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Jeff Gordon has three wins at New Hampshire but his last victory came in 1998.Numbers: New Hampshire
Gordon looking strong as Race to the Chase begins
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He's not in the headlines. He's not leading the points. In fact, everything about his season has been rather quiet. But don't for a minute think Jeff Gordon is fading into the sunset because things are setting up beautifully in his quest for a fifth championship.
His lone win on the season came at Texas on Week 7. But since Fontana, the second race of the year, Gordon's has either been first or second in the points.
In the 16 events this season, Gordon has eight top-fives -- tied with Tony Stewart for tops among all drivers -- and 11 top-10s. He's finished second in three races and heads to a track this week where he is among the all-time leaders in just about every statistical category.
The Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET, TNT) is coming at the perfect time for Gordon and he knows it.
"Our goal is to make it into the Chase," Gordon said. "But you can't help but keep an eye on the bonus points. Right now, I know we're 20 points behind those with three wins, so I'd like to cut -- or possibly eliminate -- that gap before the Chase begins.
"The first race of the Chase is [at New Hampshire], and that's a confidence boost when you return as the track's previous race winner."
Inside the Data
Jeff Gordon's career stats at New Hampshire
| Stat | Number | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Starts | 28 | 1st |
| Wins | 3 | 2nd (J. Burton - 4) |
| Top-fives | 12 | 1st |
| Top-10s | 15 | 1st |
| Poles | 3 | 2nd (R. Newman - 4) |
| Laps | 8,080 | 2nd (B. Labonte - 8,082) |
| Laps Led | 1,141 | 1st |
| Average Start | 10.3 | 5th |
| Average Finish | 11.6 | 5th |
| Lead-Lap Finishes | 22 | 1st |
DID YOU KNOW?
9Of the 22 tracks on the Cup Series schedule, Toyota has at least one win in the Cup Series at all but nine of them: Fontana, Homestead, Indianapolis, Kansas, Michigan, New Hampshire, Phoenix, Pocono, Texas.
NECESSITOUS NUMBERS
0The 2000 fall race at New Hampshire had zero lead changes as Jeff Burton led all 300 laps in his victory.
2Number of wins for Tony Stewart at New Hampshire. If he makes it three, he will be the first owner/driver to have multiple wins in a season since 1997, when Ricky Rudd had two wins.
3Number of drivers entered in Sunday's race with an average finish inside the top 10 at the track: Denny Hamlin (7.2), Martin Truex Jr. (9.8) and Jimmie Johnson (9.9).
4Four drivers have competed in all 28 Cup races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and all are entered in this week's race: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte and Joe Nemechek.
10Races left until the Chase begins. Of those 10 tracks, Tony Stewart has the best Driver Rating (106.1) and Average Running Position (10.545).
11.7Average starting position of the winner at New Hampshire in the last 10 Cup races. Two races have been won from the pole and five have been won from a starting position outside the top 10.
44Mark Martin and Ryan Newman are one pole away from 45 in the Cup Series, which will move them to 10th on the all-time list.
50Congratulations to Regan Smith, who if he qualifies for Sunday's race, will make his 50th Cup Series start.
396Number of laps Mark Martin has led at New Hampshire, tops among drivers entered in Sunday's race without a win. In 24 races, Martin has started from the pole twice and has eight top-fives and 13 top-10s but in his last 10 races at the track, he's finished in the top 10 just twice.
636Number of points Martin Truex Jr. has earned at New Hampshire in the last four races, tops among all drivers. In those four races, Truex has finished third, fourth, fifth and seventh. Jimmie Johnson has the second-most points (628) and Jeff Gordon is third (596).
3,400Amount of new safety fence, in feet, added to the New Hampshire Motor Speedway grandstand.
Also
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New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Cup winners at the track
| Driver | Starts | Wins | Top-fives | Top-10s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeff Burton | 28 | 4 | 8 | 13 |
| Kurt Busch | 16 | 3 | 5 | 7 |
| Jeff Gordon | 28 | 3 | 12 | 15 |
| Tony Stewart | 20 | 2 | 10 | 12 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 14 | 2 | 4 | 9 |
| Ryan Newman | 14 | 2 | 5 | 9 |
| Dale Jarrett | 24 | 1 | 7 | 14 |
| Ernie Irvan | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Clint Bowyer | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Ricky Rudd | 23 | 1 | 7 | 10 |
| Ward Burton | 21 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Kyle Busch | 8 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Rusty Wallace | 22 | 1 | 6 | 13 |
| Joe Nemechek | 28 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Kevin Harvick | 16 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Greg Biffle | 13 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Denny Hamlin | 6 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| Robby Gordon | 18 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
• Bold: Active drivers
Sprint Cup Series
Driver Standings
| Pos. | +/- | Driver | Points | Behind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | -- | Tony Stewart | 2,364 | -- |
| 2. | -- | Jeff Gordon | 2,280 | -84 |
| 3. | -- | Jimmie Johnson | 2,207 | -157 |
| 4. | -- | Kurt Busch | 2,084 | -280 |
| 5. | +1 | Carl Edwards | 2,051 | -313 |
| 6. | -1 | Ryan Newman | 2,046 | -318 |
| 7. | +3 | Denny Hamlin | 2,009 | -355 |
| 8. | -1 | Greg Biffle | 1,992 | -372 |
| 9. | -- | Kyle Busch | 1,962 | -402 |
| 10. | +1 | Matt Kenseth | 1,957 | -407 |
| 11. | -3 | Mark Martin | 1,926 | -438 |
| 12. | +2 | Juan Montoya | 1,917 | -447 |
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