Autostock
Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin hope Chicago gives them their first win of the season.By the Numbers: Chicago
Seven winners in '08 still looking for first victory in '09
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The 2009 season is officially half over. Eighteen races are in the books, 18 races are left beginning with the LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT).
There is one interesting fact, though, about the first half of 2009. In 18 races, there have been 11 different winners. In 2008, there were 12 different winners total, so it looks like that mark will be eclipsed.
But what's interesting is of the 12 race winners in 2008, seven of them have yet to visit Victory Lane in 2009 -- and it's a who's who in the Cup Series garage: Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, Denny Hamlin, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Ryan Newman.
So will one of those drivers add their name to the list of 2009 winners? It's possible. Two of them have wins at Chicagoland and each of them has run strong in the past.
Inside the Data
Select drivers' stats at Chicagoland Speedway
| Driver | Starts | Wins | Top-fives | Top-10s | Poles | Laps Led | Avg. Start | Avg. Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greg Biffle | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 77 | 14.8 | 12.8 |
| Clint Bowyer | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 18.3 | 13.7 |
| Jeff Burton | 8 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 60 | 18.1 | 19.2 |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 121 | 17.9 | 15.2 |
| Carl Edwards | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 17.8 | 23.5 |
| Denny Hamlin | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.0 | 23.7 |
| Ryan Newman | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 163 | 8.1 | 17.6 |
DID YOU KNOW?
0Bobby Labonte is the only driver to have raced in all eight Cup races at Chicagoland and not finish in the top 10. His best finish is 12th, coming in 2006.
NECESSITOUS NUMBERS
0Jimmie Johnson is winless at Chicagoland but don't let that fool you. He has six top-six finishes in seven Cup starts and has led at least one lap in six of the seven races.
1Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth have completed all but one lap of all the Cup races run at Chicagoland. There have been 2,139 laps and they have run 2,138. Both drivers finished one lap down in the 2003 race.
3Three drivers can call Chicagoland their best track based on average finish: Kevin Harvick, Brian Vickers and Reed Sorenson.
5Juan Montoya has posted five consecutive top-15 finishes. That is second-most in the Cup Series behind Tony Stewart, who has six.
5Number of drivers with an average finish inside the top 10 at Chicagoland entered in this week's race: Kevin Harvick (7.4), Kyle Busch (7.8), Jimmie Johnson (8.1), Brian Vickers (9.2) and Matt Kenseth (9.8).
15.0Average starting position of the winner at Chicagoland in eight Cup races. Kyle Busch's win last year was the first from the pole. In fact, it was the first from a top-five starting position.
300Number of laps Matt Kenseth has led at Chicagoland, second all-time and tops among drivers entered in Saturday's race without a win. In eight starts, Kenseth has finished second twice and 14th or better in seven of the eight races.
495Number of points Kevin Harvick has earned at Chicagoland in the last three races, tops among all drivers. In those three races, Harvick has finished fourth, fourth and third. Kyle Busch has the second-most points (489) and Jeff Gordon is third (458).
Also
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Chicagoland Speedway
Drivers with wins at the track
| Driver | Starts | Wins | Top-fives | Top-10s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tony Stewart | 8 | 2 | 6 | 6 |
| Kevin Harvick | 8 | 2 | 5 | 6 |
| Ryan Newman | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Jeff Gordon | 8 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Kyle Busch | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
Sprint Cup Series
Standings
| Pos. | +/- | Driver | Points | Behind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | -- | Tony Stewart | 2719 | Leader |
| 2. | -- | Jeff Gordon | 2539 | -180 |
| 3. | -- | Jimmie Johnson | 2525 | -194 |
| 4. | -- | Kurt Busch | 2414 | -305 |
| 5. | -- | Carl Edwards | 2317 | -402 |
| 6. | -- | Denny Hamlin | 2302 | -417 |
| 7. | -- | Ryan Newman | 2235 | -484 |
| 8. | -- | Kyle Busch | 2234 | -485 |
| 9. | -- | Greg Biffle | 2215 | -504 |
| 10. | -- | Matt Kenseth | 2201 | -518 |
| 11. | +1 | Juan Montoya | 2187 | -532 |
| 12. | +1 | Kasey Kahne | 2166 | -553 |
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