Stats advance: Analyzing the Daytona 500

Daytona International Speedway Data Race #: 1 of 36 (2-22-15) Track Size: 2.5 miles Race Length: 500 miles (200 laps) Banking/Corners: 31 degrees Banking/Straights: 3 degrees Banking/Tri-Oval: 18 degrees Top 10 Driver Ratings at Daytona Kyle Busch 96.2 Matt Kenseth 91.6 Kurt Busch 90.5 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 90.3 Tony Stewart 87.9 Jeff Gordon 87.1 Jimmie Johnson 87.0 Denny Hamlin 86.4 Clint Bowyer 83.7 Joey Logano 82.5 Note: Driver Ratings are compiled from 2005-2014 races (18 total) at Daytona (active drivers only). Qualifying/Race Data 2014 pole winner: Austin Dillon (196.019 mph, 45.914 seconds) 2014 race winner: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (145.290 mph, 2-23-14) Qualifying record: Bill Elliott (210.364 mph, 42.783 secs. 2-9-87) Race record: Buddy Baker (177.602 mph, 2-17-80)

Clint Bowyer (No. 15 5-hour ENERGY Toyota)

· Three top fives, eight top 10s

· Average finish of 15.9

· Driver Rating of 83.7, ninth-best

· 78 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 189.828 mph, second-fastest

Kurt Busch (No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet)

· 11 top fives, 14 top 10s

· Average finish of 17.5

· Average Running Position of 15.8, seventh-best

· Driver Rating of 90.5, third-best

· 3,864 Green Flag Passes, seventh-most

· 2,161 Laps in the Top 15 (60.9%), fifth-most

· 2,724 Quality Passes, third-most

Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M’s Crispy Toyota)

· One win, five top fives, six top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 19.1

· Series-best Average Running Position of 12.8

· Series-best Driver Rating of 96.2

· 85 Fastest Laps Run, third-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 189.827 mph, third-fastest

· Series-high 2,488 Laps in the Top 15 (70.1%)

· Series-high 2,869 Quality Passes

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet)

· Three wins, 11 top fives, 17 top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 13.4

· Average Running Position of 14.6, third-best

· Driver Rating of 90.3, fourth-best

· Series-high 87 Fastest Laps Run

· 4,108 Green Flag Passes, second-most

· 2,279 Laps in the Top 15 (64.2%), second-most

· 2,772 Quality Passes, second-most

Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet)

· Six wins, 13 top fives, 20 top 10s; three poles

· Average finish of 16.2

· Average Running Position of 14.8, fourth-best

· Driver Rating of 87.1, sixth-best

· 3,818 Green Flag Passes, eighth-most

· 2,074 Laps in the Top 15 (58.4%), sixth-most

· 2,407 Quality Passes, ninth-most

Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota)

· Three top fives, four top 10s

· Average finish of 19.6

· Average Running Position of 15.8, sixth-best

· Driver Rating of 86.4, eighth-best

· 81 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most

· Average Green Flag Speed of 189.765 mph, sixth-fastest

· 1,703 Laps in the Top 15 (53.5%), 12th-most

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet)

· Three wins, nine top fives, 12 top 10s; two poles

· Average finish of 18.0

· Average Running Position of 14.9, fifth-best

· Driver Rating of 87.0, seventh-best

· 2,214 Laps in the Top 15 (62.4%), fourth-most

· 2,425 Quality Passes, eighth-most

Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet)

· Two top fives, seven top 10s

· Average finish of 19.9

· Average Running Position of 17.0, ninth-best

· Driver Rating of 82.2, 12th-best

· 71 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most

· 4,093 Green Flag Passes, third-most

· 1,818 Laps in the Top 15 (51.2%), 10th-most

· 2,446 Quality Passes, seventh-most

Matt Kenseth (No. 20 Dollar General Toyota)

· Two wins, six top fives, 14 top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 17.2

· Average Running Position of 14.4, second-best

· Driver Rating of 91.6, second-best

· 78 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

· 2,247 Laps in the Top 15 (63.3%), third-most

· 2,473 Quality Passes, sixth-most

Joey Logano (No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford)

· Two top fives, three top 10s

· Average finish of 19.8

· Average Running Position of 17.5, 12th-best

· Driver Rating of 82.5, 11th-best

· Average Green Flag Speed of 189.750 mph, seventh-fastest

Tony Stewart (No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet)

· Four wins, nine top fives, 14 top 10s; one pole

· Average finish of 17.8

· Average Running Position of 17.4, 11th-best

· Driver Rating of 87.9, fifth-best

· 76 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most

· 1,917 Laps in the Top 15 (54.0%), seventh-most

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final 2014 Top 16 at Daytona International Speedway

