History

·         Construction began on Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1959.

·         The track’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on June 19, 1960 – won by Joe Lee Johnson.

·         The track was repaved midseason in 1994.

·         The track name changed from Charlotte Motor Speedway to Lowe’s Motor Speedway in 1999. It changed back to Charlotte Motor Speedway for the 2010 season.

·         The track was re-paved again before the 2006 season.

Notebook

·         There have been 108 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, two races per year since the track opened in 1960. In 1961, there were two 100-mile qualifying points races held the week before the May race. The first six fall races at Charlotte were 400-mile events (1960-65).

·         517 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points paying race at Charlotte Motor Speedway; 364 in more than one.

·         NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty leads the series in starts at Charlotte with 64. Terry Labonte leads all active drivers with 57 starts; followed by Mark Martin with 56.

·         Fireball Roberts won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Charlotte in 1960 with a speed of 133.904 mph.

·         41 drivers have Coors Light poles at Charlotte, led by David Pearson with 14. Ryan Newman leads all active drivers in poles, with nine, followed by Jeff Gordon with eight.

·         12 drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Charlotte. David Pearson holds the record for most consecutive poles at Charlotte with 11; from the fall of 1973 through 1978.

·         Jeff Gordon won five straight poles for the spring races at Charlotte between 1994 and 1998.

·         Youngest Charlotte pole winner: Jeff Gordon (10/10/1993 – 22 years, 2 months, 6 days).

·         Oldest Charlotte pole winner: Bobby Allison (10/11/1987 – 49 years, 10 months, 8 days).

·         45 different drivers have won at Charlotte Motor Speedway, led by Darrell Waltrip, Bobby Allison and Jimmie Johnson with six wins each.

·         Nine drivers have posted consecutive wins at Charlotte Motor Speedway, including three consecutive by Fred Lorenzen (fall 1964 and both 1965) and four straight by Jimmie Johnson (both in 2004 and 2005).

·         A season sweep at Charlotte has occurred eight times, including each season from 2004-2007.

·         Seven times from seven different drivers has the winner of the NASCAR Sprint All-Star race gone on to win the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Darrell Waltrip (1985), Davey Allison (1991), Dale Earnhardt (1993), Jeff Gordon (1997), Jimmie Johnson (2003), Kasey Kahne (2008) and Kurt Busch (2010).

·         Youngest Charlotte winner: Jeff Gordon (5/29/1994 – 22 years, 9 months, 25 days).

·         Oldest Charlotte winner: Cale Yarborough (10/6/1985 – 46 years, 6 months, 9 days).

·         Hendrick Motorsports has the most wins at Charlotte in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 17: Jimmie Johnson (six), Jeff Gordon (five), Darrell Waltrip (two), Ken Schrader (one), Terry Labonte (one), Casey Mears (one) and Kasey Kahne (one). 

·         Eight different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Charlotte; led by Chevrolet with 40 victories; followed by Ford with 28.

·         14 of the 108 (12.9%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Charlotte have been won from the Coors Light pole; the two most recent were Jimmie Johnson in 2004 and 2009.

·         The second-place starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (17) than any other starting position at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

·         31 of the 108 (28.7%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Charlotte have been won from the front row: 14 from the pole and 17 from second-place.

·         83 of the 108 (76.8%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Charlotte have been won from a top-10 starting position.

·         Eight of the 108 (7.4%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Charlotte have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

·         The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Charlotte was 37th, by Jimmie Johnson in the Coca-Cola 600 of 2003.

·         Richard Petty leads the series in runner-up finishes at Charlotte with nine. Bobby Labonte leads all active drivers in second-place finishes at Charlotte with six; followed by Matt Kenseth with three.

·         NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Bobby Allison are tied for the series’ most top-five finishes at Charlotte with 23. Mark Martin leads all active drivers with 18, followed by Jeff Gordon with 16.

·         Richard Petty leads the series in top-10 finishes at Charlotte with 31. Mark Martin leads all active drivers with 24.

·         Ryan Newman leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Charlotte with a 6.917.

