History

·       Michigan International Speedway sits on more than 1,400 acres in the “Irish Hills” of Southeastern Michigan. Ground-breaking took place on Sept. 28, 1967.

·       The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan was held June 15, 1969 – won by Cale Yarborough at a speed of 139.254 mph.

·       The track was known as Michigan Speedway during the time Roger Penske was the primary owner (1996-99).

·       The 2-mile speedway underwent a repave in 2012.

Notebook

·       There have been 88 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Michigan International Speedway since the first race there in 1969. Other than 1973, which had just one race, there have been two races each season since 1969.

·       The first race was 500 miles in length; the second was scheduled for 600. The track was re-measured to 2.04 miles for the last race in 1970 and both races in 1971 – with the race distance being 402 miles. All other races have been scheduled for 400 miles.

·       365 drivers have competed in at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway; 267 in more than one.

·       Bill Elliott leads the series in starts at Michigan with 61. Terry Labonte and Mark Martin lead all active drivers with 55 starts each.

·       Donnie Allison won the inaugural Coors Light pole at Michigan in 1969 with a speed of 160.135 mph.

·       44 drivers have Coors Light poles at Michigan, led by David Pearson with 10. Bill Elliott leads all active drivers with six; followed by Jeff Gordon with five.

·       Six drivers have won consecutive Coors Light poles at Michigan. David Pearson holds the record for most consecutive poles at Michigan with five; fall 1976 through 1978.

·       Four active drivers have posted consecutive Coors Light poles at Michigan: Terry Labonte (1983 sweep), Bill Elliott (1984 sweep and 1988 sweep), Bobby Labonte (2003 sweep), and Brian Vickers (fall 2008 – 2009 sweep).

·       Youngest Michigan pole winner: Jeff Gordon (08/18/1995 – 23 years, 10 months, 14 days).

·       Oldest Michigan pole winner: Mark Martin (08/19/2012 – 53 years, 7 months, 10 days).

·       34 different NSCS drivers have won at Michigan International Speedway, led by David Pearson with nine wins. Bill Elliott leads all active drivers with seven; followed by Mark Martin with five.

·       Eight drivers have posted consecutive wins at Michigan International Speedway, including four consecutive by Bill Elliott (1985 sweep and 1986 sweep).

·       Youngest Michigan winner: Kurt Busch (6/15/2003 – 24 years, 10 months, 11 days).

·       Oldest Michigan winner: Harry Gant (8/16/1992 – 52 years, 7 months, 6 days).

·       Roush Fenway Racing has the most wins at Michigan in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 13: Mark Martin (four), Greg Biffle (four), Carl Edwards (two), Matt Kenseth (two) and Kurt Busch (one).

·       Eight different manufacturers have won in the NSCS at Michigan; led by Ford with 33 victories; followed by Chevrolet with 20.

·       16 of the 88 (18.1%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Michigan have been won from the Coors Light pole; the most recent was Brian Vickers in 2009.

·       The Coors Light pole position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (16) than any other starting position at Michigan International Speedway.

·       24 of the 88 (27.2%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Michigan have been won from the front row: 16 from the pole and eight from second place.

·       66 of the 88 (75%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Michigan have been won from a top-10 starting position.

·       Six of the 88 (6.8%) NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Michigan have been won from a starting position outside the top 20.

·       The deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Michigan was 32nd, by Mark Martin in the spring of 2009.

·       Jeff Gordon leads the series in runner-up finishes at Michigan with eight; followed by Darrell Waltrip with seven.

·       NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough leads the series in top-five finishes at Michigan with 21; Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin lead all active drivers with 18 each.

·       Mark Martin leads the series in top-10 finishes at Michigan with 31; followed by Bill Elliott with 29.

·       Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Michigan with a 9.565.

·       Carl Edwards leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average finishing position at Michigan with an 8.222. Matt Kenseth (9.429) is the only other active driver with an average finish in the top 10.

·       All 16 active NASCAR Sprint Cup winners at Michigan International Speedway participated in at least one or more races before visiting Victory Lane. Tony Stewart won at Michigan in his third appearance, the fewest previous starts among the active NSCS winners.

·       Kevin Harvick competed at Michigan International Speedway 19 times before winning in the fall of 2010; the longest span of any the 16 active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winners.

·       Among the 16 active NSCS Michigan winners Kevin Harvick (19), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (17) Kyle Busch (13), Bill Elliott (13), Jeff Gordon (11) and Brian Vickers (11) all made 10 or more attempts before their first win.

