2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

Brad Keselowski, the 2012 Sprint Cup Series champion.
Clint Bowyer finished second in the championship, 39 points back.
Jimmie Johnson finished third in the championship, 40 points back.
Stephen Leicht, won the 2012 NASCAR Rookie of the Year.
Chevrolet won the Manufacturer's championship with 15 wins & 249 points.

The 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series was the 64th season of NASCAR professional stock car racing in the United States and the 41st modern-era Cup season. The season started on February 18, 2012, at Daytona International Speedway, with the Budweiser Shootout, followed by the Daytona 500 on February 27. The season continued with the Chase for the Sprint Cup beginning on September 16 at Chicagoland Speedway and concluded with the Ford EcoBoost 400 on November 18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

During the 2011 season, NASCAR announced the Sprint Cup Series would be changing to fuel injection from carburetors, which had been used since NASCAR's founding in 1949. Sprint Nextel announced at the 2011 Awards Ceremony that they had extended their sponsorship of the series until 2016. Roger Penske won the Owners' Championship, while Brad Keselowski won the Drivers' Championship at the final race of the season. Chevrolet won the Manufacturers' Championship with 249 points. Keselowski became the first Dodge driver to win the championship since Richard Petty in 1975; he was also the last Dodge driver to do so, as 2012 was the manufacturer's final year in the Cup series. It was the first time since 2004 that the championship was won by someone other than Tony Stewart or Jimmie Johnson. Despite starting his season late, Stephen Leicht was the 2012 NASCAR Rookie of the Year after beating Josh Wise.[1]

2012 was the final season that the fifth-generation cars (also known as the Car of Tomorrow)–which debuted in the 2007 season–were used in competition; as the new Generation 6 cars were introduced for the 2013 season.

Teams and drivers

[edit]

Complete schedule

[edit]

There were 40 full-time teams in 2012.

Manufacturer Team No. Race Driver Crew Chief
Chevrolet Earnhardt Ganassi Racing 1 Jamie McMurray Kevin Manion
42 Juan Pablo Montoya Chris Heroy
Furniture Row Racing 78 Regan Smith 30 Pete Rondeau 19
Todd Berrier 17
Kurt Busch 6
Hendrick Motorsports 5 Kasey Kahne Kenny Francis
24 Jeff Gordon Alan Gustafson
48 Jimmie Johnson Chad Knaus
88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 34 Steve Letarte
Regan Smith 2
Phoenix Racing 51 Kurt Busch 29 Nick Harrison
David Reutimann 1
A. J. Allmendinger 4
Regan Smith 2
Richard Childress Racing 27 Paul Menard Richard Labbe 31
Shane Wilson 5
29 Kevin Harvick Shane Wilson 24
Gil Martin 12
31 Jeff Burton Drew Blickensderfer 33
Shane Wilson 3
33[1] Elliott Sadler 1 Gil Martin 9
Buddy Sisco 2
Tony Glover 25
Brendan Gaughan 4
Hermie Sadler 1
Austin Dillon 1
Circle Sport Tony Raines 2
Jeff Green 1
Stephen Leicht (R) 21
Cole Whitt 5
Stewart-Haas Racing 14 Tony Stewart Steve Addington
39 Ryan Newman Tony Gibson32
Matt Borland4
10 Danica Patrick 10 Tommy Baldwin Jr. 30
Steve Wood 2
Greg Zipadelli 1
Tony Gibson 2
Brandon Thomas 1
Tommy Baldwin Racing David Reutimann 21
Dave Blaney 1
Tony Raines 1
Tomy Drissi 1
J. J. Yeley 2
36 Dave Blaney 32 Ryan Pemberton 33
Tommy Baldwin Jr. 3
Tony Raines 3
J. J. Yeley 1
Dodge Penske Racing 2 Brad Keselowski Paul Wolfe
22 A. J. Allmendinger 17 Todd Gordon
Sam Hornish Jr. 19
Ford FAS Lane Racing 32 Terry Labonte 4 Frank Stoddard
Mike Bliss 1
Ken Schrader 13
Reed Sorenson 6
T. J. Bell 5
Boris Said 2
Jason White 1
Mike Olsen 1
Timmy Hill 3
Front Row Motorsports 26 Tony Raines 1 Charles Dickey Jr.
Josh Wise (R) 35
34 David Ragan Jay Guy
38 David Gilliland Pat Tryson 30
Derrick Finley 6
Germain Racing 13 Casey Mears Bootie Barker
Phil Parsons Racing 98 Michael McDowell 33 Gene Nead
David Mayhew 1
Mike Skinner 2
Richard Petty Motorsports 9 Marcos Ambrose Todd Parrott 26
Mike Ford 7
Drew Blickensderfer3
43 Aric Almirola Greg Erwin 9
Mike Ford 17
Todd Parrott 10
Roush Fenway Racing 16 Greg Biffle Matt Puccia
17 Matt Kenseth Jimmy Fennig
99 Carl Edwards Bob Osbourne 19
Chad Norris 17
Toyota BK Racing 83 Landon Cassill Doug Richert
93 David Reutimann 2 Todd Anderson
Travis Kvapil 34
Inception Motorsports
Swan Racing
30 David Stremme 34 Steve Lane
Brian Simo 1
Patrick Long 1
Joe Gibbs Racing 11 Denny Hamlin Darian Grubb
18 Kyle Busch Dave Rogers
20 Joey Logano Jason Ratcliff
JTG Daugherty Racing 47 Bobby Labonte Todd Berrier 19
David Hyder 1
Brian Burns 16
Michael Waltrip Racing 15 Clint Bowyer Brian Pattie
55 Mark Martin 24 Rodney Childers
Brian Vickers 8
Michael Waltrip 4
56 Martin Truex Jr. Chad Johnston 35
Scott Miller 1
NEMCO Motorsports 87 Joe Nemechek Stephen Gray
Source:[2]

