first in cases of no qualifying):
Led First Lap 8
Led at All 14
Led Most Laps 3
• The race winner’s starting positions:
Pole 4
2nd-5th 5
6th-10th 4
11th-30th 2
31st or beyond 1
• The lap-leader performance-of-the-race winner:
Led First Lap 5
Led Most Laps 9
Led Mid-Race Lap 6
Led With 10 to Go 12
Led With One to Go 16
Note: Mid-Race lap is as scheduled regardless of shortened or extended race length.
Laps Led
• 46 drivers have led at least one lap this season.
• Kyle Busch has led 871 laps in 2008 – more than any other driver.
• Kyle Busch (seven), Tony Stewart (three), Clint Bowyer (two), Mark Martin (one), Scott Pruett (one), Carl Edwards (one) and Denny Hamlin (one) have each led the most laps in a race this season.
Rookie Performance
• One rookie finished in the top 10 at Daytona: Bryan Clauson. It was also his career-first top-10 finish in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Clauson has been the highest-finishing rookie three times.
• Dario Franchitti finished sixth at Las Vegas – posting his first career NASCAR Nationwide Series top 10. He has been the highest-finishing rookie six times.
• Cale Gale has been the highest-finishing rookie three times, Patrick Carpentier twice, Chase Miller once and Landon Cassill once.
Owner Highlights
• All three regular Joe Gibbs Racing drivers have won this season and all three have won at least one race in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Joey Logano also won in the 20, giving the team four different winners.
• Though Clint Bowyer leads the driver point standings by 170, the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 leads the owner point standings by 12 points over the No. 2 of Richard Childress Racing. The 20 has posted seven victories and 10 top-10 finishes.
Penalties
• There have been 252 on-track penalties issued this season.
• Penalty Recap:
Pitting Before Pit Road is Open 111
Too Fast Entering Pit Road 21
Too Fast Exiting Pit Road 11
Others 109
Notebook
• Morgan Shepherd finished on the lead lap at Talladega, his first time in a NASCAR Nationwide Series race since Rockingham on Oct. 23, 1999. His last lead-lap finish in any of NASCAR’s three national series was in the season opener for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Daytona on Feb. 16, 2001.
• Mark Green qualified fourth at Richmond – his best start since he rolled off fifth at Rockingham in October 1998.
• Steve Wallace and David Stremme finished fifth and sixth, respectively, at Richmond – the first time two Rusty Wallace Racing drivers have posted top-10s in the same race. They repeated the performance at Darlington the following week.
• Kevin Lepage led one lap at Dover – the first lap he has led since September 2002, also at Dover.
