Dodge Motorsports Notes & Quotes
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Contact: Matthew Simmons Adam Saal Bill Klingbeil Dodge Motorsports Notes & Quotes - Chase Notes - Phoenix 2 November 10, 2011, AVONDALE, Ariz. - 2011 CHASE FOR THE NASCAR SPRINT CUP Chase Race No. 9 – Phoenix International Raceway – Sunday, Nov. 13 Brad Keselowski – No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T Phoenix o Has four previous Sprint Cup starts at Phoenix. o Best finish (15th) and best start (ninth) both occurred in the 2011 spring race. o First Cup start at Phoenix came in the 2009 fall race. o Completed 75 percent of total possible laps at Phoenix (986 of 1314) despite one DNF. o Average Finish: 27.5 Chase o Fifth in the series championship standings, 49 points behind leader Carl Edwards and 11 behind fourth-place Matt Kenseth. Leads sixth-place Jimmie Johnson by six points and seventh-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. by 30. o Has scored four top-five finishes in eight Chase races and led at least one lap in six of those events. o Average Finish: 11.4 Season o Has three wins, 10 top-five and 14 top-10 finishes. o Recorded eight top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in last 17 races. o Won pole for Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte in May. o Scored 214 points in a five-race span to move from 23rd after Loudon to 11th following his victory at Bristol. o Has led laps in 18 of the 34 races. o Has been running at the finish 33 consecutive races. o Average finish of 14.6 Kurt Busch – No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T Phoenix o One win, four top fives and 10 top 10 finishes in 17 previous starts at Phoenix. o Won inaugural spring race at the one-mile desert speedway, leading 219 of the event’s 312 laps. Official margin of victory over second-place Michael Waltrip was 2.315 seconds. o Has top 10 finishes in five of the last six races at Phoenix including an eighth-place effort this past February. Best start at Phoenix is second three times (most recently at the 2011 spring race). o Has completed 99.7 percent of total possible laps at Phoenix (5,357 of 5,374) and has been running at the finish in all 17 previous starts. o Average Finish: 12.9 Chase Ninth in the series championship standings, 87 points behind the leader. o Won at Dover and is one of five drivers to win a Chase race. o Has led laps in five of eight races. o Average Finish: 16.9 Season o Has two wins along with eight top-five and 16 top-10 finishes. o Only Sprint Cup driver to remain in the top 10 in the series point standings all 34 races this season. o All three pole positions came in consecutive races. o Has led 19 races for 713 laps. o Kicked off 2011 by winning Bud Shootout and Gatorade Duel at Daytona. o Average Finish: 13.8 Results: Chase Race No. 8 – Texas Motor Speedway – Sunday, Nov. 6 Summary: Brad Keselowski started eighth at Texas, but had handling issues with his No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger throughout the race. And to make a bad day worse, he and Denny Hamlin made contact on pit road during a round of stops under caution on lap 271. Ryan Newman, pitting directly in front of Keselowski, blocked in the No. 2 Dodge. When attempting to leave his stall, Keselowski backed into Hamlin as he left his pit stall, damaging the right-rear of the Blue Deuce and forcing him to make an extra stop for minor repairs. He was credited with a 24th-place finish. Kurt Busch also had a frustrating afternoon at Texas, struggling to a 30th-place finish. Brad Keselowski – No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 8th Finished: 24th o Points Position: 5th Gain/Loss: -1 Behind Leader: -49 o Average finish in six Chase races: 11.4 Kurt Busch – No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 14th Finished: 30th o Points Position: 9th Gain/Loss: -1 Behind Leader: -87 o Average finish in six Chase races: 16.9 Results: Chase Race No. 7 – Martinsville Speedway – Sunday, Oct. 30 Summary: Brad Keselowski saw a top 10 finish disappear in the final laps of the TUMS Fast Relief 500. Keselowski was running eighth on the final restart with two laps to go when Dale Earnhardt Jr. made contact with Denny Hamlin, shoving Hamlin into Keselowski, sending the Miller Lite Dodge for a spin. He was credited with a 17th-place finish and dropped to fourth-place in the series championship standings, 27 points behind leader Carl Edwards. Kurt Busch overcame two spins and rallied from a lap down to score a 14th-place finish in the season’s final