Backstretch Motorsports

Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Race No. 9: Phoenix International Raceway

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Carl Edwards keeps chipping away at leader Jimmie Johnson’s point lead.
The deficit is now 106 points. An Edwards comeback with two races remaining would be the largest since the current points system was implemented in 1975.
But it’s not far off, which should keep Edwards optimistic. In 1992, Alan Kulwicki overcame an 85-point deficit over Bill Elliott with two races remaining to win the championship.
Edwards has beaten Johnson by 106 points in consecutive races five times this year.

One instance was over the two races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Dover (Race Nos. 12 and 13). Edwards beat Johnson by 111 points over those two races.
What makes that particular two-race span intriguing is that it occurred at tracks with identical distances as Phoenix and Homestead. Dover and Phoenix are one mile in length (though Phoenix is much flatter). Homestead and LMS are 1.5 miles.
Still, the remaining schedule sets up favorably for both Edwards and Johnson.
At Homestead and Phoenix, Johnson has two wins, seven top fives, 13 top 10s and an average finish of 9.1 in 17 races. Since the inception of Loop Data in 2005, he has a Driver Rating of 108.1 and an Average Running Position of 8.9 at those two tracks.
Edwards has no wins, five top fives, eight top 10s and an average finish of 12.3 in 12 races at the remaining tracks. Since 2005, he has a Driver Rating of 104.5 and an Average Running Position of 11.9.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Top 12 at Phoenix International Raceway
Driver Races Poles Wins Top Fives Top 10s DNFs Average Finish Driver Rating

1 Jimmie Johnson 10 0 2 5 8 0 6.0 118.0
2 Carl Edwards 8 1 0 3 5 1 14.5 103.3
3 Greg Biffle 9 0 0 2 3 1 16.4 102.4
4 Jeff Burton 18 0 2 5 10 0 11.1 85.2
5 Jeff Gordon 19 3 1 8 15 1 8.5 104.0
6 Clint Bowyer 6 0 0 2 2 1 15.8 84.4
7 Kevin Harvick 11 0 2 3 5 0 13.7 106.7,
8 Matt Kenseth 12 0 1 5 6 3 18.8 88.1
9 Tony Stewart 13 0 1 6 8 0 9.8 101.6
10 Kyle Busch 7 1 1 1 5 0 15.4 90.3
11 Dale Earnhardt Jr 12 0 2 4 6 3 18.0 89.1
12 Denny Hamlin 6 1 0 3 3 0 12.0 94.1

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

Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M/Red Cross Ford)
• Two top fives, three top 10s
• Average finish of 16.4
• Average Running Position of 14.5, 13th-best
• Driver Rating of 102.4, fifth-best
• Series-high 244 Fastest Laps Run
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.418 mph, fourth-fastest
• 1,388 (63.6%) Laps in the Top 15, eighth-most

Jeff Burton (No. 31 AT&T Mobility Chevrolet)
• Two wins, five top fives, 10 tops 10s
• Average finish of 11.1
• Average Running Position of 14.9, 14th-best
• Driver Rating of 85.2, 15th-best
• Series-high 332 Green Flag Passes
• 1,378 (63.1%) Laps in the Top 15, ninth-most
• 171 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), fifth-most

Carl Edwards (No. 99 Office Depot Ford)
• Three top fives, five top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 14.5
• Average Running Position of 13.1, eighth-best
• Driver Rating of 103.3, fourth-best
• 167 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.593 mph, second-fastest
• 1,613 (73.9%) Laps in the Top 15, sixth-most
• 152 Quality Passes, seventh-most

Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
• One win, eight top fives, 15 top 10s; three poles
• Average finish of 8.5
• Average Running Position of 8.8, third-best
• Driver Rating of 104.0, third-best
• 61 Fastest Laps Run, 12th-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.264 mph, seventh-fastest
• 1,899 (87.0%) Laps in the Top 15, second-most
• 119 Quality Passes, 11th-most

Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet)
• Two wins, three top fives, five top 10s
• Average finish of 13.7
• Average Running Position of 7.6, second-best
• Driver Rating of 106.7, second-best
• 130 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.436 mph, third-fastest
• 1,865 (85.4%) Laps in the Top 15, third-most
• 144 Quality Passes, eighth-most

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)
• Two wins, five top fives, eight top 10s
• Average finish of 6.0
• Series-best Average Running Position of 5.5
• Series-high Driver Rating of 118.0
• 200 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
• Series-fastest Average Green Flag Speed of 123.702 mph
• Series-high 2,070 (94.8%) Laps in the Top 15
• 173 Quality Passes, fourth-most

