DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Aug. 30,
2010)
– Below is a look at some of the
top statistical performers at
Atlanta Motor Speedway going
into the Emory Healthcare 500 on
Sept. 5.
ATLANTA-SPECIFIC STATISTICS
Greg Biffle (No. 16 SCOTCH BLUE
Ford)
·
Enters Atlanta 11th in points
·
Three top fives, nine top
10s; one pole
·
Average finish of 15.0
·
Average Running Position of
12.2, sixth-best
·
Driver Rating of 95.0,
eighth-best
·
214 Fastest Laps Run,
fifth-most
·
594 Green Flag Passes,
12th-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.711 mph, 11th-fastest
·
2,647 Laps in the Top 15
(73.5%), fourth-most
·
353 Quality Passes (passes of
cars in the top 15 under green),
fifth-most
Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite
Dodge)
·
10th in points
·
Three wins, three top fives,
seven top 10s
·
Average finish of 18.7
·
Average Running Position of
14.4, 11th-best
·
Driver Rating of 97.0,
sixth-best
·
233 Fastest Laps Run,
second-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.796 mph, seventh-fastest
·
2,223 Laps in the Top 15
(61.8%), 11th-most
·
342 Quality Passes,
eighth-most
Kyle Busch (No. 18 Pedigree
Toyota)
·
Third in points
·
One win, two top fives, two
top 10s
·
Average finish of 18.3
·
Average Running Position of
15.2, 13th-best
·
Driver Rating of 88.7,
11th-best
·
142 Fastest Laps Run,
ninth-most
·
655 Green Flag Passes,
seventh-most
·
305 Quality Passes, 12th-most
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88
National Guard/AMP Energy
Chevrolet)
·
18th in points
·
One win, eight top fives, 10
top 10s; two poles
·
Average finish of 12.0
·
Average Running Position of
11.6, fifth-best
·
Driver Rating of 98.7,
fourth-best
·
222 Fastest Laps Run,
fourth-most
·
666 Green Flag Passes,
fourth-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.989 mph, third-fastest
·
2,657 Laps in the Top 15
(73.8%), third-most
·
363 Quality Passes,
fourth-most
Carl Edwards (No. 99 Aflac Ford)
·
Fourth in points
·
Three wins, six top fives,
eight top 10s
·
Average finish of 15.3
·
Average Running Position of
14.2, 10th-best
·
Driver Rating of 99.4,
third-best
·
Series-high 291 Fastest Laps
Run
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
172.022 mph, second-fastest
·
2,629 Laps in the Top 15
(73.0%), fifth-most
·
316 Quality Passes, 10th-most
Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont/Jeff
Gordon Foundation Chevrolet)
·
Second in points
·
Four wins, 14 top fives, 23
top 10s; two poles
·
Average finish of 12.4
·
Average Running Position of
10.7, second-best
·
Driver Rating of 101.8,
second-best
·
155 Fastest Laps Run,
eighth-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.717 mph, 10th-fastest
·
2,857 Laps in the Top 15
(79.4%), second-most
·
365 Quality Passes,
second-most
Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Sport Clips
Toyota)
·
Fifth in points
·
One top five, three top 10s
·
Average finish of 15.9
·
Average Running Position of
11.2, third-best
·
Driver Rating of 94.5,
ninth-best
·
133 Fastest Laps Run,
11th-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.854 mph, fifth-fastest
·
2,181 Laps in the Top 15
(66.6%), 13th-most
·
316 Quality Passes, 10th-most
Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's/KOBALT
Tools Chevrolet)
·
Ninth in points
·
Three wins, nine top fives,
11 top 10s
·
Average finish of 10.8
·
Series-best Average Running
Position of 7.8
·
Series-best Driver Rating of
109.5
·
223 Fastest Laps Run,
third-most
·
Series-best Average Green
Flag Speed of 172.196 mph
·
Series-high 3,220 Laps in the
Top 15 (89.4%)
·
Series-high 374 Quality
Passes
Kasey Kahne (No. 9 Budweiser/Valvoline
Ford)
·
16th in points
·
Two wins, six top fives,
eight top 10s; one pole
·
Average finish of 16.0
·
Driver Rating of 93.3,
10th-best
·
210 Fastest Laps Run,
sixth-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.675 mph, 12th-fastest
·
2,261 Laps in the Top 15
(62.8%), 10th-most
Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Crown Royal
Ford)
·
Eighth in points
·
Eight top fives, 12 top 10s
·
Average finish of 13.1
·
Average Running Position of
12.9, seventh-best
·
Driver Rating of 96.5,
seventh-best
·
138 Fastest Laps Run,
10th-most
·
666 Green Flag Passes,
fourth-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.869 mph, fourth-fastest
·
2,588 Laps in the Top 15
(71.9%), seventh-most
·
365 Quality Passes,
second-most
Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42
Target Chevrolet)
·
19th in points
·
Three top fives, three top
10s
·
Average finish of 18.3
·
Driver Rating of 86.8,
13th-best
·
288 Quality Passes, 13th-most
Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office
Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet)
·
Sixth in points
·
Two wins, eight top fives, 13
top 10s
·
Average finish of 12.0
·
Average Running Position of
11.5, fourth-best
·
Driver Rating of 98.7,
fifth-best
·
162 Fastest Laps Run,
seventh-most
·
2,597 Laps in the Top 15
(72.1%), sixth-most
·
344 Quality Passes,
seventh-most
Martin Truex Jr. (No. 56 NAPA
Auto Parts Toyota)
