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Jason Keller won two races from the pole in 1999, including the Bristol spring race.By the Numbers: J. Keller
One number has been special for Busch Series veteran
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The sides and top of the car will have 11 decaled on, but when the NASCAR history books are opened and shuffled to put Jason Keller's name on top, 57 will be what people remember.
The 57 car was the one Keller drove to every one of his Busch Series victories. The 57 car was the one Keller fired for three-quarters of his career. The 57 car was the one Keller fired the first time -- not in the Busch Series, but as a 16-year-old Late Model racer.
Five years later Keller made his Busch debut driving the No. 54. The following year he made five starts, four of which came in the 45 car. And finally, on Feb. 27, 1993, Keller started the No. 57 Oldsmobile for the first time driving for his father in the season's second race.
That race was the seventh time Keller raced in the same event as Tommy Houston. The two would eventually share 76 starts. But Keller's debut in the No. 57 car was the first time he finished ahead of Houston. In a race that featured names like Dale Earnhardt, Shawna Robinson, Davey Allison and Jerry Glanville, Keller finished eighth while Houston was 34th.
On Saturday, Keller looks to move ahead of Houston one more time in the record book. (read more)
Interesting Fact
417Career starts in the Busch Series for Jason Keller, tied with Tommy Houston for the most in the history of the series.
Milestone Achievements
April 27, 1991First career start. It came at Lanier Speedway in Georgia, race No. 9 on the schedule. Keller rolled off eighth on the grid driving the No. 54 Buick and finished 29th after crashing 47 laps in.
April 30, 1994First career pole. It came at Orange County (N.C.) Speedway, race No. 9 on the schedule. Keller finished three laps down in 12th driving the No. 57 Chevrolet.
March 19, 1995First lap led. It came at Nashville Speedway, race No. 5 on the schedule. Keller started second and led one lap before settling for a 21st-place finish.
Aug. 4, 1995First career victory. It came at Indianapolis Raceway Park, race No. 18 on the schedule. Driving the No. 57 Chevrolet, Keller started third and led 51 laps on his way to winning the Kroger 200.
June 29, 2003Last victory. It came at The Milwaukee Mile, race No. 17 on the schedule. In his No. 57 Ford, Keller started seventh and made his way to the front to lead 21 laps and win the GNC Live Well 250.
All the Facts
0Career starts in the Truck Series.
2Career starts in the Cup Series, both of which came in 2003. He finished 32nd in the No. 01 Pontiac at Richmond and then 26th in the No. 1 Chevrolet at Talladega.
2Times Keller finished second in the championship standings. He was second to Jeff Green in 2000 by 616 points, the largest margin a title was decided until last season. In 2002 Keller finished second to Greg Biffle by 280 points.
2Times Keller has won from the pole. He won the Bristol spring race from the pole in 1999 and later won at ORP in the same season from the top starting spot.
3Cars that Keller must beat during qualifying to ensure he will make his 418th career start. There are 46 cars on the entry list for Friday's race.
4Victories in 2002, including three that came in a five-race stretch. Victories came at Rockingham, Talladega, Richmond and Nazareth.
5Manufacturers that Keller has driven: Buick, Oldsmobile, Chevrolet, Ford, Dodge.
6.9Average starting position during the 2002 season, the best of his career. Keller, however, earned just two poles that season. His career average starting position is 16.8.
7Consecutive seasons of finishing in the top 10 in points from 1999-2005, one season short of the series record.
9Number of car owners for which Keller has driven, including his father, Joe Keller.
9.5Average finish during the 2001 season, the best of his career. His career average finish is 16.0.
10Victories in the Busch Series, tying him with Kyle Busch, Bobby Labonte and Robert Pressley for 28th on the all-time list. The lone track at which Keller has won twice is O'Reilly Raceway Park (1995, 1999).
12Seasons in which Keller ran full time, spanning from 1994-2005.
15Second-place finishes for Keller, tying him with Sam Ard, Joe Nemechek and Elton Sawyer for 13th on the all-time list.
16Starts this season in the Busch Series, 10 with CJM Racing and six with Brewco Motorsports.
127Starts Keller made while driving a car owned by his father, Joe Keller. They were the first 127 starts of his career.
161Top-10 finishes for Keller in his career, ranking him fourth on the all-time list behind Tommy Houston (198), Dale Jarrett (173) and Jack Ingram (164).
271Consecutive starts from September 1997 until April 2006, the second-longest streak.
316Starts made by Keller while driving the No. 57 car, in which he recorded all of his victories.
357Races in which Keller was running at the finish, more than any other driver and 22 more than second-place David Green (335).
47,512Points scored by Keller in his career, second on the all-time list to Tommy Houston (51,164).
77,144Laps completed by Keller, more than any other driver in Busch Series history and 4,849 laps more than second-place Kenny Wallace (72,611).
$11 millionCareer earnings for Keller in the Busch Series, the only driver to achieve such a milestone. Keller also became the first driver to earn $8 million, $9 million and $10 million.
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Career Starts
Busch Series
| Pos. | Driver | Starts |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Jason Keller | 417 |
| Tommy Houston | 417 | |
| 3. | Elton Sawyer | 392 |
| 4. | David Green | 386 |
| 5. | Kenny Wallace | 384 |
| 6. | Randy LaJoie | 350 |
| 7. | Tim Fedewa | 333 |
| 8. | Dale Jarrett | 329 |
| 9. | Todd Bodine | 320 |
| 10. | Mike McLaughlin | 314 |
Jason Keller
Career Statistics (as of Oct. 10, 2007)
| Years | 17 |
| Starts | 417 |
| Wins | 10 |
| Top-5 | 81 |
| Top-10 | 161 |
| Poles | 11 |
| Laps | 77,087 |
| Laps Led | 1,923 |
| Avg. Start | 16.8 |
| Avg. Finish | 16.0 |
| Top-10 Rankings | 11 |
| Career Earnings | $11,178,632 |
Yearly Results
| Year | Races | Win | T5 | T10 | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 104 |
| 1992 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54 |
| 1993 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 33 |
| 1994 | 27 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 17 |
| 1995 | 26 | 1 | 6 | 12 | 4 |
| 1996 | 26 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 6 |
| 1997 | 29 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 13 |
| 1998 | 31 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 16 |
| 1999 | 32 | 2 | 5 | 12 | 8 |
| 2000 | 32 | 1 | 13 | 19 | 2 |
| 2001 | 33 | 1 | 14 | 22 | 3 |
| 2002 | 34 | 4 | 17 | 22 | 2 |
| 2003 | 34 | 1 | 10 | 17 | 5 |
| 2004 | 34 | 0 | 6 | 12 | 6 |
| 2005 | 35 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 9 |
| 2006 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 |
| 2007 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 28 |
| 17 years | 417 | 10 | 81 | 161 |
• Keller: 10 Questions | Driver Page
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Updated: Thursday 2:16 pm
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