Final New Hampshire Practice Notes and Driver Ratings: Edwards is real fast!

Edwards looks very sporty this week with new haircut and speed.

LAS VEGAS -- Carl Edwards said after Friday's first practice session where he was fourth fastest that he hasn't had a car that good at New Hampshire in a long time. He wasn't kidding either. And he took things up a notch later by grabbing the pole and then came back Saturday and put on another show which elevates him to the top of our charts and makes him the driver to beat in Sunday's 5-Hour Energy 301.

Kevin Harvick had the fastest lap (132.0.94 mph) during Saturday's early practice with Edwards third (131.888), but it was Edwards who showed the most continued speed over long runs with the best 10-consecutive lap average among the 25 drivers that ran as many in a row.

During the final practice session (happy hour), Edwards secured his top rating by not only having the fastest lap (133.110), but also having the best 10-consecutive lap average among 31 drivers. Kyle Busch, Harvick and Denny Hamlin were just behind Edwards in the average lap category.

Edwards has never won at New Hampshire over his career which is surprising because he's been very good on similar flat tracks at Phoenix and Richmond. But Sunday could be his day.

The most surprising part of all the practices was how good all the Joe Gibbs cars were because they weren't very good at Phoenix and Richmond earlier this year with Matt Kenseth's seventh-place at Richmond being the best finish between the two. Last week all four cars finished in the top-five, but that was with a temporary new aero-package.

Things were supposed to go back to normal this week with Harvick and Busch, the dominant Phoenix and Richmond winners, being bad to the bone again. And they were both fast during practices, and might even win the race, but Gibbs has something clicking right now. They've got things figured out.

Read More Here.....Final Driver Ratings

New Hampshire Preview: 2015 5-Hour ENERGY 301

Flat track racing at New Hampshire is always good.

LAS VEGAS -- It's safe to say the new down force aero package we saw debut at Kentucky last week was a smashing success. It accomplished everything NASCAR wanted by slowing cars down and creating more passing which combined together was a win-win for all the fans.

Kevin Harvick, who had dominated the down force tracks prior to Kentucky, and finished eighth Saturday -- his worst on those types -- might not agree with the new package being a success, but consider that there were 2,665 green flag passes on Saturday night compared to just 1,147 on the same track last season.

Kyle Busch ended up taking control of the race to win for the second time this season and has eight races to make up gap of 87 points between he and the 30th-place car to become eligible for the Chase. All four of the Joe Gibbs drivers had the new package figured out as they all finished in the top-five.

Unfortunately, we won’t see the new aero package in the 10-race Chase. They’ll give it to us again for Darlington, but that’s it, which means Harvick can go back to running his dominating set-up again on the five 1.5-mile tracks during the Chase. NASCAR will raise the spoilers at Indianapolis and Michigan to create more drag, but the Chase will be decided with the aero package that the season started with which means more Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Martin Truex, Jr. and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. domination.

This Sunday’s New Hampshire 301 will also be using the regular package and based on what we saw at Phoenix and Richmond, we shouldn’t expect to see too many drivers leading laps. I like to group Phoenix, Richmond and New Hampshire together simply because the crew chiefs do it for their set-ups. Many bring the same chassis’ to each if successful and because all three tracks are flat and range from 1-mile to ¾-mile in distance, we can apply them to each other to make odds and also as a basis for wagering strategies.

Read More Here....Top-5 Finish Prediction

Video: Roberts talks New Hampshire odds

Ryan Newman tries for fourth New Hampshire win Sunday

Ryan Newman is 60/1 at New Hampshire this week. 

Ryan Newman
No. 31 Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS

Race Notes and Quotes:

This Week’s Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS at New Hampshire Motor Speedway … Ryan Newman will drive chassis No. 462 on Sunday at the Magic Mile. This Chevrolet SS was utilized earlier this season at Richmond International Raceway (Start: 23/Finish: 11) and Phoenix International Raceway (Start: 5/Finish: 3).