·       Terry Labonte leads the series among active drivers with the most NASCAR Sprint Cup starts at Michigan without visiting Victory Lane at 55.

·       Since the advent of electronic scoring the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Michigan International Speedway was the June 10, 2001 race won by Jeff Gordon over Ricky Rudd with a MOV of 0.085 second.

·       There have been two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races resulting with a green-white-checkered finish at Michigan International Speedway (Scheduled No. of Laps/Actual No. of Laps): fall of 2011 (200/203); and fall of 2012 (200/201).

·       Four of the 88 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Michigan International Speedway have been shortened due to weather conditions; the most recent was the event on 6/18/2006.

·       Qualifying has been cancelled due to weather conditions in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Michigan International Speedway four times; most recently the spring of 2008 race.

·       Three drivers have posted their first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light pole at Michigan International Speedway: Jeff Burton (8/18/1996), J.J. Yeley (6/17/2007) and Marcos Ambrose (6/17/2012).

·       Two active NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver have posted their first career start at Michigan International Speedway: Carl Edwards (8/22/2004) and Landon Cassill (6/13/2010).

·       Bill Elliott leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in laps led at Michigan with 1,004 laps led in 61 starts. Jeff Gordon has led the second-most with 954.

·       Four female drivers have competed at Michigan International Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Janet Guthrie, Robin McCall, Shawna Robinson and Danica Patrick.

 

Driver	Starting Position	Finishing Position	Date
Janet Guthrie	12	26	6/19/1977
Janet Guthrie	15	10	8/22/1977
Janet Guthrie	18	27	8/20/1978
Robin McCall	35	29	6/20/1982
Robin McCall	29	33	8/22/1982
Shawna Robinson	32	34	6/10/2001
Danica Patrick	37	13	6/16/2013

 

Michigan International Speedway Data

Season Race #: 23 of 36 (8-18-13)

Track Size: 2-miles

Banking/Turn 1 & 2: 18 degrees

Banking/Turn 3 & 4: 18 degrees

Banking/Frontstretch: 5 degrees

Banking/Backstretch: 2 degrees

Frontstretch Length:  3,600 feet

Backstretch Length:  2,242 feet

Race Length: 200 laps / 400 miles

 

Top 12 Driver Rating at Michigan

Greg Biffle................................ 110.0

Matt Kenseth............................ 106.0

Carl Edwards............................ 105.1

Jimmie Johnson........................ 104.0

Dale Earnhardt Jr....................... 97.5

Tony Stewart.............................. 95.9

Kyle Busch................................. 93.1

Brian Vickers.............................. 91.5

Denny Hamlin............................. 91.1

Jeff Gordon................................ 90.7

Kasey Kahne.............................. 89.0

Kurt Busch................................. 87.7

Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2013 races (17 total) among active drivers at Michigan International Speedway.

 

Qualifying/Race Data

2012 pole winner: Mark Martin, Toyota, 199.706 mph, 36.053 secs. 08-17-12

2012 race winner: Greg Biffle, Ford, 144.662 mph, (02:46:44), 08-19-12

Track qualifying record: Marcos Ambrose, Ford, 203,241 mph, 35.426 secs. 06-15-12

Track race record: Dale Jarrett, Ford, 173.997 mph, (2:17:56), 06-13-99

NASCAR in Michigan

·       There have been 93 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Michigan.

Track Name	City	NSCS
Michigan International Speedway	Brooklyn	88
Grand River Speedrome	Grand Rapids	2
Michigan State Fairgrounds	Detroit	2
Monroe Speedway	Monroe	1

·       98 drivers in NASCAR national series history have their home state recorded as Michigan.

