Fast Facts
The Race: Kobalt Tools 400
The Place: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
The Date: Sunday, Mar. 6
The Time: 3 p.m. (ET)
TV: FOX, 2:30 p.m. (ET)
Distance: 400.5 miles (267 laps)
The Race: Sam's Town 300
The Place: Las Vegas Motor Speedway
The Date: Saturday, Mar. 5
The Time: 3 p.m. (ET)
TV: ABC, 2:30 p.m. (ET)
Distance: 300 miles (200 laps)
The Race: Too Tough to Tame 200
The Place: Darlington Raceway
Date: Saturday, Mar. 12
The Time: 5 p.m. (ET)
TV: SPEED, 4:30 p.m. (ET)
Distance: 200.8 miles (147 laps)
Chapter 3: What’s Next In Storybook Opening To Season
Post-Daytona 500 Trevor Bayne-ia gave way to the retro feel of a long-awaited Jeff Gordon victory, at Phoenix. This one, his 83rd career win, spun a number of future possibilities – maybe as soon as this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
• Gordon’s Phoenix triumph tied him with Cale Yarborough for fifth on the all-time wins list. His next win would tie him with Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip for third – behind only David Pearson (105 wins) and Richard Petty (200). Gordon spoke about tying Yarborough; click here to listen.
• If that happens this weekend, Gordon would nab consecutive wins for the first time since October 2007, when he did it at Talladega and Charlotte.
• In breaking a 66-race winless drought, Gordon has now won at least one race in 16 of his 19 full-time seasons. In 14 of those, he won multiple races.
• There’s reason to believe a back-to-back visit to Victory Lane is possible. Gordon won at Vegas in 2001; led 219 laps in a third-place finish last season; and leads the series in pre-race Driver Rating, with a 117.0.
• Gordon took the lead for good at Phoenix on lap 304 – the 28th lead change of the race. That makes two consecutive races where the lead-change record crumbled. Will it happen again Sunday? The record for lead changes at Las Vegas is 28, set in 2007.
Big Gains For Big Guns
• Gordon’s Phoenix triumph tied him with Cale Yarborough for fifth on the all-time wins list. His next win would tie him with Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip for third – behind only David Pearson (105 wins) and Richard Petty (200). Gordon spoke about tying Yarborough; click here to listen.
• If that happens this weekend, Gordon would nab consecutive wins for the first time since October 2007, when he did it at Talladega and Charlotte.
• In breaking a 66-race winless drought, Gordon has now won at least one race in 16 of his 19 full-time seasons. In 14 of those, he won multiple races.
• There’s reason to believe a back-to-back visit to Victory Lane is possible. Gordon won at Vegas in 2001; led 219 laps in a third-place finish last season; and leads the series in pre-race Driver Rating, with a 117.0.
• Gordon took the lead for good at Phoenix on lap 304 – the 28th lead change of the race. That makes two consecutive races where the lead-change record crumbled. Will it happen again Sunday? The record for lead changes at Las Vegas is 28, set in 2007.
Big Gains For Big Guns
One race does not a season make.
A few perennial threats in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup proved the above statement, following up subpar Daytona 500 finishes with solid Phoenix runs. Some of the notables:
• Jimmie Johnson: This was predictable. Johnson often struggles at Daytona to open the season. Just as often, he comes back big. The proof is in the numbers. Johnson’s last five Daytona 500 finishes: 39th (2007); 27th (2008), 31st (2009), 35th (2010), 27th (2011). Johnson’s last five finishes in the season’s second race: 3rd (2007), 2nd (2008), 9th (2009), 1st (2010), 3rd (2011). He jumped from 25th in the standings after Daytona to 13th. The surge should continue – Johnson has four wins at Las Vegas, more than any other driver.
• Jeff Gordon: Obviously he would vault up the standings; he won after all. Gordon went from 26th after Daytona to his current spot of fifth.