Newman at the Magic Mile … Newman will make his 495th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start when the series competes at the 1.058-mile oval where he owns three victories; the 2002 and 2005 fall events and the 2011 spring race. The “Rocket Man” also owns seven pole awards. In total, he owns seven top-five and 16 top-10 finishes. Also, he has led 722 laps in competition. The South Bend, Ind., native has an average start of 8.7 and average finish of 13.8. Plus he ranks sixth in most points earned in the last 10 races at Loudon.

Engineered to Amaze … Detroit-based Quicken Loans Inc. is the nation’s second largest retail home mortgage lender. The company closed $140 billion of mortgage volume across all 50 states in 2013-2014. Quicken Loans generates loan production from web centers located in Detroit, Cleveland and Scottsdale, Arizona. The company also operates a centralized loan processing facility in Detroit, as well as its San Diego-based One Reverse Mortgage unit. Quicken Loans ranked “Highest in Customer Satisfaction for Primary Mortgage Origination” in the United States by J.D. Power for the past five consecutive years, 2010 – 2014, and highest in customer satisfaction among all mortgage servicers in 2014.

Quicken Loans was named among the top-30 companies on FORTUNE magazine’s annual “100 Best Companies to Work For” list for the last 12 consecutive years, ranking No. 12 in 2015. It has been recognized as one of Computerworld magazine’s ‘100 Best Places to Work in IT’ the past ten years, ranking No. 1 in 2014, 2013, 2007, 2006 and 2005. The company moved its headquarters to downtown Detroit in 2010, and now more than 10,000 of its nearly 12,000 team members work in the city’s urban core. For more information about Quicken Loans, please visit QuickenLoans.com, on Twitter at @QLnews, and on Facebook at Facebook.com/QuickenLoans.

Get to the Points … Newman ranks 14th in the championship point standings and 15th in the Chase Grid with just eight races remaining before the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup championship begins.

Last Time Around at NHMS … After starting ninth and racing in the top 10 for the majority of the race, the team experienced a close call on lap 187 when several cars made contact on the restart. The No. 31 sustained damage to the front nose. The chance to fix it came on lap 222 and Newman remained focused despite restarting 22nd with 75 laps to go. The Richard Childress Racing driver raced up to 13th but got shuffled in traffic during the final two restarts and when the checkered flag waved in overtime, the Quicken Loans team settled for an 18th-place finish.

Double Duty … Newman will race the 7ny Mike Curb entry in Saturday’s Whelen Modified Tour event at NHMS. Partners on board with Newman are WIX Filters, Menards and Aggressive Hydraulics.

RYAN NEWMAN QUOTES:

What is the key to getting around New Hampshire Motor Speedway?
“The key to Loudon is just hitting your marks and being really smooth. Usually at some point it incorporates saving some fuel but for the most part, it’s just two drag strips and a hairpin turn. Getting the car to turn in the middle is important but you have to get in and off as hard. It’s just like any other track, but it’s more biased to entry and exit speed.”

What is the hardest part about the track?
“The hardest part about the track is it’s so flat. You have to be so sensitive to the tires sliding. There is nothing to catch you like banking or extra grip. It’s very sensitive when it comes to that. Plus, it’s fairly bumpy, especially getting into Turn 3.”

Are you looking forward to double duty?
“Running the Whelen Modified Tour up there is really cool. It is their version of our Daytona 500. It’s a lot of fun to go up there and race with those guys. They are really respectable drivers who don’t mind me coming in and racing with them. They also put on a great show.”

- Richard Childress Racing

Kyle Busch on a roll heading into New Hampshire 301

Kyle Busch is 10/1 to win at New Hampshire.

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (July 14, 2015) – Don’t look now, but a driver hailing from Las Vegas is on quite the roll in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

And along the way, Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota, has certainly lived up to Interstate’s slogan of “Outrageously Dependable,” winning two of the last three Sprint Cup races. He’ll look to add another as the series heads to New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon for Sunday’s New Hampshire 301.