Driver	NSCS	NNS	NCWTS
Paul Goldsmith	9	0	0
Brad Keselowski	9	24	0
Johnny Benson	1	3	14
Tim Fedewa	0	4	0
Butch Miller	0	2	1
Tracy Leslie	0	1	0
Jack Sprague	0	1	28
Bob Keselowski	0	0	1

 

 

MICHIGAN-SPECIFIC STATISTICS

 

Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford)

·       Four wins, 10 top fives, 13 top 10s; one pole

·       Average finish of 11.3

·       Series-best Average Running Position of 8.2

·       Series-best Driver Rating of 110.0

·       290 Fastest Laps Run, second-most

·       1,190 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most

·       Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 177.096 mph

·       Series-high 2,862 Laps in the Top 15 (85.7%)

·       802 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), second-most

 

Kurt Busch (No. 78 Furniture Row/Serta Chevrolet)

·       Two wins, three top fives, eight top 10s; two poles

·       Average finish of 22.0

·       Driver Rating of 87.7, 12th-best

·       154 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-most

·       1,968 Laps in the Top 15 (58.9%), 10th-most

·       511 Quality Passes, 13th-most

 

Kyle Busch (No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota)

·       One win, four top fives, six top 10s

·       Average finish of 15.6

·       Average Running Position of 14.1, eighth-best

·       Driver Rating of 93.1, seventh-best

·       136 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most

·       1,181 Green Flag Passes, 11th-most

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 176.364 mph, seventh-fastest

·       2,241 Laps in the Top 15 (67.1%), sixth-most

 

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

·       Two wins, six top fives, 10 top 10s; two poles

·       Average finish of 15.6

·       Average Running Position of 12.7, fifth-best

·       Driver Rating of 97.5, fifth-best

·       180 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most

·       1,336 Green Flag Passes, third-most

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 176.598 mph, fifth-fastest

·       2,213 Laps in the Top 15 (66.3%), seventh-most

·       720 Quality Passes, fourth-most

 

Carl Edwards (No. 99 BB / Geek Squad Ford)

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

·       Average finish of 8.2

·       Average Running Position of 10.1, third-best

·       Driver Rating of 105.1, third-best

·       194 Fastest Laps Run, third-most

·       1,200 Green Flag Passes, eighth-most

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 176.894 mph, fourth-fastest

·       2,761 Laps in the Top 15 (82.7%), second-most

·       Series-high 811 Quality Passes

 

Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Standox Chevrolet)

·       Two wins, 18 top fives, 25 top 10s; five poles

·       Average finish of 12.4

·       Average Running Position of 14.3, ninth-best

·       Driver Rating of 90.7, 10th-best

·       159 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most

·       2,106 Laps in the Top 15 (63.1%), eighth-most

·       580 Quality Passes, 10th-most

 

Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota)

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

·       Average finish of 14.7

·       Average Running Position of 13.8, seventh-best

·       Driver Rating of 91.1, ninth-best

·       97 Fastest Laps Run, 12th-most

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 176.201 mph, ninth-fastest

 

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet)

·       Four top fives, nine top 10s

·       Average finish of 15.8

·       Average Running Position of 10.2, fourth-best

·       Driver Rating of 104.0, fourth-best

·       Series-high 357 Fastest Laps Run

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 177.081 mph, second-fastest

·       2,555 Laps in the Top 15 (76.5%), fourth-most

·       675 Quality Passes, sixth-most

 

Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Pepsi Max Chevrolet)

·       One win, seven top fives, eight top 10s; two poles

·       Average finish of 16.9

·       Average Running Position of 15.6, 11th-best

·       Driver Rating of 89.0, 11th-best

·       164 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

·       1,232 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 176.375 mph, sixth-fastest

·       621 Quality Passes, eighth-most

 

Matt Kenseth (No. 20 Dollar General Toyota)

·       Two wins, 12 top fives, 18 top 10s

·       Average finish of 9.4

·       Average Running Position of 10.1, second-best

·       Driver Rating of 106.0, second-best

·       159 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-most

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 176.931 mph, third-fastest

·       2,707 Laps in the Top 15 (81.1%), third-most

·       751 Quality Passes, third-most

 

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

·       Five wins, 18 top fives, 31 top 10s; one pole

·       Average finish of 14.2

·       Average Running Position of 15.5, 10th-best

·       Driver Rating of 86.5, 13th-best

·       105 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-most

·       Average Green Flag Speed of 176.179 mph, 10th-fastest

·       1,974 Laps in the Top 15 (59.1%), ninth-most

·       553 Quality Passes, 11th-most

 

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

·       One win, 12 top fives, 20 top 10s

·       Average finish of 11.7

·       Average Running Position of 12.7, sixth-best

·       Driver Rating of 95.9, sixth-best

·       685 Quality Passes, fifth-most

 

Chase Contenders

The Top 10

Following Race 22 of 36

                                                                                          Rank         Season

                                                                                          Last           Driver

Driver                                 Points   Wins       Poles         Week         Rating

