SPRINT CUP SERIES
Human Torch Kyle Busch Goes For Fantastic Fourth Victory Of The Season And Third Straight
Winner
of the past two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races and three of the last
four events, Kyle Busch will attempt to become the first driver since
Jimmie Johnson in 2007 to take the checkered flag in three consecutive
races when he gets behind the wheel for Sunday’s Crown Royal presents
the Jeff Kyle 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (3:30
p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network). That year, Johnson won four straight
races during the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup – Martinsville,
Atlanta, Texas and Phoenix – on the way to his second career NSCS title.
Busch
has never won at Indianapolis, but finished second there last season
and in 2012. He claims three top fives (30%) and eight top 10s in 10
starts at the Brickyard. The fact Busch has only started within the top
10 once makes his finishing stats even more impressive.
The
No. 18 Toyota driver returned to action in late May, just three months
after breaking his right leg and left foot. He ranks second in the NSCS
with three wins after competing in a mere eight races.
Flash Gordon: Brickyard Record-Holder Says Goodbye To Hometown Track
Jeff
Gordon, who spent his formative years in Pittsboro, Indiana, will make
his final start at his “hometown track” in Sunday’s Crown Royal presents
the Jeff Kyle 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Gordon
boasts a track-record five wins at the Brickyard. The No. 24 driver won
the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at the 2.5-mile track in 1993
and took the checkered flag in last season’s race, 20 years later.
Currently
12th on the Chase Grid, Gordon still needs a win to automatically
qualify for NASCAR’s playoffs. He rides a streak of three straight
top-10 finishes into Indy.
Hoosier Winner: Indiana Drivers Share Brickyard Success
Tony
Stewart, Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman all called Indiana home during the
formative years. Coincidentally, they have all been successful at
Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The trio has combined for eight Brickyard
400 wins (Gordon, 5; Stewart, 2; Newman, 1). Adding to the Hoosier
State’s racing legacy, Gordon (4) and Stewart (3) have produced four
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championships.
Can Chevrolet Extend Record Streak At IMS?
A
Chevrolet manufactured car has won 12 straight races at Indianapolis
Motor Speedway – the longest current streak in NASCAR. The run has
featured three stock car generations and seven different winning drivers
(Click here for a graphic detailing Chevy’s dominance at the Brickyard).
Generation 6 |2013-present: Jeff Gordon (2014), Ryan Newman (2013)
Generation 5 | 2007-12: Paul Menard (2011), Jimmie Johnson (2008-09, 2012) Jamie McMurray (2010), Tony Stewart (2010)
Generation 4 | 1992-2006: Jimmie Johnson (2006), Tony Stewart (2005), Jeff Gordon (2004), Kevin Harvick (2003)
Indiana Victory Lane – The Home Of Champions
Drivers
readying to compete at Indianapolis Motor Speedway better eat their
Wheaties because the track’s Victory Lane is the home of champions.
In
all, 17 of 21 Brickyard 400 races have been won by a past or future
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion. Kevin Harvick was the latest driver
to join the list when he captured the NSCS title least season. He won at
IMS in 2003.
Harvick,
Dale Earnhardt, Bill Elliott, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett, Jimmie
Johnson, Bobby Labonte and Tony Stewart all have a NSCS championship and
a Brickyard 400 win.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rule Package For IMS Set
At Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, NASCAR will debut its second track-specific rule package of the season.
The
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series package planned for Indianapolis includes a
43-inch radiator pan (increased from 38 inches), a two-inch splitter
leading edge, a one-inch wicker bill and nine-inch spoiler (increased
from six inches). The increased downforce adds drag to the car and
creates a larger draft window in the back.
“When
you look at a lot of the data, and obviously you see it play out on the
race track, but the belief is that the second-place car, if they're
lined up maybe two, three, four, five, could have a five-mile-an-hour
difference between the leader,” NASCAR Executive Vice President &
Chief Racing Development Officer Steve O’Donnell said. “As an example,
if you came out of Turn 2 and you had a four-car-length lead, it's the
belief that second and third, if they hooked up, could head into Turn 3
up on the bumper of the leader and potentially have kind of that, more
of that slingshot that you used to see and the ability to pass. A lot
of that we've got to see in the real world once we're out there at Indy,
but that's the effect we believe it'll have.”