• Ryan Newman: Newman had a strong Daytona, leading the most laps (37) – only to finish 22nd. A fifth-place finish at Phoenix launched Newman into the top 10 in points – he’s now eighth. At Las Vegas, he has four top 10s in five races.
• Denny Hamlin: Though still looking for the season’s first top 10, Hamlin moved from 19th to 14th in the points standings. The 2010 championship runner-up followed up a 21st place Daytona finish with an 11th at Phoenix. Hamlin has three top 10s in five Vegas races.
Oh, Brother: Busch Siblings Take Points Throne Home
A few perennial threats in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup proved the above statement, following up subpar Daytona 500 finishes with solid Phoenix runs. Some of the notables:
• Jimmie Johnson: This was predictable. Johnson often struggles at Daytona to open the season. Just as often, he comes back big. The proof is in the numbers. Johnson’s last five Daytona 500 finishes: 39th (2007); 27th (2008), 31st (2009), 35th (2010), 27th (2011). Johnson’s last five finishes in the season’s second race: 3rd (2007), 2nd (2008), 9th (2009), 1st (2010), 3rd (2011). He jumped from 25th in the standings after Daytona to 13th. The surge should continue – Johnson has four wins at Las Vegas, more than any other driver.
• Jeff Gordon: Obviously he would vault up the standings; he won after all. Gordon went from 26th after Daytona to his current spot of fifth.
• Ryan Newman: Newman had a strong Daytona, leading the most laps (37) – only to finish 22nd. A fifth-place finish at Phoenix launched Newman into the top 10 in points – he’s now eighth. At Las Vegas, he has four top 10s in five races.
• Denny Hamlin: Though still looking for the season’s first top 10, Hamlin moved from 19th to 14th in the points standings. The 2010 championship runner-up followed up a 21st place Daytona finish with an 11th at Phoenix. Hamlin has three top 10s in five Vegas races.
Oh, Brother: Busch Siblings Take Points Throne Home
The Busch sibling rivalry found its way into the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points standings.
Points leader Kyle leads older brother Kurt by three points going into their home track of Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It’s the first time family members have held the top two spots since after the 1988 Daytona 500 when the Allisons (father Bobby and son Davey) did it.
The brothers have had varying results at the big track:
• At Vegas, Kyle has seven starts, a win in 2009 (officially from the pole, though he had to drop to the rear to start the race due to an engine change), three top fives and four top 10s.
• Kurt has had worse luck. In 10 races, the 2004 series champion is winless with one top five and two top 10s. His best finish was third in 2005. He has struggled of late there. His last four finishes: 26th (2007), 38th (2008), 23rd (2009) and 35th (2010).
• Click here to list to Kurt talk about racing at Vegas since the track’s repave in 2006.
Las Vegas Activities Salute Trailblazer Wendell Scott
Points leader Kyle leads older brother Kurt by three points going into their home track of Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It’s the first time family members have held the top two spots since after the 1988 Daytona 500 when the Allisons (father Bobby and son Davey) did it.
The brothers have had varying results at the big track:
• At Vegas, Kyle has seven starts, a win in 2009 (officially from the pole, though he had to drop to the rear to start the race due to an engine change), three top fives and four top 10s.
• Kurt has had worse luck. In 10 races, the 2004 series champion is winless with one top five and two top 10s. His best finish was third in 2005. He has struggled of late there. His last four finishes: 26th (2007), 38th (2008), 23rd (2009) and 35th (2010).
• Click here to list to Kurt talk about racing at Vegas since the track’s repave in 2006.
Las Vegas Activities Salute Trailblazer Wendell Scott
NASCAR Sprint Cup and NASCAR Nationwide Series cars will carry a commemorative decal on their B-posts this weekend celebrating the achievements of NASCAR trailblazer Wendell Scott, the first African-American competitor to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup race. Friday, Mar. 4, marks the 50th anniversary of the Danville, Va. driver’s first start at Spartanburg, S.C. in 1961, at Fairgrounds Speedway. He finished 17th.
