Travel Log: Dover
The First State packed with scenic stops, history
http://www.nascar.com/2009/news/feat...ver/index.html
DID YOU KNOW?
* Delaware was the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution, doing so on Dec. 7, 1787.
* 12 observation towers were built along Delaware's coast during
World War II to protect the state in case of an attack. Many of the towers remain today, although they were originally built as temporary facilities.
* The Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse was built in 1901 and is the only lighthouse on the Delaware coast still in operation.
IN THE KNOW ...
Admitted as a State: Dec. 7, 1787
Capital: Dover
Nickname: The First State
Population Rank: 45th
Largest City: Wilmington
* Dover International Speedway
http://www.doverspeedway.com/slide_show/29.html
Dover's Web site provides a tiny taste of a typical Sunday at the track with a unique slide show.
Autism Speaks 400 Fact Sheet
Compiled by racing-reference.info
http://racing-reference.info/factshe...ts_2009-13.htm
ONLY Sprint Cup races held at Dover International Speedway.
Track facts:
The 1st Sprint Cup race at Dover was held on July 6, 1969 and was won by Richard Petty.
There was just one race per season at Dover in 1969 and 1970
(Petty won both the 1969 and 1970 events),
and there have been two races per season here since 1971 for a total of 78 races.
The 1st 2 races at Dover covered a distance of 300 miles; from 1971 through the spring 1997 race the distance was 500 miles, and all Sprint Cup races at Dover beginning with the fall 1997 race are 400 miles long.
All Dover races have been run in their entirety (or beyond, as in 2005)
- there has never been a rain-shortened race at Dover,
though some may have been postponed to a different day than they were originally scheduled.
Fastest race: 132.719 mph by Mark Martin in 1997;
Qualifying record: 161.522 mph by Jeremy Mayfield in 2004.
The closest Dover race was Jimmie Johnson's 0.08 second margin over Kyle Busch in 2005.
The most lead changes in a Dover race is 29, set in 1980 and 1986.
The most caution flags in a race at this track is 16, which was set in 1993.
From 2001-2008 at Dover, an average race featured 8.3 caution flags for 49.5 laps and had 14.6 lead changes.
A typical green-flag run is 38 laps.
Manufacturers / Owners:
Chevrolet has won 28 of the previous 78 races here,
followed by Ford (24), Mercury (7), Pontiac (6), Dodge (5), Buick (3), Oldsmobile (2), Plymouth (2) and Toyota (1).
Hendrick Motorsports leads all car owners with 10 victories at Dover.
Roush-Fenway racing is next on the list with 8 wins,
followed by the Wood Brothers with 7 and then Roger Penske and Petty Enterprises, both of whom have won 6 Dover races.
Driver Notes:
A driver has won a Dover race from the pole on 11 occasions,
the most recent being Ryan Newman in 2003.
The worst starting spot for a Dover race winner is 37th, by Kyle Petty in 1995.
In only 3 of the 78 previous races here has the eventual winner started outside the top 20.
The most laps led by a driver in a Dover race is 491 of 500 by Richard Petty in 1974;
Jeff Gordon led 381 of 400 laps in 2001.
The fewest laps led by a race winner is 6, a record set by Jeff Burton in 2006.
Nine (9) drivers have swept both races in a season at Dover:
David Pearson (1973), Bobby Allison (1983), Bill Elliott (1988),
Dale Earnhardt (1989), Rusty Wallace (1994), Jeff Gordon (1996),
Tony Stewart (2000), Jimmie Johnson (2002 - his 1st 2 starts here) and Ryan Newman (2003).
Three (3) drivers share the Dover record with 3 consecutive victories:
David Pearson (1972-73), Rusty Wallace (1993-94) and Jeff Gordon (1995-96).
Active Drivers - The most Dover races without a:
Win: Michael Waltrip (46 races)
Active Drivers - Top career marks at Dover:
Races: Michael Waltrip (46)
Wins: B. Elliott, J. Gordon, M. Martin (4)
Top 5s: Mark Martin (21)
Top 10s: Mark Martin (28)
Laps: Bill Elliott (18,910)
Laps led: Jeff Gordon (2,271)
Lead-lap finishes: Mark Martin (23)
Best AVER.FIN - active DRV. at Dover (3 or more starts)
#99 Carl Edwards (7.7)
#39 Ryan Newman (10.5)
#48 Jimmie Johnson (11.1)
#16 Greg Biffle (11.2)
#1 Martin Truex, Jr. (11.3)
#24 Jeff Gordon (11.9)
#14 Tony Stewart (12.2)
#5 Mark Martin (12.8)
All of the above drivers have won at least 1 Sprint Cup race at Dover.
Worst AVER.FIN among active DRV. at Dover (3 or more starts)
David Stremme (33.5)
A.J. Allmendinger (32.2)
Kasey Kahne (25.9)
Random driver facts - Sprint Cup races at Dover ONLY:
#33 Clint Bowyer's best finish at Dover is 8th place, which he has achieved 3 times so far in 6 career races.
#2 Kurt Busch is 0 for 17 at Dover and has just 1 top-10 in his last 7 races here (a 4th in 2006).
#18 Kyle Busch wound up on both ends of the spectrum in 2008:
1st in the spring race and last in the fall event.
Busch has posted a top-5 finish in 5 of his 8 career starts at this track.
#99 Carl Edwards has the best average finish at Dover of any active driver, and has not ended a race outside of the top 3 since 2006.
#24 - Since a dismal 2005 season at Dover (39th, 37th), Jeff Gordon's worst finish here is 12th and he has 4 top-10s in 6 races.
#11 Denny Hamlin's first three Dover appearances were successful, with an average finish of 8.0.
However his last 3 races here have been very poor, averaging barely a top-40 result (39.7).
#29 Kevin Harvick hasn't won at Dover in 16 attempts and has finished 20th or worse in 3 of his last 4 races. Harvick has led just 1 lap here since 2003.
#48 Jimmie Johnson won his first two Dover starts, and remains solid at this track although his winning percentage has decreased.
Johnson hasn't finished outside the top 20 in his last 9 races here and sports an average finish of 8.3 over that span.
#17 - In the last 3 Dover fall* races, Matt Kenseth has led 543 laps with at least 100 laps led in each event;
in the last three spring* races here, Kenseth hasn't led nearly as many laps but still has strong finishes (average: 3.3).
#96 Bobby Labonte has just 1 top-10 in his last 11 Dover races.
Labonte once had a streak of 7 top-5s in a row here from 1997-2000.
[B]Teammates Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart both performed very well at Dover early in their careers, but have slumped lately:[/B
#39 Newman had 3 wins and an average finish of 6.5 here from 2002-2005, but has just 1 top-10 in the past 3 years.
#14 Stewart had 9 top-5s in his 1st 12 Dover starts (average finish: 4.3) but has averaged only a 24th place finish over the past 4 years, with just 1 top-10 result.
#1 Martin Truex, Jr. registered the only victory of his Sprint Cup career here in 2007.
#83 Brian Vickers has 1 top-10 finish (6th in 2005) in 10 career Dover starts and hasn't led a lap since his 1st race.
#55 Michael Waltrip has the longest winless streak at Dover of any active driver (0 for 46).
His best finishes were a pair of 5`ths in 1990 and 1991.