^ The No. 33 changed owners in April. Joe Falk acquired the assets and ownership and was listed as owner after Martinsville; however Childress still fielded the car in races which Austin Dillon competed in.[3]

Limited schedule

[edit]
Manufacturer Team No. Race Driver Crew Chief Rounds
Chevrolet Max Q Motorsports
Tommy Baldwin Racing
37 J. J. Yeley Bill Henderson 3
Tony Furr 11
13
Dave Blaney 1
Turn One Racing 74 Reed Sorenson Peter Sospenzo 3
Stacy Compton 3
Tony Raines 1
Cole Whitt 4
Turner Motorsports 50 Bill Elliott Trent Owens 1
Dodge Penske Racing 12 Sam Hornish Jr. Chad Walter 1
Robby Gordon Motorsports 7 Robby Gordon Samuel Stanley 4
Shane Bourgeois1
5
Ford Go Green Racing 79 Tim Andrews Paul Andrews 3
Mike Abner8
1
Scott Speed 2
Kelly Bires 6
Mike Skinner 1
Reed Sorenson 1
Leavine Family Racing 95 Scott Speed Wally Rogers 16
Max Q Motorsports
Rick Ware Racing
37 Mike Wallace Bill Henderson 1
Timmy Hill (R) 4
Tony Raines 1
Roush Fenway Racing 6 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Chad Norris 1
Scott Graves3
4
Wood Brothers Racing 21 Trevor Bayne Donnie Wingo 16
Xxxtreme Motorsport 44 David Reutimann Frank Kerr 1
Toyota BK Racing 73 Travis Kvapil Buddy Sisco 1
David Reutimann 1
Hamilton Means Racing 52 Scott Speed Scott Eggleston 1
Mike Skinner 3
Hillman Racing 40 Michael Waltrip Buddy Sisco 1
Tony Raines 1
NEMCO Motorsports 97 Bill Elliott Scott Eggleston 2
Timmy Hill 1
RAB Racing 09 Kenny Wallace Scott Zipadelli 1
Robinson-Blakeney Racing 49 J. J. Yeley Tony Furr 19
Scott Eggleston 6
19
Jason Leffler 6
SS Motorsports 0 Mark Green Brad Smales 1
Toyota R3 Motorsports 23 Robert Richardson Jr. Bryan Cook 1
Greg Conner 29
Cruz Gonzalez 1
4
Chevrolet Scott Riggs 27
Toyota 28
Ford 1
Humphrey Smith Racing 19 Mike Bliss Paul Clapprood 16
Skip Pope 13
25
Chris Cook 2
Jason Leffler 1
Jeff Green 1
Ford 1
Toyota 8
Chevrolet 6
91 Reed Sorenson Peter Sospenzo 13
Jason Leffler 2
Source:[2]

Team changes

[edit]

Crew chief changes

[edit]

Driver changes

[edit]

Changed teams

[edit]

Entered the series

[edit]
  • On November 4, 2011, it was announced that former IndyCar driver Danica Patrick would drive the No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet for Stewart-Haas Racing for 10 races.[19]
  • On January 4, 2012, Richard Petty Motorsports announced that Aric Almirola would drive the team's 'iconic'[20] No. 43 Ford after driving in the Nationwide Series in 2011.
  • On February 15, Rick Ware Racing announced its partnership with Larry Gunselman's Max Q Motorsports to run 2011 Nationwide Series ROTY Timmy Hill in the No. 37 Ford. Mike Wallace attempted Daytona. Ware dissolved the partnership after Hill decided to return to the Nationwide Series. Max Q reformed in July 2012 with a technical agreement from Tommy Baldwin Racing.
  • On January 20, 2012, Go Green Racing announced they would attempt at least 10 Sprint Cup Series races with Tim Andrews in the No. 19 Ford, with his father Paul Andrews, a longtime crew chief, leading the effort.