·         Joey Logano leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at Charlotte with a 10.125.

·         14 of the 16 active NASCAR Sprint Cup winners at Charlotte Motor Speedway participated in at least two or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Jamie McMurray won in his first appearance at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Jeff Gordon won in his second appearance at CMS.    

·         Terry Labonte competed at Charlotte Motor Speedway 36 times before winning in the fall of 1996; the longest span of any the 16 active NASCAR Sprint Cup winners.

·         Among the 16 active NSCS Charlotte winners Bobby Labonte (36), Kevin Harvick (20), Kurt Busch (19), Mark Martin (15), Clint Bowyer (13), Ken Schrader (10) and Jeff Burton (10) all made 10 or more attempts before their first win.

·         Joe Nemechek leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup starts at Charlotte without visiting Victory Lane at 33; followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. with 26.

·         Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Charlotte was the May 29, 2005 race won by Jimmie Johnson over Bobby Labonte with an MOV of 0.027 second.

·         There have been three NASCAR Sprint Cup races resulting with a green-white-checkered finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway, but only once for the Coca-Cola 600 (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): fall of 2005 (334/336), fall of 2007 (334/337) and the 2011 Coca-Cola 600 (400/402).

·         Five of the 108 races at Charlotte Motor Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was the 2009 Coca-Cola 600 won by David Reutimann and Michael Waltrip Racing. Four of the five races shortened were the 600-mile events (1968, 1997, 2003 and 2009).  

·         Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Charlotte twice; the fall race of 2002 and the fall race of 2008.

·         Seven NASCAR Sprint Cup active drivers have made their first career start at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Michael Waltrip (5/26/85), Elliott Sadler (5/24/98), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (5/30/99), Jimmie Johnson (10/7/01), Brian Vickers (10/11/03), David Reutimann (10/15/05) and Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (5/29/11).

·         Four active drivers have posted their first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Jeff Gordon (10/10/93), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (5/28/00), Ryan Newman (5/27/01) and Aric Almirola (5/27/12). Almirola’s pole last season was the first time since May 22, 1966 that the No. 43 car had won the Coors Light pole at CMS.

·         Six active NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers have posted their first career win at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Jeff Gordon (5/29/94), Bobby Labonte (5/28/95), Matt Kenseth (5/28/00), Jamie McMurray (10/13/02), Casey Mears (5/27/07) and David Reutimann (5/25/09).

·         Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Charlotte with 1,439 laps led in 23 starts. 826 of Johnson’s 1,439 laps led at CMS were in the Coca-Cola 600; the most of any active NSCS driver.

 

Charlotte Motor Speedway Data

Season Race #: 12 of 36 (5-26-13)

Track Size: 1.5-miles

Banking/Turns 1 & 2: 24 degrees

Banking/Turns 3 & 4: 24 degrees

Banking/Frontstretch: 5 degrees

Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees

Frontstretch Length:  1,980 feet

Backstretch Length:  1,500 feet

Race Length: 400 laps / 600 miles

 

Top 12 Driver Rating at Charlotte

Jimmie Johnson........................ 111.7

Kyle Busch............................... 107.7

Kasey Kahne.............................. 98.0

Matt Kenseth.............................. 94.4

Greg Biffle.................................. 94.1

Denny Hamlin............................. 92.1

Carl Edwards.............................. 89.0

Joey Logano.............................. 88.4

Mark Martin................................. 88.2

Jeff Gordon................................ 87.3

Aric Almirola............................... 84.8

Tony Stewart............................... 83.4

Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2012 races (16 total) among active drivers at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2012 pole winner:

Aric Almirola, Ford, 192.940 mph, 27.988 secs. 05-25-12

 

2012 race winner:

Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 155.687 mph, (03:51:14), 5-27-12

 

Track qualifying record:

Greg Biffle, Ford, 193.708 mph, 27.877 secs. 10-11-12

 

Track race record:

Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 155.687 mph, (03:51:14), 5-27-12

·         Two female drivers have competed at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Janet Guthrie and Danica Patrick.