For
Indianapolis, teams will be allowed to change their engines prior to
qualifying and data will be permitted at practice. A single gear will be
used, but teams will bring four different gears. NASCAR will determine
which gear is needed after practice. Teams will start on a 3.70 gear.
The
Indianapolis rule package differs from the first track-specific rule
package used this season at Kentucky which created lower downforce. The
modifications helped produce a track-record 22 green-flag passes for the
lead and a total of 2,665 green-flag passes overall.
Qualifying Format Different At Indy This Weekend
Both
the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series will use the
superspeedway qualifying format at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this
weekend. The qualifying format was updated to align with the high-draft
rule package.
There
will be two rounds of qualifying with drivers turning one timed lap.
The qualifying order in the first round will be determined by a random
draw. The top-12 drivers from round 1 advance to the final round where
their times are reset. The final round qualifying order will be set from
slowest to fastest speeds in the first round with starting positions
1-12 determined by the fastest laps in the second session.
Jeff Gordon won the Coors Light Pole Award under this format at Talladega in May.
Chase Watch: 7 To Go
Only seven races remain before the 16-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field is set.
Here’s what we know:
Kevin
Harvick, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson have fulfilled two of
the three Chase criteria. All three have the multiple wins that
guarantee a spot among the top 16 winners, and have locked up a top 30
spot. All they need to do now is start each of the remaining races in
the regular season.
A
few drivers can join them this weekend. If Kurt Busch leaves Indy with a
289 point lead over 31st, he will lock up a top 30 spot. Joey Logano,
Martin Truex Jr., Brad Keselowski, Matt Kenseth and Denny Hamlin all
need to win, and in some cases get some help to lock up a top 30 spot
(leaving Indy with a 289 point lead over 31st).
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
Indianapolis Is The Next Stop For The Dash 4 Cash
Four
talented championship contending drivers will race to win a $100,000
bonus this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in the second round
of the NASCAR XFINITY Series Dash 4 Cash program. Chris Buescher, Regan
Smith, Brendan Gaughan and Chase Elliott will compete for the added cash
bonus at Indianapolis in the Lilly Diabetes 250 on July 25 (on NBC at
3:30 p.m. ET). The top finisher among the four will win the bonus.
Of
the four, Regan Smith has had the most success in the Dash 4 Cash
program, having already won two rounds in his career – earlier this
season at Dover and last season at New Hampshire.
Series
standings leader Chris Buescher and 2014 series champion Chase Elliott
have been on another level performance-wise this season and both
finished in the top-12 in their series debuts at IMS last season.
Gaughan
has an average finish of 14.4 through the first 17 races this season.
Gaughan has especially run strong the last eight races, finishing in the
top-10 four times. He has run two races at Indy, a 35th-place finish in
the 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup event and a 19th in last year’s XFINITY
Series race.
The
top finisher of the four at Indianapolis, plus the highest finishing
three NASCAR XFINITY Series championship contending drivers in the Lilly
Diabetes 250 will qualify for the third round of the Dash 4 Cash
program at Bristol Motor Speedway and a chance at another $100,000 cash
bonus.
Sunoco Rookie Update: Suarez Takes Rookie Standings Lead From Wallace
Following
his seventh top-10 finish of the season last weekend at New Hampshire,
Daniel Suarez has taken the Sunoco Rookie of the Year points lead from
Darrell Wallace Jr. by three points as the series heads to Indianapolis
Motor Speedway for the 18th race of the season.
The
Drive for Diversity graduates, Suarez and Wallace, have been battling
for the rookie points lead for most of the season. The two standouts
have risen above the rest of the 2015 rookie class as both drivers are
the only rookies in the NASCAR XFINITY Series driver standings top 10.
In
17 starts this season Suarez, a Monterrey, Mexico native, has posted
three top fives, seven top 10s and a pole. His average finish is 14.0.
Wallace’s season also has seen success. In 17 starts he has posted one top five, seven top 10s and a pole.
Both Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidates will be making their series track debut at Indianapolis this weekend.
Elliott Chipping Away At Buescher’s Standings Lead
Point
standing leads can be a tricky thing. One day they are here, the next
they vanish. All it takes is one bad finish or one DNF and an
insurmountable lead could vanish.