	Driver	Races	Poles	Wins	Top Fives	Top 10s	DNFs	Average Finish	Driver Rating
1	Kevin Harvick	27	1	2	6	11	3	16.7	79.9
2	Ryan Newman	26	0	1	4	6	5	20.3	79.6
3	Denny Hamlin	18	0	0	3	4	1	19.6	86.4
4	Joey Logano	12	0	0	2	3	2	19.8	82.5
5	Brad Keselowski	11	0	0	2	3	3	20.0	75.4
6	Jeff Gordon	44	3	6	13	20	6	16.2	87.1
7	Matt Kenseth	30	1	2	6	14	5	17.2	91.6
8	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	30	1	3	11	17	3	13.4	90.3
9	Carl Edwards	20	1	0	4	8	2	19.1	79.8
10	Kyle Busch	20	1	1	5	6	5	19.1	96.2
11	Jimmie Johnson	26	2	3	9	12	6	18.0	87.0
12	Kurt Busch	28	0	0	11	14	1	17.5	90.5
13	AJ Allmendinger	11	0	0	1	2	2	26.3	61.1
14	Greg Biffle	24	1	1	3	7	3	19.6	81.3
15	Kasey Kahne	22	0	0	2	7	5	19.9	82.2
16	Aric Almirola	7	0	1	1	1	3	24.7	72.9

Note: Driver Rating from races at Daytona International Speedway from 2005-2014.

Daytona 500 Tidbits

· The 2015 edition will be the 57th running of the Daytona 500.

· Although the first Daytona 500 was held in 1959, it has been the season-opener only since 1982.

· 530 drivers have competed in at least one Daytona 500; 314 in more than one.

· 35 drivers have won a Daytona 500.

· Youngest Daytona 500 winner: Trevor Bayne (02/20/2011 – 20 years, 0 months, 1 days)

· Oldest Daytona 500 winner: Bobby Allison (02/14/1988 – 50 years, 2 months, 11 days)

· 11 drivers have won more than one Daytona 500, led by Richard Petty with seven victories.

· The 11 drivers who have won the Daytona 500 more than once: Richard Petty (seven), Cale Yarborough (four), Bobby Allison (three), Dale Jarrett (three), Jeff Gordon (three), Bill Elliott (two), Matt Kenseth (two), Jimmie Johnson (two), Sterling Marlin (two), Michael Waltrip (two) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two).

· A driver has won back-to-back Daytona 500s three times. Richard Petty (1973-74), Cale Yarborough (1983-84) and Sterling Marlin (1994-95).

· Seven drivers posted their career-first victory with a win in the Daytona 500: Tiny Lund (1963), Mario Andretti (1967), Pete Hamilton (1970), Derrike Cope (1990), Sterling Marlin (1994), Michael Waltrip (2001) and Trevor Bayne (2011).

· Three other drivers posted their career-first victory in (points-paying) qualifying races: Johnny Rutherford (1963), Bobby Isaac (1964) and Earl Balmer (1966).

· Lee Petty, who won the inaugural Daytona 500, and Trevor Bayne, 2011 Daytona 500 champion, are the only two drivers to win the Daytona 500 in their first appearance.

· Active Daytona 500 winners and the number of NSCS starts in their careers when they won:

o Jeff Gordon won his first Daytona 500 on his 125^th career start (1997). His second Daytona 500 win was on his 190^th career start (1999) and the third Daytona 500 was on his 402^nd career start (2005).

o Jimmie Johnson won his first on his 148^th (2006) start and posted his second Daytona 500 win on his 400^th career start (2013).

o Matt Kenseth won his first on his 329^th start (2009) and his second Daytona 500 on his 437^th career start (2012).

o Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first Daytona 500 on 148^th start (2004) and his second on his 506^th (2014).

o Kevin Harvick posted his Daytona 500 win on his 215^th career start (2007).

o Ryan Newman posted his Daytona 500 win on his 225^th career start (2008).

o Jamie McMurray posted his Daytona 500 win on his 259^th career start (2011).

o Michael Waltrip won his first on his 463^rd start (2001) and posted his second Daytona 500 win on his 535^th career start (2003).

· Dale Earnhardt leads the series in runner-up finishes in the Daytona 500 with five; Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads all active drivers with four (Earnhardt Jr. is tied with NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough for second all-time with four).

