NASCAR.COM - By the Numbers: Pocono

Vickers, Martin looking to improve second-place runs at 2.5 miler

By Josh Pate, NASCAR.COM
June 9, 2006
09:22 AM EDT (13:22 GMT)

In Brian Vickers' 90 Nextel Cup races, he has yet to visit Victory Lane. Pocono is the closest he's been.

Vickers led 121 of the 201 laps in last year's Pocono 500, but his team took just two tires on the final green-flag pit stop late in the race. Turned out, four was better than two. Kurt Busch wound up with the lead but cut a tire down and handed it over to Carl Edwards.

VICKERS SEARCHING FOR RIDES

Brian Vickers was given permission to search for another ride, setting off what could be another domino of change.

•	Complete story, click here

Vickers never had a chance to catch him. The race ended under caution, and Vickers wound up second, his only runner-up finish.

"On older tires, it just wasn't quite enough," Vickers said after last year's race.

He's hoping he'll have enough this time around to finish one spot better. Hendrick Motorsports' history at Pocono says that's a strong possibility.

What you didn't know

7 -- Lowest running position for Brian Vickers in last year's Pocono 500. He was passed just 11 times during green-flag racing and had an average running position of 4.723.

Driver Rating: Pocono 500

122.5 -- Brian Vickers, No. 25 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Vickers finished second in last year's Pocono 500 after dominating the race. One month later, he was 14th in the Pennsylvania 500.

NASCAR's driver rating combines the following categories: wins, finishes, top-15s, average lead-lap running position, average speed under green, fastest lap, led most laps and lead-lap finish. Statistics based on current and past year at track. Maximum rating: 150 points.

Numerology

Sunday's Pocono 500 will be the 57th race at Pocono Raceway. The first race was in 1974, won by Richard Petty. There have been 26 winners at the 2.5-mile triangular-shaped track, and most of them have started near the front.

0 -- Times Jimmie Johnson has finished worse than 15th in his eight races at Pocono. His last four races have resulted in two victories (both in 2004), a sixth-place and a 12th-place.

2.5 -- Average finishing position for Carl Edwards at Pocono in his two starts. He won the Pocono 500 last year and finished fourth in the Pennsylvania 500. His average start, however, is 35.0.

3 -- Different degrees of banking on the three unique turns at Pocono. Turn 1 has 14 degrees of banking. Turn 2 has 8 degrees of banking. Turn 3 has 6 degrees of banking.

3 -- Finishing position for Joe Nemechek last June at Pocono, his highest finish of the season in 2005.

3 -- Drivers who have three victories at Pocono, the most among full-time drivers: Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett and Bobby Labonte.

4 -- Times in the past six races at Pocono that an event has ended under caution.

5 -- Positions in the point standings Jamie McMurray has improved over the last five races (from 20th to 15th), coinciding with the arrival of new crew chief Bob Osborne.

5 -- Bud Poles for Ken Schrader at Pocono, more than any other driver.

6.982 -- Average starting position for Pocono winners. Nine races have been won from the pole position.

10 -- Victories at Pocono for Hendrick Motorsports, more than any other team.

10 -- Full-time drivers who have been running at the finish of all of their Pocono races: Elliott Sadler, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, Dave Blaney, Jimmie Johnson, Scott Riggs, Brian Vickers, Kasey Kahne, Carl Edwards and Travis Kvapil.

10.279 -- Average running position for Matt Kenseth this season, the best among full-time drivers.

11 -- Former Pocono winners who will be in the field for Sunday's Pocono 500.

18 -- Different Bud Pole winners in the last 19 races at Pocono.

20 -- Victories at Pocono for Chevrolet, one more than Ford's 19 at the track. A Dodge has won there four times.

27 -- Top-10 finishes for Mark Martin at Pocono, including 17 of the last 21 races at the track. He has 19 top-fives but has never won at the track.

29 -- Starting position for Carl Edwards last June when he won the Pocono 500. It was the worst starting position for any winner at Pocono.

34.631 -- Average running position for Dale Earnhardt Jr. last year at Pocono. He has finished 25th or worse in the past three races at the track.

35.40 -- Percent of passes made on the frontstretch last year at Pocono, the most popular place to pass. In contrast, Turn 2 (3.85 percent) and the third straightaway (7.38 percent) did not provide good passing conditions.

36 -- Races in which Roush Racing competed at Pocono before Carl Edwards recorded the team's first victory last year.

40 -- Races of the 56 at Pocono that have been won from a top-10 starting position (71.43 percent), and 32 have been won from a top-five starting spot (57.14). Only four races have been won from a starting position below 16th.

50 -- Starts at Pocono Raceway for Terry Labonte, more than any other active driver and second on the all-time list behind Ricky Rudd (53). Labonte will attempt to make his 51st start at the track this weekend.

82 -- Green-flag passes Jeff Gordon made in last June's Pocono race, more than any other driver. He started 31st and finished ninth.

166.031 -- Speed, in miles per hour, of the fastest lap recorded in last year's Pocono 500, clocked by Michael Waltrip on Lap 2.

376 -- Laps led by Mark Martin, the most by a driver who has not won at Pocono.

1,290 -- Green-flag passes by Robby Gordon this season, more than any other driver.

Mark Martin has yet to break into Victory Lane at Pocono, but he's been close. He's got an average start of 7.0 and an average finish of 10.5. In 38 starts at the track, the veteran has been a bridesmaid six times and he has led laps in all of his second-place finishes.

Pocono's Runner-up King

Mark Martin's second-place finishes at Pocono

Year	Start	Finish	Laps Led	Winner
1991	3	2	23	Rusty Wallace
1992	4	2	51	Alan Kulwicki
1998	6	2	2	Jeff Gordon
2002	6	2	7	Dale Jarrett
2003	6	2	7	Tony Stewart
2004	21	2	11	Jimmie Johnson

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