Unfortunately
for Chase Elliott, he can’t wait on a bad finish from the consistent
standings leader Chris Buescher. So, in all likelihood, he’ll need to
win.
Elliott gained five points on Buescher in the standings this past weekend with his ninth-place finish at New Hampshire.
Still
waiting on his first victory in 2015, Elliott has posted seven top
fives, 13 top 10s (series most), and an average finish of 9.5.
This weekend Elliott will look to better last year’s Indy performance, when he started fifth and finished 12th.
Dillon’s Time To Rebound Is Now
Defending
Lilly Diabetes 250 winner, Ty Dillon is rolling into Indianapolis Motor
Speedway hoping this weekend can be the spark that can reignite his
NASCAR XFINITY Series championship run this season.
After
leading the series standings for six races earlier this season Dillon
has hit a mid-season skid falling to third in the standings, 38 points
behind standings leader Chris Buescher and seven points behind
second-place Chase Elliott.
But
this weekend could change all that. Dillon’s win at Indianapolis last
year was no fluke. In his two starts at the 2.5-mile speedway he has
posted an average finish of 2.0. And in last season’s victory he led 24
laps (third-most of the event).
Dillon’s
pre-race Loop Data stats point to IMS as the perfect place to rebound
from his recent standings slide. He is ranked first among championship
contenders in driver rating (119.2) and in average running position
(6.295).
Jones and Dillon Have A Busy Week Ahead
Two
rising stars in the NASCAR national series ranks will have the
opportunity to race on the dirt in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
at Eldora Speedway on Wednesday night and then again in the NASCAR
XFINITY Series on the bricks at one of the most historic facilities in
the sport, Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Amongst
the corn fields of Ohio sits Eldora Speedway where Ty Dillon will
compete for GMS Racing in the No. 33 Chevrolet and then climb into the
Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevrolet at Indianapolis later in the
week. Dillon is the defending winner of Lilly Diabetes 250 at
Indianapolis.
Jones
will strap into the Kyle Busch Motorsports No. 4 Toyota at Eldora
Wednesday night, and then jump in to last weekend’s winning car, the No.
20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota for his 16th NASCAR XFINITY Series start of
the season. This will be Jones’ series track debut at IMS.
Jones has made 15 NXS starts this season posting two wins, eight top fives and 10 top 10s.
Stars Line Up For IMS XFINITY Race
Along
with the stars of the NASCAR XFINITY Series championship contenders
vying for the win this weekend will be five NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
drivers looking to deny them the spoils of victory. Those drivers are
Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, Paul Menard and Aric Almirola.
JR
Motorsports welcomes back their most successful driver this season,
Kevin Harvick. Harvick will be in the No. 88 Chevrolet with crew chief
David Elenz atop the Pit Box. Harvick has made seven starts this season
posting two wins, three top fives, five top 10s and an average finish of
7.1.
Harvick has made two series starts at IMS posting two top fives and an average finish of 4.5.
For
the third week in a row Kyle Busch will be competing in the NASCAR
XFINITY Series in Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 54 Toyota. Busch has been stout
since his return from his injury posting a win at Michigan, a
third-place finish at Kentucky and a fourth-place finish at New
Hampshire last weekend.
Busch has made three series starts at Indianapolis posting one win (2013), two top fives and an average finish of 8.3.
Kyle
Larson returns to HScott Motorsports with Chip Ganassi’s No. 42
Chevrolet this weekend at Indianapolis for his sixth start of the
season. Larson’s previous five have seen one top five and four top 10s.
Larson
has made two NASCAR XFINITY Series starts at IMS posting an average
finish of 9.5 – including his series career best finish of eighth at the
2.5-mile track last season.
Paul
Menard, who won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Indianapolis in
2011, will be back in the Richard Childress Racing No. 33 Chevrolet this
weekend with crew chief Danny Stockman Jr. This will be Menard’s
fourth race of the season; in his previous three starts he has posted
two top fives. Menard finished sixth in this event at IMS last season.
Aric
Almirola is back in the No. 98 Ford for car owner Fred Biagi this
weekend. Almirola has made seven starts this season, posting three
top-10s. This will be Almirola’s series track debut at IMS.
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