Exited the series

[edit]

Changes

[edit]

Technology

[edit]

On January 21, 2011, NASCAR announced that the Sprint Cup Series would change to electronic fuel injection from carburetors, which had been used since 1949, for the 2012 season. During the 2010 off-season, NASCAR had discussed doing the change during the 2011 season; however, in the January 21 announcements, Robin Pemberton stated, "We don't anticipate any points races this year, or races with fuel injection. It'll be a year dedicated to finetuning and getting the process down, whether it be inspection or the team side of it, with building engines. That's going along quite well." Afterward, John Darby, NASCAR's managing director of competition, said he hoped to debut the electronic fuel injection engine at least in the second race of the 2012 season.[22]

Communication

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After the 2011 season ended, NASCAR decided to ban communication between the driver and spotter to other drivers. The change was initially made to break up two-car racing at restrictor plate tracks, which had received criticism from spectators, but was later announced that it would be banned at all the races.[23][24]

Schedule

[edit]

On September 28, 2011, the final calendar was released containing 36 races, with the addition of two exhibition races. The schedule also includes two Gatorade Duels, which are the qualifying races for the Daytona 500.[25]

No. Race Title Track Date
Budweiser Shootout Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach February 18
Gatorade Duel February 23
1 Daytona 500 February 27†
2 Subway Fresh Fit 500 Phoenix International Raceway, Phoenix March 4
3 Kobalt Tools 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas March 11
4 Food City 500 Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol March 18
5 Auto Club 400 Auto Club Speedway, Fontana March 25
6 Goody's Fast Relief 500 Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway April 1
7 Samsung Mobile 500 Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth April 14
8 STP 400 Kansas Speedway, Kansas City April 22
9 Capital City 400 Richmond International Raceway, Richmond April 28
10 Aaron's 499 Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega May 6
11 Bojangles Southern 500 Darlington Raceway, Darlington May 12
Sprint Showdown Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord May 19
NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race
12 Coca-Cola 600 May 27
13 FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks Dover International Speedway, Dover June 3
14 Pocono 400 presented by #NASCAR Pocono Raceway, Long Pond June 10
15 Quicken Loans 400 Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn June 17
16 Toyota/Save Mart 350 Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma June 24
17 Quaker State 400 Kentucky Speedway, Sparta June 30
18 Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach July 7
19 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon July 15
20 Crown Royal presents the Curtiss Shaver 400 Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway July 29
21 Pennsylvania 400 Pocono Raceway, Long Pond August 5
22 Finger Lakes 355 at The Glen Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen August 12
23 Pure Michigan 400 Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn August 19
24 Irwin Tools Night Race Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol August 25
25 AdvoCare 500 Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton September 2
26 Federated Auto Parts 400 Richmond International Raceway, Richmond September 8
Chase for the Sprint Cup
27 GEICO 400 Chicagoland Speedway, Joliet September 16
28 Sylvania 300 New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon September 23
29 AAA 400 Dover International Speedway, Dover September 30
30 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega October 7
31 Bank of America 500 Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord October 13
32 Hollywood Casino 400 Kansas Speedway, Kansas City October 21
33 Tums Fast Relief 500 Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway October 28
34 AAA Texas 500 Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth November 4
35 AdvoCare 500 Phoenix International Raceway, Phoenix November 11
36 Ford EcoBoost 400 Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead November 18
†: The Daytona 500 was postponed a day because of persistent rain.[26]
Source:[27]

Calendar changes

[edit]

For the 2012 season, NASCAR made a few changes to the schedule. One of which moved the first race of the season, the Daytona 500, a week later.[28] Along with the delay of the Daytona 500, the races at Phoenix International Raceway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway were moved a week later. Third, Kansas Speedway's first race of the season was moved from June to April, while its second race became the sixth race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup, after switching race dates with Talladega Superspeedway's Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500.[25] Along with schedule changes, race lengths at Pocono Raceway changed from 500 miles to 400 miles in both races.[29] A couple more changes occurred in the regular season because Dover International Speedway's first race followed the Coca-Cola 600, as well as switching the race dates of the Aaron's 499 and Richmond International Raceway's first event. Also, Kentucky Speedway's race was before the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.[25]

Pre-season

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Pre-season testing began on January 12, 2012, with NASCAR Preseason Thunder at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. The tests lasted three days, with each having a morning and afternoon session. In the morning session on the first day, Jeff Gordon was quickest ahead of Paul Menard and Kurt Busch with a time of 46.687 seconds.[30] The afternoon test session featured limited tandem drafting, and Kyle Busch and six other cars broke the 200 MPH mark. Defending champion Tony Stewart stated his excitement for returning to Daytona, "Our sport is unique obviously having our biggest race the first race of the year, but it's very fitting at the same time because this race, we have more time during the offseason to prepare for this race than we do the others. You bring cars here that you have the extra time to just make them that little bit nicer than you normally have time to do."[31]

On the second day, Martin Truex Jr. was quickest in the morning session after posting a time of 43.962 seconds, while Kurt Busch was quickest in the afternoon with a time of 43.677.[32] The final day of testing was led by Jeff Gordon who topped the charts. The final day focused on neutralizing the controversial two-car draft. The third day of testing focused on drafting, and Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton was pleased with the progress drivers and teams had made. "The way the cars run in the draft, the way they can draft and do draft and what they do to get their cars running to their maximum potential. So far, we like what we've seen. It's been a good mix of what they can do in a larger pack and how close they can get for a limited time to push."[33]

Season summary

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The season began with the annual Budweiser Shootout. Multiple cautions stemming from tight pack racing whittled down the field to only a few cars. On the last lap, Kyle Busch used a slingshot move to pass defending champion Tony Stewart to win his first Shootout. In the Duels, defending champion Tony Stewart held off the field for his third Duel victory, while Roush Fenway Racing teammates Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle dominated the second duel, with Kenseth prevailing. In the season opening Daytona 500, persistent showers on February 26 forced the race to be postponed to Monday for the first time in its 53-year history. Starting at night, the race would take its most dramatic turn when Juan Pablo Montoya, attempting to catch up with the field under caution, had a part failure on his car, which veered up the racetrack into a jet dryer, sparking a brief fire that forced a 2-hour red flag, causing the race to run into Tuesday (another first). After the flag was lifted, Kenseth held off teammate Biffle and Dale Earnhardt Jr. on a green-white-checkered finish to win his second Daytona 500 and capture Jack Roush's 300th victory in NASCAR.

