NASCAR - Nationwide - O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 Preview
From The Sports Network
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| DATE: Friday, April 8th |
| SITE: Texas Motor Speedway (1997) -- Fort Worth, Texas |
| TRACK: 1.5-mile oval - 2,250 feet (Frontstretch); 1,330 feet (Backstretch) |
| CAPACITY: 191,122 (122,377 - Grandstand Seating) |
| ANNUAL: 15th |
| TELEVISION: ESPN 2 |
| ANNOUNCERS: Marty Reid, Dale Jarrett, Andy Petree |
| RADIO: Performance Racing Network (PRN)/SIRIUS NASCAR Radio |
| START TIME: 8:30 p.m. (et) |
| DEFENDING CHAMPION: Kyle Busch |
| RUNNER-UP: Joey Logano |
| POLE WINNER: Joey Logano (Finished 2nd) |
| LAPS: 200 |
| MILES: 300 |
| QUALIFYING RECORD: Jeff Green, 2002 (193.493 m.p.h.) |
| RACE RECORD: Kyle Busch, 2008 (151.707 m.p.h.) |
| TOTAL PURSE: $1,457,996 (2010 figures) |
| PAYOUTS: 1st Place - $74,245; 2nd Place - $54,675; 3rd Place - $51,518 |
| 2010 Finish |
| Finish | Driver | Start | Finish | Driver | Start |
| 1 | Kyle Busch | 3 | 6 | Jamie McMurray | 7 |
| 2 | Joey Logano | 1 | 7 | Greg Biffle | 42 |
| 3 | Reed Sorenson | 22 | 8 | David Reutimann | 26 |
| 4 | Brad Keselowski | 12 | 9 | Steve Wallace | 8 |
| 5 | Kevin Harvick | 16 | 10 | Paul Menard | 9 |
| 2010 O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 Facts and Figures |
| AVERAGE SPEED: 140.753 m.p.h. |
| TIME OF RACE: 2 hours, 7 minutes, 53 seconds |
| MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.688 second |
| CAUTION FLAGS: 4 for 24 laps |
| LEAD CHANGES: 13 among 8 drivers |
| POLE WINNER: Joey Logano (185.663 m.p.h.) |
| Past O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 Winners (Starting Position) Car -- Speed |
| 2010 -- Kyle Busch (3rd) -- Toyota -- 140.753 m.p.h. |
| 2009 -- Kyle Busch (1st) -- Toyota -- 144.096 m.p.h. |
| 2008 -- Kyle Busch (31st) -- Toyota -- 151.707 m.p.h. (race record) |
| 2007 -- Matt Kenseth (10th) -- Ford -- 126.671 m.p.h. |
| 2006 -- Kurt Busch (7th) -- Dodge -- 129.984 m.p.h. |
| 2005 -- Kasey Kahne (25th) Dodge -- 126.746 m.p.h. |
| 2004 -- Matt Kenseth (15th) -- Ford -- 115.482 m.p.h. |
| 2003 -- Joe Nemechek (7th) -- Chevrolet -- 117.891 m.p.h. |
| 2002 -- Jeff Purvis (13th) -- Chevrolet -- 102.136 m.p.h. |
| 2001 -- Kevin Harvick (7th) -- Chevrolet -- 126.212 m.p.h. |
| 2000 -- Mark Martin (2nd) -- Ford -- 108.130 m.p.h. |
| 1999 -- Mark Martin (2nd) -- Ford -- 127.417 m.p.h. |
| 1998 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr (16th) -- Chevrolet -- 120.174 m.p.h. |
| 1997 -- Mark Martin (20th) -- Ford -- 122.993 m.p.h. |
| NOTE: Formerly called Coca-Cola 300 (1997-1999), Albertson's 300 (2000), |
| Jani-King 300 (2001). |
| Past O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 Pole Winners (finish) |
| 2010 -- Joey Logano -- 2nd |
| 2009 -- Kyle Busch -- Won |
| 2008 -- None -- Weather |
| 2007 -- David Ragan -- 5th |
| 2006 -- Denny Hamlin -- 10th |
| 2005 -- Shane Hmiel -- 10th |
| 2004 -- Kyle Busch -- 2nd |
| 2003 -- Jason Keller -- 18th |
| 2002 -- Jeff Green -- 5th |
| 2001 -- Matt Kenseth -- 5th |
| 2000 -- Jason Leffler -- 22nd |
| 1999 -- Dave Blaney -- 8th |
| 1998 -- Elliott Sadler -- 2nd |
| 1997 -- Jeff Green -- 15th |
| Last Race Results |
| RACE: Royal Purple 300 (March 26th) |
| SITE: Auto Club Speedway -- Fontana, California |
| MILES: 300 |
| LAPS: 150 |
| WINNER: Kyle Busch |
| RUNNER-UP: Carl Edwards |
| THIRD: Kevin Harvick |
| FOURTH: Ricky Stenhouse Jr |
| FIFTH: Elliott Sadler |
| POLE WINNER: Carl Edwards (Finished 2nd) |
| TIME OF RACE: 2 hours, 7 minutes, 52 seconds |
| AVERAGE SPEED: 140.772 m.p.h. |
| MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.713 second |
| CAUTION FLAGS: 5 for 19 laps |
| LEAD CHANGES: 21 among 8 drivers |
| LAP LEADERS: C. Edwards - pole; K. Harvick 1-2; C. Edwards 3-4; K. Harvick |
| 5-6; C. Edwards 7; K. Harvick 8-10; A. Almirola 11-12; K. Harvick |
| 13-20; K. Lepage 21; C. Lewandoski 22-23; M. Martin 24-28; C. |
| Edwards 29-38; K. Harvick 39-65; C. Edwards 66-68; K. Busch 69; |
