Below is a look at how the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field has performed at New Hampshire Motor Speedway going into the SYLVANIA 300 on September 25.
NEW HAMPSHIRE-SPECIFIC STATISTICS
1 - Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 92.1
2011 Rundown
· Four wins, eight top fives, 14 top 10s
· Average finish of 11.3
· Led 12 races for 332 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· One win, five top fives, 11 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 14.2 in 21 races
· Average Running Position of 13.6, 11th-best
· Driver Rating of 91.1, 10th-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 124.016 mph, 10th-fastest
· 2,324 Laps in the Top 15 (60.1%), ninth-most
2 - Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 90.3
2011 Rundown
· One win, four top fives, 12 top 10s
· Average finish of 13.7
· Led 14 races for 375 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Two wins, 13 top fives, 15 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 12.0 in 25 races
· Average Running Position of 9.0, second-best
· Series-best Driver Rating of 114.0
· Series-high 381 Fastest Laps Run
· 641 Green Flag Passes, seventh-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 124.510 mph, second-fastest
· 3,153 Laps in the Top 15 (81.5%), second-most
· 423 Quality Passes, third-most
3 - Carl Edwards (No. 99 Scotts Winterguard Ford)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 99.9
2011 Rundown
· One win, 13 top fives, 18 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 10.7
· Led 18 races for 597 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Two top fives, two top 10s
· Average finish of 14.4 in 14 races
· Average Running Position of 14.0, 12th-best
· Driver Rating of 88.4, 11th-best
· 2,165 Laps in the Top 15 (56.0%), 11th-most
4 - Kurt Busch (No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 98.0
2011 Rundown
· One win, seven top fives, 15 top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 12.6
· Led 15 races for 612 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Three wins, seven top fives, 11 top 10s
· Average finish of 13.5 in 21 races
· Average Running Position of 12.1, seventh-best
· Driver Rating of 95.4, sixth-best
· 144 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 124.168 mph, sixth-fastest
· 2,801 Laps in the Top 15 (72.4%), fifth-most
· 412 Quality Passes, fourth-most
5 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew/National Guard Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 84.2
2011 Rundown
· Four top fives, 10 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 13.9
· Led 8 races for 50 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Six top fives, 10 top 10s
· Average finish of 16.7 in 24 races
· Average Running Position of 12.0, sixth-best
· Driver Rating of 97.1, fifth-best
· 196 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
· 719 Green Flag Passes, second-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 124.361 mph, third-fastest
· 2,874 Laps in the Top 15 (74.3%), fourth-most
· 424 Quality Passes, second-most
6 - Ryan Newman (No. 39 Haas Automation Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 89.6
2011 Rundown
· One win, eight top fives, 14 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 12.9
· Led 13 races for 285 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Three wins, six top fives, 13 top 10s; five poles
· Average finish of 12.4 in 19 races
· Average Running Position of 13.3, eighth-best
· Driver Rating of 94.6, eighth-best
· 136 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 124.017 mph, ninth-fastest
· 2,788 Laps in the Top 15 (72.1%), sixth-most
· 339 Quality Passes, seventh-most
7 - Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 87.0
2011 Rundown
· Three wins, seven top fives, 11 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 15.2
· Led 13 races for 272 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· One top 10; one pole
· Average finish of 21.3 in four races
· Average Running Position of 21.3, 21st-best
· Driver Rating of 68.8, 22nd-best
8 - Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 99.3
2011 Rundown
· One win, 11 top fives, 18 top 10s
· Average finish of 10.6
· Led 15 races for 694 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Three wins, seven top fives, 13 top 10s
· Average finish of 9.6 in 19 races
· Average Running Position of 10.2, third-best
· Driver Rating of 105.8, third-best
· 319 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
· 605 Green Flag Passes, 13th-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 124.268 mph, fourth-fastest
· 3,140 Laps in the Top 15 (81.2%), third-most
· 411 Quality Passes, fifth-most
9 - Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&Ms Toyota)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 107.9
2011 Rundown
· Four wins, 13 top fives, 16 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 11.3
· Led 20 races for 1,188 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· One win, four top fives, six top 10s
· Average finish of 16.3 in 13 races
· Average Running Position of 16.1, 16th-best
