NASCAR SNCS (MARTINSVILLE) - STATS-BASED EVENT ADVANCE
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The finish – the fourth-closest margin of victory this season – saw Jimmie Johnson edge Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon to the line by a mere .065 second.
The two teammates are again battling neck-and-neck – this time in the series standings, and this time with Gordon in the lead.
Gordon, coming off consecutive wins at Talladega and Lowe's Motor Speedway, leads Johnson by 68 points at the midway point of the Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup. With the way the two have performed at Martinsville, the gridlock at the top might well continue.
Both drivers are consistently outstanding at the .526-mile track – which is even more notable, given the unpredictability of Martinsville's paper-clip shaped layout.
Gordon has five consecutive top-five finishes, and seven career wins there. Johnson has two consecutive wins there, and four consecutive top fives.
The two also rank among the top five in practically every Martinsville Loop Data statistic. Gordon is second-best in both Driver Rating (123.8) and Average Running Position (7.4) and Johnson is third-best in both Driver Rating (117.2) and Average Running Position (7.9).
Also watch for Tony Stewart to make a move. Stewart is fourth in the standings, but heads to one of his best tracks. Stewart won at Martinsville last season and has four consecutive top-10 finishes there. He leads all drivers in both Driver Rating (125.5) and Average Running Position (4.4).
Selected Driver Highlights – Martinsville Speedway-specific Note: All driver statistics that follow are from Martinsville Speedway. The Loop Data statistics – Driver Rating, Average Running Position, etc. – in this release, however, cover the last five races at Martinsville. NASCAR's scoring loops began collecting data for statistical purposes in 2005.
Kyle Busch (No. 5 Kellogg's/CARQUEST Chevrolet) • Two top fives, three top 10s • Average finish of 15.0 • Average Running Position of 11.9, sixth-best • Driver Rating of 93.2, eighth-best • 76 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most • Seventh-fastest Green Flag Speed • 1,941 Laps in the Top 15 (77.6%), fourth-most • 117 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), second-most
Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge) • One win, two top fives, four top 10s; one pole • Average finish of 19.6 • Average Running Position of 11.3, fifth-best • Driver Rating of 94.1, eighth-best • 55 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most • Ninth-fastest Green Flag Speed • 1,906 Laps in the Top 15 (76.2%), fifth-most • 90 Quality Passes, fifth-most
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet) • Seven top fives • 14.3 average finish • Average Running Position of 12.1, seventh-best • Driver Rating of 96.4, fifth-best • 174 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-best • Series-high 229 Green Flag Passes • Fifth-fastest Green Flag Speed • 1,754 Laps in the Top 15 (70.2%), sixth-most • Series-high 123 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green)
Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet) • Seven wins, 17 top fives, 23 top 10s; five pole • Average finish of 7.3 • Average Running Position of 7.4, second-best • Driver Rating of 123.8, second-best • 263 Fastest Laps Run, second-most • 146 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most • Second-fastest Green Flag Speed • 2,172 Laps in the Top 15 (86.9%), second-most • 116 Quality Passes, third-most
Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Chevrolet) • Two top fives, three top 10s; one pole • Average finish of 12.5 • Average Running Position of 13.0, eighth-best • Driver Rating of 98.0, fourth-best • 90 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-best • Fourth-fastest Green Flag Speed • 1,371 Laps in the Top 15 (68.6%), seventh-best percentage • 72 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), tied for fifth-best average per race
Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet) • Three wins, seven top fives, 10 top 10s; one pole • Average finish of 6.6 • Average Running Position of 7.9, third-best • Driver Rating of 117.2, third-best • 224 Fastest Laps Run, third-most • 147 Green Flag Passes, eighth-most • Third-fastest Green Flag Speed • 2,093 Laps in the Top 15 (83.7%), third-most • 111 Quality Passes, fifth-most
Ricky Rudd (No. 88 Snickers Ford) • Three wins, 13 top fives, 20 top 10s • 14.9 average finish • Average Running Position of 11.1, fourth-best • Driver Rating of 94.3, sixth-best • 43 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most • 1,181 Laps in the Top 15 (78.7%), fourth-best percentage
Tony Stewart (No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet) • Two wins, six top fives, 10 top 10s; three poles • Average finish of 12.2 • Series-high Average Running Position of 4.4 • Series-high Driver Rating of 125.5 • Series-high 277 Fastest Laps Run • Fastest Green Flag Speed • Series-high 2,401 Laps in the Top 15 (96.0%) • 90 Quality Passes, tied for fifth-most
At Martinsville Speedway: History • Opened in September 1947 by H. Clay Earles, Martinsville Speedway is one of the oldest continuously-operating racing facilities in the Untied States. • The first NASCAR-sanctioned race at Martinsville was on July 4, 1949. • The first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race was held on Sept. 25, 1949. • The track was paved in 1955. • The first 500-lap event at Martinsville was in 1956. • Concrete corners were added to the asphalt track in 1976.
Notebook • There have been 117 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series races at Martinsville Speedway, one in the inaugural year and two races per year since 1950. • Curtis Turner won the pole for the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race at Martinsville in 1949. • Red Byron won the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race at Martinsville. • Fifty-six drivers have posted poles, led by Darrell Waltrip with 8. • Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Darrell Waltrip share the consecutive pole record, each with three. • There have been six different pole winners since Jeff Gordon scored three straight (2003-04). • Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with five poles. • Forty-four different drivers have won races at Martinsville, led by Richard Petty with 15. • Fred Lorenzen holds the consecutive win record with four. • Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with seven victories. • Petty Enterprises has won 19 races, more than any other car owner. • A sweep has occurred eight times, but only once since 1994: Jeff Gordon (2005). • Seventeen races have been won from the pole. • Kurt Busch won the second Martinsville race in 2002 from the 36th starting position, the furthest back a race winner has started at Martinsville. • There were 11 different race winners at Martinsville from the fall of 1997 through 2002 – one short of the record for active tracks held by Texas Motor Speedway. In the nine races since, only four drivers have visited the Martinsville's Victory Lane: Jeff Gordon (four), Jimmie Johnson (three), Tony Stewart and Rusty Wallace (one each).
In Virginia… • There have been 257 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races in Virginia. • 354 NASCAR drivers have their home state recorded as Virginia.
• There have been 18 race winners from Virginia in NASCAR's three national series:
Martinsville Speedway Data Race #: 32 of 36 (10-21-07) Track Size: .526 miles Race Length: 500 laps/263 miles • Banking/Corners: 12 degrees • Banking/Straights: 0 degrees • Frontstretch: 800 feet • Backstretch: 800 feet
Driver Rating at Martinsville Tony Stewart 125.5 Jeff Gordon 123.8 Jimmie Johnson 117.2 Denny Hamlin 98.0 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 96.4 Ricky Rudd 94.3 Kurt Busch 94.1 Kyle Busch 93.2 Ryan Newman 85.2 Kevin Harvick 85.0 Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2007 races (5 total) at Martinsville Speedway.
Qualifying/Race Data 2006 pole winner: Kurt Busch (97.568 mph, 19.408 seconds) 2006 race winner: Jimmie Johnson, 70.446 mph, 10-22-06) Track qualifying record: Tony Stewart (98.083 mph, 19.306 secs., 10-21-05) Race record: Jeff Gordon (82.223 mph)
Estimated Pit Window: Every 140-150 laps, based on fuel mileage.