| C. Edwards 70-94; K. Harvick 95-97; C. Edwards 98; R. Stenhouse |
| Jr. 99-108; C. Edwards 109-114; K. Harvick 115-133; K. Busch |
| 134-150. |
| O'Reilly Auto Parts 300 Entry List |
| Car | Driver, Hometown | Car/Name |
| 01 | Mike Wallace (St. Louis, MO) | Chevrolet/G&K Services |
| 2 | Elliott Sadler (Emporia, VA) | Chevrolet/One Main Financial |
| 05 | David Starr (Houston, TX) | Chevrolet/31w Insulation |
| 6 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr (Olive Brnch, MS) | Ford/Easy Feet |
| 7 | Josh Wise (Riverside, CA) | Chevrolet/taxslayer.com |
| 09 | Kenny Wallace (St. Louis, MO) | Toyota/TBA |
| 11 | Brian Scott (Boise, ID) | Toyota/Shore Lodge |
| 12 | Sam Hornish Jr. (Defiance, OH) | Dodge/Alliance |
| 14 | Eric McClure (Chilhowie, VA) | Chevrolet/Hefty Black Out/Reynolds |
| 15 | Timmy Hill (Port Tobacco, MD) | Ford/Rick Ware Racing |
| 16 | Trevor Bayne (Knoxville, TN) | Ford/Roush Fenway Racing |
| 18 * | Kyle Busch (Las Vegas, NV) | Toyota/Z-Line Designs |
| 19 | Mike Bliss (Milwaukie, OR) | Chevrolet/TriStar Motorsports |
| 20 | Joey Logano (Middletown, CT) | Toyota/Game Stop |
| 22 | Brad Keselowski (Rochester Hls, MI) | Dodge/Discount Tire |
| 23 | Robert Richardson Jr (McKinney, TX) | Dodge/Wildlife Conservation Society |
| 24 | Kevin Lepage (Shelbourne, VT) | Ford/TBA |
| 28 | Derrike Cope (Spanaway, WA) | Chevrolet/Pouch Tech |
| 30 | Jason Leffler (Long Beach, CA) | Chevrolet/Wolf Pack Rentals |
| 31 | Justin Allgaier (Riverton, IL) | Chevrolet/TBA |
| 32 | Reed Sorenson (Peachtree City, GA) | Chevrolet/Dollar General |
| 33 | Paul Menard (Eau Claire, WI) | Chevrolet/Menards |
| 38 | Kasey Kahne (Enumclaw, WA) | Chevrolet/Great Clips |
| 39 | Danny O'Quinn (Coeburn, VA) | Ford/Heil Company |
| 40 | Scott Wimmer (Wausau, WI) | Chevrolet/TBA |
| 41 | Carl Long (Roxboro, NC) | Ford/Rick Ware Racing |
| 44 | Jeff Green (Owensboro, KY) | Chevrolet/TBA |
| 49 | Dennis Setzer (Newton, NC) | Chevrolet/TBA |
| 51 | Jeremy Clements (Spartanburg, SC) | Chevrolet/racedaysponsor.com |
| 52 | Tim Schendel (Sparta, WI) | Chevrolet/My Three Sons Vending |
| 55 | Brett Rowe (Barboursville, WV) | Chevrolet/Imperial Bedding |
| 60 | Carl Edwards (Columbia, MO) | Ford/Fastenal |
| 62 | Michael Annett (Des Moines, IA) | Toyota/Pilot Travel Centers/Flying J |
| 66 | Steve Wallace (Charlotte, NC) | Toyota/5-Hour Energy |
| 68 | Johnny Chapman (Stony Point, NC) | Chevrolet/TBA |
| 70 | Shelby Howard (Greenwood, IN) | Chevrolet/Race Fuel Energy Drink |
| 74 | Mike Harmon (Birmingport, AL) | Chevrolet/Riverwalk Cafe |
| 75 | Matthew Carter (Denver, NC) | Ford/Rick Ware Racing |
| 79 | Tim Andrews (Concord, NC) | Ford/TBA |
| 81 | Blake Koch (West Palm Beach, FL) | Dodge/daystar.com |
| 87 | Joe Nemechek (Lakeland, FL) | Toyota/NEMCO Motorsports |
| 88 | Aric Almirola (Tampa, FL) | Chevrolet/Hellmann's |
| 89 | Morgan Shepherd (Conover, NC) | Chevrolet/Imperial Bedding |
| 99 | David Reutimann (Zephyrhills, FL) | Toyota/Pastrana Waltrip Racing |
| Leading Contenders (Finish the last nine years) |
| Driver | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
| Kyle Busch | --- | --- | 2nd | --- | 4th | 7th | Won | Won | Won |
| Joey Logano | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 12th | 2nd |
| Reed Sorenson | --- | --- | --- | 3rd | 13th | 35th | --- | --- | 3rd |
| Brad Keselowski | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 43rd | 15th | 3rd | 4th |
| David Reutimann | --- | 24th | --- | --- | --- | 6th | 14th | 9th | 8th |
| Steve Wallace | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 32nd | 16th | 14th | 9th |
| Paul Menard | --- | --- | 14th | 18th | 7th | 9th | --- | 5th | 10th |
| Justin Allgaier | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 10th | 11th |
| Jason Leffler | --- | --- | 6th | --- | 17th | 13th | 9th | 13th | 12th |
| Trevor Bayne | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 14th |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | 29th |
| Carl Edwards | --- | --- | --- | 4th | 43rd | 3rd | 13th | 18th | 30th |
