Statistical Advance: Analyzing The Toyota/Save Mart 350

[NickHolt]

Statistical Advance: Analyzing The Toyota/Save Mart 350

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (June 18, 2012) – Below is a look at some of the top statistical performers at Sonoma in Sonoma, California going into the Toyota/Save Mart 350 on June 24.

 

SONOMA-SPECIFIC STATISTICS

 

Marcos Ambrose (No. 9 Stanley Ford)

 

· Two top fives, three top 10s

 

· Average finish of 14.0

 

· Average Running Position of 11.2, fourth-best

 

· Series-best Driver Rating of 108.8

 

· 45 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

 

· Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 89.877 mph

 

· 150 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), 10th-most

 

 

 

Clint Bowyer (No. 15 5-hour Energy Toyota)

 

· Three top fives, four top 10s

 

· Average finish of 11.2

 

· Average Running Position of 16.7, 11th-best

 

· Driver Rating of 85.1, 11th-best

 

· Series-high 455 Green Flag Passes

 

· 166 Quality Passes, seventh-most

 

 

 

Kurt Busch (No. 51 Phoenix Construction Services Inc. Chevrolet)

 

· One win, four top fives, four top 10s; one pole

 

· Average finish of 18.3

 

· Series-best Average Running Position of 10.0

 

· Driver Rating of 106.1, third-best

 

· 23 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.551 mph, third-fastest

 

· 593 Laps in the Top 15 (76.5%), second-most

 

· 170 Quality Passes, sixth-most

 

 

 

Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M’s Toyota)

 

· One win, one top five, two top 10s

 

· Average finish of 18.9

 

· Driver Rating of 92.1, eighth-best

 

· 45 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.479 mph, fifth-fastest

 

 

 

Carl Edwards (No. 99 Aflac Ford)

 

· One top five, three top 10s

 

· Average finish of 16.6

 

· Average Running Position of 16.0, ninth-best

 

· Driver Rating of 85.8, 10th-best

 

· 22 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most

 

· 433 Green Flag Passes, second-most

 

· 162 Quality Passes, eighth-most

 

 

 

Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet)

 

· Five wins, 12 top fives, 15 top 10s; five poles

 

· Average finish of 8.7

 

· Average Running Position of 13.4, sixth-best

 

· Driver Rating of 99.1, fifth-best

 

· 47 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most

 

· 406 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.444 mph, sixth-fastest

 

· 482 Laps in the Top 15 (62.2%), fifth-most

 

· 187 Quality Passes, third-most

 

 

 

Robby Gordon (No. 7 MAPEI Dodge)

 

· One win, three top fives, four top 10s

 

· Average finish of 21.4

 

· Driver Rating of 83.8, 13th-best

 

· 50 Fastest Laps Run, second-most

 

· 431 Green Flag Passes, third-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.311 mph, eighth-fastest

 

· 352 Laps in the Top 15 (45.4%), 13th-most

 

· 133 Quality Passes, 12th-most

 

 

 

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet)

 

· One win, three top fives, five top 10s

 

· Average finish of 14.7

 

· Average Running Position of 14.1, seventh-best

 

· Driver Rating of 94.1, sixth-best

 

· 48 Fastest Laps Run, third-most

 

· 513 Laps in the Top 15 (66.2%), fourth-most

 

· 191 Quality Passes, second-most

 

 

 

Jamie McMurray (No. 1 McDonald's Chevrolet)

 

· One top five, one top 10; one pole

 

· Average finish of 16.9

 

· Average Running Position of 16.9, 13th-best

 

· Driver Rating of 86.6, ninth-best

 

· 15 Fastest Laps Run, 13th-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.291 mph, ninth-fastest

 

· 379 Laps in the Top 15 (48.9%), 11th-most

 

 

 

Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42 Target Chevrolet)

 

· One win, one top five, four top 10s

 

· Average finish of 9.0

 

· Average Running Position of 10.7, third-best

 

· Driver Rating of 104.0, fourth-best

 

· 17 Fastest Laps Run, 12th-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.540 mph, fourth-fastest

 

· 448 Laps in the Top 15 (80.7%), seventh-most

 

· 179 Quality Passes, fourth-most

 

 

 

Ryan Newman (No. 39 Quicken Loans/Children’s Tumor Foundation Chevrolet)

 

· Two top fives, five top 10s

 

· Average finish of 12.4

 

· Average Running Position of 12.4, fifth-best

 

· Driver Rating of 93.5, seventh-best

 

· 387 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.382 mph, seventh-fastest

 