Busch added his second win of the season Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta and is looking for more at a place where he has seen success before. He brought home his first New Hampshire victory in July 2006, a win that came in dominating fashion in which he led 107 laps. That gave the Las Vegas native plenty of confidence that he could get multiple wins at the “Magic Mile” over the rest of his career, and his next chance comes this weekend.

Despite numerous strong runs at New Hampshire in the 17 Sprint Cup starts there since his 2006 victory, none have ended with a celebration in victory lane for Busch. The driver of the Interstate Batteries Toyota has posted five top-five finishes in those 17 starts, including two runner-up finishes in his last three starts there. In all, Busch has seven top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in 20 starts at New Hampshire.

Busch is coming off two particularly strong seasons at the New England track – second-place finishes in both 2013 Sprint Cup races along with second- and eighth-place finishes, respectively, in the 2014 stops. Outside the Sprint Cup ranks, Busch has four wins, one pole and six top-five results in nine NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Loudon to go with three wins, one pole and six top-10s in seven NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.

Busch has only seven Sprint Cup starts thus far in 2015 since returning from injury in May at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. After two wins in the last three weeks, the next order of business is New Hampshire as he looks to continue his march toward a berth in this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship playoffs. His two wins would normally lock Busch into the Chase, but he still must finish the regular season in the top-30 in the driver standings in order to be eligible. He was granted a Chase exemption after missing the first 11 races of the season while recovering from injuries suffered at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway in February. With his two wins in-hand, including the maximum 48 points scored Saturday night at Kentucky, Busch’s gap to 30th-place Cole Whitt in the driver standings is down to 87 points with eight regular-season races remaining.

So, as NASCAR’s top series heads to New Hampshire for Sunday’s New Hampshire 301, Busch will look to continue his hot streak in front of the many Interstate Batteries distributors and dealers across New England.

KYLE BUSCH, Driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing:

What does it take to be successful at New Hampshire?
“Loudon is a Martinsville-like short track but it’s just over a mile. It’s a little more spread out, but there’s some rooting and gouging going on because it’s a one-lane track and everybody fights for that particular groove. To be fast at Loudon, you have to have good brakes and you have to roll the center really well and get that good forward bite off the corners and make sure it sticks. The biggest thing about Loudon is, you keep losing front turn and that’s why the brakes go away, just because the corners are longer and more sweeping that you need to keep those front tires around you.”

If you won at Loudon again, what would you do with the lobster the track gives each Sprint Cup winner?
“I haven’t won at Loudon since they’ve been giving away lobsters so, if I won there again, I don’t know what I would do with it. Samantha (Busch, wife) says that we should put it back in its natural habitat. We’ve been so close there recently so, if we were able to get it done, we’ll worry about that Lobster part later. Taking another trophy home from there would be pretty cool. We have a lot of Interstate Batteries dealers and distributers up in that part of the country, so it would be great if we were able to get the opportunity to be able to have them come celebrate with us in victory lane.”

How important was it to get the points deficit to the top-30 down to double digits? In other words, how important was it to break through that century mark and give yourself a shot with eight races to get it done?
“Obviously, it’s on our mind but I’m not thinking about the points gained when we win. When we win, I know we did all we can do. That’s awesome. And it is what it is. They lie wherever they lie. It’s more of the 17th -place finish at Daytona and you know that those other guys can have decent finishes at those places, as well. So, because it’s just such an unknown that you kind of look at the points and you’re, like, ‘OK, how many did I gain – I think I only gained six or seven or something last week on the top-30.’ But this week was a good week. So that’s what matters most, for us to go out there and perform, and perform at our best at the level that we know how to do, and that’s what I’ve said since I came back. If we do everything right and do it the way we know we can, there’s no reason we shouldn’t be able to average a 14th-place finish, or whatever it’s going to be so I can be in the Chase, be in the top-30. And now with two wins, man, I never would have imagined we would have gotten two wins this fast. But I’ve got a great team and they have done a really good job. Well, when I won at Sonoma, it was like my 11th-best track of the 13 or 14 races I had left in the regular season after I came back. It was way down at the bottom, and Kentucky was probably one of my top-three. So, we have won at the top and the bottom of the list so far, so, not too shabby. Hopefully we can keep going.”

