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J.J. Yeley ended where he started in his first Cup race at Chicagoland: 10th.By the Numbers: Chicago
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Chicagoland Speedway has a lot in common with another track that debuted in 2001: Kansas Speedway. Both are 1.5-mile, D-shaped ovals with similar degrees of banking. Chicagoland has a longer frontstretch; Kansas has a longer backstretch.
But in the six races each track has held since becoming an annual stop in the Cup Series, a similar pattern has developed. The first two races at each respective track were won by the same driver -- Kevin Harvick at Chicagoland and Jeff Gordon at Kansas. Ryan Newman broke both strings by winning both races in 2003. There hasn't been a repeat, or for that matter, a multiple winner at either track since.
Besides Newman and Gordon -- the defending champion at Chicagoland -- Tony Stewart is the only other driver to win at both tracks. Neither track has had a driver start from the pole more than once. Jimmie Johnson, with one each, is the only driver to start from the pole at both tracks.
At Chicagoland, no race has been won from the pole. In fact, only two have been won from a top-10 starting position: Kevin Harvick started sixth in the inaugural race in 2001 (he's also been at the other end, See Interesting Fact); Tony Stewart started 10th in 2004.
Interesting Fact
32Starting position for Kevin Harvick in 2002, the deepest in the grid of any winner.
Fun Fact
26Cup victories for Fred Lorenzen, one of only two Illinois natives who have won in NASCAR's top series. Born in Elmhurst, Lorenzen was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers and is a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.
All the Facts
1Victories at Chicagoland by a manufacturer other than Chevrolet: Ryan Newman (Dodge).
1DNFs in the 2006 race at Chicagoland: Terry Labonte (engine). It marks the first time there were fewer than nine DNFs during any one race at the track.
2Times the lap leader has won at Chicagoland: Kevin Harvick, 113 (2001); Tony Stewart, 160 (2004).
2Place of finish for Robert Pressley in the inaugural race at Chicagoland in 2001. It marked his best career finish in 205 Cup Series races.
3Drivers with the most top-five finishes at Chicagoland: Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart (4).
32006 rookies to finish in the top 10 in their first race at Chicagoland: Reed Sorenson (7); Clint Bowyer (9); J.J. Yeley (10).
3.7Average starting position for Brian Vickers in three career races at Chicagoland. Vickers, forced to qualify on speed as a first-year Toyota driver, has failed to do so eight times this season.
4Top-10 finishes at Chicagoland by Kurt Busch, most of any driver who has never led a lap there.
5Top-five finishes at Chicagoland for the Bud Pole winner: Ryan Newman, 5 (2002); Tony Stewart, 2 (2003); Jeff Gordon, 4 (2004); Jimmie Johnson, 3 (2005); Jeff Burton, 2 (2006).
6Place of finish for Jimmie Johnson in the 2006 race at Chicagoland, his worst in five starts there. His average finish is 3.6.
9Laps led, out of 1,600 completed, at Chicagoland by Dale Jarrett. Only three drivers have completed more laps there: Matt Kenseth, 1,604 (292 led); Kevin Harvick, 1,604 (228); Mark Martin, 1,602 (44).
11Laps led by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2005, the fewest of any Chicagoland winner. Junior has led 119 laps in his career at Chicagoland, fifth-most of any driver.
12Place of finish in the 2006 race at Chicagoland for Bobby Labonte, his best in six career starts there but first in the No. 43 Dodge.
15.5Average place of finish for Greg Biffle in four career starts at Chicagoland. Biffle finished 20th in his first two starts and has come home 11th in the past two races there.
20.5Average place of finish at Chicagoland for Jamie McMurray, who has gotten worse each year in his four starts there beginning in 2003: 8-13-22-39.
29Place of finish for Ryan Newman in the 2005 race at Chicagoland, his best since winning in 2003. He finished 36th last year, his worst in five career starts there.
292Laps led at Chicagoland by Matt Kenseth, more than any other driver. All but four have come in the past two races.
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Chicagoland Speedway
Winners
| Year | Driver | Start | Led | Pole |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | K. Harvick | 6 | 113 | T. Bodine |
| 2002 | K. Harvick | 32 | 29 | R. Newman |
| 2003 | R. Newman | 14 | 67 | T. Stewart |
| 2004 | T. Stewart | 10 | 160 | J. Gordon |
| 2005 | Dale Jr. | 25 | 11 | J. Johnson |
| 2006 | J. Gordon | 13 | 20 | J. Burton |
• Chicagoland: Track Page | Shop Talk
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