Below is a look at some of the top statistical performers at Bristol Motor Speedway going into the IRWIN Tools Night Race on Aug. 21.
BRISTOL-SPECIFIC STATISTICS
Marcos Ambrose (No. 47 Bush’s-Kingsford Toyota)
· One top five, two top 10s
· Average finish of 15.3
· Average Running Position of 12.0, fifth-best
· Driver Rating of 93.4, eighth-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.251 mph, 10th-fastest
Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford)
· Six top fives, nine top 10s
· Average finish of 11.0
· Average Running Position of 11.1, second-best
· Driver Rating of 101.2, second-best
· 242 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
· Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 114.485 mph
· 4,407 Laps in the Top 15 (79.9%), second-most
· Series-high 251 Quality Passes
Jeff Burton (No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet)
· One win, eight top fives, 14 top 10s
· Average finish of 17.9
· Driver Rating of 88.3, 13th-best
· 215 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most
· 461 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.225 mph, 12th-fastest
· 3,365 Laps in the Top 15 (61.0%), 10th-most
· 242 Quality Passes, second-most
Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite/Vortex Dodge)
· Five wins, six top fives, 11 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 13.2
· Average Running Position of 12.9, sixth-best
· Driver Rating of 96.1, fifth-best
· 217 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
· 411 Green Flag Passes, eighth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.379 mph, sixth-fastest
· 3,741 Laps in the Top 15 (67.9%), fourth-most
· 203 Quality Passes, ninth-most
Kyle Busch (No. 18 Doublemint Toyota)
· Three wins, five top fives, eight top 10s
· Average finish of 10.1
· Average Running Position of 13.3, seventh-best
· Series-best Driver Rating of 103.0
· Series-high 401 Fastest Laps Run
· 421 Green Flag Passes, seventh-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.478 mph, second-fastest
· 3,483 Laps in the Top 15 (63.2%), sixth-most
· 215 Quality Passes, seventh-most
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet)
· One win, seven top fives, 12 top 10s
· Average finish of 11.4
· Average Running Position of 14.3, 12th-best
· Driver Rating of 89.1, 11th-best
· Series-high 538 Green Flag Passes
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.250 mph, 11th-fastest
· 3,249 Laps in the Top 15 (58.9%), 12th-most
· 213 Quality Passes, eighth-most
Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
· Five wins, 14 top fives, 20 top 10s; five poles
· Average finish of 11.7
· Series-best Average Running Position of 9.3
· Driver Rating of 99.4, third-best
· 174 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.383 mph, fifth-fastest
· Series-high 4,501 Laps in the Top 15 (81.6%)
· 232 Quality Passes, fourth-most
Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota)
· Three top fives, five top 10s
· Average finish of 12.4
· Average Running Position of 14.2, 11th-best
· Driver Rating of 95.0, seventh-best
· 238 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
· 422 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.450 mph, fourth-fastest
· 2,864 Laps in the Top 15 (63.5%), 13th-most
Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet)
· One win, nine top fives, 11 top 10s
· Average finish of 12.2
· Average Running Position of 13.4, eighth-best
· Driver Rating of 91.5, ninth-best
· 181 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most
· 469 Green Flag Passes, third-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.351 mph, seventh-fastest
· 3,426 Laps in the Top 15 (62.1%), eighth-most
· 184 Quality Passes, 13th-most
Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Crown Royal Black Ford)
· Two wins, eight top fives, 13 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 12.7
· Average Running Position of 11.1, third-best
· Driver Rating of 97.5, fourth-best
· 231 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.340 mph, eighth-fastest
· 4,402 Laps in the Top 15 (79.8%), third-most
· 241 Quality Passes, third-most
Brad Keselowski (No. 12 Penske Dodge)
· Average finish of 13.0
· Average Running Position of 11.3, fourth-best
· Driver Rating of 88.7, 12th-best
Mark Martin (No. 5 CARQUEST Auto Parts/GoDaddy.com Chevrolet)
· Two wins, 16 top fives, 23 top 10s; nine poles
· Average finish of 12.9
· Average Running Position of 14.1, 10th-best
· Driver Rating of 89.9, 10th-best
· 150 Fastest Laps Run, 13th-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.266 mph, ninth-fastest
Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet)
· One win, six top fives, eight top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 16.5
· Average Running Position of 13.7, ninth-best
· Driver Rating of 95.9, sixth-best
· 259 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 114.460 mph, third-fastest
· 3,349 Laps in the Top 15 (60.7%), 11th-most
· 225 Quality Passes, sixth-most
At 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 99 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 43 different pole winners, led by Cale Yarborough and Mark Martin (nine). Martinswept both poles at Bristol last season.
· 38 different drivers have won, led by Darrell Waltrip (12).
· Kurt 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 99 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.
· Last year’s 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.
· Four of the last five, and eight of the last 10, Bristol races had a margin of victory under one second.
NASCAR in Tennessee
· There have been 160 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Tennessee.
· 100 drivers all-time in NASCAR’s three national series have their home state recorded as Tennessee.
· There have been 12 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 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 Chad Chaffin 0 0 2
Bristol Motor Speedway Data
Race #: 24 of 36 (8-21-10)
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 103.0
Greg Biffle 101.2
Jeff Gordon 99.4
Matt Kenseth 97.5
Kurt Busch 96.1
Tony Stewart 95.9
Denny Hamlin 95.0
Marcos Ambrose 93.4
Kevin Harvick 91.5
Mark Martin 89.9
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2010 races (11 total) at Bristol.
Qualifying/Race Data
2009 pole winner: Mark Martin, 124.484 mph, 15.414 seconds
2009 race winner: Kyle Busch, 84.820 mph, 8-22-09)
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)
Estimated Pit Window: Every 120-130 laps, based on fuel mileage.
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