NASCAR - Sprint Cup - AdvoCare 500 Preview
From The Sports Network
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| DATE: Sunday, November 11th |
| SITE: Phoenix International Raceway (1964) -- Avondale, Arizona |
| TRACK: one-mile oval - 1,179 feet (Frontstretch); 1,551 feet (Backstretch) |
| CAPACITY: 55,000 (Grandstand seating) |
| ANNUAL: 25th |
| TELEVISION: ESPN |
| ANNOUNCERS: Allen Bestwick, Dale Jarrett, Andy Petree |
| RADIO: Motor Racing Network (MRN)/SIRIUS NASCAR Radio |
| START TIME: 3 p.m. (ET)/Green Flag: 3:15 p.m. (ET) |
| DEFENDING CHAMPION: Kasey Kahne |
| RUNNER-UP: Carl Edwards |
| POLE WINNER: Matt Kenseth (Finished 34th) |
| LAPS: 312 |
| MILES: 312 (500 kilometers) |
| QUALIFYING RECORD: Carl Edwards, 2011 (137.279 m.p.h.) |
| RACE RECORD: Tony Stewart, 1999 (118.132 m.p.h.) |
| TOTAL PURSE: $4,957,233 (2011 figures) |
| PAYOUTS: 1st Place - $202,233; 2nd Place - $210,141; 3rd Place - $188,033 |
| 2011 Finish |
| Finish | Driver | Start | Finish | Driver | Start |
| 1 | Kasey Kahne | 10 | 6 | A.J. Allmendinger | 2 |
| 2 | Carl Edwards | 9 | 7 | David Reutimann | 7 |
| 3 | Tony Stewart | 8 | 8 | Marcos Ambrose | 3 |
| 4 | Jeff Burton | 14 | 9 | Paul Menard | 11 |
| 5 | Ryan Newman | 30 | 10 | Clint Bowyer | 28 |
| 2011 AdvoCare 500 Facts and Figures |
| AVERAGE SPEED: 112.918 m.p.h. |
| MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.802 second |
| CAUTION FLAGS: 8 for 30 laps |
| LEAD CHANGES: 14 among 7 drivers |
| POLE WINNER: Matt Kenseth (137.101 m.p.h.) |
| Past AdvoCare 500 Winners (Starting Position) Car -- Speed |
| 2011 -- Kasey Kahne (10th) -- Toyota -- 112.918 m.p.h. |
| 2010 -- Carl Edwards (1st) -- Ford -- 110.758 m.p.h. |
| 2009 -- Jimmie Johnson (3rd) -- Chevrolet -- 110.486 m.p.h. |
| 2008 -- Jimmie Johnson (1st) -- Chevrolet -- 97.804 |
| 2007 -- Jimmie Johnson (6th) -- Chevrolet -- 102.989 m.p.h. |
| 2006 -- Kevin Harvick (2nd) -- Chevrolet -- 96.131 m.p.h. |
| 2005 -- Kyle Busch (15th) -- Chevrolet -- 102.641 m.p.h. |
| 2004 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr (14th) -- Chevrolet -- 94.848 m.p.h. |
| 2003 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr (11th) -- Chevrolet -- 93.984 m.p.h. |
| 2002 -- Matt Kenseth (28th) -- Ford -- 113.857 m.p.h. |
| 2001 -- Jeff Burton (3rd) -- Ford -- 102.613 m.p.h. |
| 2000 -- Jeff Burton (2nd) -- Ford -- 105.041 m.p.h. |
| 1999 -- Tony Stewart (11th) -- Pontiac -- 118.132 m.p.h. (race record) |
| 1998 -- Rusty Wallace (6th) -- Ford -- 108.211 m.p.h. |
| 1997 -- Dale Jarrett (9th) -- Ford -- 110.824 m.p.h. |
| 1996 -- Bobby Hamilton (17th) -- Pontiac -- 109.709 m.p.h. |
| 1995 -- Ricky Rudd (29th) -- Ford -- 102.128 m.p.h. |
| 1994 -- Terry Labonte (19th) -- Chevrolet -- 107.463 m.p.h. |
| 1993 -- Mark Martin (3rd) -- Ford -- 100.375 m.p.h. |
| 1992 -- Davey Allison (12th) -- Ford -- 103.885 m.p.h. |
| 1991 -- Davey Allison (13th) -- Ford -- 95.746 m.p.h. |
| 1990 -- Dale Earnhardt (3rd) -- Chevrolet -- 96.786 m.p.h. |
| 1989 -- Bill Elliott (13th) -- Ford -- 105.683 m.p.h. |
| 1988 -- Alan Kulwicki (21st) -- Ford -- 90.457 m.p.h. |
| NOTE: Formerly called Checker 500 (1988, 1990), Autoworks 500 (1989), Pyroil |
| 500 (1991), Pyroil 500k (1992), Slick 50 500 (1993-94), Dura Lube 500 |
| (1995-97), Dura Lube/KMart 300 (1998), Checker Auto Parts/Dura Lube 500k |
| (2000), Checker Auto Parts 500 (2001-08), Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts |
| 500 (2009), Kobalt Tools 500 (2010-11). |
| Past AdvoCare500 Pole Winners (Finish) |
| 2011 -- Matt Kenseth -- 34th |
| 2010 -- Carl Edwards -- 1st |
| 2009 -- Martin Truex Jr -- 5th |
| 2008 -- Jimmie Johnson -- 1st |
| 2007 -- Carl Edwards -- 42nd |
| 2006 -- Jeff Gordon -- 4th |
| 2005 -- Denny Hamlin -- 13th |
| 2004 -- Ryan Newman -- 2nd |
| 2003 -- Ryan Newman -- 3rd |
| 2002 -- Ryan Newman -- 18th |
| 2001 -- Casey Atwood -- 14th |
| 2000 -- Rusty Wallace -- 4th |
| 1999 -- John Andretti -- 8th |
| 1998 -- Ken Schrader -- 22nd |
| 1997 -- Bobby Hamilton -- 3rd |
| 1996 -- Bobby Labonte -- 9th |
| 1995 -- Bill Elliott -- 14th |
| 1994 -- Sterling Marlin -- 3rd |
| 1993 -- Bill Elliott -- 5th |
| 1992 -- Rusty Wallace -- 28th |
| 1991 -- Geoffrey Bodine -- 8th |
| 1990 -- Rusty Wallace -- 38th |
| 1989 -- Ken Schrader -- 13th |
| 1988 -- Geoffrey Bodine -- 6th |
| Last Race Results |
| RACE: AAA Texas 500 (November 4th) |
| SITE: Texas Motor Speedway -- Ft. Worth, Texas |
| MILES: 502.5. |
| LAPS: 335 |
| WINNER: Jimmie Johnson |
| RUNNER-UP: Brad Keselowski |
| THIRD: Kyle Busch |
| FOURTH: Matt Kenseth |
| FIFTH: Tony Stewart |
| POLE WINNER: Jimmie Johnson (Finished 1st) |
| TIME OF RACE: 3 hours, 41 minutes, 30 seconds |
| AVERAGE SPEED: 136.117 m.p.h. |
| MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.808 second |
| CAUTION FLAGS: 9 for 49 laps |
| LEAD CHANGES: 20 among 7 drivers |
| LAP LEADERS: J. Johnson 1-48; R. Newman 49-50; J. Johnson 51-101; R. Newman |
| 102-105; B. Keselowski 106-118; J. Johnson 119-165; Kyle Busch |
| 166; M. Kenseth 167; T. Bayne 168-171; T. Kvapil 172; J. Johnson |
| 173-190; Kyle Busch 191-223; B. Keselowski 224; Kyle Busch |
| 225-235; B. Keselowski 236-276; Kyle Busch 277-311; J. Johnson |
| 312; B. Keselowski 313-326; J. Johnson 327; B. Keselowski |
| 328-333; J. Johnson 334-335. |
| AdvoCare 500 Entry List |
| Car | Driver, Hometown | Car/Name |
| 1 | Jamie McMurray (Joplin, MO) | Chevrolet/Bass Pro Shops |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski (Rochester Hills, MI) | Dodge/Miller Lite |
| 5 * | Kasey Kahne (Enumclaw, WA) | Chevrolet/Farmers Insurance |
| 9 | Marcos Ambrose (Launceston, Australia) | Ford/Black & Decker |
| 10 | Danica Patrick (Roscoe, IL) | Chevrolet/GoDaddy.com |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin (Chesterfield, VA) | Toyota/FedEx Ground |
| 13 | Casey Mears (Bakersfield, CA) | Ford/Geico |
| 14 | Tony Stewart (Columbus, IN) | Chevrolet/Mobil 1/Office Depot |
| 15 | Clint Bowyer (Emporia, KS) | Toyota/5-Hour Energy |
| 16 | Greg Biffle (Vancouver, WA) | Ford/Filtrete |
| 17 | Matt Kenseth (Cambridge, WI) | Ford/Roush Fenway Racing |
| 18 | Kyle Busch (Las Vegas, NV) | Toyota/M&M's |
| 19 | Mike Bliss (Milwaukie, OR) | Toyota/Plinker Tactical |
| 20 | Joey Logano (Middletown, CT) | Toyota/Dollar General |
| 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. (Defiance, OH) | Dodge/Shell/Pennzoil |
| 24 | Jeff Gordon (Vallejo, CA) | Chevrolet/DuPont |
| 26 | Josh Wise (Riverside, CA) | Ford/MDS Transport |
| 27 | Paul Menard (Eau Claire, WI) | Chevrolet/Menards/Rheem |
| 29 | Kevin Harvick (Bakersfield, CA) | Chevrolet/Budweiser |
| 30 | David Stremme (South Bend, IN) | Toyota/Inception Motorsports |
| 31 | Jeff Burton (South Boston, VA) | Chevrolet/Caterpillar |
| 32 | T.J. Bell (Reno, VA) | Ford/TBA |