Date	Driver	Starting Position	Finishing Position	Race Name
5/27/2012	Danica Patrick	40	30	Coca-Cola 600
10/8/1978	Janet Guthrie	31	35	NAPA National 500
10/9/1977	Janet Guthrie	27	9	NAPA National 500
10/10/1976	Janet Guthrie	26	22	National 500
5/30/1976	Janet Guthrie	27	15	World 600

NASCAR in North Carolina

·         There have been 516 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in North Carolina.

Track Name	City	NSCS
Charlotte Motor Speedway	Concord	108
North Wilkesboro Speedway	North Wilkesboro	93
Rockingham Speedway	Rockingham	78
Hickory Speedway	Hickory	35
Asheville-Weaverville Speedway	Weaverville	34
Occoneechee Speedway	Hillsboro	32
Bowman-Gray Stadium	Winston-Salem	29
Southern States Fairgrounds	Charlotte	17
Charlotte Speedway	Charlotte	12
Concord Speedway	Concord	12
Wilson Speedway	Wilson	12
New Asheville Speedway	Asheville	8
Dog Track Speedway	Moyock	7
Raleigh Speedway	Raleigh	7
Cleveland County Fairgrounds	Shelby	6
Champion Speedway	Fayetteville	4
Greensboro Agriculture Fairgrounds	Greensboro	3
North Carolina State Fairgrounds	Raleigh	3
Tar Heel Speedway	Randleman	3
Forsyth County Fairgrounds	Winston-Salem	2
Harris Speedway	Harris	2
Jacksonville Speedway	Jacksonville	2
Tri-City Speedway	High Point	2
Gastonia Fairgrounds	Gastonia	1
Harnett Speedway	Spring Lake	1
McCormick Field	Asheville	1
Salisbury Super Speedway	Salisbury	1
Star Lite Speedway	Monroe	1

 

NASCAR in North Carolina

·         428 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as North Carolina.

·         46 drivers from North Carolina have won at least one race in NASCAR’s three national series; 28 have won in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Richard Petty	200	0	0
Dale Earnhardt	76	21	0
Lee Petty	54	0	0
Ned Jarrett	50	0	0
Junior Johnson	50	0	0
Herb Thomas	48	0	0
Buck Baker	46	0	0
Bobby Isaac	37	0	0
Dale Jarrett	32	11	0
Jim Paschal	25	0	0
Benny Parsons	21	0	0
Speedy Thompson	20	0	0
Buddy Baker	19	0	0
Dale Earnhardt Jr	19	23	0
Harry Gant	18	21	0
Bob Welborn	9	0	0
Kyle Petty	8	0	0
Morgan Shepherd	4	15	0
Bill Blair	3	0	0
Gwyn Staley	3	0	0
Billy Myers	2	0	0
Jimmy Pardue	2	0	0
Brian Vickers	2	3	0
Richard Brickhouse	1	0	0
Phil Parsons	1	2	0
Leon Sales	1	0	0
Buddy Shuman	1	0	0
Donald Thomas	1	0	0
Jack Ingram	0	31	0
Tommy Houston	0	24	0
Sam Ard	0	22	0
Robert Pressley	0	10	2
Scott Riggs	0	4	5
Austin Dillon	0	2	4
Hank Parker Jr	0	2	0
Johnny Rumley	0	2	0
Dennis Setzer	0	2	18
Ed Berrier	0	1	0
Justin Labonte	0	1	0
Stephen Leicht	0	1	0
Timothy Peters	0	0	5
Andy Houston	0	0	3
Ryan Blaney	0	0	1
Ty Dillon	0	0	1
Ricky Hendrick	0	0	1
Shane Hmiel	0	0	1

 

CHARLOTTE-SPECIFIC STATISTICS

 

Aric Almirola (No. 43 USAF Ford)

·         One pole

·         Average finish of 14.0

·         Average Running Position of 12.5, fourth-best

·         Driver Rating of 84.8, 11th-best

 

Greg Biffle (No. 16 Fastenal Ford)