The New Hampshire race is one of the shortest on the circuit. How do you approach that race knowing you might have a little less time to get to the front at the end?
“Essentially, at Loudon, you’re looking at how good your fuel mileage is and you have to look at when you have to make your last pit stop since that’s what everyone looks at. You end up running it almost like a road-course race because you do want to be the first guy on the last round of pit stops to pit. You want to get in there, get your tires and fuel, and then stay out the rest of the race and keep your track position since it’s so important there. It’s just a challenging race because it is so hard to pass there. You can’t be two-tenths faster than a guy and be able to pass him because everyone typically runs the same speed. You’ll have it where the leader might be a tenth better than the second-place guy, but everyone is separated by so little that it takes a mistake on someone’s part in order to pass them there.”

When you make a mistake at Loudon, does it cost you a little bit more because you have less time to recover?
“You don’t because you’re always on edge there. You’re trying to go as fast as you can into the corners, as deep as you can into the corners while rolling as much speed, or just a bit higher than everyone else so you are able to get back to the gas sooner. You’re going harder than everyone else in order to make the straightaway a little bit longer and get your momentum built back up. It’s definitely a challenging racetrack – not one of my best racetracks, I’ll admit that. I have won there in the past so, if we get a good car, I guess I’ll need to have a really good car, apparently. Then we might have a shot to win there.”

KYLE BUSCH’S NEW HAMPSHIRE SPRINT CUP SERIES PERFORMANCE PROFILE

Year	Date	Event	Start	Finish	Status/Laps	Laps Led	Earnings
2014	7/13	×Camping World RV Sales 301	1	2	Running, 305/305	62	$239,066
	9/21	×Sylvania 300	5	8	Running, 301/301	0	$138,906
2013	7/14	×Camping World RV Sales 301	4	2	Running, 302/302	53	$228,043
	9/22	Sylvania 300	12	2	Running, 300/300	0	$210,143
2012	7/15	Lenox Industrial Tools 301	1	16	Running, 301/301	72	$132,168
	9/23	Sylvania 300	2	28	Running, 298/300	48	$124,643
2011	7/17	Lenox Industrial Tools 301	19	36	Running, 301/301	0	$118,216
	9/25	Sylvania 300	8	11	Running, 300/300	0	$128,816
2010	6/27	Lenox Industrial Tools 301	22	11	Running, 301/301	46	$127,106
	9/19	Sylvania 300	9	9	Running, 300/300	0	$129,581
2009	6/27	*†Lenox Industrial Tools 301	9	7	Running, 273/273	0	$113,510
	9/20	Sylvania 300	9	5	Running, 300/300	0	$149,523
2008	6/29	*Lenox Industrial Tools 301	27	25	Running, 284/284	0	$91,300
	9/14	†Sylvania 300	1	34	Running, 288/300	3	$88,800
2007	7/1	Lenox Industrial Tools 300	18	11	Running, 300/300	48	$99,750
	9/16	Sylvania 300	12	4	Running, 300/300	21	$135,450
2006	7/16	×Lenox Industrial Tools 300	4	1	Running, 308/308	107	$242,175
	9/17	Sylvania 300	16	38	Running, 276/300	0	$85,500
2005	7/17	New England 300	7	4	Running, 300/300	0	$117,475
	9/18	Sylvania 300	30	27	Running, 299/300	0	$80,800

× Race length extended due to green-white-checkered finish.            