Tony Stewart won his first race of the 2012 season at Las Vegas.

The next week in Phoenix, Kevin Harvick dominated the race, but Denny Hamlin grabbed the lead late, and held off Harvick for his first win of 2012. The next week in Las Vegas, Tony Stewart dominated the race once again and held off Jimmie Johnson on a late restart to grab his first win of 2012 and his first at Las Vegas. The first short track race was at Bristol, and Brad Keselowski dominated the race, leading 232 laps and rolling to his first win of the season. The following weekend in California, Kyle Busch led for 80 laps, but Tony Stewart stayed on track when the rain came on lap 124, and was declared the winner when the race was called on lap 129. The next race at Martinsville, Jeff Gordon dominated the race, leading 329 laps. However, a late crash caused by Clint Bowyer and Jimmie Johnson set up a green-white-checkered finish, enabling Ryan Newman to take the lead and hold of A. J. Allmendinger for the win.

Kasey Kahne won his first race of the season at Charlotte in May

After an off-week, the teams returned to action at Texas. There, Greg Biffle held off Jimmie Johnson and grabbed his first win in 49 races. The next week at Kansas, Denny Hamlin held off a dominant Martin Truex Jr. to take his second win of 2012 under Darian Grubb. At Richmond, Carl Edwards dominated the race before a black flag on the restart knocked him out of contention. Tony Stewart held the point, but got caught up by a faulty final stop. Kyle Busch then inherited the lead to take his first win of 2012 and his fourth consecutive spring Richmond win. The series traveled to Talladega for its second superspeedway race of the year. After a flurry of late race cautions took out a number of contenders, Brad Keselowski, with help from Kyle Busch, drove past Daytona 500 winner Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle to take his second win of 2012. At the Southern 500, Jimmie Johnson dominated the field, but stayed on track during the final round of pit stops on the advice of Chad Knaus and held off Denny Hamlin for his first win of 2012 and Rick Hendrick's 200th victory. At the Sprint All-Star Race, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and A. J. Allmendinger raced into the main event via finishing 1–2 in the Sprint Showdown, while veteran Bobby Labonte won the fan vote to transfer in. A slow restart after the fourth segment by Matt Kenseth allowed Jimmie Johnson to cruise to his third All-Star win. The following was NASCAR's longest race, the Coke 600. Greg Biffle once again had the dominant intermediate car, but Kasey Kahne drove past Denny Hamlin and teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the final restart to take his first win of 2012 with Hendrick Motorsports.

2012 FedEx 400 at Dover International Speedway going under green flag

The series moved to Dover, where Jimmie Johnson dominated the field and cruised to his second win of the year. At the repaved Pocono, polesitter Joey Logano pulled a bump and run on former mentor Mark Martin to score his first win since 2009. At a repaved Michigan, drivers had to contend with a new tire as well as a pre-race shower. Once the race got underway, Dale Earnhardt Jr. dominated the race, leading 95 laps en route to his first victory in 143 races. At Sonoma, Clint Bowyer dominated the race, leading 71 laps and holding off Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch on a green-white-checkered finish to win his first race with Michael Waltrip Racing. In the series return to Kentucky, Kyle Busch dominated the early stages of the race until a broken shock took him out of contention. A late crash by Ryan Newman set up a fuel mileage race, and Brad Keselowski took the lead and preserved enough fuel for his third win of the year. On the return trip to Daytona, the Roush duo of Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle dominated the race. A late push from Kasey Kahne handed Tony Stewart the lead as well as his fourth Daytona victory. The next stop was Loudon, where Denny Hamlin dominated the race, leading 150 laps. However, a decision to take four tires on a final stop dropped him to 13th. Kasey Kahne held the lead on the final restart and held off a surging Hamlin for his second win of 2012.

Marcos Ambrose, shown here with Jeff Gordon at Las Vegas, won his second career race at Watkins Glen.

After a week off, the Cup Series returned to action at the famed Brickyard. Denny Hamlin dominated the initial stages of the race, but lost the lead to Jimmie Johnson after a cycle of green flag pit stops on lap 30. From there, Johnson took over the lead and easily held off Kyle Busch for his 4th Brickyard victory. Moving for its return trip to Pocono, rain plagued the race all day, wreaking havoc on championship contenders. However, Jeff Gordon moved through a late wreck to shake off the bad luck and take his first win of the year; the race was called after 98 laps due to a second rainstorm that hit the circuit after earlier rain had delayed the start. The Cup Series made its final road course stop of the season at Watkins Glen. In a repeat of last year's race, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski and Marcos Ambrose dominated the day, but Busch, appearing on his way to a second win, spun in the esses with 2 laps to go, while Ambrose pulled a bump and run on Keselowski in turn 9, holding him off for the win. The drivers returned to Michigan, where polesitter Mark Martin dominated the early stages of the race until he was involved in a wreck with Kasey Kahne. Jimmie Johnson took the lead in the late stages of the race until his engine blew on lap 195, setting up a green-white-checkered finish. Greg Biffle took the lead and held off Brad Keselowski and Kasey Kahne for his second win of 2012.