short track race. Busch took the wave around back onto the lead lap during the eleventh caution of the race on lap 404 of the 500-lap event. Five laps later caution number 12 waved, allowing Busch to make up the lost distance and join the pit sequence of the race leaders. Brad Keselowski – No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 3rd Finished: 17th o Points Position: 4th Gain/Loss: -1 Behind Leader: -27 o Average finish in six Chase races: 9.57 Kurt Busch – No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 8th Finished: 14th o Points Position: 8th Gain/Loss: 0 Behind Leader: -58 o Average finish in six Chase races: 15.00 Results: Chase Race No. 6 – Talladega Superspeedway – Sunday, Oct. 13 Summary: Brad Keselowski made a good choice in a drafting partner in Dave Blaney as the two challenged for the win in the two-lap dash to the checkered flag following the ninth caution of the race. Keselowski ended up fourth, his best restrictor plate finish of the season and second top-five in 11 career plate races. He won at Talladega in 2009. It was his fourth top-10 in six Chase races and moved him to third in the standings, 18 points behind leader Carl Edwards. Kurt Busch saw his championship hope fade after being involved in an accident off Turn 2 on lap 175 of the 188-lap race. Bobby Labonte spun and came back up the track directly in the path of Busch, heavily damaging the No. 22 Dodge. Busch finished 36th. He’s eighth in the standings, 52 points behind the leader. Brad Keselowski – No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 16th Finished: 4th o Points Position: 3rd Gain/Loss: +3 Behind Leader: -18 o Average finish in six Chase races: 8.33 Kurt Busch – No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 14th Finished: 36th o Points Position: 8th Gain/Loss: -1 Behind Leader: -52 o Average finish in six Chase races: 15.2 Results: Chase Race No. 5 – Charlotte Motor Speedway – Sunday Oct. 15 Summary: Kurt Busch rallied from two laps down to score a 13th-place finish, best among Dodge drivers. Busch was zapped twice by untimely caution flags moments after making scheduled green-flag pit stops. He dropped one position to seventh in the standings, 27 points behind leader Carl Edwards. Brad Keselowski also had his share of misfortune, but salvaged a respectable 16th-place finish. Keselowski fell to sixth in the Chase, 25 points behind the leader. Ironically, both Busch and Keselowski have completed 99.93 percent of all possible laps in the five Chase races (1,572 of a possible 1,573). Brad Keselowski – No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 26th Finished: 16th o Points Position: 6th Gain/Loss: -2 Behind Leader: -25 o Average finish in five Chase races: 9.20 Kurt Busch – No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 20th Finished: 13th o Points Position: 7th Gain/Loss: -1 Behind Leader: -27 o Average finish in first five Chase races: 11.00 Results: Chase Race No. 4 – Kansas Speedway – Sunday Oct. 9 Summary: Brad Keselowski led Team Dodge with a third-place finish. Keselowski won at Kansas in June and backed up that performance with his third top five in the four Chase races. He started 12th and steadily worked his way to the front, eventually leading the race for five laps. He gained two positions in the point standings, climbing up to fourth, 11 points behind leader Carl Edwards. Kurt Busch qualified 17th and finished 13th after leading the race once for six laps. Busch dropped to sixth in the standings and is 16 points behind the leader. Brad Keselowski – No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 12th Finished: 3rd o Points Position: 4th Gain/Loss: +2 Behind Leader: -11 o Has completed every lap of last 11 Sprint Cup races. Kurt Busch – No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T o Qualified: 17th Finished: 13th o Points Position: 6th Gain/Loss: -2 Behind Leader: -16 o Led at least once in first four Chase races. Results: Chase Race No. 3 – Dover International Speedway – Sunday Oct. 2 Summary: Kurt Busch earned his second Sprint Cup Series win of the season, defeating Jimmie Johnson by 0.908 seconds. Busch qualified on the outside pole, led 90 laps en route to his 24th NSCS win of his career – his first at the Monster Mile. The win vaulted Busch five positions in the Chase standings. He’s currently tied with Tony Stewart for third, nine behind co-leaders Kevin Harvick and Carl Edwards. Mid-race mechanical issues with a power steering belt relegated Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski to a 20th-place place finish.