† Qualifying canceled due to weather, starting position set via car owner points. 

* Race cut short due to weather.   

- True Speed Communication for M&M’s Racing

Matt Kenseth now a very accomplished driver at New Hampshire

Matt Kenseth is 12/1 to win Sunday at New Hampshire.

Matt Kenseth / No. 20 Dollar General Toyota Preview
New Hampshire 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

No. 20 Dollar General Toyota News and Notes:

KENSETH BY THE NUMBERS: In 30 Sprint Cup Series career starts at New Hampshire, Matt Kenseth has an average finish of 13.3, has completed 8,781 of 8,858 (99.1 percent) career laps, and has led for a total of 240 laps. He earned his first win at Loudon in his 500th Sprint Cup Series start in 2013’s Sylvania 300. Kenseth also has seven top-five, 15 top-10 finishes, and one pole award at the 1.06-mile track.

JOE GIBBS RACING AT LOUDON: Joe Gibbs Racing has 93 Sprint Cup Series starts at New Hampshire and has earned six wins, 31 top-five, and 48 top-ten finishes. The organization has led for a total of 1,922 laps, has an average start of 13.8, an average finish of 13.1, and has completed 26,848 of 27,594 (97.3 percent) laps.

THIS WEEK ON THE NO. 20 DOLLAR GENERAL TOYOTA: Dollar General vendor partners Sundown Naturals, Huggies, Airwick, Glad, Slim Jim, Gildan, TUMS, Lipton, Nestle Drumstick, Maxwell House and STP will be featured on Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 20 Toyota Camry this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

RACE INFO: The New Hampshire 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (1.06-mile) begins at 1:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 19th. The race will be broadcast live on NBCSN, Sirius XM Channel 90 and PRN Radio.

Kenseth’s 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Season Stats:

Starts	Wins	Top 5	Top 10	Poles	Laps Led	Earnings	Avg. Start	Avg. Finish
18	1	6	10	2	143	$2,934,028	12.2	14.7

Kenseth’s Career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Stats:

Starts	Wins	Top 5	Top 10	Poles	Laps Led	Earnings	Avg. Start	Avg. Finish
562	32	157	280	15	9,598	$110,098,276	18.0	14.1

From the Cockpit:
Matt Kenseth: “At New Hampshire, you need to be able to have your car turn well through the middle, yet still have rear grip. One of the most challenging things about those flat tracks like Loudon is when you’re slow across the middle, you just can’t do much with your car. Loudon used to be a challenging track for me, but JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) has had a lot of strong runs there and I was able to learn a lot from my teammates. The fact that we won there in 2013 is really a testament to the strength of our organization and I’m hopeful that we can have another strong run at Loudon this weekend.”

From the Pit Box:
Jason Ratcliff: “Besides Dover, Loudon is my favorite track on the circuit and I think it’s because I just like working on a race car at the track. Since Matt (Kenseth) came over to us, Loudon has been a pretty good track for our No. 20 team. We won that race in 2013 and I thought we ran well last year, but I’m just looking forward to getting back to a short track. We just haven’t had a chance to get back to a short track to see how our 2015 package is progressing so this weekend is important. We’ll come back to New Hampshire during the Chase so it means a lot heading there this weekend and learning what we can. Some of the things we learn at Loudon we can apply to Phoenix, so it will be an important weekend.”

About Dollar General:
Dollar General Corporation has been delivering value to shoppers for over 75 years. Dollar General helps shoppers Save time. Save money. Every day!® by offering products that are frequently used and replenished, such as food, snacks, health and beauty aids, cleaning supplies, basic apparel, house wares and seasonal items at low everyday prices in convenient neighborhood locations. With more than 12,000 stores in 43 states, Dollar General has more retail locations than any retailer in America. In addition to high quality private brands, Dollar General sells products from America’s most-trusted manufacturers such as Clorox, Energizer, Procter & Gamble, Hanes, Coca-Cola, Mars, Unilever, Nestle, Kimberly-Clark, Kellogg’s, General Mills, and PepsiCo. For more information on Dollar General, please visit www.dollargeneral.com.