| 33 | Stephen Leicht (Asheville, NC) | Chevrolet/littlejoesauto.com |
| 34 | David Ragan (Unadilla, GA) | Ford/Barrett Jackson |
| 36 | Dave Blaney (Hartford, OH) | Chevrolet/Accell Construction |
| 37 | J.J. Yeley (Phoenix, AZ) | Chevrolet/Max Q Workforce |
| 38 | David Gilliland (Riverside, CA) | Ford/Loan Mart |
| 39 | Ryan Newman (South Bend, IN) | Chevrolet/Quicken Loans |
| 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya (Bogota, Colombia) | Chevrolet/Target |
| 43 | Aric Almirola (Tampa, FL) | Ford/Farmland |
| 44 | David Reutimann (Zephyrhills, FL) | Ford/No Label Watcher |
| 47 | Bobby Labonte (Corpus Christi, TX) | Toyota/Vektor Vodka |
| 48 | Jimmie Johnson (El Cajon, CA) | Chevrolet/Lowe's/Kobalt Tools |
| 51 | Regan Smith (Cato, NY) | Chevrolet/Phoenix Construction |
| 55 | Mark Martin (Batesville, AR) | Toyota/Aaron's Dream Machine |
| 56 | Martin Truex Jr. (Mayetta, NJ) | Toyota/NAPA Auto Parts |
| 78 | Kurt Busch (Las Vegas, NV) | Chevrolet/Furniture Row |
| 83 | Landon Cassill (Cedar Rapids, IA) | Toyota/Burger King |
| 87 | Joe Nemechek (Lakeland, FL) | Toyota/AM FM Energy Wood&Pellet |
| 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Kannapolis, NC) | Chevrolet/Diet Mt. Dew/Nat Guard |
| 91 | Reed Sorenson (Peachtree City, GA) | Chevrolet/Plinker Tactical |
| 93 | Travis Kvapil (Janesville, WI) | Toyota/Burger King |
| 98 | Michael McDowell (Glendale, AZ) | Ford/Phil Parsons Racing |
| 99 | Carl Edwards (Columbia, MO) | Ford/Fastenal |
| Leading Contenders (Finish the last nine years) |
| Driver | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
| Kasey Kahne | --- | 5th | 27th | 7th | 40th | 13th | 15th | 30th | Won |
| Carl Edwards | --- | 37th | 6th | 5th | 42nd | 4th | 16th | Won | 2nd |
| Tony Stewart | 18th | 8th | 4th | 14th | 4th | 22nd | 25th | 17th | 3rd |
| Ryan Newman | 3rd | 2nd | 12th | 15th | 5th | 34th | 20th | 2nd | 5th |
| Clint Bowyer | --- | ---- | --- | 33rd | 11th | 12th | 7th | 21st | 10th |
| Denny Hamlin | --- | --- | 13th | 3rd | 16th | 5th | 3rd | 12th | 12th |
| Greg Biffle | 15th | 13th | 2nd | 34th | 2nd | 11th | 14th | 4th | 13th |
| Jimmie Johnson | 2nd | 6th | 7th | 2nd | Won | Won | Won | 5th | 14th |
| Mark Martin | 10th | 15th | 14th | 6th | --- | 14th | 4th | 8th | 16th |
| Brad Keselowski | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 37th | 42nd | 18th |
| Kevin Harvick | 34th | 4th | 23rd | Won | 6th | 7th | 24th | 6th | 19th |
| Martin Truex Jr | --- | --- | --- | 12th | 7th | 43rd | 5th | 15th | 20th |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr | Won | Won | 40th | 9th | 43rd | 6th | 35th | 14th | 24th |
| Jeff Gordon | 7th | 3rd | 3rd | 4th | 10th | 41st | 9th | 11th | 32nd |
| Matt Kenseth | 6th | 36th | 32nd | 13th | 3rd | 15th | 18th | 7th | 34th |
| Kyle Busch | --- | --- | Won | 38th | 8th | 8th | 12th | 13th | 36th |
| Mover of the Week |
| Ryan Newman - Started in the 36th position and finished 12th |
| Sports Network Selections |
| Pick to Win - Clint Bowyer |
| Darkhorse - Carl Edwards |
| Last Week's Pick to Win (Jimmie Johnson) - Finished 1st |
| Last Week's Darkhorse (Matt Kenseth) - Finished 4th |
| NOTES: |
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Eight down and just two to go, as the Sprint Cup circuit slides into
Phoenix this week for the Advocare 500. Only seven points separate Jimmie
Johnson from his nearest competitor, Brad Keselowski.