Heading to a newly configured Bristol, Joey Logano dominated the early stages of the race, leading 139 laps. The lead changed hands multiple times as pit strategy dictated the nature of the race. Carl Edwards in need of a victory, stayed out after a caution involving polesitter Casey Mears. However, he dropped through the pack, handing the lead over to Denny Hamlin, who held off Jimmie Johnson for his third win of the season. At Atlanta, the battle up front was contested between Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin. However, Martin Truex Jr. got out front until a late crash by Jamie McMurray brought the field down pit road, and Hamlin exiting first. Hamlin then held off Jeff Gordon on a green-white-checkered for a series high 4th win of the season. At the final regular season race at Richmond, the wild card contenders attempted to get into victory lane to make the Chase field. Denny Hamlin dominated the first half of the race, leading 202 laps. However, a caution for rain on lap 276 shuffled the running order significantly. Clint Bowyer inherited the lead on lap 312, stretching his fuel mileage and holding off Jeff Gordon for his second win of the season. Gordon, despite falling a lap down early on, rallied to leapfrog Kyle Busch for the second wild card position in the Chase.

Brad Keselowski won the first race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup at Chicagoland

The Chase for the Sprint Cup kicked off at Chicagoland Speedway. Polesitter Jimmie Johnson dominated the race, leading 172 laps. However, Brad Keselowski got ahead of Johnson after the final round of pit stops, enabling Keselowski to pull away and score his fourth win of the season. At Loudon, Denny Hamlin backed up a promise he made on Twitter (later stating it was overblown) to win the race, and led 193 laps despite starting 32nd to take his fifth win of the season. The following week at Dover, the JGR duo of Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin dominated the race. However, a lack of cautions in the race set up a fuel mileage race, forcing the duo to pit. June winner Jimmie Johnson attempted to take advantage, only to be forced to conserve fuel. Brad Keselowski inherited the point and managed to stretch his fuel to take his 5th win of the year as well as the points lead. The teams returned to Talladega, where a lack of cautions produced differing pit strategies between the teams. At the end, the race was about to come down to fuel mileage when leader Jamie McMurray spun with 6 to go. Matt Kenseth stayed out on track and stayed in front of the field when "The Big One" erupted, handing him his second win of 2012.

The Chase reached the halfway mark at Charlotte. Points leader Brad Keselowski dominated the race, looking to pad his points lead. However, Keselowski pitted one lap too late on his final stop and ran out of fuel on pit road, dashing his hopes for a win. Clint Bowyer, who pitted on lap 278, stretched his fuel mileage and held off Denny Hamlin for his third win of the season to tighten the points race. The series returned to Kansas, where a recent repave turned the race into a war of attrition. Matt Kenseth stayed out during the final caution and ran away from the field to pick up his third win of the season. The series headed back to Martinsville, where polesitter Jimmie Johnson dominated the race, capturing his 4th win of the season. At Texas, Johnson once again dominated from pole and held off a late charge from championship contender Brad Keselowski to take his second win in a row. The penultimate race at Phoenix was dominated by Kyle Busch. However, the championship race took a significant turn when points leader Johnson crashed out of the race. Bowyer who was third in the point standings was also knocked out of the championship contention after being intentionally wrecked by Jeff Gordon on lap 311. At the end of the race, winless Kevin Harvick would take the lead and capture his first win in 44 races. At the season finale in Homestead, the race once again came down to fuel mileage. Jimmie Johnson attempted to make the race on one less stop than his competitors, but was knocked out of contention for the win and the Championship when the drive train failed. Teammate Jeff Gordon took the point on lap 254 and used Johnson's strategy to take his first win at Homestead, while points leader Brad Keselowski finished 15th to secure his and Roger Penske's first Sprint Cup Championship.

Results and standings

[edit]

