Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Pocono Raceway Track Facts: 2015 Axalta 400

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2015 Top 16 at Pocono Raceway

Driver
Races
Poles
Wins
Top Fives
Top 10s
DNFs
Average Finish
Driver Rating
 
 
1
Kevin Harvick
28
0
0
6
10
2
13.6
91.9
 
2
Martin Truex Jr.
18
0
0
2
6
0
15.9
80.4
 
3
Jimmie Johnson
26
3
3
10
17
1
9.9
106.9
 
4
Joey Logano
12
2
1
2
4
1
16.6
88.9
 
5
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
30
1
2
9
13
1
15.3
92.6
 
6
Brad Keselowski
10
0
1
3
4
0
13.4
90.8
 
7
Jamie McMurray
24
1
0
0
6
3
19.8
73.1
 
8
Kasey Kahne
22
2
2
5
8
3
17.8
92.1
 
9
Jeff Gordon
44
2
6
19
31
5
9.9
103.5
 
10
Aric Almirola
6
0
0
0
0
1
24.0
67.6
 
11
Matt Kenseth
30
0
0
3
10
1
16.0
86.7
 
12
Paul Menard
16
0
0
0
2
1
23.1
64.6
 
13
Ryan Newman
26
2
1
9
14
2
11.4
95.4
 
14
Denny Hamlin
18
3
4
9
12
2
11.9
108.3
 
15
Kurt Busch
27
1
2
11
15
5
14.7
105.9
 
16
Carl Edwards
20
0
2
5
8
1
15.5
94.2
 
* – Based on last 20 races at Pocono Raceway.




Pocono Raceway Data
Season Race #: 14 of 36 (06-07-15)
Track Size: 2.5-miles
Banking/Turn 1: 14 degrees
Banking/Turn 2: 8 degrees
Banking/Turn 3: 6 degrees
Frontstretch Length:  3,740 feet
Backstretch Length:  3,055 feet
Shortstretch Length:  1,780 feet
Race Length: 160 laps / 400 miles

Top 10 Driver Ratings at Pocono
Denny Hamlin............................ 108.3
Jimmie Johnson........................ 106.9
Kurt Busch................................ 105.9
Jeff Gordon.............................. 103.5
Tony Stewart............................... 97.6
Kyle Larson................................ 95.7
Ryan Newman............................. 95.4
Carl Edwards.............................. 94.2
Dale Earnhardt Jr........................ 92.6
Kasey Kahne.............................. 92.1
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2014 races (20 total) among active drivers at Pocono Raceway.

Qualifying/Race Data
2014 pole winner:
Denny Hamlin, Toyota
181.415 mph, 49.610 secs., 06-06-14

2014 race winner:
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet
139.440 mph, (02:52:07), 06-08-14

Track qualifying record:
Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
183.438 mph, 49.610 secs., 08-03-14

Track race record:
Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet
145.384 mph, (03:26:21), 06-12-11


At Pocono Raceway:
History
·         Opened in 1968 as a three-quarter-mile track, Pocono Raceway held the first race on the 2.5-mile track in 1971.
·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was in 1974 – won by Richard Petty, Dodge, 115.593 mph, 08/04/1974.
·         The 2.5-mile track was repaved during the fall of 2011.
Notebook
·         There have been 74 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Pocono Raceway, one race from 1974 through 1981, and two per year since.
·         2012 marked the first season the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono were scheduled for 400 miles. Prior to 2012 all NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races were 500 miles at Pocono Raceway.
·         322 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway; 229 in more than one.
·         Ricky Rudd leads the series in starts at Pocono with 55. Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 44 starts.
·         Buddy Baker won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Pocono in 1974 with a speed of 144.122 mph.  
·         40 drivers have posted Coors Light poles at Pocono, led by Bill Elliott and Ken Schrader with five each;Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin lead all active drivers with three each.
·         Five drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Pocono. Bill Elliott holds the record for most consecutive poles at Pocono with three; fall 1984 and both races in 1985.
·         Two active drivers have posted consecutive Coors Light poles at Pocono: Denny Hamlin (2006 sweep) andJoey Logano (fall 2011 and spring 2012).
·         Youngest Pocono pole winner: Joey Logano (08/07/2011 – 21 years, 2 months, 14 days).
·         Oldest Pocono pole winner: David Pearson (06/10/1984 – 49 years, 5 months, 19 days).

·         32 different drivers have won at Pocono Raceway, led by Jeff Gordon with six wins.  
·         Seven drivers have posted consecutive wins at Pocono Raceway, including three consecutive by Bobby Allison (1982 sweep and spring 1983) and Tim Richmond (1986 sweep and spring 1987).
·         Three of the seven drivers to win consecutive races at Pocono are active: Jimmie Johnson (2004 sweep);Denny Hamlin (2006 sweep and 2009 fall and 2010 spring races); Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2014 sweep).
·         Youngest Pocono winner: Joey Logano (06/10/2012 – 22 years, 0 months, 17 days).
·         Oldest Pocono winner: Harry Gant (06/17/1990 – 50 years, 5 months, 7 days).
·         Hendrick Motorsports has the most wins at Pocono in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 17: Jeff Gordon(six), Tim Richmond (three), Jimmie Johnson (three), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two), Kasey Kahne (one), Geoff Bodine (one) and Terry Labonte (one) – including the last four consecutively.
·         Eight different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Pocono; led by Chevrolet with 30 victories; followed byFord with 21 and Toyota has three.
·         15 of the 74 (20.2%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Jimmie Johnson (June, 2013).
·         The Coors Light pole position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (15) than any other starting position at Pocono Raceway.    
·         24 of the 74 (32.4%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono have been won from the front row: 15 from the pole and nine from second-place.
·         52 of the 74 (70.2%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Pocono have been won from a top-10 starting position.
·         Five of the 73 (6.8%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.
·         The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Pocono is 29th, by Carl Edwards in the spring of 2005.
·         Mark Martin leads the series in runner-up finishes at Pocono with seven; Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with six.
·         Mark Martin leads the series in top-five finishes at Pocono with 20; Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 19.  
·         Mark Martin leads the series in top-10 finishes at Pocono with 34; Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with 31.
·         Denny Hamlin leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Pocono with a 6.556.
·         Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at Pocono with a 9.864.
·         Denny Hamlin and Carl Edwards are the only two active drivers to win at Pocono in their first appearances.     

