Race Preview
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is heading to Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend for the Crown Royal Presents the Curtiss Shaver 400 at "The Brickyard". This will be the 19th Sprint Cup Series race at the storied facility since it was added to the schedule in 1994. Constructed in 1909, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a 2.5 mile flat Superspeedway with 9 degrees of banking in the turns. The straight-aways are 3,300’ long on the front and back stretch with 660’ between turns 1 & 2 and 3 & 4. The race is scheduled for 160 laps with average speeds reaching a little over 180 mph.
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| Indianapolis Oval Track Layout |
This is the Famous Brickyard 400 and teams will be bringing their best cars. Horsepower and handling are equally important here. The keys to winning this race will be having a driver that understands how to get around flat tracks and knows how to set his car up for the turns so he can get back in the gas before his competitor, the Crew Chiefs must also be on their game because strategy and fuel mileage will be a factor. Qualifying is important here for track position, 14 out of 18 races have been won from the top 15 starting position.
This marks the first time that Indianapolis Motor Speedway has hosted the "Your Name Here" Race, and I personally am a fan of the program. I love that they give an otherwise under the radar hero the chance at their 15 minutes of fame. With a ride in the pace car, a ticket to victory lane, and more than likely other special activities, Curtiss Shaver will get the recognition he deserves. Here is two quotes about the program via NASCAR.com
"This race will mark the sixth time Crown Royal has awarded race naming rights to an adult fan. This year, the program focused on all of the unsung heroes who make a difference in their communities, from firefighters and police officers, to first responders and local volunteers. Five heroes were chosen as finalists and adult fans visited the Crown Royal Facebook page to cast their votes for the person they felt was most deserving of the honor."
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| Curtiss Shaver (via Firehouse.com) |
Denny Hamlin won the pole with a lap of 49.244 seconds over 2/10ths faster than Carl Edwards. This is his first Coors Light pole award at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, his second of the season and the 11th of his career.
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| Denny Hamlin wins the Coors Light PoleAward at Indianapolis (Picture via NASCAR.com) |
Crown Royal Presents the Curtiss Shaver 400 at "The Brickyard" Starting Line-up
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| POS | CAR | DRIVER | MAKE | SPONSOR | SPEED | TIME | BEHIND |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | FedEx Express | 182.763 | 49.244 | Leader |
| 2 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Ford | Fastenal | 181.984 | 49.455 | -0.211 |
| 3 | 20 | Joey Logano | Toyota | Dollar General | 181.756 | 49.517 | -0.273 |
| 4 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Ford | Eckrich | 181.679 | 49.538 | -0.294 |
| 5 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Ford | 3M | 181.532 | 49.578 | -0.334 |
| 6 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | Lowe's / Kobalt Tools | 181.357 | 49.626 | -0.382 |
| 7 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | M&M's | 181.046 | 49.711 | -0.467 |
| 8 | 27 | Paul Menard | Chevrolet | Menards / Nibco | 181.014 | 49.720 | -0.476 |
| 9 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | Drive to End Hunger | 180.952 | 49.737 | -0.493 |
| 10 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Ford | Fifth Third Bank | 180.654 | 49.819 | -0.575 |
| 11 | 39 | Ryan Newman | Chevrolet | Quicken Loans | 180.611 | 49.831 | -0.587 |