·
20th in points
·
Two top 10s; one pole
·
Average finish of 24.6
·
Average Running Position of
13.0, eighth-best
·
Driver Rating of 87.6,
12th-best
·
109 Fastest Laps Run,
12th-most
·
Average Green Flag Speed of
171.810 mph, sixth-fastest
·
2,306 Laps in the Top 15
(70.4%), ninth-most
·
333 Quality Passes,
ninth-most
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Top
12 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
|
|
Driver
|
Races
|
Poles
|
Wins
|
Top Fives
|
Top 10s
|
DNFs
|
Average Finish
|
Driver Rating*
|
|
1
|
Kevin Harvick
|
19
|
0
|
1
|
4
|
6
|
3
|
19.8
|
81.1
|
|
2
|
Jeff Gordon
|
36
|
2
|
4
|
14
|
23
|
5
|
12.4
|
101.8
|
|
3
|
Kyle Busch
|
12
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
18.3
|
88.7
|
|
4
|
Carl Edwards
|
12
|
0
|
3
|
6
|
8
|
2
|
15.3
|
99.4
|
|
5
|
Denny Hamlin
|
10
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
15.9
|
94.5
|
|
6
|
Tony Stewart
|
23
|
0
|
2
|
8
|
13
|
3
|
12.0
|
98.7
|
|
7
|
Jeff Burton
|
32
|
0
|
0
|
7
|
13
|
3
|
17.2
|
84.9
|
|
8
|
Matt Kenseth
|
21
|
0
|
0
|
8
|
12
|
3
|
13.1
|
96.5
|
|
9
|
Jimmie Johnson
|
18
|
0
|
3
|
9
|
11
|
1
|
10.8
|
109.5
|
|
10
|
Kurt Busch
|
19
|
0
|
3
|
3
|
7
|
3
|
18.7
|
97.0
|
|
11
|
Greg Biffle
|
15
|
1
|
0
|
3
|
9
|
2
|
15.0
|
95.0
|
|
12
|
Clint Bowyer
|
9
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
4
|
0
|
16.4
|
81.8
|
* – Driver Rating based on last
11 Atlanta Motor Speedway races.
Chase Contenders
The Top 12 Following Race 24 of
36
Rank
Season
Last
Driver
Driver Points
Wins Poles Week Rating
1. Kevin Harvick
3,521 3
0 1 96.6
2. Jeff Gordon
3,242 0
0 2 104.4
3. Kyle Busch
3,170 3
2 8 97.3
4. Carl Edwards
3,113 0 1
6 86.9
5. Denny Hamlin
3,108 5 0
3 91.8
6. Tony Stewart
2,107 0 2
4 90.9
7. Jeff Burton
2,101 0 0
7 100.3
8. Matt Kenseth
2,095 0 0
9 83.4
9. Jimmie Johnson
2,077 5 1
5 106.5
10. Kurt Busch
2,073 2 2
10 96.4
11. Greg Biffle
2,055 1
0 11 88.3
12. Clint Bowyer
2,920 0
0 12 90.1
___________________________________________________
ADDITIONAL DRIVERS
13. Jamie McMurray
2,820 34. Robby
Gordon 1,536
14. Mark Martin
2,819 35. Kevin
Conway 1,494
15. Ryan Newman
2,802 36. Brian
Vickers 1,158
16. Kasey Kahne
2,784 37. Joe
Nemechek 934
17. David Reutimann
2,765 38. Max
Papis 907
18. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2,750 39. David
Stremme 825
19. J.P. Montoya
2,728 40. Mike
Bliss 799
20. Martin Truex Jr.
2,660 41. Reed
Sorenson 763
21. Joey Logano 2,636
42. Bill
Elliott 706
22. AJ Allmendinger
2,569 43. Casey
Mears 700
23. Paul Menard
2,499 44. Dave
Blaney 699
24. David Ragan
2,350 45. Michael
McDowell 650
25. Brad Keselowski
2,309 46. JJ Yeley
545
26. Marcos Ambrose
2,276 47. Boris
Said 448
27. Scott Speed
2,197 48. Todd
Bodine 313
28. Sam Hornish Jr.
2,179 49. Landon
Cassill 287
29. Elliott Sadler
2,155 50. Robert
Richardson 249
30. Regan Smith
1,997 51. Michael
Waltrip 200
31. Bobby Labonte
1,787 52. PJ
Jones 190
32. Travis Kvapil
1,723 53. Tony
Raines 186
33. David Gilliland
1,555 54. Patrick
Carpentier 176
Note: The first 26 races of the
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season
determine which 12 drivers
qualify for the Chase for the
NASCAR Sprint Cup, contested
over the final 10 races of the
season.
At Atlanta Motor Speedway:
History
·
Originally called Atlanta
International Raceway, the track
was then a 1.5-mile paved
speedway.
·
The first
NASCAR Sprint Cup race at
Atlanta was on July 31, 1960,
won by Fireball Roberts from the
pole.
·
The track was re-measured to
1.522 miles in the spring of
1970.
·
It was renamed Atlanta Motor