·         Five top fives, eight top 10s; one pole

·         Average finish of 16.4

·         Average Running Position of 13.9, seventh-best

·         Driver Rating of 94.1, fifth-best

·         300 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

·         1,174 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.906 mph, third-fastest

·         3,716 Laps in the Top 15 (65.1%), sixth-most

·         653 Quality Passes, fifth-most

 

Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M’s Red-White-Blue M-Prove America Toyota)

·         Eight top fives, 11 top 10s; one pole

·         Average finish of 15.3

·         Average Running Position of 9.6, second-best

·         Driver Rating of 107.7, second-best

·         418 Fastest Laps Run, third-most

·         1,147 Green Flag Passes, 12th-most

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 176.527 mph, second-fastest

·         4,565 Laps in the Top 15 (80.0%), second-most

·         Series-high 833 Quality Passes

 

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet)

·         Five top fives, 11 top 10s; one pole

·         Average finish of 18.8

·         Average Running Position of 20.2, 25th-best

·         Driver Rating of 78.8, 18th-best

·         1,228 Green Flag Passes, eighth-most

·         2,401 Laps in the Top 15 (44.7%), 17th-most

·         487 Quality Passes, 17th-most

 

Carl Edwards (No. 99 Fastenal Ford)

·         Five top fives, 10 top 10s

·         Average finish of 12.0

·         Average Running Position of 15.4, 10th-best

·         Driver Rating of 89.0, seventh-best

·         118 Fastest Laps Run, 13th-most

·         1,329 Green Flag Passes, third-most

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.543 mph, 12th-fastest

·         3,282 Laps in the Top 15 (57.5%), eighth-most

·         632 Quality Passes, sixth-most

 

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

·         Five wins, 16 top fives, 21 top 10s; eight poles

·         Average finish of 15.7

·         Average Running Position of 15.9, 12th-best

·         Driver Rating of 87.3, 10th-best

·         188 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most

·         1,124 Green Flag Passes, 13th-most

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.723 mph, sixth-fastest

·         3,216 Laps in the Top 15 (56.4%), ninth-most

·         601 Quality Passes, ninth-most

 

Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota)

·         Three top fives, eight top 10s

·         Average finish of 14.1

·         Average Running Position of 12.9, fifth-best

·         Driver Rating of 92.1, sixth-best

·         200 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.656 mph, ninth-fastest

·         3,780 Laps in the Top 15 (71.2%), fourth-most

·         616 Quality Passes, eighth-most

 

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Patriotic Chevrolet)

·         Six wins, 11 top fives, 15 top 10s; three poles

·         Average finish of 11.4

·         Series-best Average Running Position of 7.9

·         Series-best Driver Rating of 111.7

·         Series-high 544 Fastest Laps Run

·         1,167 Green Flag Passes, 11th-most

·         Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 176.653 mph

·         Series-high 4,932 Laps in the Top 15 (86.4%)

·         825 Quality Passes, second-most

 

Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet)

·         Four wins, seven top fives, 10 top 10s

·         Average finish of 12.4

·         Average Running Position of 12.4, third-best

·         Driver Rating of 98.0, third-best

·         474 Fastest Laps Run, second-most

·         1,331 Green Flag Passes, second-most

·         3,729 Laps in the Top 15 (65.4%), fifth-most

·         729 Quality Passes, third-most

 

Matt Kenseth (No. 20 Home Depot Husky Toyota)

·         Two wins, seven top fives, 14 top 10s

·         Average finish of 14.2

·         Average Running Position of 14.8, ninth-best

·         Driver Rating of 94.4, fourth-best

·         303 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most

·         1,259 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.786 mph, fifth-fastest

·         3,549 Laps in the Top 15 (62.2%), seventh-most

·         699 Quality Passes, fourth-most

 

Joey Logano (No. 22 Pennzoil Ford)

·         Two top fives, five top 10s

·         Average finish of 10.1

·         Average Running Position of 14.5, eighth-best

·         Driver Rating of 88.4, eighth-best

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.561 mph, 11th-fastest

 

Mark Martin (No. 55 Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota)