| 12 | 42 | Juan Montoya | Chevrolet | Target | 180.516 | 49.857 | -0.613 |
| 13 | 51 | Kurt Busch | Chevrolet | HendrickCars.com | 180.487 | 49.865 | -0.621 |
| 14 | 78 | Regan Smith | Chevrolet | Furniture Row / Farm American | 180.473 | 49.869 | -0.625 |
| 15 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Chevrolet | Farmers Insurance | 180.447 | 49.876 | -0.632 |
| 16 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chevrolet | Bass Pro Shops / Tracker | 180.437 | 49.879 | -0.635 |
| 17 | 56 | Martin Truex Jr. | Toyota | NAPA Auto Parts | 180.433 | 49.880 | -0.636 |
| 18 | 21 | Trevor Bayne | Ford | Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center | 180.390 | 49.892 | -0.648 |
| 19 | 55 | Mark Martin | Toyota | Aaron's Dream Machine | 180.386 | 49.893 | -0.649 |
| 20 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Chevrolet | AMP Energy / National Guard | 180.245 | 49.932 | -0.688 |
| 21 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Chevrolet | Rain-X | 180.177 | 49.951 | -0.707 |
| 22 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Dodge | Miller Lite | 180.148 | 49.959 | -0.715 |
| 23 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Ford | DEWALT | 180.072 | 49.980 | -0.736 |
| 24 | 22 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Dodge | Shell / Pennzoil | 179.928 | 50.020 | -0.776 |
| 25 | 13 | Casey Mears | Ford | GEICO | 179.519 | 50.134 | -0.890 |
| 26 | 30 | David Stremme | Toyota | Inception Motorsports | 179.212 | 50.220 | -0.976 |
| 27 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet | Jimmy Johns | 178.894 | 50.309 | -1.065 |
| 28 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | Mobil 1 / Office Depot | 178.862 | 50.318 | -1.074 |
| 29 | 47 | Bobby Labonte | Toyota | Scott Products | 178.816 | 50.331 | -1.087 |
| 30 | 93 | Travis Kvapil | Toyota | Burger King | 178.543 | 50.408 | -1.164 |
| 31 | 38 | David Gilliland | Ford | Big Machine Records | 178.508 | 50.418 | -1.174 |
| 32 | 36 | Dave Blaney | Chevrolet | SealWrap | 178.486 | 50.424 | -1.180 |
| 33 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Toyota | 5-hour Energy | 178.419 | 50.443 | -1.199 |
| 34 | 195 | Scott Speed | Ford | Leavine Family Racing | 177.855 | 50.603 | -1.359 |
| 35 | 26 | Josh Wise* | Chevrolet | Taco Bell | 177.743 | 50.635 | -1.391 |
| 36 | 34 | David Ragan | Ford | Scorpion Coatings / Al's Liners | 177.630 | 50.667 | -1.423 |
| 37 | 33 | Stephen Leicht* | Chevrolet | Little Joes Autos.com | 177.347 | 50.748 | -1.504 |
| 38 | 83 | Landon Cassill | Toyota | Burger King | 177.340 | 50.750 | -1.506 |
| 39 | 179 | Mike Skinner | Ford | Koma Unwind | 176.894 | 50.878 | -1.634 |
| 40 | 23 | Scott Riggs | Chevrolet | North Texas Pipe | 176.859 | 50.888 | -1.644 |
| 41 | 10 | J.J. Yeley | Chevrolet | Tommy Baldwin Racing | 176.523 | 50.985 | -1.741 |
| 42 | 32 | Ken Schrader+ | Ford | Special Operations For America.org | 174.768 | 51.497 | -2.253 |
| 43 | 119 | Mike Bliss | Toyota | Humphrey Smith Racing | 176.180 | 51.084 | -1.840 |
| Did Not Qualify | |||||||
| 44 | 191 | Reed Sorenson | Ford | Humphrey Smith Racing | 175.610 | 51.250 | -2.006 |
| 45 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | Toyota | AM / FM Energy Wood & Pellet Stoves | 175.142 | 51.387 | -2.143 |
| 46 | 98 | Michael McDowell | Ford | K-Love / Curb Records | 177.901 | 50.590 | -1.346 |
+ Set by Owner Points * Denotes Rookie Starting Line-up via NASCAR.com
Michael McDowell had a fast enough time to make the field, but his time was disallowed by NASCAR after post-qualifying inspection because the nitrogen gas in his rear shocks exceeded the allowable pressure.
Track Records
RACE RECORD
Sprint Cup Series Race Record: Bobby Labonte 155.912 Mph - 08/05/00
QUALIFYING RECORD
Sprint Cup Qualifying Record: Casey Mears 186.293 Mph - 2004QUALIFYING RECORD
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