· Dale Earnhardt had 12 top fives in his 23 Daytona 500 starts, more than any other driver. Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads all active drivers in Daytona 500 top-five finishes with seven (eighth most all-time).

· Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty each posted a series leading 16 top 10s in the Daytona 500.

· Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip lead all active drivers in Daytona 500 top-10 finishes with nine.

· Only 10 drivers have an average finish of 10th or better in the Daytona 500, five of those competed in the Daytona 500 only once.

· Dale Earnhardt Jr. has a 12.7 average finish in 15 appearances, the best of the active drivers who have competed in more than one Daytona 500.

· 28 of the 35 drivers, who have won, participated in at least two Daytona 500s before visiting Victory Lane.

· Six drivers made 10 or more attempts before their first Daytona 500 victory: Dale Earnhardt (19), Buddy Baker (18), Darrell Waltrip (16), Bobby Allison (14), Michael Waltrip (14) and Sterling Marlin (12).

· The driver with the all-time most Daytona 500 starts without a victory is Dave Marcis with 33 races; the active drivers with the most starts without a Daytona 500 win is Joe Nemechek (19) and Tony Stewart (16).

· Kevin Harvick’s 0.020-second margin of victory over Mark Martin in the 2007 Daytona 500 is the 12th-closest overall since the advent of electronic scoring in 1993, and the closest in a Daytona 500.

· Nine of the 56 Daytona 500s (16.3%) have been won from the Coors Light pole. The last to do so was Dale Jarrett in 2000. Jeff Gordon is the only active driver to accomplish the feat (1999).

· Cale Yarborough (1968, 1984) and Bill Elliott (1985, 1987) are the only two drivers to win the Daytona 500 from the Coors Light pole more than once.

· 16 of the 56 Daytona 500s (28.5%) have been won from the front row.

· 27 of the 56 Daytona 500s (48.2%) have been won from a top-five starting position.

· 41 of the 56 Daytona 500s (73.2%) have been won from a top 10 starting position

· Matt Kenseth won the Daytona 500 from the 39th starting position in 2009, the deepest a race winner has started.

· Five reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions have gone on to win the Daytona 500 the following season: Lee Petty (1959), Richard Petty (1973), Cale Yarborough (1977), Jeff Gordon (1999) and Dale Jarrett (2000).

· Five drivers have won the Daytona 500 and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship in the same season, Richard Petty has done it four times: Jimmie Johnson (2006, 2013), Jeff Gordon (1997), Richard Petty (1964, 1971, 1974, 1979), Cale Yarborough (1977) and Lee Petty (1959).

· Danica Patrick on Sunday, Feb. 19, 2013 became the first female in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history to win a Coors Light pole for the Daytona 500 posting a speed of 196.434 mph.

· Janet Guthrie previously held the record for top starting position by a female NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver, starting ninth twice in 1977 – at Talladega Superspeedway on Aug. 7, 1977 and at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 28, 1977.

· In 2012, Danica Patrick became the third female driver to compete in a Daytona 500 joining Janet Guthrie and Shawna Robinson. Below are the previous female driver performances in the Daytona 500.

Race	Season	Driver	Start	Finish
Daytona 500	1977	Janet Guthrie	39	12
Daytona 500	1980	Janet Guthrie	18	11
Daytona 500	2002	Shawna Robinson	36	24
Daytona 500	2012	Danica Patrick	29	38
Daytona 500	2013	Danica Patrick	1	8
Daytona 500	2014	Danica Patrick	27	40

· Driver Ratings for Winners – Pre-Race Daytona 500 Driver Ratings heading into 2014 for past Daytona 500 winners (past 7 years)

Driver – Year – Driver Rating

o Dale Earnhardt Jr – 2014 – 89.7

o Jimmie Johnson – 2013 – 82.8

o Matt Kenseth – 2012 – 89.0

o Trevor Bayne – 2011 – 68.9

o Jamie McMurray – 2010 – 80.2

o Matt Kenseth – 2009 – 89.0

o Ryan Newman – 2008 – 82.9

o Kevin Harvick – 2007 – 86.3

o Jimmie Johnson – 2006 – 87.5

· Drivers who have won the Daytona 500 in more than one car manufacturer:

Driver – Manufacturer (Number of wins in that manufacturer)

o Richard Petty – Plymouth (3), Dodge (2), Oldsmobile (1) and Buick (1)

o Cale Yarborough – Chevrolet (2), Mercury (1) and Pontiac (1)

o Bobby Allison – Buick (2) and Ford (1)

o Dale Jarrett – Ford (2) and Chevrolet (1)