·         Four wins, 18 top fives, 24 top 10s; two poles

·         Average finish of 16.6

·         Average Running Position of 13.3, sixth-best

·         Driver Rating of 88.2, ninth-best

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.799 mph, fourth-fastest

·         3,862 Laps in the Top 15 (67.7%), third-most

 

Tony Stewart (No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet)

·         One win, six top fives, 12 top 10s; one pole

·         Average finish of 14.0

·         Average Running Position of 15.9, 11th-best

·         Driver Rating of 83.4, 12th-best

·         187 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most

·         1,263 Green Flag Passes, fifth-most

·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.719 mph, seventh-fastest

·         2,998 Laps in the Top 15 (52.5%), 10th-most

·         567 Quality Passes, 10th-most

 

Chase Contenders

The Top 12

Following Race 11 of 36

                                                                                Rank        Season

                                                                                Last          Driver

Driver                             Points   Wins      Poles        Week        Rating

1. Jimmie Johnson       423       2           1              1           114.9

2. Carl Edwards             379       1           0              2             92.3

3. Matt Kenseth              364       3           2              4           118.6

4. Dale Earnhardt Jr.     359       0           0               3             95.4

5. Clint Bowyer              349       0           0               5             95.2

6. Kasey Kahne              326       1           0               7            99.5

7. Brad Keselowski        326       0           0               6             92.2

8. Kyle Busch                 325       2           2            10           103.5

9. Aric Almirola              317       0           0               8             80.0

10. Kevin Harvick            315       1           0            12             92.8

11. Paul Menard               315       0           0               9             78.6

12. Jeff Gordon               311       0           0             14             89.0

______________________________________________________

 

ADDITIONAL DRIVERS

13. Greg Biffle                      311         30. David Blaney             190

14. Martin Truex Jr.               301         31. David Gilliland            188

15. Jamie McMurray             295         32. JJ Yeley                    157

16. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.        282         33. David Stremme          150

17. Ryan Newman                276         34. David Reutimann        149

18. Kurt Busch                     262         35. Landon Cassill           130

19. Joey Logano                   259         36. Travis Kvapil              127

20. Jeff Burton                     258         37. AJ Allmendinger         122

21. Tony Stewart                  253         38. Scott Speed                74

22. Juan Pablo Montoya        238         39. Michael McDowell        72

23. Marcos Ambrose             235         40. Michael Waltrip            63

24. Mark Martin                    226         41. Terry Labonte              52

25. Casey Mears                  210         42. Timmy Hill                   45

26. David Ragan                   197         43. Ken Schrader               29

27. Denny Hamlin                 197         44. Scott Riggs                   6

28. Danica Patrick                196         45. Brian Keselowski             4

29. Bobby Labonte                195

Note: The first 26 races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season determine which 12 drivers qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, contested over the final 10 races of the season. After race No. 26, the top 10 earn a berth in the Chase. Spots 11 and 12 – the Wild Cards – will go to those drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, provided they are in the top 20.

 

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2013 Top 12 at Charlotte Motor Speedway

	Driver	Races	Poles	Wins	Top Fives	Top 10s	DNFs	Average Finish	Driver Rating
1	Jimmie Johnson	23	3	6	11	15	4	11.4	111.7
2	Carl Edwards	16	0	0	5	10	1	12.0	89.0
3	Matt Kenseth	27	0	2	7	14	5	14.2	94.4
4	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	26	1	0	5	11	3	18.8	78.8
5	Clint Bowyer	14	0	1	2	4	0	16.4	80.0
6	Kasey Kahne	18	0	4	7	10	1	12.4	98.0
7	Brad Keselowski	7	1	0	1	1	0	15.7	83.2
8	Kyle Busch	18	1	0	8	11	4	15.3	107.7
9	Aric Almirola	2	1	0	0	0	0	14.0	84.8
10	Kevin Harvick	24	0	1	2	7	1	18.0	75.6
11	Paul Menard	12	0	0	0	1	1	23.3	64.0
12	Jeff Gordon	40	8	5	16	21	9	15.7	87.3

* – Based on last 16 races at Charlotte Motor Speedway.