Races

[edit]
No. Race Pole position Most laps led Winning driver Manufacturer Report
Budweiser Shootout Martin Truex Jr. Greg Biffle Kyle Busch Toyota Report
Gatorade Duels Carl Edwards Denny Hamlin Tony Stewart Chevrolet Report
Greg Biffle Greg Biffle Matt Kenseth Ford
1 Daytona 500 Carl Edwards Denny Hamlin Matt Kenseth Ford Report
2 Subway Fresh Fit 500 Mark Martin Kevin Harvick Denny Hamlin Toyota Report
3 Kobalt Tools 400 Kasey Kahne Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Chevrolet Report
4 Food City 500 Greg Biffle Brad Keselowski Brad Keselowski Dodge Report
5 Auto Club 400 Denny Hamlin Kyle Busch Tony Stewart Chevrolet Report
6 Goody's Fast Relief 500 Kasey Kahne Jeff Gordon Ryan Newman Chevrolet Report
7 Samsung Mobile 500 Martin Truex Jr. Jimmie Johnson Greg Biffle Ford Report
8 STP 400 A. J. Allmendinger Martin Truex Jr. Denny Hamlin Toyota Report
9 Capital City 400 Mark Martin Carl Edwards Kyle Busch Toyota Report
10 Aaron's 499 Jeff Gordon Matt Kenseth Brad Keselowski Dodge Report
11 Bojangles' Southern 500 Greg Biffle Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Report
NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race Kyle Busch Brad Keselowski Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Report
12 Coca-Cola 600 Aric Almirola Greg Biffle Kasey Kahne Chevrolet Report
13 FedEx 400 Mark Martin Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Report
14 Pocono 400 Joey Logano Joey Logano Joey Logano Toyota Report
15 Quicken Loans 400 Marcos Ambrose Dale Earnhardt Jr. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Report
16 Toyota/Save Mart 350 Marcos Ambrose Clint Bowyer Clint Bowyer Toyota Report
17 Quaker State 400 Jimmie Johnson Kyle Busch Brad Keselowski Dodge Report
18 Coke Zero 400 Matt Kenseth Matt Kenseth Tony Stewart Chevrolet Report
19 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 Kyle Busch Denny Hamlin Kasey Kahne Chevrolet Report
20 Brickyard 400 Denny Hamlin Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Report
21 Pennsylvania 400 Juan Pablo Montoya Jimmie Johnson Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Report
22 Finger Lakes 355 at The Glen Juan Pablo Montoya Kyle Busch Marcos Ambrose Ford Report
23 Pure Michigan 400 Mark Martin Mark Martin Greg Biffle Ford Report
24 Irwin Tools Night Race Casey Mears Joey Logano Denny Hamlin Toyota Report
25 AdvoCare 500 Tony Stewart Denny Hamlin Denny Hamlin Toyota Report
26 Federated Auto Parts 400 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Denny Hamlin Clint Bowyer Toyota Report
Chase for the Sprint Cup
27 GEICO 400 Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Brad Keselowski Dodge Report
28 Sylvania 300 Jeff Gordon Denny Hamlin Denny Hamlin Toyota Report
29 AAA 400 Denny Hamlin Kyle Busch Brad Keselowski Dodge Report
30 Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 Kasey Kahne Jamie McMurray Matt Kenseth Ford Report
31 Bank of America 500 Greg Biffle Brad Keselowski Clint Bowyer Toyota Report
32 Hollywood Casino 400 Kasey Kahne Matt Kenseth Matt Kenseth Ford Report
33 Tums Fast Relief 500 Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Report
34 AAA Texas 500 Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Report
35 AdvoCare 500 Kyle Busch Kyle Busch Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Report
36 Ford EcoBoost 400 Joey Logano Kyle Busch Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Report

Drivers

[edit]

(keyBold – Pole position awarded by time. Italics – Pole position set by final practice results. * – Most laps led.