| Kasey Kahne | 36th | 9th | 32nd | Won | 11th | 28th | 21st | --- | --- |
| Elliott Sadler | --- | --- | --- | 5th | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Mover of the Week |
| Elliott Sadler - Started in the 34th position and finished 5th |
| Sports Network Selections |
| Pick to Win - Kyle Busch |
| Darkhorse - Steve Wallace |
| Last Week's Pick to Win (Kyle Busch) - Finished 1st |
| Last Week's Darkhorse (Michael Annett) - Finished 18th |
| NOTES: |
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To say that Kyle Busch has set up a new residence at Texas Motor
Speedway would be an understatement. Since the fall of 2007, Busch has five
wins and two runner-up finishes at the track, including three consecutive
spring wins. To top it off, Busch has won the last two Nationwide races and
has three titles in five starts.
Last season, Busch once again dominated the race, leading for 153 of the 200
laps, including the final 24 as he defeated Joey Logano by 0.688 of a second
for his 33rd Nationwide Series title. Delayed by rain for two days, Busch gave
a five-star performance for his fifth consecutive Nationwide Series victory at
Texas. Busch, who swept both Nationwide events here during the 2008 and '09
seasons, joined Dale Earnhardt and Jack Ingram as the only drivers in the
series to win five in a row at the same track. Busch's win total now stands at
46, just three shy of all-time leader Mark Martin.
Back in 2009, Busch put on another dominating performance, as he set a new
track record after leading 178 of 200 laps. He also became the first driver to
win from the pole in 17 Nationwide races at Texas.
Busch started an explosion of victories in 2008, as he recorded the first of
10 2008 wins. Starting from the 31st position on the grid, Busch took the lead
for the first time on lap 57 and then again on the 71st. After Clint Bowyer
took over on the 93rd, Busch regained the advantage through the 153rd lap, as
Jeff Burton and then Jamie McMurray traded the lead. On lap 158, Busch was
back on top to stay and held on the rest of the way to edge Burton by 1.041
seconds.
Matt Kenseth led only nine laps, but it was the final nine, as he posted his
23rd career Nationwide Series title, clipping Denny Hamlin by less than a
second in 2007. Busch dominated the race, leading three times for 113 laps,
but faded and finished 7th.
Kurt Busch, starting for the first time in the Nationwide Series in 2006,
clipped Greg Biffle by less than a second to become just the fifth driver to
accomplish that feat. The other four were: Dale Earnhardt (1982), Joe Ruttman
(1982), Ricky Rudd (1983) and Terry Labonte (1985). Pole sitter Denny Hamlin
led the first 20 laps and traded positions with Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth
through lap 93 when Jeff Burton took over. Burton led for the next 43 laps,
however Busch claimed the lead on lap 137 and held on for a 0.266 of a second
victory.
In 2005, Kasey Kahne posted his second career Nationwide Series win, as he
edged Greg Biffle by less than half a second. Kahne started from the 25th
position, the worst starting spot by a winner of this race. Pole sitter Shane
Hmiel finished 10th after leading just 20 laps. Kahne, who led the final seven
laps, led for a total of 47 laps, while Biffle led for 32. Kahne first made
his way to the front of the pack on Lap 53 and remained there for 40 laps. He
led again on Lap 194 for the remaining six laps. The lead changed hands a
record 17 times among 10 drivers with Kahne picking up the 10-point bonus for
most laps led.
With his win last year, Busch joined Mark Martin as the only three-time winner
of this race. Martin won the race back in 1997, 1999 and 2000.
The next Nationwide Series race is the April 16th staging of the Aaron's 312
at Talladega Superspeedway. Brad Keselowski is the defending race winner.
04/05 14:45:22 ET
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As of April 5, 2011, at 02:45 PM ET
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