NASCAR SprintCup Qualifying Numbers from 2008

Here's a curious tidbit about qualifying efforts from the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.

• 84 drivers attempted to qualify for at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race this season.

• There were 15 different pole winners in 2008:

• Jimmie Johnson (six)
• Jeff Gordon (four)
• Kyle Busch (two)
• Greg Biffle (two)
• Kasey Kahne (two)
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. (one)
• Ryan Newman (one)
• Joe Nemechek (one)
• Denny Hamlin (one)
• Patrick Carpentier (one)
• Paul Menard (one)
• Brian Vickers (one)
• Carl Edwards (one)
• Travis Kvapil (one)
• David Reutimann (one)

• There were four first-time pole winners in 2008.
This continued a 22-year streak of at least one first-time pole winner (1987-2008).

• Patrick Carpentier (New Hampshire)
• Paul Menard (Daytona-2)
• Travis Kvapil (Talladega-2)
• David Reutimann (Homestead)

• Patrick Carpentier and Paul Menard won consecutive career-first poles – the first time that career first poles had been posted in back-to-back races since David Green (Homestead) and Kevin Lepage (Atlanta) in 1999.

Disheartening Rain
• Qualifying was canceled due to inclement weather at the Auto Club Speedway, Bristol, Michigan, Chicago, Watkins Glen, Richmond-2, New Hampshire-2, Lowe’s-2, Martinsville-2 and Atlanta-2.

• 49 different drivers have posted at least one top-10 start, led by Jimmie Johnson with 27.

• The pole winner (or driver who started first) won nine times and finished in the top 10 in 20 races this season.

• Two pole winners went on to finish last in that race: Ryan Newman (Phoenix) and Greg Biffle (Darlington).

• The average finish of the pole winner in 2008 is 12.28.

• Landon Cassill won the pole for the NASCAR Nationwide Series at New Hampshire and Patrick Carpentier followed up with the pole for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race. It was the first time ever that two Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidates swept the poles at the same track in a weekend.


source: nascar press release

Wood 'timber plank' on Mars

The Traveling Life

As I have mentioned in the last few posts, I have been (and will be) traveling a lot over the next few weeks and I just wanted to give everyone an updated and brag about my current hotel room. I went from my house to the Bradley Lodge to San Jose. The San Jose hotel was nice and I was able to have food from some of my favorite road restaurants ... In-N-Out, El Pollo Loco and Outback Steakhouse, the last two were both to-go orders that I enjoyed in my room while watching TV. Today I traveled from San Jose to the heart of the Mission District for an event at one of the largest non-profits in San Francisco, Arriba Juntos, which had some really cool murals on the building and the bus staff and I ate lunch at Weird Fish (it was really good), then I checked into what could be the nicest hotel room I've ever stayed at. I stayed at this hotel a few months ago for another event and really liked the room (see previous post), so I figured I would like it again. Although not the "Good Hotel" (that's next door), my room at the Best Western Carriage Inn is huge, gigantic by San Francisco standards, The "Deluxe King with Fireplace" room includes the normal hotel room things (bed, bathroom, ...), plus a couch, a separate sitting area and a table and chairs, not to mention the flat screen TV, iPod dock and fireplace with duraflame log, I might have to light a fire tonight or tomorrow, just to say I did. Dinner for the night was again enjoyed in my room and was from a local internet cafe called BrainWash.

Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder

Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, originally uploaded by jarapet.

Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder

Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, originally uploaded by jarapet.

Beauty of clouds gathering over Greenland

The 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Season

Jimmie Johnson won the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship – his third consecutive, history tying title. He joined Cale Yarborough (1976-78) as the only drivers to win three consecutive series championships.

In 2008, Jimmie Johnson had seven wins, 15 top fives and 22 top 10s, and finished the 2008 season 69 points ahead of Carl Edwards.

Three of his victories and eight of his top-10s came during the 10-race Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers won all 10 Chase races:

• Jimmie Johnson (three),
• Carl Edwards (three),
• Greg Biffle (two),
• Tony Stewart and Jeff Burton (one each).

Chase Notes: After Race 10
• All 12 Chase drivers have posted at least one top-10 finish in a Chase race.
Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards did so in eight.

• All 12 Chase drivers have led laps in at least one of the first nine Chase races.
Jimmie Johnson led in nine.

• Chase drivers led 2,642 of the 3,234 laps (81.7%).

• Greg Biffle became the first driver to win the first two Chase races.

• Jimmie Johnson has won 14 of the 50 Chase races run since the inception of this playoff system.

2008 Season Highlights
• Ryan Newman won the season-opener Daytona 500, his first career restrictor-plate victory.

• Carl Edwards won back-to-back at California and Las Vegas.

• Kyle Busch won at Atlanta, giving Toyota its first victory in the Cup Series.
This was the 40th start for Toyota in Cup and was the first by a foreign-based manufacturer since Jaguar won with Al Keller at Linden (N.J.) Airport in 1954.

• Jeff Burton won at Bristol. He had teammates Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer on his tail, giving car owner Richard Childress his first-ever 1-2-3 sweep.

• Carl Edwards won at Texas. Carl joins Jeff Burton as the only drivers with multiple victories at Texas.

• Kyle Busch won at Darlington and became the youngest race winner there.

• Kasey Kahne followed up his All-Star race win with a victory in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Doing this made Kasey the sixth driver to win both races in the same season.

• Kyle Busch wins at Dover. This makes him the first driver to have four wins at Dover.

• Kasey Kahne won the Pocono 500.
He became the third multiple-race winner of 2008.

• Junior Nation rejoices. Dale Earnhardt Jr. won at Michigan, ending a 76-race winless streak.

• Kyle Busch won at Infineon Raceway.
That was number one for Kyle on a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series roadcourse.
This also meant he's won on all four types of tracks in NASCAR’s premier circuit.

• Kurt Busch won at New Hampshire. His first since Michigan in August 2007.

• Kyle Busch got 2008 win #6 in the July race at Daytona.

• At Chicagoland, Kyle Busch won back-to-back races for the first time in his career. That's #7.

• At Indianapolis, Jimmie Johnson won his second race of 2008 – his second win at the Brickyard. The race of a thousand trophy dashes!

• Carl Edwards won at Pocono Raceway after waiting out rain and fuel issues for win #4 of the season.

• Kyle Busch won at Watkins Glen, completing a sweep of the two road-course races this season.

• By winning at Michigan, Carl Edwards completed the second NASCAR Sprint Cup-NASCAR Nationwide Series weekend sweep.

• Carl Edwards posted back-to-back victories for the second time in 2008 when he won at Bristol.

• Jimmie Johnson dominated the field at Auto Club Speedway.

• Jimmie Johnson won at Richmond. Win #4 of the season.

• With his victory at New Hampshire, Greg Biffle became the 11th different race winner in 2008.

• Greg Biffle won at Dover, posting consecutive series wins for the first time in his career.

• Jimmie Johnson won the Camping World RV 400 presented by Coleman at Kansas Speedway.

• Tony Stewart won at Talladega. That's win # 33 in his career. His first in 2008 and his first win at Talladega Superspeedway.

• Jeff Burton won at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. That makes 2008 his first multiple-win season since 2001.

• Jimmie Johnson won at Martinsville. He led 339 laps – the most he has ever led in a race in his career.

• Carl Edwards won at Atlanta. That's #7 for him in 2008.

• Carl Edwards won at Texas.

• Jimmie Johnson had win #7 of 2008 at Phoenix. Much to the chagrin of Carl Edwards.

• Carl Edwards posted his series-leading ninth victory with his win in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Source: NASCAR Press Release