Speedway in 1990.
·
The track layout was reversed
and the track was re-configured
to 1.54 miles between the two
races in 1997.
Notebook
-
There have been 102 NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series races at
Atlanta Speedway, two races per
year
except 1961, which had three.
-
Fireball Roberts
won the pole and race for the
first
NASCAR Sprint Cup
race in 1960.
-
44 drivers have won a pole,
led by Buddy Baker and
Ryan Newman, each
with seven.
-
Six of Newman’s seven poles came
in consecutive
races between March 2003 and
October 2005.
-
42 drivers have won a race;
22 have won more than once,
including Kurt Busch, who won
two of the last three races.
-
Dale Earnhardt
scored nine victories, more than
any other driver. Cale
Yarborough is second, with
seven.
-
Bobby Labonte
heads the list of active drivers
with six victories. Labonte is
tied with Richard Petty for
third on the all-time win list
at Atlanta.
-
The Wood Brothers have 12
victories, more than any
organization. They last won
there in 1993
with Morgan Shepherd.
-
14 races have been won from the
pole. The last to do so was
Kasey Kahne in 2006. Both races
last season were won from the
second starting position.
-
58 races at Atlanta have been
won from the first five starting
positions.
-
Bobby Labonte won the 2001 fall
race from the 39th starting
position, the deepest in the
field that a
race winner has started at
Atlanta.
-
There have been seven season
sweeps, most recently by Jimmie
Johnson in 2007.
-
Two of the last three races had
a margin of victory under a half
second.
NASCAR in Georgia
·
There have been 161 NASCAR
Sprint Cup races in Georgia.
·
169 NASCAR national series
drivers all-time have their home
state recorded as Georgia.
·
There have been 14 race
winners from Georgia in NASCAR’s
three national series:
|
Driver
|
NSCS
|
NNS
|
NCWTS
|
|
Bill Elliott
|
44
|
1
|
0
|
|
Tim Flock
|
39
|
0
|
0
|
|
Jack Smith
|
21
|
0
|
0
|
|
Fonty Flock
|
19
|
0
|
0
|
|
Bob Flock
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
|
Frank Mundy
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
|
Gober Sosebee
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
|
Harold Kite
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
Sam McQuagg
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
Jody Ridley
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
Reed Sorenson
|
0
|
3
|
0
|
|
Buckshot Jones
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
|
David Ragan
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
|
Ronald Cooper
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
Atlanta Motor Speedway Data
Race # 25 of 36 (9-5-10)
Track Size:
1.54 miles
Race Length:
325 laps/500.5 miles
·
Banking/Corners:
24 degrees
·
Banking/Straights:
5 degrees
·
Frontstretch:
2,332 feet
·
Backstretch:
1,800 feet
Driver Rating at Atlanta
Jimmie Johnson 109.5
Jeff Gordon
101.8
Carl Edwards 99.4
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 98.7
Tony Stewart
98.7
Kurt Busch
97.0
Matt Kenseth
96.5
Greg Biffle
95.0
Denny Hamlin 94.5
Kasey Kahne 93.3
Note: Driver Rating compiled
from 2005-2010 races (11 total)
at Atlanta.
Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner:
Martin Truex Jr. (184.149 mph,
30.106 secs.)
2010 race winner: Kasey Kahne
(134.033 mph,
9-6-09)
Track qualifying record:
Geoffrey Bodine (197.478 mph,
28.074 secs.,
11-15-97)
Race record:
Dale Earnhardt (163.633 mph,
11-16-97)
Estimated Pit Window:
Every 48-52 laps, based on fuel
mileage.
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