Backstretch Motorsports

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – One word defines the two-race-old 2008 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup: unpredictable.
Two drivers in particular personify that word: Greg Biffle and Kyle Busch.
Biffle became the first driver to begin the Chase with two consecutive wins. He’s now 10 points behind series leader and Roush Fenway Racing teammate Carl Edwards.

Busch, an eight-time winner in this season’s first 26 races, has started the Chase off with two finishes outside the top 30, including a last-place finish at Dover on Sunday. He’s now 12th, 210 points off the lead.
What’s next? Likely, more of the same.
In its Chase history, Kansas – the site of Sunday’s Camping World RV 400 presented by Coleman – has quietly evolved into arguably the most unpredictable track on the circuit.
Of the four Chase races previously held at Kansas, three were won by drivers not eligible for the Chase.
Joe Nemechek began the trend in 2004, ending a 54-race winless drought with his Kansas win. Tony Stewart followed suit in 2006, and Biffle did it again last season. Mark Martin, in 2005, is the only Chase-eligible driver to win at Kansas.
In addition, there have been five different winners in the last five Kansas races.
Biffle hopes to buck all those trends. He has the top pre-race Driver Rating at Kansas with a 118.5, and has finished inside the top three in three of the last four Kansas races.
The last driver to win three straight was Jimmie Johnson, who won four consecutive races last season on his way to the championship.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Top 12 at Kansas Speedway
Driver Races Poles Wins Top Fives Top 10s DNFs Average Finish Driver Rating

1 Carl Edwards 4 0 0 1 2 1 17.0 90.2
2 Jimmie Johnson 6 2 0 1 4 1 12.0 115.6
3 Greg Biffle 6 0 1 3 3 1 11.0 118.5
4 Jeff Burton 7 0 0 1 1 1 19.6 70.4
5 Kevin Harvick 7 0 0 0 2 1 16.1 83.3
6 Clint Bowyer 2 0 0 1 2 0 5.5 106.5
7 Tony Stewart 7 0 1 3 5 1 11.1 108.7
8 Jeff Gordon 7 0 2 4 5 1 10.6 98.3
9 Dale Earnhardt Jr 7 1 0 0 4 1 17.1 82.0
10 Matt Kenseth 7 1 0 1 2 1 22.1 93.2
11 Denny Hamlin 3 0 0 0 0 0 26.3 73.7
12 Kyle Busch 4 0 0 0 1 1 26.5 80.0

Selected Driver Highlights
Note: All driver statistics that follow are from Kansas Speedway. The Loop Data statistics – Driver Rating, Average Running Position, etc. – in this release, however, cover the last three races at Kansas. NASCAR’s scoring loops began collecting data for statistical purposes in 2005.

Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford)
• One win, three top fives
• Average finish of 11.0
• Series-best Average Running Position of 6.4
• Series-high Driver Rating of 118.5
• 80 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 163.814 mph, second-fastest
• Series-high 702 (94.4%) Laps in the Top 15
• 98 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), fourth-most

Clint Bowyer (No. 07 Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet)
• One top five, two top 10s
• Average finish of 5.5
• Average Running Position of 9.3, fourth-best
• Driver Rating of 106.5, fourth-best
• 26 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 163.585 mph, fourth-fastest
• 373 Laps in the Top 15 (78.2), fifth-best percentage
• 67 Quality Passes (average of 33.5 per race), tied for fifth-best percentage

Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge)
• Two top 10s
• Average finish of 19.4
• Average Running Position of 15.4, ninth-best
• Driver Rating of 94.0, seventh-best
• 45 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 162.970 mph, seventh-fastest

Carl Edwards (No. 99 Office Depot Ford)
• One top five, two top 10s
• Average finish of 17.0
• Average Running Position of 13.2, eighth-best
• Driver Rating of 90.2, ninth-best
• 28 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most
• 519 (69.8%) Laps in the Top 15, sixth-most
• 96 Quality Passes, fifth-most

Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
• Two wins, four top fives, five top 10s
• Average finish of 10.6
• Average Running Position of 11.6, sixth-best
• Driver Rating of 98.3, sixth-best
• 20 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 163.474 mph, fifth-fastest
• 599 (80.5%) Laps in the Top 15, fourth-most
• 103 Quality Passes, third-most

