Dover Odds & Ends: Autism Speaks 400 Facts

Compiled by Mike Forde
NASCAR Media Services

At Dover International Speedway:
History

·         The official opening of Dover International Speedway, then called Dover Downs International Speedway, was in 1969.

·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on July 6, 1969.

·         The first two races at Dover were 300 miles. The race length was changed to 500 miles in 1971.

·         The track surface was changed to concrete in 1995.

·         The race length was changed to 400 miles beginning with the second race in 1997.

·         The track name was changed to Dover International Speedway in 2002.

Notebook

·         There have been 80 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Dover International Speedway since the track opened in 1969.

·         There was one race in 1969 and 1970. There has been two-a-year since 1971.

·         Richard Petty won the track’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup race.

·         There have been 34 different pole winners, led by David Pearson (six).

·         David Pearson won the first pole in July 1969.

·         Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman lead all active drivers, each with four poles.

·         32 different drivers have posted victories led by BobbyAllison and RichardPetty, each with seven.

·         Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers, with five victories. He swept last season, scoring a perfect Driver Rating of 150.0 in the spring event.

·         Hendrick Motorsports has a series-high 12 wins.

·         48 races at Dover have been won from a top-five starting position; 17 races have been won from a starting position outside the top 10.

·         12 drivers have won from the pole. The last to do so was Jimmie Johnson, in last season’s September race.

·         The furthest back in the field a race winner started was 37th, by Kyle Petty in 1995.

·         Several active drivers had their first start at Dover, including three past champions: Kurt Busch (finished 18th in 2000), Matt Kenseth (sixth in 1998) and Bobby Labonte (34th in 1991).

·         In addition, Matt Kenseth (2002) and Michael Waltrip (1991) earned their first pole at Dover. Martin Truex Jr.won his first race there (2007).

·         Two of the last three races have ended with a margin of victory under one second.

NASCAR in Delaware

·            There have been 80 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Delaware, all at Dover International Speedway.

·            Eight drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as Delaware, though none have posted victories.

Dover International Speedway Data

Race #: 12 of 36 (5-16-10)

Track Size: 1 mile

·     Banking/Corners: 24 degrees

·     Banking/Straights: 9 degrees

·     Frontstretch: 1,076 feet

·     Backstretch: 1,076 feet

Driver Rating at Dover 
Greg Biffle                    114.7

Matt Kenseth                112.6

Jimmie Johnson            112.3

Carl Edwards                103.7

Mark Martin                  101.9

Ryan Newman                98.8

Kyle Busch                    98.5

Kurt Busch                    96.2

Jeff Gordon                    90.3

Clint Bowyer                  89.9

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2009 races (10 total) at Dover.

Qualifying/Race Data

2009 pole winner: David Reutimann (156.794 mph, 22.960 seconds)

2009 race winner: Jimmie Johnson (115.237 mph, 5-31-09)

Track qualifying record: Jeremy Mayfield (161.522 mph, 22.288 seconds,

6-4-04)

Track race record: Mark Martin (132.719 mph, 9-21-97)

Estimated Pit Window: Every 72-78 laps, based on fuel mileage.