DG at the Track:
Dollar General has more retail locations than any retailer in America, with more than 12,000 stores in 43 states. There are six Dollar General locations in the Loudon, N.H. area.

- Joe Gibbs Racing

New Hampshire Motor Speedway Track Facts: 2015 5-Hour ENERGY 301

Brad Keselowski is one of the favorites to win Sunday at New Hampshire.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2015 Top 16 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

	Driver	Races	Poles	Wins	Top Fives	Top 10s	DNFs	Average Finish	Driver Rating
1	Kevin Harvick	28	1	1	6	14	0	13.9	93.1
2	Jimmie Johnson	26	0	3	10	18	1	10.3	102.1
3	Joey Logano	13	0	2	3	5	2	17.9	77.2
4	Dale Earnhardt Jr	31	0	0	7	14	4	15.3	97.1
5	Martin Truex Jr	18	0	0	3	6	1	14.4	86.3
6	Brad Keselowski	11	3	1	4	7	0	11	95.6
7	Jamie McMurray	24	0	0	4	6	3	20.5	70.4
8	Kurt Busch	28	0	3	7	11	1	16.1	88.1
9	Matt Kenseth	30	0	1	7	15	1	13.3	85.7
10	Jeff Gordon	40	4	3	16	22	2	11.4	107.3
11	Denny Hamlin	18	0	2	7	11	0	10.5	103.2
12	Kasey Kahne	22	0	1	3	8	3	17	91.3
13	Paul Menard	16	0	0	0	0	0	23.7	61.4
14	Ryan Newman	26	7	3	7	16	3	13.8	91.8
15	Clint Bowyer	18	1	2	4	7	1	14.5	95.0
16	Aric Almirola	9	0	0	1	2	0	19.6	64.8

* – Based on last 20 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

New Hampshire Motor Speedway Data Season Race #: 19 of 36 (07-19-15) Track Size: 1.058-mile Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 2 to 7 degrees Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 2 to 7 degrees Banking/Frontstretch: 1 degree Banking/Backstretch: 1 degree Frontstretch Length:  1,500 feet Backstretch Length:  1,500 feet Race Length: 301 laps / 318.46 miles Top 10 Driver Rating at New Hampshire Jeff Gordon.............................. 107.3 Tony Stewart............................. 106.9 Denny Hamlin............................ 103.2 Jimmie Johnson........................ 102.1 Kyle Larson................................ 99.1 Dale Earnhardt Jr........................ 97.1 Brad Keselowski......................... 95.6 Clint Bowyer............................... 95.0 Kyle Busch................................. 94.7 Kevin Harvick.............................. 93.1 Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2014 races (20 total) among active drivers at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Qualifying/Race Data 2014 pole winner: Kyle Busch, Toyota 138.130 mph, 27.574 secs. 07-11-14 2014 race winner: Brad Keselowski, Ford 108.741 mph, (02:58:03), 07-13-14 Track qualifying record: Brad Keselowski, Ford 140.598 mph, 27.090 secs. 09-21-14 Track race record: Jeff Burton, Ford 117.134 mph, (02:42:35), 07-13-97

New Hampshire Motor Speedway:

History

·         Groundbreaking for New Hampshire International Speedway, as New Hampshire Motor Speedway was originally named, was Aug. 13, 1989.

·         The 1.058-mile oval is located on approximately 1,200 acres; the multi-use complex is the largest sports facility in New England.

·         The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was on July 11, 1993 – won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace.

·         Speedway Motorsports, Inc. agreed to purchase New Hampshire International Speedway from Bob and Gary Bahre on January 11, 2008 and then renamed the track New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Starts

·         There have been 40 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway; one per year from 1993 through 1996 and two per year since.