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)
• One top five, four top 10s; two poles
• Average finish of 12.0
• Average Running Position of 7.8, third-best
• Driver Rating of 115.6, second-best
• Series-high 87 Fastest Laps Run
• 186 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most
• Fastest Green Flag Speed in the series of 164.005 mph
• 664 (89.2%) Laps in the Top 15, second-most
• Tied for series-high 111 Quality Passes

Matt Kenseth (No. 17 DEWALT Ford)
• One top five, two top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 22.1
• Average Running Position of 12.9, seventh-best
• Driver Rating of 93.2, eighth-best
• 48 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
• 460 (61.8%) Laps in the Top 15, seventh-most

Mark Martin (No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet)
• One win, two top fives, three top 10s
• Average finish of 12.4
• Average Running Position of 10.7, fifth-best
• Driver Rating of 105.0, fifth-best
• Average Green Flag Speed of 162.819 mph, ninth-fastest
• 561 Laps in the Top 15 (75.4%), fifth-most
• 71 Quality Passes, ninth-most

Tony Stewart (No. 20 Home Depot Toyota)
• One win, three top fives, five top 10s
• Average finish of 11.1
• Average Running Position of 7.3, second-best
• Driver Rating of 108.7, third-best
• 29 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 163.728 mph, third-fastest
• 662 Laps in the Top 15 (89.0%), third-most
• 111 Quality Passes, tied for series-high

At Kansas Speedway:

History
• Groundbreaking for the Kansas Speedway was held on May 25, 1999.
• The official opening of Kansas Speedway was in 2001, with the first events being an ARCA race and a NASCAR Camping World Series, West race on the same day – June 2.
• The first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race was July 7, 2001.
• The first NASCAR Nationwide Series race was Sept. 29, 2001.
• The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was held on Sept. 30, 2001.

Notebook
• There have been seven NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway since the track opened in 2001.
• All of the races at Kansas have been scheduled for 267 laps.
• 15 drivers have competed in all seven races at Kansas.
• Jason Leffler won the first pole in September 2001.
• Six different drivers have won poles, led by Jimmie Johnson with two.
• Jeff Gordon won the first two NASCAR Sprint Cup races.
• Six different drivers have posted victories, led by Jeff Gordon (two).
• Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Fenway Racing have each won two races at Kansas, more than any other organization.
• Four of the seven races have been won from a top-10 starting position.
• The furthest back in the field that race winner started was 21st, by Tony Stewart in 2006.

NASCAR in Kansas
• There have been seven NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Kansas, all at Kansas Speedway.
• 14 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as Kansas, including Jim Roper who won the very first NASCAR Sprint Cup race – Charlotte in 1949.
• There have been two race winners in the top three NASCAR series from Kansas:
Driver NSCS NNS NCTS
Clint Bowyer 1 6 1
Jim Roper 1 0 0

Kansas Speedway Data
Race #: 29 of 36 (9-28-08)
Track Size: 1.5 miles
• Banking/Corners: 15 degrees
• Banking/Frontstretch: 10.4 degrees
• Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees
• Frontstretch: 2,685 feet
• Backstretch: 2,207 feet

Driver Rating at Kansas
Greg Biffle 118.5
Jimmie Johnson 115.6
Tony Stewart 108.7
Clint Bowyer 106.5
Mark Martin 105.0
Jeff Gordon 98.3
Kurt Busch 94.0
Matt Kenseth 93.2
Carl Edwards 90.2
Casey Mears 88.2

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2007 races (3 total) at Kansas.
Qualifying/Race Data
2007 pole winner: Jimmie Johnson (175.063 mph, 30.846 seconds)
2007 race winner: Greg Biffle, 104.981 mph, 9-30-07)
Qualifying record: Matt Kenseth (180.856 mph, 29.858 seconds, 10-8-05)
Race record: Mark Martin (137.774 mph, 10-9-05)
Estimated Pit Window: Every 40-44 laps, based on fuel mileage.