· Drivers who have won The Sprint Unlimited and the Daytona 500 in the same season:

Driver – (Year)

o Bobby Allison (1982)

o Bill Elliott (1987)

o Dale Jarrett (1996 and 2000)

o Jeff Gordon (1997)

Car Numbers that have produced three or more Daytona 500 victories:

Car Number – Drivers – (Years)

o No. 43 – Richard Petty (1964, ’66, ’71, ’73, ’74, ’79, ‘81)

o No. 21 – Tiny Lund (1963), Cale Yarborough (1968), A.J. Foyt (1972), David Pearson (1976) and Trevor Bayne (2011)

o No. 28 – Fred Lorenzen (1965), Buddy Baker (1980), Cale Yarborough (1983 and 1984) and Davey Allison (1992)

o No. 4 – Ernie Irvan (1991), Sterling Marlin (1994 and 1995)

o No. 15 – Bobby Allison (1978), Michael Waltrip (2001 and 2003)

o No. 17 – Darrell Waltrip (1989), Matt Kenseth (2009 and 2012)

o No. 88 – Bobby Allison (1982), Dale Jarrett (1996 and 2000) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2014)

o No. 24 – Jeff Gordon (1997, 1999 and 2005)

At Daytona International Speedway

History

· Groundbreaking for Daytona International Speedway was Nov. 25, 1957. The soil underneath the banked corners was dug from the infield of the track and the hole filled with water. It is now known as Lake Lloyd.

· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona was a 100-mile qualifying race for the Daytona 500 on Feb. 20, 1959.

· Richard Petty won his 200th career race on July 4, 1984 at Daytona.

· Lights were installed in the spring of 1998. However, the July race was delayed until October that year due to thick smoke from wildfires. The second Daytona race has been held under the lights ever since.

· The track underwent a repave in 2010.

Notebook

· There have been 135 NASCAR Sprint Cup races since the track hosted its first race in 1959: 56 have been 500 miles, 52 were 400 miles and four 250 miles. There were also 23 qualifier races that were point races.

· Fireball Roberts won the inaugural pole at Daytona.

· Bob Welborn won the first race at Daytona, the 100-mile qualifying race for the Daytona 500.

· Lee Petty won the inaugural Daytona 500 on Feb. 22, 1959; he led 38 laps and won by 2 feet.

· Fireball Roberts won the first 400-mile race at Daytona, the 1963 Firecracker 400.

· 58 drivers have posted poles at Daytona.

· Cale Yarborough leads all drivers with 12 poles at Daytona.

· Bill Elliott, Buddy Baker and Cale Yarborough are tied for the most Daytona 500 poles with four each. Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers with two Daytona 500 poles.

· Jeff Gordon leads all active drivers with three poles at Daytona.

· 57 drivers have won at Daytona.

· Richard Petty leads all drivers in victories at Daytona with 10.

· Jeff Gordon has six victories at Daytona, more than any other active driver.

· The Wood Brothers have won 15 races at Daytona, more than any other car owner.

· 17 full-length races at Daytona have been won from the pole; the last to do it was Kevin Harvick in the 2010 July race.

· A driver has swept both the Daytona 500 and the July race only five times at Daytona International Speedway: Jimmie Johnson (2013), Bobby Allison (1982), LeeRoy Yarborough (1969), Cale Yarborough (1968) and Fireball Roberts (1962).

NASCAR in Florida

· There have been 177 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Florida.

Track Name	City	NSCS
Daytona International Speedway	Daytona Beach	135
Homestead-Miami Speedway	Homestead	16
Daytona Beach & Road Course	Daytona Beach	10
Palm Beach Speedway	W. Palm Beach	7
Speedway Park	Jacksonville	6
Five Flags Speedway	Pensacola	1
Golden Gate Speedway	Tampa	1
Titusville-Cocoa Speedway	Titusville	1

· 173 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series have their home state recorded as Florida.

· There have been 10 race winners with their home state recorded as Florida in NASCAR’s three national series:

Driver	NSCS	NXS	NCWTS
Fireball Roberts	33	0	0
LeeRoy Yarbrough	14	0	0
Marshall Teague	7	0	0
Joe Nemechek	4	16	0
Bobby Johns	2	0	0
David Reutimann	2	1	1
Aric Almirola	1	1	2
Shorty Rollins	1	0	0
Rick Wilson	0	2	0
Joey Coulter	0	0	1

MORE:

READ: Latest NASCAR news	PLAY: Sign up for Fantasy Live	WATCH: Latest NASCAR video	FOLLOW LIVE: Get RaceView today