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Aside from one DNF, Casey Mears has been all top-10 all season.By the Numbers: Dover
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Casey Mears has gotten all the attention this week.
He finally completed the circle, as all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers have won a race in the Cup Series. But in the Busch Series, Mears has been anything but the odd man out.
Mears sits quietly in the 14th spot in the championship standings. It's quietly because he hasn't won a race. He has followed suit with other Cup regulars in sporadically taking weekends off here and there -- four to be exact. Yet he's within 18 points of slithering his way into the bunched-up top 10.
Not to be lost in all of last weekend's hoopla is the fact that he ran second in the Busch race. What's dangerous about Mears is that he knows he's on the verge.
"The Busch Series team has been knocking on the door all season," Mears said. "I know that win is coming. I said after finishing second last Saturday that I feel like we're always the bridesmaid. We changed that on Sunday with the Cup team and it's time that we change it with the Busch team now, too."
Interesting Fact
7Consecutive top-10 finishes for Casey Mears this season. He's had eight top-10s in his nine races, with the only bad finish being a 42nd-place DNF at Las Vegas. Mears' best Dover finish is 19th in 2004.
Fun Fact
137Combined ages of James Hylton (72) and Morgan Shepherd (65), who are both entered in Saturday's race. Shepherd won at Dover in 1986.
All the Facts
1Driver ranked in the top 10 in points that is considered a Busch Series regular. Regan Smith is fifth, 682 points behind leader Carl Edwards. However, Smith is running part time in the Cup Series this season.
3Finishing position of Matt Kenseth last fall at Dover. In his three races prior to that, he had finishes of 35th, 38th and 26th. Kenseth has led a series-high 637 laps at Dover.
3Drivers entered in Saturday's race who have an average running position better than 10th over the last four Dover races: Carl Edwards (7.600), Kevin Harvick (8.640) and Greg Biffle (9.272).
3Races that have been won from the pole at Dover: Morgan Shepherd (September 1986), Joe Nemechek (June 2003) and Ryan Newman (September 2005).
6Former Dover winners who are on the entry list for Saturday's race: Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, Jason Keller, Jeff Burton, Mike Wallace and Morgan Shepherd.
7.9Average finish for Greg Biffle in 11 races at Dover, easily the best among drivers entered in Saturday's race. The next best average is Kevin Harvick's 11.1.
8Times a Dover race winner has gone on to win the series championship, most recently in 2005 by Martin Truex Jr.
8Finish of Greg Biffle in three of the last four Dover races. He was fifth in the fall 2005 race.
17.9Average number of lead changes per race at Dover, with an average of 5.28 leaders per race. Dover races average 5.37 cautions.
20Best finish for Bobby Hamilton Jr. over the last three races this season. Hamilton has fallen from fifth to 12th in the standings during that span.
26.37Percent of passes made on the frontstretch in the last four Dover races.
36Starting position for Jeff Burton in his victory last year, the worst of any Dover winner.
40Cars on the entry list for Saturday's race at Dover, the fewest on a single entry list this season for the Busch Series. There have only been two races that had a short field (California and Talladega).
99Career Busch Series starts for J.J. Yeley. He has never won a Busch race but has finished second twice. His career average finish is 17.3.
106.9Driver Rating of Kevin Harvick, the highest among those entered in Saturday's race but fifth on the list from the previous four Dover events.
290Laps led by Kevin Harvick in his 10 races at Dover, more than any other driver who has not won at the track.
746Laps that Carl Edwards ran inside the top 15 in the last four Dover races, which spanned 802 total circuits.
4,713Laps Jason Keller has completed at Dover, more than any other driver.
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Dover International Speedway
Busch Series Winners
| Year | Winner | Make | Start |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Joe Ruttman | Pontiac | 4 |
| 1983 | Ricky Rudd | Oldsmobile | 12 |
| 1984 | Sam Ard | Oldsmobile | 2 |
| 1985 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 1986 | Darrell Waltrip | Pontiac | 2 |
| Morgan Shepherd | Buick | 1 | |
| 1987 | Mark Martin | Ford | 5 |
| Rick Mast | Buick | 3 | |
| 1988 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Buick | 15 |
| Michael Waltrip | Chevrolet | 5 | |
| 1989 | Rick Wilson | Oldsmobile | 8 |
| Ken Schrader | Chevrolet | 14 | |
| 1990 | Michael Waltrip | Pontiac | 4 |
| Harry Gant | Buick | 3 | |
| 1991 | Todd Bodine | Buick | 9 |
| Harry Gant | Buick | 16 | |
| 1992 | Robert Pressley | Oldsmobile | 4 |
| Robert Pressley | Oldsmobile | 4 | |
| 1993 | Todd Bodine | Chevrolet | 5 |
| Todd Bodine | Chevrolet | 22 | |
| 1994 | Mike Wallace | Chevrolet | 19 |
| Johnny Benson Jr. | Chevrolet | 20 | |
| 1995 | Mike McLaughlin | Chevrolet | 5 |
| Johnny Rumley | Chevrolet | 24 | |
| 1996 | Randy LaJoie | Chevrolet | 16 |
| Randy LaJoie | Chevrolet | 24 | |
| 1997 | Bobby Labonte | Pontiac | 2 |
| Joe Bessey | Chevrolet | 6 | |
| 1998 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Chevrolet | 16 |
| Matt Kenseth | Chevrolet | 4 | |
| 1999 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Chevrolet | 15 |
| Casey Atwood | Chevrolet | 5 | |
| 2000 | Jason Keller | Chevrolet | 22 |
| Matt Kenseth | Chevrolet | 14 | |
| 2001 | Jimmy Spencer | Chevrolet | 21 |
| Jeff Green | Ford | 2 | |
| 2002 | Greg Biffle | Ford | 3 |
| Scott Wimmer | Pontiac | 26 | |
| 2003 | Joe Nemechek | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Brian Vickers | Chevrolet | 3 | |
| 2004 | Greg Biffle | Ford | 7 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | Chevrolet | 2 | |
| 2005 | Martin Truex Jr. | Chevrolet | 5 |
| Ryan Newman | Dodge | 1 | |
| 2006 | Jeff Burton | Chevrolet | 36 |
| Clint Bowyer | Chevrolet | 16 |
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