DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 29, 2007) ? Many happy memories have been made at Dover International Speedway.
In 1995, Jeff Gordon became the youngest driver ever to win at Dover ? 23 years and 10 months old. In that race, the current points leader led an incredible 400 laps and had a margin of victory of 2.34 seconds.
Then there?s Jeff Burton.
Burton snapped a 175-race winless streak at Dover?s second race last season. At the time, the win also catapulted Burton into first place in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series standings.
Kyle Petty, who finished third this past Sunday at the Coca-Cola 600, has had some moments worth remembering at Dover. His last win took place at the Delaware track back in 1995. It should be interesting to see how the veteran follows up his impressive finish at Lowe?s Motor Speedway.
Tony Stewart is another driver to watch. It might be fair to say Stewart has come to have a love-hate relationship with the track. He has an average finish there of 8.9 ? best among active drivers ? but his results recently have been disappointing.
Last year was by far his worst at Dover. He finished 25th at this race last year and scored a DNF in a 33rd- place finish at the second race at Dover.
Otherwise, Stewart has been phenomenal at Dover ?two wins and nine top-five finishes. ?Which Stewart will show up?? is the question.
Matt Kenseth won this race last year, and nearly swept the two Dover races ? he led a race-high 215 laps before running out of fuel at race?s end in the September event.
The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Top 12 at Dover International Speedway 1 Jeff Gordon 2 Jimmie Johnson 3 Matt Kenseth 4 Denny Hamlin 5 Jeff Burton 6 Tony Stewart 7 Kevin Harvick 8 Carl Edwards 9 Kurt Busch 10 Clint Bowyer 11 Kyle Busch
12 Jamie McMurray
Selected Driver Highlights
Note: All driver stats are from Dover International Speedway. NASCAR?s scoring loops began collecting data for statistical purposes in 2005. That is why the Loop Data statistics in this release cover the last four races at Dover.
Greg Biffle (No. 16 Ameriquest Ford) ? One win, two top fives, four top 10s ? 14.889 average finish ? Average Running Position of 6.953, best of any driver ? Driver Rating of 117.2, best of any driver ? 175 Fastest Laps Run, most of any driver ? Fastest Green Flag Speed ? 1,484 Laps in the Top 15, most of any driver ? 122 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the Top 15 while under green), most of any driver ? Fastest Speed in Traffic (speed when there is another car within one car length)
? Top ?Closer? ? 14 positions improved in the last 10% of laps run
Kyle Busch (No. 5 Kellogg?s/CARQUEST Chevrolet) ? Three top fives ? 12.25 average finish ? Average Running Position of 11.767, eighth-best ? Driver Rating of 104.4, fifth-best ? 86 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most ? Third-fastest Green Flag Speed ? 1,238 Laps in the Top 15, sixth-most ? 89 Quality Passes, fourth-most
? Fifth-fastest Speed in Traffic
Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Light Dodge) ? Two top fives, four top 10s ? 18.385 average finish ? Average Running Position of 7.759, fourth-best ? Driver Rating of 104.1, sixth-best ? 77 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most ? Sixth-fastest Green Flag Speed ? 1,305 Laps in the Top 15, fifth-most
? 87 Quality Passes, fifth-most
Carl Edwards (No. 99 Office Depot Ford) ? One top five, two top 10s ? 12.0 average finish ? Third-best Closer ? 11 positions improved in last 10 percent of total laps ? Driver Rating of 86.1, 13th-best ? 66 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most ? 150 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most
? 82 Quality Passes, seventh-most
Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet) ? Four wins, 13 top fives, 17 top 10s; three poles ? 12.5 average finish ? Seventh-fastest Green Flag Speed
? Seventh-fastest Speed in Traffic
Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Dover Chevrolet) ? Three wins, four top fives, seven top 10s ? 11.4 average finish ? Average Running Position of 12.201, ninth-best ? Driver Rating of 104.5, fourth-best ? 112 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-best ? 147 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most ? Fifth-fastest Green Flag Speed ? 1,188 Laps in the Top 15, seventh-most
? Second-fastest Speed in Traffic
Matt Kenseth (No. 17 DEWALT Ford) ? One win, four top fives, nine top 10s; one pole ? 14.75 average finish ? Average Running Position of 7.670, third-best ? Driver Rating of 112.3, second-best ? 129 Fastest Laps Run, third-most ? Second-fastest Green Flag Speed ? 1,429 Laps in the Top 15, third-most ? 110 Quality Passes, second-most
? Third-fastest Speed in Traffic
Mark Martin (No. 01 U.S. Army Chevrolet) ? Four wins, 19 top fives, 25 top 10s; four poles ? 13.073 average finish ? Average Running Position of 7.214, second-best ? Driver Rating of 106.7, third-best ? 130 Fastest Laps Run, second-most ? Fourth-fastest Green Flag Speed ? 1,441 Laps in the Top 15, second-most
? Third-fastest Speed in Traffic
At Dover International Speedway: ? There have been 74 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races at Dover International Speedway since the first race there in 1969. There were single races the first two years and two a year since 1971. ? David Pearson won the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Bud Pole in 1969. ? Richard Petty won the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race in 1969. ? There have been 31 different Bud Pole winners; 20 have won more than one. ? There have been 29 different race-winners; 18 have more than one victory there. ? The track opened in 1960. The first two races were 300 laps, 300 miles. ? Between 1971 and 1996 both races were 500 miles. ? The track surface was changed from asphalt to concrete in 1995. ? The format was changed to 400 miles following the June race in 1997. ? Hendrick Motorsports has won 10 races ? three more than any other car owner. ? Roush Fenway Racing has won the last three June races ? all with a different driver: Mark Martin (2004), Greg Biffle (2005) and Matt Kenseth (2006). ? Ryan Newman has finished on the lead lap in 80 percent of his Dover races, the best percentage of any active driver with more than one race there. ? There have been just three Bud Pole winners in the last eight races: Ryan Newman (three), Jeremy Mayfield (two) and Jeff Gordon (one). Qualifying was canceled twice in the eight-race period. ? There have been six different race winners in the last six races. ? Eleven of 74 races have been won by the Bud Pole winner, but only three in the past 19 races. Ryan Newman was the last to win from the pole (2003). ? Both races in 2006 were won from the 19th starting position. ? The June 1995 race was won by Kyle Petty who started 37th ? the deepest in the field of a race-winner. ? David Pearson won three consecutive races in 1972-73 ? the only time a driver has won more than two in a row there. ? There has been one green-white-checkered finish: September 2005 (404 laps).
? Mark Martin has won in all three of NASCAR?s national series.
Dover Active Streaks ? Kyle Bush has finished in the top five in three of the last four races. ? Kurt Busch has started in the top 10 in four consecutive races. ? Jimmie Johnson has finished in the top 10 in four of the last five races. ? Mark Martin has started in the top 10 in three consecutive races.
? Ryan Newman has started in the top five in nine consecutive races.
Driver Rating at Dover Greg Biffle 117.2 Matt Kenseth 112.3 Mark Martin 106.7 Jimmie Johnson 104.5 Kyle Busch 104.4 Kurt Busch 104.1 Ryan Newman 99.9 Jeff Burton 98.4 Elliott Sadler 97.7 Clint Bowyer 93.6
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005 and 2006 races (4 total) at Dover.
Dover International Speedway Data
Race #: 13 of 36 (6-3-07) Track Size: 1 mile ? Banking/Corners: 24 degrees ? Banking/Straights: 9 degrees ? Frontstretch: 1,076 feet
? Backstretch: 1,076 feet
Qualifying/Race Data
2006 pole winner: Ryan Newman (154.633 mph, 23.281 seconds) 2006 race winner: Matt Kenseth, 109.865 mph, 6-4-06) Track qualifying record: Jeremy Mayfield (161.522 mph, 22.288 secs., 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