Scott, who didn’t compete in the series until age 39, raced into his 50s. Driving a Dodge owned by Las Vegas dentist Doc Faustina, Scott finished 12th in his final start, the 1973 National 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Scott’s win came at the one-mile dirt track in Jacksonville, Fla. on Dec. 1, 1963. He beat NASCAR legend Buck Baker by two laps at Jacksonville Speedway Park.
• Scott competed in 495 starts posting 147 top-10 finishes.
• His best season was 1966 when Scott competed in 45 races and finished sixth in the championship standings.
• Scott posted top-10 championship finishes in four consecutive seasons (1966-69).
Scott died at age 69 in 1990.
NSCS Etc.
Scott, who didn’t compete in the series until age 39, raced into his 50s. Driving a Dodge owned by Las Vegas dentist Doc Faustina, Scott finished 12th in his final start, the 1973 National 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Scott’s win came at the one-mile dirt track in Jacksonville, Fla. on Dec. 1, 1963. He beat NASCAR legend Buck Baker by two laps at Jacksonville Speedway Park.
• Scott competed in 495 starts posting 147 top-10 finishes.
• His best season was 1966 when Scott competed in 45 races and finished sixth in the championship standings.
• Scott posted top-10 championship finishes in four consecutive seasons (1966-69).
Scott died at age 69 in 1990.
NSCS Etc.
The maturation of AJ Allmendinger hit its peak. With finishes of 11th (Daytona) and ninth (Phoenix), the California native sits 4th in the points. That put the iconic Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 – a car that won seven championships – back near the top of the points standings for the first time in more than two decades. The last time the No. 43 car was this high in the standings was after Martinsville on April 26, 1987. The driver: Richard Petty. … Speaking of returns to glory: Welcome back, Bobby Labonte. Labonte held onto a top-10 points position for the second consecutive week – he’s now seventh in points. The 2000 series champion was this week’s guest on the NASCAR national video teleconference. Click here to watch his interview. … A few milestones to watch: Kasey Kahne, coming off a sixth-place finish at Phoenix, is still looking for his 50th career top five. … Mark Martin’s next pole will be his 50th. If he does it, he’ll be the eighth driver in series history with at least 50 poles. … Paul Menard, currently the Richard Childress Racing driver with the best points position (11th) will make his 150th start this weekend. … Special guests this weekend: Singer Matt Gross will perform a pre-race concert and Kristen Hertzenberg from Phantom of the Opera will sing the national anthem.
Martin Returns To Series To Defend Wins Record
Mark Martin will make his return to the NASCAR Nationwide Series this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Martin is doing so on the cusp of Kyle Busch, a Las Vegas native, closing in on his all-time wins leads of 48.
Busch posted his 44th series victory at Phoenix last weekend and also his 13th series perfect Driver Rating (150.0). There have been a total of 26 Perfect Driver Rating performances in the NASCAR Nationwide Series since its inception in 2005, and Busch has posted half of those. Ironically, Martin posted the first perfect 150.0 in the series – at Auto Club Speedway in 2005.
Martin will be running a limited schedule this season in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for Turner Motorsports (Las Vegas, Auto Club Speedway, Michigan and Kentucky).
Some notes going into Saturday’s Sam’s Town 300:
• Martin’s last two series victories came at Las Vegas in 2005 and 2008.
• Martin is tied with Jeff Burton for the most series wins at Las Vegas (three each).
• Martin is tied with Matt Kenseth for the most series poles at Las Vegas (two each).
• Martin has made five series starts at Las Vegas posting three wins, four top fives, five top 10s and two poles.
• Busch has made seven series starts at Las Vegas posting one top-five finish.
Veteran Faces In Championship Contention
Reed Sorenson continues to be setting the pace, owning a five-point lead over second-place Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and seven points ahead of third-place, Jason Leffler. Sorenson has made three starts at Las Vegas, posting two top 10s.