· 551 Laps in the Top 15 (71.1%), third-most

 

· 177 Quality Passes, fifth-most

 

 

 

Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet)

 

· Two wins, four top fives, eight top 10s; one pole

 

· Average finish of 11.5

 

· Average Running Position of 10.1, second-best

 

· Driver Rating of 107.9, second-best

 

· Series-high 73 Fastest Laps Run

 

· 374 Green Flag Passes, 13th-most

 

· Average Green Flag Speed of 89.829 mph, second-fastest

 

· Series-high 603 Laps in the Top 15 (77.8%)

 

· Series-high 220 Quality Passes

 

 

 

Chase Contenders - The Top 12 Following Race 15 of 36

 

1. Matt Kenseth 565 1 0 1 105.9

 

2. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 561 1 0 2 103.2

 

3. Greg Biffle 548 1 2 3 107.0

 

4. Jimmie Johnson 532 2 0 5 107.7

 

5. Denny Hamlin 514 2 1 4 98.8

 

6. Kevin Harvick 504 0 0 6 94.9

 

7. Martin Truex Jr. 497 0 1 7 95.0

 

8. Tony Stewart 491 2 0 8 93.6

 

9. Clint Bowyer 481 0 0 9 88.8

 

10. Brad Keselowski 458 2 0 10 91.9

 

 

At Sonoma:

History

· The track opened as a 2.52-mile road course and drag strip in 1968.

· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held in 1989.

· The first nine races were 300 kilometers and switched to a 350k format in 1998.

· The track was reconfigured to 1.949 miles in 1998 with the installation of an 890-foot chute between the original Turns 4 and 7.

· The track was reconfigured to 2.0 miles in 2001 and re-measured at 1.99 miles in 2002.

Notebook

· There have been 23 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Sonoma since the first race there in 1989.

· Rusty Wallace won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup pole.

· Ricky Rudd won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race.

· 14 different drivers have won poles; only four have won more than one.

· Jeff Gordon (five) leads all pole winners. Ricky Rudd has four, including three consecutive (1990-92), Rusty Wallace and Kasey Kahne each have two.

· There have been consecutive pole winners three times: Ricky Rudd (1990-92) and Jeff Gordon (1998-99 and 2004-05).

· 15 different drivers have won races; five have multiple victories there – led by Jeff Gordon with five. Ernie Irvan, Ricky Rudd, Tony Stewart and Rusty Wallace (all with two) are the other multiple-race winners.

· Jeff Gordon is also the only driver with consecutive wins, winning in 1998, 1999 and 2000.

· Five of 23 races have been won by the pole winner, including three times by Jeff Gordon. His victory from the pole in 2004 is the most recent.

· The lowest starting position by a race winner was 32nd, by Juan Pablo Montoya; it also was his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win.

· Boris Said posted his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pole.

· Jeff Gordon is the all-time leader in road-course victories, with nine. Tony Stewart is second, with seven.

· Youngest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sonoma winner: Kyle Busch (06/26/2008 – 21 years, 1 month, 2 days).

· Oldest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sonoma winner: Ricky Rudd (06/23/2002 – 45 years, 9 months, 11 days).

 

Sonoma Data

 

Race #: 16 of 36 (06-24-12)

 

Track Size: 1.99 miles

 

Race Length: 110 laps / 219 miles/ 350 Kilometers

 

Number of Turns: 12

 

Top 12 Driver Rating at Sonoma

 

Marcos Ambrose....................... 108.8

 

Tony Stewart............................. 107.9

 

Kurt Busch................................ 106.1

 

Juan Pablo Montoya................. 104.0

 

Jeff Gordon................................ 99.1

 

Jimmie Johnson.......................... 94.1

 

Ryan Newman............................. 93.5

 

Kyle Busch................................. 92.1

 

Jamie McMurray.......................... 86.6

 

Carl Edwards.............................. 85.8

 

Clint Bowyer............................... 85.1

 

Elliott Sadler............................... 84.9

 

Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2011 races (seven total) at Sonoma.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

 

2011 pole winner: Joey Logano, (93.256 mph, 76.821 seconds)

 

2011 race winner: Kurt Busch, (75.411 mph, 2:54:10, 06-26-11)

 

Track qualifying record: Jeff Gordon, (94.325 mph, 75.950 seconds, 06-24-05)

 

Track race record: Ricky Rudd, (81.007 mph, 2:42:08, 06-23-02)

 

NASCAR in California

 

· There have been 132 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in California

· 418 drivers from NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as California.

· There have been 34 race winners from California in NASCAR three national series.