After winning in Texas, Johnson widened his lead by five heading into the
desert for the penultimate race of the season.
The championship battle is shaping up to be a repeat of last year's duel
between Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards. Stewart trailed Edwards by eight points
with three races remaining, but Stewart won at Texas and Homestead to claim the
title in a points tiebreaker.
Ten drivers are still mathematically eligible for the title. The cut-off after
this week will be 49 points. Only Keselowski and Clint Bowyer (-36) currently
are within that window. Fourth-place Kasey Kahne (-58) must net 10 points on
Johnson to take his slim title hopes to the Nov. 18 season finale at Homestead-
Miami Speedway. Reigning champion Stewart is 80 points back and needs a miracle
to survive.
Although he has not won in his last five attempts at the track, Johnson has
been the dominant driver at PIR. Johnson has four wins, two runner-up finishes
and 15 top-10s in 18 starts. In fact, he has failed to finish outside the
top-10 only once since April, 2005. His average finish here is 5.2.
Mark Martin is the only other driver with an average finish at PIR under 10
(9.0). Martin boasts 20 top-10 finishes in 31 starts with a pair of wins.
Johnson's three-race win streak here was stopped in 2010 by Edwards, as he
snapped a 70-race winless streak. Edwards passed Denny Hamlin for the lead
with 47 laps remaining, and then conserved enough fuel to claim his first
Sprint Cup win since the 2008 season-ending race at Homestead, FL. Edwards had
a dominating weekend at Phoenix by winning the pole and leading the way in all
three practices for the 312-mile (500 km) race. Edwards went on to win the
final race of the 2010 to place fourth on the points list.
In 2008, Johnson became the first pole sitter to win this race, as he edged
Kurt Busch by less than half a second to join Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jeff Burton
and Davey Allison as the only back-to-back champions of this race. Johnson led
217 of 313 laps and held off Busch in a green-white-checkered finish.
Five drivers have won consecutive races at Phoenix: Davey Allison (1991,1992);
Jeff Burton (2000, 2001); Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2003, 2004); Kevin Harvick (swept
2006); Jimmie Johnson is the only one of the five to win three consecutive
races (fall 2007, swept 2008).
Johnson, a 60-race winner in the Sprint Cup Series, continued the Chevrolet
dominance in this race in 2007, as he posted his 33rd career title, defeating
Greg Biffle by less than a second. Johnson led twice for 55 laps, including
the final 24. Pole sitter Carl Edwards led the first 87 laps, but failed to
finish due to engine problems and placed 42nd.
In 2006, Harvick crossed the finish line 0.250 of a second ahead of Johnson to
claim his 10th career Sprint Cup title and fifth of that campaign. Harvick,
who started second on the grid, led for a whopping 252 laps, including the
final 30. Pole sitter Jeff Gordon was out in front for the first three laps
and finished fourth.
Kyle Busch out-dueled Greg Biffle in 2005 by less than a second for his second
career Sprint Cup title. Busch led for a total of 63 laps, including the final
28 in front of a crowd of 105,000. Busch, who started 15th on the grid, led on
three separate occasions, while Biffle led four times for 189 laps. Pole
sitter Denny Hamlin led for 23 laps and finished 13th.
This and That from Phoenix International Raceway: Construction was completed
in January 1964. The facility consisted of a one-mile oval and a 2.5-mile road
course. Alan Kulwicki won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix
on Nov. 6, 1988. Ricky Rudd won the 1995 race from the 29th-place starting
position, the furthest back a race winner has started. In 32 previous races at
PIR, the pole sitter has won four times and the top-10 starting spot has
captured half of the races. Several changes have been made to PIR, as the
frontstretch went from 52 to 62 feet and the dog-leg curve between the second
and third turns was pushed out 95 feet. In addition, pit road was reconfigured
with the installation of concrete pit stalls. The track was repaved last year.
The standings leader after 34 races has gone on to capture the championship six
times, including Johnson in 2006-09. But in the past two seasons the No. 2-
ranked driver - Johnson in 2010 and Tony Stewart in 2011 - prevailed. Johnson
and Keselowski have each won five times in 2012 with Johnson currently holding
a potential tie-breaker based upon most second-place finishes (five to three).
The 2012 Chase for the Sprint Cup championship concludes with the Nov. 18 Ford
EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Tony Stewart clinched his third
series championship by winning last year's race there.
11/06 16:43:44 ET
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As of November 6, 2012, at 04:44 PM ET
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