Pos. Driver DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL MAR TEX KAN RCH TAL DAR CLT DOV POC MCH SON KEN DAY NHA IND POC GLN MCH BRI ATL RCH CHI NHA DOV TAL CLT KAN MAR TEX PHO HOM Pts.
1 Brad Keselowski 32 5 32 1* 18 9 36 11 9 1 15 5 12 18 13 12 1 8 5 9 4 2 2 30 3 7 1 6 1 7 11* 8 6 2 6 15 2400
2 Clint Bowyer 11 30 6 4 13 10 17 36 7 6 11 13 5 6 7 1* 16 29 3 15 8 4 7 7 27 1 10 4 9 23 1 6 5 6 28 2 2361
3 Jimmie Johnson 42 4 2 9 10 12 2* 3 6 35 1* 11 1* 4 5 5 6 36 7 1* 14* 3 27 2 34 13 2* 2 4 17 3 9 1* 1* 32 36 2360
4 Kasey Kahne 29 34 19 37 14 38 7 8 5 4 8 1 9 29 33 14 2 7 1 12 2 13 3 9 23 12 3 5 15 12 8 4 3 25 4 21 2345
5 Greg Biffle 3 3 3 13 6 13 1 5 18 5 12 4* 11 24 4 7 21 21 9 3 15 6 1 19 15 9 13 18 16 6 4 27 10 10 7 5 2332
6 Denny Hamlin 4* 1 20 20 11 6 12 1 4 23 2 2 18 5 34 35 3 25 2* 6 29 34 11 1 1* 18* 16 1* 8 14 2 13 33 20 2 24 2329
7 Matt Kenseth 1 13 22 2 16 4 5 4 11 3* 6 10 3 7 3 13 7 3* 13 35 23 8 17 25 9 5 18 14 35 1 14 1* 14 4 14 18 2324
8 Kevin Harvick 7 2* 11 11 4 19 9 6 19 25 16 8 2 14 10 16 11 23 8 13 17 15 16 15 5 10 12 11 13 11 16 11 32 9 1 8 2321
9 Tony Stewart 16 22 1* 14 1 7 24 13 3 24 3 25 25 3 2 2 32 1 12 10 5 19 32 27 22 4 6 7 20 22 13 5 27 5 19 17 2311
10 Jeff Gordon 40 8 12 35 26 14* 4 21 23 33 35 7 13 19 6 6 5 12 6 5 1 21 28 3 2 2 35 3 2 2 18 10 7 14 30 1 2303
11 Martin Truex Jr. 12 7 17 3 8 5 6 2* 25 28 5 12 7 20 12 22 8 17 11 8 3 10 10 11 4 21 9 17 6 13 10 2 23 13 43 6 2299
12 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2 14 10 15 3 3 10 7 2 9 17 6 4 8 1* 23 4 15 4 4 32 28 4 12 7 14 8 13 11 20 21 7 21 10 2245
Chase for the Sprint Cup cut-off
Pos. Driver DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL MAR TEX KAN RCH TAL DAR CLT DOV POC MCH SON KEN DAY NHA IND POC GLN MCH BRI ATL RCH CHI NHA DOV TAL CLT KAN MAR TEX PHO HOM Pts.
13 Kyle Busch 17 6 23 32 2* 36 11 10 1 2 4 3 29 30 32 17 10* 24 16 2 33 7* 13 6 6 16 4 28 7* 3 5 31 2 3 3* 4* 1133
14 Ryan Newman 21 21 4 12 7 1 21 20 15 36 23 14 15 12 15 18 34 5 10 7 6 11 8 36 35 8 5 10 21 9 20 30 11 12 5 3 1051
15 Carl Edwards 8 17 5 39 5 11 8 9 10* 31 7 9 26 11 11 21 20 6 18 29 7 14 6 22 36 17 19 19 5 36 7 14 18 16 11 12 1030
16 Paul Menard 6 31 7 10 19 26 18 18 13 17 13 15 17 9 22 20 12 14 17 14 11 12 9 10 8 23 15 12 22 28 27 3 12 27 9 11 1006
17 Joey Logano 9 10 16 16 24 23 19 15 24 26 10 23 8 1* 35 10 22 4 14 33 13 32 31 8* 18 30 7 8 10 32 9 19 16 11 27 14 965
18 Marcos Ambrose 13 32 13 36 21 15 20 16 22 14 9 32 10 13 9 8 13 30 19 20 10 1 5 5 17 15 27 24 18 27 33 12 24 32 18 13 950
19 Jeff Burton 5 33 14 6 22 22 29 22 31 10 18 19 22 15 21 11 24 2 21 32 22 30 19 33 12 6 24 15 27 10 28 28 22 19 13 19 883
20 Aric Almirola 33 12 24 19 25 8 22 23 26 12 19 16 6 28 17 28 26 19 28 19 19 18 20 35 32 26 17 23 19 19 12 29 4 15 16 7 868
21 Jamie McMurray 31 37 8 7 32 20 14 14 14 11 34 21 19 10 14 19 15 13 20 22 18 39 14 17 24 22 21 26 24 34* 17 15 17 18 23 20 868
22 Juan Pablo Montoya 36 11 25 8 17 21 16 12 12 32 24 20 28 17 8 34 14 28 25 21 20 33 26 13 21 20 23 22 26 38 19 16 20 34 12 28 810
23 Bobby Labonte 14 16 26 28 28 17 27 35 17 21 29 28 20 22 16 24 27 10 23 26 27 27 22 14 19 25 26 20 14 18 32 33 9 33 15 25 772
24 Regan Smith 24 20 15 24 20 16 23 24 27 40 14 17 27 16 28 32 33 34 26 18 9 9 29 16 14 24 34 16 17 5 38 7 24 30 747
25 Kurt Busch 39 15 35 18 9 33 13 17 28 20 21 27 24 30 3 19 35 24 36 30 31 30 28 13 28 32 25 23 39 21 25 15 8 8 9 735
26 Mark Martin 10 9 18 12 3 33 8 20 34 14 2 29 11 12 35* 10 3 14 3 6 24 29 10 16 701
27 Travis Kvapil 19 39 27 29 27 38 25 30 16 321 29 23 26 26 36 17 16 30 37 25 24 15 18 26 27 31 31 29 8 25 17 31 23 20 26 638
28 David Ragan 43 25 21 23 31 24 35 30 32 7 28 35 21 27 23 27 29 26 34 28 28 22 23 32 28 32 22 29 30 4 34 20 26 28 33 31 622
29 Casey Mears 25 39 27 25 23 25 25 26 21 18 22 22 41 35 20 15 18 18 36 34 35 16 37 21 33 29 36 36 31 26 29 37 25 21 22 29 612