·         160 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire; 129 in more than one.

·         Jeff Gordon has competed in all 40 races at New Hampshire – the only driver to accomplish the feat.

·         Only one active championship contending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver has made their first career start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway: Joey Logano (9/14/08).

·         Three drivers will attempt to make their series debuts at New Hampshire this weekend: Trevor Bayne, Matt DiBenedetto and Brett Moffit.

·         Ryan Newman leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at New Hampshire with an 8.692.

Poles

·         Mark Martin won the inaugural Coors Light pole at New Hampshire in 1993 with a speed of 126.871 mph. 

·         18 drivers have Coors Light poles at New Hampshire, led by Ryan Newman with seven.

·         Four active drivers have multiple poles at New Hampshire: Ryan Newman (seven), Jeff Gordon (four), Brad Keselowski (three) and Kyle Busch (two).

Poles

·         Five drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at New Hampshire: Ken Schrader (1997 sweep); Jeff Gordon (1998-1999); Rusty Wallace (1999-2000); Ryan Newman (twice – 2003-2004 and 2011 sweep); Juan Pablo Montoya (2009-2010).

·         Youngest New Hampshire Coors Light pole winner: Brian Vickers (07/17/2005 – 21 years, 8 months, 23 days).

·         Oldest New Hampshire Coors Light pole winner: Bill Elliott (07/21/2002 – 46 years, 9 months, 13 days).

·         Brad Keselowski (9/19/10) is the only active driver to post his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.       

Wins

·         24 different drivers have won at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, led by Jeff Burton with four.

·         Eight active drivers have multiple wins at NHMS: Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Tony Stewart (each have three); Clint Bowyer, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano (each have two)

·         Two drivers have posted consecutive wins at New Hampshire Motor Speedway: Jimmie Johnson (2003 sweep) and Kurt Busch (2004 sweep). 

·         Youngest New Hampshire winner: Joey Logano (06/28/2009 – 19 years, 1 month, 4 days).

·         Oldest New Hampshire winner: Mark Martin (09/20/2009 – 50 years, 8 months, 11 days).

·         Hendrick Motorsports leads the series in wins at New Hampshire in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with nine; followed by Roush Fenway Racing (seven), Team Penske (six), Joe Gibbs Racing (six) and Richard Childress Racing (four).

·         Five different manufacturers have won at New Hampshire; led by Chevrolet with 18 victories; followed by Ford(13), Toyota (four), Dodge (three) and Pontiac (two).

·         Jeff Burton is the only driver to win the July race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway three consecutive years in a row (1997, ’98 and ’99)

·         Five of the 40 (12.5%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Ryan Newman in 2011.

·         The Coors Light pole is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (five) than any other starting position at New Hampshire.    

·         Eight of the 40 (20%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire have been won from the front row: five from the pole and three from second-place.

·         22 of the 40 (55%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at New Hampshire have been won from a top-10 starting position.

·         Nine of the 40 (22.5%) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at New Hampshire have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

Wins

·         The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at New Hampshire is 38th, by Jeff Burton in 1999.

·         The deepest in the field that an active race winner has started at New Hampshire is 32nd, by Kurt Busch in the summer of 2003.

·         Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at New Hampshire without visiting Victory Lane at 31; followed by Jamie McMurray and Casey Mears (24 starts each).

·         Three active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers have posted their first career win at New Hampshire Motor Speedway: Ryan Newman (9/15/02), Clint Bowyer (9/16/07) and Joey Logano (6/28/09).

Additional Finishing Position Stats 

·         Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart are tied for the series lead in runner-up finishes at New Hampshire with five each. 

·         Jeff Gordon leads the series in top-five finishes at New Hampshire with 16; followed by Tony Stewart with 14 and Jimmie Johnson with 10.   

·         Jeff Gordon leads the series in top-10 finishes at New Hampshire with 22; followed by Tony Stewart andJimmie Johnson with 18 each.

