Below is a look at some of the top statistical performers at Charlotte Motor Speedway going into the Coca-Cola 600 on May 29.
CHARLOTTE-SPECIFIC STATISTICS
Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford)
· Three top fives, six top 10s
· Average finish of 18.3
· Average Running Position of 16.0, eighth-best
· Driver Rating of 86.6, 10th-best
· 129 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most
· 751 Green Flag Passes, 13th-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 174.901 mph, eighth-fastest
· 2,494 Laps in the Top 15 (58.9%), seventh-most
· 409 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), seventh-most
Jeff Burton (No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet)
· Three wins, eight top fives, 15 top 10s
· Average finish of 15.2
· Average Running Position of 14.6, sixth-best
· Driver Rating of 87.3, ninth-best
· 92 Fastest Laps Run, 13th-most
· 802 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 174.744 mph, ninth-fastest
· 2,575 Laps in the Top 15 (60.8%), fourth-most
· 483 Quality Passes, fourth-most
Kurt Busch (No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge)
· One win, four top fives, five top 10s
· Average finish of 20.4
· Driver Rating of 84.6, 11th-best
· 163 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
· 2,253 Laps in the Top 15 (53.2%), 10th-most
· 373 Quality Passes, 12th-most
Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M’s Toyota)
· Five top fives, eight top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 16.6
· Average Running Position of 10.2, third-best
· Driver Rating of 108.2, second-best
· 343 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
· 751 Green Flag Passes, 13th-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 175.771 mph, second-fastest
· 3,339 Laps in the Top 15 (78.8%), second-most
· Series-high 598 Quality Passes
Carl Edwards (No. 99 AFLAC Ford)
· Four top fives, seven top 10s
· Average finish of 13.1
· Average Running Position of 17.4, 13th-best
· Driver Rating of 84.3, 13th-best
· Series-high 911 Green Flag Passes
· 2,090 Laps in the Top 15 (49.3%), 12th-most
· 400 Quality Passes, ninth-most
Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
· Five wins, 16 top fives, 20 top 10s; eight poles
· Average finish of 15.6
· Average Running Position of 16.4, 11th-best
· Driver Rating of 88.9, seventh-best
· 160 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 174.963 mph, seventh-fastest
· 2,347 Laps in the Top 15 (55.4%), ninth-most
· 380 Quality Passes, 11th-most
Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota)
· One top five, four top 10s
· Average finish of 17.2
· Average Running Position of 15.2, seventh-best
· Driver Rating of 84.3, 12th-best
· 97 Fastest Laps Run, 12th-most
· 2,407 Laps in the Top 15 (62.7%), eighth-most
· 406 Quality Passes, eighth-most
Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)
· Six wins, 10 top fives, 14 top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 9.8
· Series-best Average Running Position of 8.0
· Series-best Driver Rating of 114.7
· Series-high 412 Fastest Laps Run
· 792 Green Flag Passes, 11th-most
· Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 175.920 mph
· Series-high 3,606 Laps in the Top 15 (85.1%)
· 586 Quality Passes, second-most
Kasey Kahne (No. 4 Red Bull Toyota)
· Three wins, five top fives, seven top 10s
· Average finish of 13.5
· Average Running Position of 13.5, fifth-best
· Driver Rating of 95.7, fourth-best
· 322 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
· 867 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 174.649 mph, 11th-fastest
· 2,537 Laps in the Top 15 (59.9%), fifth-most
· 485 Quality Passes, third-most
Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Jeremiah Weed Ford)
· One win, six top fives, 12 top 10s
· Average finish of 15.0
· Average Running Position of 16.1, ninth-best
· Driver Rating of 89.4, sixth-best
· 133 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
· 803 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 174.729 mph, 10th-fastest
· 2,522 Laps in the Top 15 (59.5%), sixth-most
· 458 Quality Passes, fifth-most
Joey Logano (No. 20 Home Depot Toyota)
· One top five, three top 10s
· Average finish of 8.5
· Average Running Position of 9.6, second-best
· Driver Rating of 102.8, third-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 175.463 mph, third-fastest
Mark Martin (No. 5 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet)
· Four wins, 18 top fives, 23 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 15.7
· Average Running Position of 11.9, fourth-best
· Driver Rating of 92.6, fifth-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 175.110 mph, fourth-fastest
· 3,145 Laps in the Top 15 (74.2%), third-most
· 451 Quality Passes, sixth-most
Brian Vickers (No. 83 Red Bull Toyota)
· Two top fives, three top 10s
· Average finish of 23.5
· Driver Rating of 88.0, eighth-best
· 193 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 174.993 mph, fifth-fastest
At Charlotte Motor Speedway:
History
· Construction began on Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1959.
· The track’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on June 19, 1960.
· The track was repaved midseason in 1994.
· The track name changed from Charlotte Motor Speedway to Lowe’s Motor Speedway in 1999. It changed back to Charlotte Motor Speedway for the 2010 season.
· The track was re-paved again before the 2006 season.
Notebook
· There have been 104 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, two races per year since the track opened in 1960. In 1961, there were two 100-mile qualifying points races held the week before the May race. The first six fall races at Charlotte were 400-mile events (1960-65).
· 37 drivers have posted poles, led by David Pearson with 14.
· Fireball Roberts won the pole for the first race, in 1960.
· David Pearson posted 11 straight poles at Charlotte from the fall of 1973 through 1978.
· Ryan Newman leads all active drivers in poles, with nine. Jeff Gordon has eight.
· Jeff Gordon won five straight poles for the spring races between 1994 and 1998.
· 43 drivers have won races, led by Bobby Allison, Darrell Waltrip and Jimmie Johnson, with six each.
· Joe Lee Johnson won the first race, in 1960.
· There have been 13 back-to-back victories, including three consecutive by Fred Lorenzen (fall 1964 and both 1965) and four straight by Jimmie Johnson (both in 2004 and 2005).
· A sweep has occurred eight times, including each season from 2004-2007.
· 14 races have been won from the pole, the last by Jimmie Johnson (October 2009).
· Jimmie Johnson won the 2003 Coca-Cola 600 from the 37th starting position, the furthest back a race winner has started.
· Joey Logano is one of two drivers with more than two Charlotte races to average top-10 finishes (8.5); Jimmie Johnson is the other, with an average finish of 9.8.
· A number of active drivers earned their first win at CMS: Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Bobby Labonte, Jamie McMurray, Casey Mears and David Reutimann. Inactive drivers David Pearson, Buddy Baker and Charlie Glotzbach also got their first series win at Charlotte.
Charlotte Motor Speedway Data
Race #: 12 of 36 (05-29-11)
Track Size: 1.5 miles
· Banking/Corners: 24 degrees
· Banking/Straights: 5 degrees
· Frontstretch: 1,980 feet
· Backstretch: 1,500 feet
Driver Rating at Charlotte
Jimmie Johnson 114.7 Kyle Busch 108.2 Joey Logano 102.8 Kasey Kahne 95.7 Mark Martin 92.6 Matt Kenseth 89.4 Jeff Gordon 88.9 Brian Vickers 88.0 Jeff Burton 87.3 Greg Biffle 86.6
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2010 races (12 total) at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner: Ryan Newman (187.546 mph, 28.793 seconds)
2010 race winner: Kurt Busch (144.966 mph, 05-30-10)
Qualifying record: Elliott Sadler (193.216 mph, 27.948 seconds, 10-13-05)
600-mile race record: Bobby Labonte (151.952 mph, 05-28-95)
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