1. Jimmie Johnson           808        4             2                1             113.7

2. Clint Bowyer                  733        0             0                2               93.9

3. Carl Edwards                 728        1             1                3               92.7

4. Kevin Harvick                707        2             0                 4               92.0

5. Kyle Busch                    693        3             3                 6             104.2

6. Dale Earnhardt Jr.        670        0             1                 5              94.4

7. Matt Kenseth                 659        4             2                 7             108.6

8. Brad Keselowski           634        0             1              12               91.9

9. Greg Biffle                      627        1             0               10               81.2

10. Martin Truex Jr.             625        1             0              14               93.4

    ___________________________________________________________

 

ADDITIONAL DRIVERS

11. Kurt Busch                        623          32. J.J. Yeley                    296

12. Kasey Kahne                     622          33. David Stremme            296

13. Jeff Gordon                      610          34. AJ Allmendinger          278

14. Ryan Newman                   605          35. Travis Kvapil                275

15. Jamie McMurray                600          36. Michael McDowell       115

16. Joey Logano                     598          37. Michael Waltrip            102

17. Tony Stewart                     594          38. Timmy Hill                     99

18. Aric Almirola                      561          39. Scott Speed                  91

19. Paul Menard                      559          40. Terry Labonte               77

20. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.          531          41. Ken Schrader                68

21. Jeff Burton                        525          42. Boris Said                      48

22. Juan Pablo Montoya          516          43. Ron Fellows                  31

23. Marcos Ambrose               515          44. Alex Kennedy                21

24. Casey Mears                     472          45. Dave Blaney                  17

25. Denny Hamlin                    414          46. Justin Marks                  14

26. David Ragan (1 win)          399          47. Victor Gonzalez Jr.         10

27. Danica Patrick                   397          48. Scott Riggs                   10

28. David Gilliland                   387          49. Brian Keselowski             9

29. Mark Martin                       361          50. Tomy Drissi                     8

30. Bobby Labonte                  328          51. Jacques Villeneuve         3

31. David Reutimann               308          52. Jason Leffler                   1                                 

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 Michigan International Speedway

	Driver	Races	Poles	Wins	Top Fives	Top 10s	DNFs	Average Finish	Driver Rating
1	Jimmie Johnson	23	0	0	4	9	2	15.8	104.0
2	Clint Bowyer	15	0	0	0	7	1	16.1	81.2
3	Carl Edwards	18	1	2	9	14	0	8.2	105.1
4	Kevin Harvick	25	0	1	4	9	1	14.3	84.2
5	Kyle Busch	17	0	1	4	6	1	15.6	93.1
6	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	28	2	2	6	10	3	15.6	97.5
7	Matt Kenseth	28	0	2	12	18	1	9.4	106.0
8	Brad Keselowski	8	0	0	2	2	0	17.5	80.6
9	Greg Biffle	21	1	4	10	13	0	11.3	110.0
10	Martin Truex Jr.	15	0	0	3	5	0	15.7	85.0
11	Kurt Busch	25	2	2	3	8	8	22.0	87.7
12	Kasey Kahne	19	2	1	7	8	3	16.9	89.0

* – Based on last 17 races at Michigan International Speedway.

 

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2013 Wild Card Standings Following Watkins Glen

Pos	Driver	Wins	Pts Pos	Points	Pts From 10th	Starts	Poles	T5s	T10s	DNFs
1	Kasey Kahne	2	12	622	-3	22	0	7	9	3
2	Ryan Newman	1	14	605	-20	22	1	4	10	5
3	Tony Stewart	1	17	594	-31	21	0	5	8	0
4	Kurt Busch	0	11	623	-2	22	1	5	10	2
5	Jeff Gordon	0	13	610	-15	22	0	5	9	5
6	Jamie McMurray	0	15	600	-25	22	1	1	5	0
7	Joey Logano	0	16	598	-27	22	0	5	11	2
8	Aric Almirola	0	18	561	-64	22	0	1	5	4
9	Paul Menard	0	19	559	-66	22	0	0	4	1
10	Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #	0	20	531	-94	22	0	0	0	0
11	David Ragan	1	26	399	-226	22	0	1	1	3

The top-10 drivers will make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.  Positions 11 and 12 in the 12-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup are Wild Cards, and will go to drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, as long as they are ranked in the top 20 in points. If multiple drivers outside the top 10 tie for wins, the tie-breaker will go to the race winner with the highest points position.