· Driver Rating of 88.2, 13th-best
· 119 Fastest Laps Run, 12th-most
· 627 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most
· 2,193 Laps in the Top 15 (56.7%), 10th-most
· 319 Quality Passes, 10th-most
10 - Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Affliction Clothing Ford)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 96.1
2011 Rundown
· Two wins, seven top fives, 14 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 12.3
· Led 15 races for 625 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Five top fives, 11 top 10s
· Average finish of 14.4 in 23 races
· Average Running Position of 17.9, 19th-best
· Driver Rating of 76.9, 20th-best
· Series-high 741 Green Flag Passes
11 - Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 97.6
2011 Rundown
· Three wins, 10 top fives, 14 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 12.0
· Led 17 races for 721 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· Three wins, 14 top fives, 18 top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 11.0 in 33 races
· Series-best Average Running Position of 7.8
· Driver Rating of 107.3, second-best
· 310 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
· 650 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most
· Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 124.520 mph
· Series-high 3,446 Laps in the Top 15 (89.1%)
· Series-high 471 Quality Passes
12 - Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota)
· Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 90.3
2011 Rundown
· One win, four top fives, 10 top 10s
· Average finish of 16.7
· Led 14 races for 392 laps
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Outlook:
· One win, five top fives, eight top 10s
· Average finish of 7.2 in 11 races
· Average Running Position of 10.9, fourth-best
· Driver Rating of 100.5, fourth-best
· 96 Fastest Laps Run, 13th-most
· Average Green Flag Speed of 124.242 mph, fifth-fastest
· 2,437 Laps in the Top 15 (74.6%), eighth-most
· 387 Quality Passes, sixth-most
At New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
History
· Groundbreaking for New Hampshire International Speedway, as New Hampshire Motor Speedway was originally named, was Aug. 13, 1989.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was on July 11, 1993.
· Renamed New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2008.
Notebook
· There have been 33 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway; one per year from 1993 through 1996 and two per year since.
· Four drivers have competed in all 33 races: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte and Joe Nemechek.
· Mark Martin won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup pole.
· Rusty Wallace won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race.
· There have been 17 different pole winners, led by Ryan Newman (five).
· 20 different drivers have won, led by Jeff Burton (four).
· Jimmie Johnson (2003) and Kurt Busch (2004) are the only drivers that have posted season sweeps. Those are also the only back-to-back winners.
· Hendrick Motorsports has won eight races, more than any other organization.
· The deepest in the field that a New Hampshire race winner started was 38th, by Jeff Burton in 1999.
· There have been five winners who started from the pole. The last race winner to win from the pole was Ryan Newman this past July.
· Jeff Burton led all 300 laps raced in the 2000 fall race.
· Five drivers got their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win at New Hampshire: Joe Nemechek (1999), Robby Gordon (2001), Ryan Newman (2002), Clint Bowyer (2007) and Joey Logano (2009).
· Two drivers got their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole at New Hampshire: Patrick Carpentier (2008) and Brad Keselowski (2010).
· The last four races that have not finished under caution have had a margin of victory of less than a second.
NASCAR in New Hampshire
· There have been 33 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in New Hampshire, all at NHMS.
· 14 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) are listed as New Hampshire natives.
· There has been one race winner from New Hampshire in NASCAR’s three national series: Jamie Aube. Aube, from Manchester, won a NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Oxford Plains Speedway in 1987.
New Hampshire Motor Speedway Data
Race #: 28 of 36 (9-25-11)
Track Size: 1.058 miles
Race Length: 317.4 miles (300 laps)
Banking/Corners: Variable at 2 & 7 degrees
Banking/Straights: 1 degree
Driver Rating at New Hampshire
Tony Stewart 114.0 Jeff Gordon 107.3 Jimmie Johnson 105.8 Denny Hamlin 100.5 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 97.1 Kurt Busch 95.4 Jeff Burton 95.0 Ryan Newman 94.6 Clint Bowyer 94.5 Kevin Harvick 91.1
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2011 races (13 total) at New Hampshire.
Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner: Brad Keselowski, 133.572 mph, 28.515 seconds
2010 race winner: Clint Bowyer, 106.769 mph, 09-19-10)
Track qualifying record: Brad Keselowski (133.572 mph, 28.515 sec., 09-19-10)
Track race record: Jeff Burton (117.134 mph, 7-13-97)
| 
|