Three veterans vying for the championship, Joe Nemechek, Mike Bliss and Kenny Wallace are all currently in the top 10 in points; fifth, seventh and ninth respectively. The three veterans have combined for 1,035 series starts, 27 wins and two NASCAR national series championships.
Nemechek, the 1992 series champion, won at Las Vegas in 2003. He is coming off back-to-back finishes of 15th at Daytona and Phoenix. Nemechek has made 12 starts at Las Vegas posting one win, five top fives and seven top 10s.
Bliss, the 2002 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion, has posted a 13th-place finish at Daytona and a 20th-place finish at Phoenix. Bliss has made five starts at Las Vegas, scoring one top five and a pole (2004).
Wallace climbed 10 spots in the driver standings this past week after his 10th-place result at Phoenix. That’s his best finish since last August at Iowa. When Wallace starts at Las Vegas, he’ll be 10 away from becoming second driver to reach 500 NASCAR Nationwide Series starts. He heads to Las Vegas this weekend having made eight starts, posting one top-10 finish.
Stenhouse Sidesteps Sophomore Slump
Roush Fenway Racing driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr., the 2010 Sunoco Rookie of the Year, is five points back from standings leader, Reed Sorenson.
Stenhouse had a slow start to the 2010 season before rebounding to earn Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors. The opposite is true in 2011, where he has opened up with two top-10 finishes, at Daytona (eighth) and Phoenix (seventh).
Stenhouse is looking to become the first driver since Greg Biffle to follow up a rookie of the year nod with a series championship. Biffle won the rookie honor in 2001 and series championship in 2002.
NNS ETC.
Owner standings update: 13 points separate first to fifth. Joe Gibbs’ No. 18 driven by Kyle Busch is first with 86 points, one ahead of second-place DeLana Harvick’s No. 33 driven by Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick. … Danica Patrick is fourth in the series driver standings. She finished 36th at Vegas last season. … This is the new car’s first trip to Las Vegas, and teams will be going in a day early (Thurs., March 3) for additional practice time at 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. and 3-5 p.m. The garage opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 6 p.m. Fans get in free and a NASCAR Nationwide Series driver autograph session will be held from 1:30-2:30 p.m. … 300th Nationwide start for KHI: This weekend's race at Las Vegas will mark KHI's 300th start in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Since entering the series in 2004, KHI has collected 10 wins and 12 poles.
Crafton, Sauter, ThorSport Early Contenders For 2011 Championship
This could be the year Matt Crafton and owner Duke Thorson finally get their due.
Crafton, who will make his 250th consecutive NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start in the Too Tough To Tame 200 at Darlington Raceway on March 12, holds the No. 1 spot in series points standings for the first time since June 2009.
The Tulare, Calif. veteran, who competed in his first series race at Auto Club Speedway on Oct. 28, 2000, holds the slimmest of leads – a single point – over post-Daytona leader Clay Rogers. ThorSport teammate Johnny Sauter holds down the fourth position giving ThorSport a pair of contenders – and rivals - for the 2011 championship.
• Crafton finished seventh in last week’s Lucas Oil 150 in Phoenix to rank among the top 10 in points for the 74th consecutive race – a streak that stands fourth in series history. He can match 2004 champion Bobby Hamilton’s 75-race mark at Darlington.
• Crafton has the second most starts by an active driver who hasn’t won a title. His best points finish, second, came in 2009.
• The 34-year-old driver has one victory, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2008, and looks to break a 71-race winless streak at Darlington.
• Thorson, meanwhile, is the series’ longest tenured active owner. ThorSport’s first of 342 races entered came at the Milwaukee Mile on July 6, 1996. The Sandusky, Ohio-based team, which has run full season schedules annually beginning in 1998, is on track to break Roush Fenway Racing’s record of 353 later in 2011.
• ThorSport also has won with Terry Cook and twice with Sauter, finishing among the top 10 in points seven times including with both trucks in 2009-10.
