Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Three-time Richmond Winner Jimmie Johnson Bringing Third-Place Phoenix car This Week

Jimmie Johnson
STARTS: 8 WINS: 1 TOP 5: 4 TOP 10: 5
CURRENT DRIVER POINT STANDINGS: 2nd POINTS BEHIND 1st: 5
FINISH IN TALLADEGA: 1st SPRING 2010 FINISH AT RICHMOND: 10th

Johnson using 3rd-place Phoenix car this week at Richmond (Getty)
RACE NOTES
Richmond International Raceway
• Johnson has made 18 Sprint Cup Series starts at Richmond International Raceway, where he has earned three wins, five top-five and six top-10 finishes.
• Johnson has completed 93.5% (6736 of 7203) of competition laps and has led 376.
• He has an average start and finish of 11.1 and 16.9.

Chassis Choice
• Johnson will pilot chassis No. 590 in Saturday night’s race. He crossed the finish line third with that chassis at Phoenix International Raceway in February.
• Johnson finished fifth in backup chassis No. 540 at Phoenix International Raceway in Nov. 2010.

JIMMIE JOHNSON QUOTES
TALK ABOUT RICHMOND AND WHAT YOU EXPECT THIS WEEKEND: “It seems like we are up and down at Richmond. We’ve obviously won there but we didn’t have a great finish last year in the spring but then were able to pull out a good run to start the Chase in a good spot. Track position is always important there so the first few stops of the night really make a difference. Getting those adjustments right early on is important. We’re obviously happy where we are in points right now. We just need to continue our momentum from Talladega.”

SPRINT CUP SERIES CAREER NOTES
Career Wins
• Johnson has 54 wins in his Sprint Cup Series career, his most recent coming at Dover International Speedway on April 17, 2011.
• The El Cajon, Calif.-native is currently tied with Lee Petty for ninth on NASCAR’s all-time wins list, one victory behind Rusty Wallace.
• He is second in total wins among active drivers, behind Jeff Gordon (82).
• Johnson needed only 296 starts to hit the 50 mark. Only three drivers have reached 50 victories quicker – Gordon (232), Darrell Waltrip (278) and David Pearson (293).
• Johnson has won at least three Cup races a season since he posted his first victory in 2002. He is the only driver in the modern era to win at least three races in each of his first eight full-time seasons.
• Johnson has won Sprint Cup Series races at all but four (Michigan, Chicago, Watkins Glen, Homestead) of the 22 tracks on which the series competes.
• Johnson’s 10 wins in 2007 was the highest number recorded in a single season since Jeff Gordon posted 13 victories in 1998.
• The four-consecutive wins scored by the No. 48 team in the 2007 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup ties a modern-era NASCAR record.

Career Poles
• Johnson has collected 25 poles in his Sprint Cup career.
• The championship driver has earned at least one pole a year since his first full-time season in 2002.
• He had a career-high six poles in 2008.
• Johnson’s most recent pole position was at Dover International Speedway on Sept. 24, 2010.

Career Starts
• Johnson has finished in the top five in the Sprint Cup Series point standings each year since his first full season in 2002.
• Johnson is the only driver to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup every year since the format was adopted in 2004.
• In 335 Sprint Cup Series starts, Johnson has posted 138 top-five and 208 top-10 finishes.
• He has a top-five finish at every track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series circuit.
• Johnson has led a total of 11,261 laps (of 96,718) in his Sprint Cup career, covering over 129,372 miles.
• He has finished on the lead lap 260 times.

- GMR Live Marketing for Team Lowe’s Racing, Press Release

No comments: