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While Kurt Busch celebrated with a backwards victory lap with the checkered flag in hand, Johnson’s day at Texas turned out to be disastrous after his wreck resulted in a 38th-place finish and his points lead trimmed from 184 points to 73 over Mark Martin, who finished fourth.
“It’s still a respectable lead,” Johnson said. “I hated that we gave up all these points tonight.”
Below is a look at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series top 12 going into the ninth race of the 2009 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup – the Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 presented by Pennzoil at Phoenix International Raceway on Nov. 15.
“The guys did a great job to get this car back on the track and get a couple more spots, and we’ll go to Phoenix and race,” Johnson added. Auto Racing Daily
1 - Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 111.0
2009 Rundown
• Six wins, 14 top fives, 22 top 10s; three poles
• Average finish of 11.6
• Led 27 races for 1,972 laps
Phoenix International Raceway Outlook:
• Three wins, seven top fives, 10 top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 5.4 in 12 races
• Series-best Average Running Position of 5.5
• Series-best Driver Rating of 120.0
• Series-high 283 Fastest Laps Run
• Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 123.556 mph
• Series-high 2,675 Laps in the Top 15 (95.2%)
• 243 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), third-most
2 - Mark Martin (No. 5 Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 100.0
2009 Rundown
• Five wins, 13 top fives, 20 top 10s; seven poles
• Average finish of 14.0
• Led 23 races for 805 laps
Phoenix International Raceway Outlook:
• Two wins, 10 top fives, 16 top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 9.0 in 25 races
• Average Running Position of 11.4, sixth-best
• Driver Rating of 102.2, third-best
• 190 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
3 - Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 101.6
2009 Rundown
• One win, 16 top fives, 23 top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 10.3
• Led 19 races for 827 laps
Phoenix International Raceway Outlook:
• One win, eight top fives, 15 top 10s; three poles
• Average finish of 10.9 in 21 races
• Average Running Position of 10.2, fourth-best
• Driver Rating of 99.5, seventh-best
• 2,294 Laps in the Top 15 (81.7%), second-most
4 - Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 99.9
2009 Rundown
• Two wins, nine top fives, 19 top 10s
• Average finish of 13.3
• Led 20 races for 626 laps
Phoenix International Raceway Outlook:
• One win, four top fives, seven top 10s
• Average finish of 12.5 in 13 races
• Average Running Position of 8.7, second-best
• Driver Rating of 102.4, second-best
• 179 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
• 1,999 Laps in the Top 15 (80.1%), seventh-most
5 - Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 100.7
2009 Rundown
• Four wins, 15 top fives, 23 top 10s
• Average finish of 9.7
• Led 18 races for 371 laps
Phoenix International Raceway Outlook:
• One win, seven top fives, nine top 10s
• Average finish of 10.1 in 15 races
• Average Running Position of 9.9, third-best
• Driver Rating of 101.3, fifth-best
• 112 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most
• 393 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.215 mph, third-fastest
• 2,273 Laps in the Top 15 (80.9%), fourth-most
• 244 Quality Passes, second-most
6 - Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42 Target Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 93.4
2009 Rundown
• Seven top fives, 17 top 10s; two poles
• Average finish of 13.7
• Led 11 races for 388 laps
Phoenix International Raceway Outlook:
• Average finish of 21.4 in five races
• Average Running Position of 19.7, 22nd-best
• Driver Rating of 68.7, 23rd-best
7 - Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 88.5
2009 Rundown
• 10 top fives, 16 top 10s
• Average finish of 14.0
• Led 13 races for 551 laps
Phoenix International Raceway Outlook:
• Three top fives, four top 10s
• Average finish of 14.9 in 11 races
• Average Running Position of 13.9, 10th-best
• Driver Rating of 101.1, sixth-best
• 264 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.209 mph, fourth-fastest
• 1,908 Laps in the Top 15 (67.9%), eighth-most
• 185 Quality Passes, eighth-most