Mark Martin (No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet Ford)
• One win, nine top fives, 15 top 10s
• Average finish of 9.2
• Average Running Position of 11.9, seventh-best
• Driver Rating of 96.1, seventh-best
• 118 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most
• 1,252 (66.9%) Laps in the Top 15, tied for 11th-best percentage

Martin Truex Jr. (No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet)
• Two top 10s
• Average finish of 13.8
• Average Running Position of 10.6, sixth-best
• Driver Rating of 95.7, eighth-best
• 64 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.288 mph, sixth-fastest
• 1,218 (78.1%) Laps in the Top 15, fifth-highest percentage
• 105 Quality Passes (16.5 per race), ninth-best per race figure

Tony Stewart (No. 20 Home Depot Toyota)
• One win, six top fives, eight top 10s
• Average finish of 9.8
• Average Running Position of 10.1, fourth-best
• Driver Rating of 101.6, sixth-best
• 82 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most
• Average Green Flag Speed of 123.362 mph, fifth-fastest
• 1,742 (79.8%) Laps in the Top 15, fourth-most
• 175 Quality Passes, third-most

At Phoenix International Raceway:

History
• Construction on Phoenix International Raceway was completed in January 1964. The configuration consisted of a one-mile oval and a 2.5-mile road course.
• Alan Kulwicki won the the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix on Nov. 6, 1988.
• The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debuted at Phoenix on Feb. 5, 1995. Mike Skinner becomes the series’ first winner.
• The first NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Phoenix was on Nov. 11, 1999.
• The first spring race at PIR was held on April 23, 2005. Also the first night race, it was won by Kurt Busch.

Notebook
• There have been 24 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at the Phoenix International Raceway, one per season from 1988 through 2004 and two each season since.
• Geoffrey Bodine won the first pole in 1988.
• There have been 14 different pole winners, led by Ryan Newman with four.
• Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon are the only drivers to win consecutive poles. Newman won three straight (2002-04), while Gordon won the fall of 2006 and spring 2007.
• There have been 19 different race winners at Phoenix.
• Davey Allison (1991 and 1992), Jeff Burton (2000 and 2001), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2003 and 2004), Kevin Harvick (both 2006) and Jimmie Johnson (2007 and 2008) are the only drivers to score two victories at Phoenix. All posted back-to-back victories.
• The race has been won from the pole just once at Phoenix: Jeff Gordon (spring 2007).
• The race has been won from a top-10 starting position in only 11 of 24 races.
• Ricky Rudd won the 1995 race from the 29th-place starting position, the furthest back a race winner has started.
• There has been one green-white-checkered race at Phoenix: November 2004 (315 laps).

Hot Fact
Mark Martin has posted nine top-five finishes at Phoenix, more than any other driver. Martin has one victory and five second-place finishes in his 23 races and has just one DNF at Phoenix, that coming in his first race there.

NASCAR in Arizona
• There have been 29 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Arizona.
• 29 NASCAR drivers have their home state recorded as Arizona.
• There have been no race winners from Arizona in NASCAR’s three national series.

Phoenix International Raceway Data
Race # 35 of 36 (11-9-08)
Track Size: 1 mile
• Banking/1 and 2: 11 degrees
• Banking/3 and 4: 9 degrees
• Banking/Frontstretch: 3 degrees
• Banking/Backstretch: 9 degrees
• Frontstretch: 1,179 feet
• Backstretch: 1,551 feet

Driver Rating at Phoenix
Jimmie Johnson 118.0
Kevin Harvick 106.7
Jeff Gordon 104.0
Carl Edwards 103.3
Greg Biffle 102.4
Tony Stewart 101.6
Mark Martin 96.1
Martin Truex Jr. 95.7
Kurt Busch 95.4
Denny Hamlin 94.1
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2008 races (7 total) at Phoenix.

Qualifying/Race Data
2007 pole winner: Carl Edwards (132.773 mph, 27.114 seconds)
2007 race winner: Jimmie Johnson, 102.989 mph, 4-21-07)
Track qualifying record: Ryan Newman (135.854 mph, 26.499 seconds, 11-5-04)
Track race record: Tony Stewart (118.132 mph, 11-7-99)
Pit Window: Every 70-78 laps, based on fuel mileage.