·         Matt Kenseth leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Pocono without visiting Victory Lane at 30; followed by Kevin Harvick with 28.
·         Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Pocono Raceway was the July 23, 2000 race won by Rusty Wallace over Jeff Burton with a MOV of 0.126 second.
·         There have been three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races resulting with a green-white-checkered finish at Pocono Raceway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): spring of 2005 (200/201); fall of 2005 (200/203); spring of 2010 (200/204).
·         Six of the 74 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Pocono Raceway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was the event on 8/5/2012.    
·         Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Pocono Raceway five times; most recently the spring of 2013.   
·         Kyle Larson (8/03/2014) and Casey Mears (8/1/2004) posted their first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Pocono Raceway.      
·         One active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver has posted his first career win at Pocono Raceway: Denny Hamlin (06/11/06).
·         Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Pocono with 1,037 laps led in 44 starts.  
·         Two female drivers have competed at Pocono Raceway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Janet Guthrie andDanica Patrick. Patrick’s average finish in four starts at Pocono is 32.750.
Driver
Starting Position
Finishing Position
Date
Danica Patrick
10
30
8/3/2014
Danica Patrick
16
37
6/8/2014
Danica Patrick
34
35
8/4/2013
Danica Patrick
30
29
6/9/2013
Janet Guthrie
21
28
7/27/1980
Janet Guthrie
22
31
7/30/1978
Janet Guthrie
10
11
7/31/1977


NASCAR in Pennsylvania
·         There have been 108 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races among nine tracks in Pennsylvania.
Track Name
City
NSCS
Pocono Raceway
Long Pond
74
Langhorne Speedway
Langhorne
17
Lincoln Speedway
New Oxford
7
Heidelberg Raceway
Pittsburgh
4
Reading Fairgrounds
Reading
2
Bloomsburg Fairgrounds
Bloomsburg
1
New Bradford Speedway
Bradford
1
Pine Grove Speedway
Shippenville
1
Williams Grove Speedway
Mechanicsburg
1

·         141 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as Pennsylvania.
·         Three of the 141 have won in NASCAR’s premiere series.
Driver
NSCS
NNS
NCWTS
Dick Linder
3
0
0
Jimmy Spencer
2
12
1
Mark Donohue
1
0
0



 
MILESTONES – Pocono Raceway

DRIVER
HAS
NEEDS
MILESTONE
Jeff Gordon
774
1
750th Consecutive NSCS Start - Gordon is first on the active consecutive NSCS starts list and second on the all-time NSCS list behind Ricky Rudd (788).
Jamie McMurray
449
1
550th Consecutive NSCS Start - McMurray is sixth on the active consecutive NSCS starts list and 17th on the all-time NSCS list.
Cole Whitt
49
1
50th Consecutive NSCS Start - Whitt, Annett and Dillon are tied for the 22nd position on the consecutive NSCS starts list.
Austin Dillon
49
1
50th Consecutive NSCS Start - Whitt, Annett and Dillon are tied for the 22nd position on the consecutive NSCS starts list.
Michael Annett
49
1
50th Consecutive NSCS Start - Whitt, Annett and Dillon are tied for the 22nd position on the consecutive NSCS starts list.
Jimmie Johnson
74
2
76th NSCS Win - Jimmie Johnson is eighth on the all-time NSCS wins list, two wins behind NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt in seventh (76 wins).
Tony Stewart
48
2
50th NSCS Win - Stewart is 13th on the all-time NSCS wins list, two wins behind NASCAR Hall of Famers Junior Johnson and Ned Jarrett in 12th (50 wins).
Matt Kenseth
32
1
33rd NSCS Win - Kenseth is tied with Dale Jarrett for 22nd on the all-time NSCS wins list, one win behind Fireball Roberts in 21st (33 wins).
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
24
1
25th NSCS Win - Earnhardt Jr. is tied with Carl Edwards for 30th on the all-time NSCS wins list, one win behind Joe Weatherly and Denny Hamlin in 29th (25 wins).
Carl Edwards
24
1
25th NSCS Win - Edwards is tied with Dale Earnhardt Jr. for 30th on the all-time NSCS wins list, one win behind Joe Weatherly and Denny Hamlin in 29th (25 wins).
Joey Logano
49
1
50th NSCS Top-Five Finish - Logano is 70th on the all-time NSCS top fives list, two top-fives behind Neil Castles and Cotton Owens in 68th (51).
Jeff Gordon
24,825
175
25,000 NSCS Laps Led - Gordon can become the sixth driver in NSCS history to lead 25,000 laps.
Matt Kenseth
9,594
406
10,000 Laps Led - Kenseth can become the 16th driver in series history to lead 10,000 or more laps. 
#43 car
199
1
200 NSCS Wins - The No. 43 car is second on the all-time NSCS wins list, five wins behind the No. 11 car in first (204).
 - NASCAR

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