“It’s great to be first in driver points but we’re on race two of 25,” said Crafton, who recorded his 18th consecutive top-10 finish. “We’re looking to keep that consistency over the season.”
Crafton, who will make his 250th consecutive NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start in the Too Tough To Tame 200 at Darlington Raceway on March 12, holds the No. 1 spot in series points standings for the first time since June 2009.
The Tulare, Calif. veteran, who competed in his first series race at Auto Club Speedway on Oct. 28, 2000, holds the slimmest of leads – a single point – over post-Daytona leader Clay Rogers. ThorSport teammate Johnny Sauter holds down the fourth position giving ThorSport a pair of contenders – and rivals - for the 2011 championship.
• Crafton finished seventh in last week’s Lucas Oil 150 in Phoenix to rank among the top 10 in points for the 74th consecutive race – a streak that stands fourth in series history. He can match 2004 champion Bobby Hamilton’s 75-race mark at Darlington.
• Crafton has the second most starts by an active driver who hasn’t won a title. His best points finish, second, came in 2009.
• The 34-year-old driver has one victory, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2008, and looks to break a 71-race winless streak at Darlington.
• Thorson, meanwhile, is the series’ longest tenured active owner. ThorSport’s first of 342 races entered came at the Milwaukee Mile on July 6, 1996. The Sandusky, Ohio-based team, which has run full season schedules annually beginning in 1998, is on track to break Roush Fenway Racing’s record of 353 later in 2011.
• ThorSport also has won with Terry Cook and twice with Sauter, finishing among the top 10 in points seven times including with both trucks in 2009-10.
“It’s great to be first in driver points but we’re on race two of 25,” said Crafton, who recorded his 18th consecutive top-10 finish. “We’re looking to keep that consistency over the season.”
Competition Revs Up Several Notches In 2011
Two races into 2011 one thing is certain: Perform or go home.
It doesn’t matter whether you are relative newcomer, seasoned veteran or former NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion.
With Daytona and Phoenix complete, and more than 40 trucks in the garage at both stops, qualifying has produced more than its share of surprises.
• Mike Skinner (No. 45 PaytasHomes.com Toyota), the series’ inaugural champion, missed making the field at Daytona.
• Former Daytona winner Rick Crawford (No. 73 Trans Pecos Trucking/Superseal Chevrolet) also failed to qualify for the 36-truck field and was shut out for a second time at Phoenix
• James Buescher (No. 31 Wolfpack Rentals Chevrolet), who led 55 laps in Daytona before coming home ninth, wasn’t fast enough to make the Lucas Oil 150 the following week.
Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidates – there now are 12 of them – are among those coming fast out of the chute. Two cracked the top 10 in Daytona; three at Phoenix. Cole Whitt (No. 60 Red Bull Chevrolet), Jeffrey Earnhardt (No. 1 Fuel Doctor Chevrolet) and Miguel Paludo (No. 7 K&N Toyota) rank among the top 10 in current points standings.
NCWTS Etc.
Las Vegas native Justin Johnson made an impressive debut, finishing eighth with a solid Driver Rating of 95.0. His teammate Dusty Davis, also from Las Vegas, ran among the top 10 before being collected in a late-race accident. … Ron Hornaday Jr. finished third in Phoenix, bouncing back from a 28th at Daytona. Hornaday gained 13 points positions from 23rd to 10th as he bids for a fifth championship. … Austin Dillon, Brad Sweet and Jason White likewise regained ground. Dillon went from 16th to sixth; Sweet 17th to 11th and White 25th to 15. … Phoenix winner Kyle Busch became the quickest NASCAR national series driver to reach 25 victories. Busch did it in 87 starts – 13 fewer than Hornaday. Busch has won four of his past six series starts. … Hornaday recorded his 192nd top-10 finish to match Jack Sprague’s career record. (NASCAR MEDIA)
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