·         Jimmie Johnson leads NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at New Hampshire with an 10.269.

·         All 14 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race winners at New Hampshire Motor Speedway participated in at least one or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Ryan Newman and Joey Logano won at New Hampshire in their second appearance.     

Track Specific Stats

·         Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway was the July 1, 2007 race won by Denny Hamlin over Jeff Gordon with a MOV of 0.068 second.

·         17 of the 33 (51.5%) NSCS races scored by electronic scoring at New Hampshire Motor Speedway have had a Margin of Victory less than a second.

·         Four of the 40 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races have resulted with a green-white-checkered finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): 2006 (300/308), 2013 (301/302), 2014 (301/302) and the Chase race 2014 (300/303).

·         Four of the 40 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was June 28, 2009 – the race was called on Lap 273, 28 circuits shy of the 301 scheduled laps.   

Track Specific Stats

·         Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway five times: fall 2001, summer 2003, fall 2004, fall 2008 and summer 2009.  

·         Jeff Gordon leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at New Hampshire with 1,371 laps led in 40 starts. 

·         Jeff Gordon leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps completed at New Hampshire with 11,666 laps completed in 40 starts. 

Female Competitor Stats

·         Danica Patrick is the only female driver that has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Date	Driver	Starting Position	Finishing Position	Driver Rating
9/21/2014	Danica Patrick	18	19	79.7
7/13/2014	Danica Patrick	29	22	60.9
9/22/2013	Danica Patrick	21	27	57.1
7/14/2013	Danica Patrick	32	37	47.7
Averages		25.0	26.3	61.35

NASCAR in New Hampshire

·         There have been 40 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in New Hampshire, all at NHMS.

Track Name	City	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
New Hampshire Motor Speedway	Loudon	40	28	17

·         15 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as New Hampshire; Jamie Aubeis the only one of the 15 to record a victory in NASCAR national series competition.  Aube won July 12, 1987 at Oxford Plains Speedway in Oxford, ME; it was his only start that season.

Milestones – New Hampshire Motor Speedway

DRIVER	HAS	NEEDS	MILESTONE	DESCRIPTION
Jeff Gordon	779	1	780th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Career Start	Gordon will attempt to tie Michael Waltrip (780) for ninth on the all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career starts list.
Michael McDowell	174	1	175th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Career Start	McDowell is 145th on the all-time NASCAR sprint Cup Series career starts list; two starts behind Walter Ballard in 144th (176)
Sam Hornish Jr.	149	1	150th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Career Start	Hornish is 160th on the all-time NASCAR sprint Cup Series career starts list; one start behind Cotton Owens in 159th (150)
Denny Hamlin	49	1	50th Consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Career Start	Hamlin is 26th on the active consecutive NSCS career starts list, two starts behind Landon Cassill (51) in 25th.
Jimmie Johnson	74	2	76th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 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 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Win	Stewart is 13th on the all-time NSCS wins list, two wins behind NASCAR Hall of Famer Ned Jarrett in 12th (50 wins).
Carl Edwards	24	1	25th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Win	Edwards is 31st on the all-time NSCS wins list, one win behind Dale Earnhardt Jr., Joe Weatherly and Denny Hamlin tied for 28th (25 wins).
Jeff Gordon	24,826	174	25,000 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Laps Led	Gordon can become the sixth driver in NSCS history to lead 25,000 laps; joining Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough, David Pearson and Bobby Allison.
Matt Kenseth	9,598	402	10,000 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Laps Led	Kenseth can become the 16th driver in series history to lead 10,000 or more laps.
Kevin Harvick	7,788	212	8,000 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Laps Led	Kevin Harvick can become the 24th driver in series history to lead 8,000 or more laps.
#43 car	199	1	200 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Wins	The No. 43 car is second on the all-time NSCS wins list, five wins behind the No. 11 car in first (204). The last win for the No. 43 car came at Daytona last season.