30 David Gilliland 23 28 33 26 30 28 31 27 36 13 25 26 40 23 27 26 28 31 27 27 21 20 18 20 31 31 28 32 32 15 23 23 30 35 36 33 605
31 Landon Cassill 22 35 36 29 36 29 30 34 20 34 26 18 38 43 18 31 25 32 29 25 26 23 25 24 20 19 29 27 36 30 26 18 19 26 25 27 598
32 A. J. Allmendinger 34 18 37 17 15 2 15 32 16 15 33 33 16 31 19 9 9 24 35 28 36 453
33 Dave Blaney 15 23 29 34 33 34 37 37 29 30 27 40 32 25 25 37 35 22 39 23 36 38 26 25 33 33 41 29 43 39 35 39 26 32 417
34 David Reutimann 26 36 31 21 27 35 26 29 33 22 36 DNQ 31 21 23 11 33 24 21 34 30 37 30 36 40 34 373
35 Brian Vickers 5 18 4 15 43 4 9 8 250
36 David Stremme 37 29 28 38 39 30 DNQ 38 37 39 39 38 33 DNQ DNQ 36 39 35 24 34 34 37 39 37 39 35 DNQ 33 37 DNQ 40 DNQ 34 38 236
37 Michael McDowell 30 43 38 31 38 40 41 40 39 43 DNQ 36 42 34 38 38 43 40 DNQ 37 23 DNQ 41 43 37 38 31 31 43 39 38 38 41 187
38 J. J. Yeley DNQ 26 43 30 35 37 33 31 DNQ DNQ 37 DNQ 34 36 37 33 DNQ 40 43 39 40 40 DNQ DNQ 41 DNQ DNQ 41 34 42 42 DNQ 42 DNQ 35 166
39 Josh Wise (R) 38 40 43 37 41 39 39 38 42 43 43 DNQ 42 42 30 37 38 37 40 37 38 40 38 DNQ 42 38 DNQ 37 43 DNQ DNQ 38 37 37 40 147
40 Ken Schrader 30 33 32 32 31 31 31 30 42 35 29 31 37 146
41 Stephen Leicht (R) 35 DNQ 39 35 33 41 41 42 32 31 DNQ 26 DNQ 40 DNQ 36 34 34 DNQ 35 DNQ 126
42 Scott Speed DNQ 43 43 42 37 43 25 39 38 17 DNQ 37 41 38 40 40 34 37 30 124
43 Michael Waltrip DNQ 19 30 9 25 94
44 Terry Labonte 18 29 20 16 94
45 Tony Raines 19 DNQ 34 DNQ 38 32 36 38 40 71
46 Scott Riggs 42 DNQ 41 41 42 42 43 DNQ DNQ DNQ 37 40 41 43 41 41 43 41 41 40 39 DNQ DNQ 42 DNQ Wth 42 42 56
47 Brendan Gaughan 27 34 22 43 50
48 Boris Said 29 25 34
49 Bill Elliott DNQ 37 37 14
50 Hermie Sadler 31 13
51 Mike Olsen 33 11
52 Robby Gordon 41 41 DNQ Wth DNQ 39 11
53 Mike Skinner 411 DNQ 42 41 39 10
54 Kelly Bires 42 DNQ 43 DNQ 38 DNQ 9
55 Tomy Drissi 38 6
56 Stacy Compton DNQ 39 DNQ 5
57 David Mayhew 40 4
58 Patrick Long 42 2
Brian Simo DNQ  –
Mark Green DNQ  –
Ineligible for Sprint Cup driver points
Pos. Driver DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL MAR TEX KAN RCH TAL DAR CLT DOV POC MCH SON KEN DAY NHA IND POC GLN MCH BRI ATL RCH CHI NHA DOV TAL CLT KAN MAR TEX PHO HOM Pts.
Sam Hornish Jr. 19 33 22 16 16 5 12 34 11 11 11 21 25 24 15 26 13 17 31 22  –
Trevor Bayne 35 9 28 8 24 43 27 17 24 16 20 21 22 21 22 23  –
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 20 12 35 39  –
Danica Patrick 38 31 30 29 29 25 28 32 24 17  –
Timmy Hill (R) DNQ 42 DNQ DNQ 42 36 22 29  –2
Mike Bliss 24 40 DNQ 40 42 42 DNQ DNQ 36 38 39 42 DNQ 43 39 43 DNQ 40 42 DNQ 39 36 DNQ 41 41 43  –
Austin Dillon 24  –
Robert Richardson Jr. DNQ 27 DNQ 35  –
Elliott Sadler 27  –
Joe Nemechek 28 40 41 40 DNQ 39 DNQ 41 41 41 40 41 39 37 40 43 40 41 38 DNQ 36 29 36 39 43 38 40 39 39 41 DNQ 40 41 40 39 DNQ  –
Reed Sorenson 42 42 43 32 28 34 30 30 41 DNQ 42 42 DNQ 42 43 DNQ 42 43 41 41 43 43 DNQ  –
T. J. Bell 31 33 30 30 33  –
Jason Leffler 35 43 31 38 DNQ DNQ DNQ 42 DNQ  –
Jason White 31  –
Cole Whitt 40 38 42 DNQ 37 DNQ 40 DNQ DNQ
Chris Cook 42 41  –2
Kenny Wallace DNQ  –
Mike Wallace DNQ  –
Tim Andrews DNQ  –
Jeff Green DNQ DNQ  –
Pos. Driver DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL MAR TEX KAN RCH TAL DAR CLT DOV POC MCH SON KEN DAY NHA IND POC GLN MCH BRI ATL RCH CHI NHA DOV TAL CLT KAN MAR TEX PHO HOM Pts.
References [34] [35] [36] [37] [38] [39] [40] [41] [42] [43] [44] [45] [46] [47] [48] [49] [50] [51] [52] [53] [54] [55] [56] [57] [58] [59] [60] [61] [62] [63] [64] [65] [66] [67] [68] [69] [70]
  • 1 – Post entry, driver and owner did not score points.
  • 2 – Hill and Cook started the season running for Cup series points but switched to Nationwide after California (Hill) and Watkins Glen (Cook).

Manufacturer

[edit]
Pos Manufacturer Wins Points
1 Chevrolet 15 249
2 Toyota 10 213
3 Ford 6 174
4 Dodge 5 156

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
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