Below is a look at some of the top statistical performers at Watkins Glen International going into the Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips At The Glen on Aug. 8.
WATKINS GLEN-SPECIFIC STATISTICS
Marcos Ambrose (No. 47 Little Debbie Toyota)
• Enters Watkins Glen 28th in points
• Two top fives, two top 10s
• Average finish of 2.5
• Average Running Position of 13.8, sixth-best
• Driver Rating of 106.9, second-best
• 27 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 119.041 mph, second-fastest
Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite/Vortex Dodge)
• Seventh in points
• Three top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 19.8
• Average Running Position of 15.4, 10th-best
• Driver Rating of 99.4, seventh-best
• 39 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
• 212 Green Flag Passes, 12th-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.672 mph, seventh-fastest
• 305 Laps in the Top 15 (67.5%), fourth-most
• 116 Quality Passes, third-most
Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M’s Toyota)
• Sixth in points
• One win, two top fives, four top 10s
• Average finish of 10.8
• Average Running Position of 13.3, fifth-best
• Driver Rating of 104.9, fourth-best
• 32 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.745 mph, sixth-fastest
• 292 Laps in the Top 15 (64.6%), fifth-most
• 106 Quality Passes, fourth-most
Carl Edwards (No. 99 Aflac Ford)
• 10th in points
• Two top fives, four top 10s
• Average finish of 8.8
• Average Running Position of 14.2, seventh-best
• Driver Rating of 91.4, eighth-best
• 13 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most
• 255 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.247 mph, 11th-fastest
• 289 Laps in the Top 15 (63.9%), sixth-most
• 103 Quality Passes, fifth-most
Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
• Second in points
• Four wins, six top fives, eight top 10s; two poles
• Average finish of 14.8
• Average Running Position of 15.2, ninth-best
• Driver Rating of 88.9, 10th-best
• 17 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
• 219 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.349 mph, ninth-fastest
• 228 Laps in the Top 15 (50.4%), 11th-most
Robby Gordon (No. 7 Robby Gordon Motorsports Toyota)
• 33rd in points
• One win, seven top fives, seven top 10s
• Average finish of 11.3
• Driver Rating of 89.2, ninth-best
• 11 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
• 218 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.505 mph, eighth-fastest
Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota)
• Third in points
• One top five, four top 10s
• Average finish of 7.5
• Average Running Position of 9.8, third-best
• Driver Rating of 104.6, fifth-best
• 11 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.772 mph, fifth-fastest
• 306 Laps in the Top 15 (85.0%), third-most
• 101 Quality Passes, sixth-most
Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet)
• NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points leader
• One win, two top fives, five top 10s
• Average finish of 13.9
• Average Running Position of 16.0, 11th-best
• Driver Rating of 88.7, 11th-best
• 286 Laps in the Top 15 (63.3%), seventh-most
• 85 Quality Passes, 13th-most
Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)
• Fourth in points
• Three top fives, four top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 13.0
• Average Running Position of 7.5, second-best
• Driver Rating of 106.5, third-best
• 11 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.794 mph, fourth-fastest
• 407 Laps in the Top 15 (90.0%), second-most
• 90 Quality Passes, 10th-most
Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42 Target Chevrolet)
• 21st in points
• One top five, two top 10s
• Average finish of 16.3
• Average Running Position of 10.6, fourth-best
• Driver Rating of 101.4, sixth-best
• 15 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 118.907 mph, third-fastest
• 238 Laps in the Top 15 (88.1%), ninth-most
• 91 Quality Passes, ninth-most
Tony Stewart (No. 14 Old Spice Chevrolet)
• Eighth in points
• Five wins, seven top fives, nine top 10s
• Average finish of 5.3
• Series-best Average Running Position of 3.9
• Series-best Driver Rating of 135.0
• Series-high 104 Fastest Laps Run
• Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 119.570 mph
• Series-high 438 Laps in the Top 15 (96.9%)
• Series-high 126 Quality Passes
Martin Truex Jr. (No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota)
• 20th in points
• One top five, two top 10s
• Average finish of 16.8
• Average Running Position of 14.4, eighth-best
• Driver Rating of 83.1, 12th-best
• 240 Laps in the Top 15 (66.7%), eighth-most
• 92 Quality Passes, eighth-most
At Watkins Glen International:
History
• After several events were held on the streets of Watkins Glen, a permanent facility was opened in 1956.
• The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was in 1957, won by Buck Baker.
• After a six-year absence, NASCAR returned to The Glen in 1964 and 1965.
• After a 21-year absence, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returned to The Glen, and has run one race a year there since 1986. This weekend’s race will be the 25th running since its return in 1986.
Notebook
• There have been 27 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Watkins Glen International since the first race there in 1957.
• Buck Baker won the first pole and race.
• Tim Richmond won the first pole and race upon the series’ return in 1986.
• There have been 15 different pole winners.
• The race winner has started first in nine of 27 races. The last race winner to start from the pole was Kyle Busch in 2008.
• Mark Martin leads all drivers with wins from the pole with three in a row between 1993 and 1995.
• 17 of the 27 race winners have started from a top-five starting position.
• 19 of 27 races at Watkins Glen have been won from a top-10 starting position.
• The deepest in the field that a Watkins Glen race winner has started was 18th by Steve Park in 2000.
• 16 different drivers have won races, led by Tony Stewart, with five.
• Jeff Gordon set the all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup record for road-course victories with his victory in 2001, his seventh on a road course. He has since won two more (both at Infineon Raceway), for a career total of nine.
• Three active drivers with more than one start have an average finish in the top 10: Carl Edwards (8.8 in five starts), Denny Hamlin (7.5 in four starts), Mark Martin (7.8 in 20 starts), Tony Stewart (5.3 in 11 starts) and Marcos Ambrose (2.5 in two starts).
• Tony Stewart has a Driver Rating of 135.0 at Watkins Glen, the highest average rating by any driver at any track since the Loop Data statistic’s inception in 2005.
NASCAR in New York
• There have been 65 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in New York:
• 178 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as New York.
• There have been 13 race winners from New York in NASCAR’s three national series:
Driver NSCS NNS NCWTS Geoffrey Bodine 18 6 0 Jim Reed 7 0 0 Steve Park 2 3 1 Al Keller 2 0 0 Brett Bodine 1 5 0 Greg Sacks 1 1 0 Jim Hurtubise 1 0 0 Lloyd Moore 1 0 0 Bill Rexford 1 0 0 Jack White 1 0 0 Todd Bodine 0 15 18 Mike McLaughlin 0 6 0 Donny Lia 0 0 1
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