TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
CAN-AM 500
ISM RACEWAY
AVONDALE, ARIZONA
NOVEMBER 11, 2018
BOWTIE BULLETS
LEADER OF THE PACK: Chevrolet leads all other manufacturers with 23 victories at ISM Raceway. Chevrolet has taken six different nameplates (Lumina, Monte Carlo, Monte Carlo SS, Impala SS, Impala and SS) to Winner’s Circle in the Arizona Desert.
CHEVROLET PLAYOFF PICTURE LEADING INTO PENULTIMATE RACE: Chase Elliott is the only Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 driver still in contention for the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship. Elliott is currently sixth in the standings and will be in a must-win situation this coming weekend at ISM Raceway in order to advance to the Round of 4 and compete for the championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Elliott is no stranger to this position as he was in the same spot one year ago. ISM Raceway is statistically one of Elliott’s best tracks on the schedule with an average start and finish of 6.8 over the course of five starts.
CHEVY QUALIFYING RECORD: Self admittedly not a great qualifier, seven-time series champion, Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Power of Pride Camaro ZL1, holds the track qualifying record at ISM Raceway of 143.158 mph, set on November 13, 2015.
POLE MAN Chevrolet driver and two-time Phoenix winner, Ryan Newman, No. 31 Camaro ZL1, holds the record for most poles at ISM Raceway with four pole awards to his credit.
TUNE-IN: The Can-Am 500 is scheduled to begin on Sunday, November 11th at 2:30 pm, EDT. Live coverage can be found on NBC, MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
BY THE NUMBERS:
Chevrolet has won 39 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships
Team Chevy drivers have scored 779 wins and 699 poles in MENCS competition
Chevrolet drivers have won 23 of 44 races at ISM Raceway. Victories by current Team Chevy drivers are:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s Power of Pride Camaro ZL1, has four wins at ISM Raceway (’07, ’08 – TWICE & ‘09)
Ryan Newman, No. 31 CAT Global Mining Camaro ZL1, has two victories at ISM Raceway (’10 & ‘17)
A Chevrolet driver has sat on the pole at ISM Raceway 17 times
Team Chevy drivers have scored 107 top-five and 201 top-10 finishes at ISM Raceway
A Chevrolet has led 5,944 laps (42.5% of possible 14,001 laps) at ISM Raceway
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
CHEVROLET DRIVERS IN PLAYOFF CONTENDERS:
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 – 6TH IN STANDINGS
“The No. 9 team and I are looking forward to heading to Phoenix (ISM Raceway) this weekend. We have to win this week so we are going to go to work and try to get it done. I feel good about Phoenix – we’ve run pretty good there in the past. I think it has actually been one of my more consistent tracks.”
CHEVROLET DRIVERS NOT IN PLAYOFF CONTENTION:
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 DC SOLAR CAMARO ZL1 – 12TH IN STANDINGS
“We’re coming off a good weekend in Texas with our No. 42 Chevy, and I’m hoping we can continue that momentum this weekend in Phoenix. We had some issues with our car there earlier this year, but this track has been a pretty good one for me in the last few years, so I’m hopeful that we’ll have good speed this weekend. We’ve been able to qualify towards the front of the field over the last several races there, which always helps out during the race. We tested out there a few weeks back with the new track configuration. Racing the new layout won’t be as different for us as racing the Roval was, but it was nice to get a chance to be on track to just see what it looks like. With the start/finish line moving to the old backstretch restarts should be exciting through that wide part of the track, so it should be a fun race.”
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S POWER OF PRIDE CAMARO ZL1 – 14TH IN STANDINGS
“The ‘Power of Pride’ paint scheme is very meaningful to me on a lot of levels. Because of 9/11, to carry that paint scheme on the car, there was so much pride in the country, so much patriotism going on. To have our car carry that for those three races was really special. I’m really excited Lowe’s decided to pay tribute to our partnership over the next two weeks with these special paint schemes. It will bring back a lot of memories, and it’s hard to believe this chapter is closing. I would love more than anything to get them one more win before it’s over.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 – 15TH IN STANDINGS
“It’s still the same race track. Restarts will probably play out a little different, but that’s about it. The track doesn’t change too much from the spring to the fall because the two times we go to that track the temperatures are about the same, so the good thing is we have a good notebook and I look forward to getting back to Phoenix.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL E15 CAMARO ZL1 – 16TH IN STANDINGS
“No, Phoenix doesn’t really race like a short track and then we are flipping sides this race. We are going to be diving into what used to be Turns 3 and 4 which are now 1 and 2. Flip-flop, restarts will be interesting to see how things file and get going there because you are going to be running into the flat end of the corner instead of the banked.”
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 31 CAT GLOBAL MINING CAMARO ZL1 – 17TH IN STANDINGS:
“It’s always fun to come back to a track where I have won before and where I have won most recently with RCR. It would mean a lot to win here again and close out my time with RCR on a high note. It’s going to be bittersweet. It’s going to take a car that can run well on both ends of the track to have another shot at it.
“This place has become a real show piece for the race fans. Back in March I got to tour the facility and see what all they were doing in the stands, the midway, a new pedestrian tunnel – all the renovations that will boost the overall fan experience. It’s impressive. We’ve got close to 200 people from Cat Mining who are coming from all over the world and for them to not only see us put on a good race but experience the race in a whole new way will be awesome.”
AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 47 KROGER CLICKLIST CAMARO ZL1 – 22ND IN STANDINGS
“ISM Raceway is definitely a unique racetrack. In addition, this is going to be the first race since the track reconfiguration. The start/finish line has been moved to where Turn 2 used to be, so the track is essentially flipped around. I think besides the challenges that we already face at ISM Raceway, that’s going to add an addition curveball for everyone. Where Turns 1 and 2 used to be really flat, now it will be flat in Turns 3 and 4 coming to the start/finish line. We’ll be up near the wall in Turns 3 and 4 trying to run a different lane. I think restarts are going to be really crazy there now getting into the dogleg. We have some notes from the spring race that we can bring with us, and while a whole season has gone by and we’ve found new things with our Kroger ClickList Camaro ZL1, I think we still have some positives that we can take from that first race and apply to this one. I think we have two really good opportunities with ISM Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway to finish out the season strong.”
CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 GAIN CAMARO ZL1 – 23RD IN STANDINGS
“If there’s one thing we know for sure, it’s that everyone is going to have a challenge ahead of them with the new configuration at ISM Raceway this weekend. ISM Raceway has been extremely tricky for me throughout my career. I’ve tried to study that track as much as I could, and have run several sessions in the simulator to try and get better. We’re going to see a lot of action during the race with the start/finish line moved, and I think restarts are going to be wild as well. Running in the simulator, it’s really tough to see the green flag waving now as we come through Turn 4. I think with the new cactus flag stand the track is putting in, that could change in real-life, but it’s really going to give everyone a new challenge this weekend. We’ve got one of my favorite paint schemes this weekend with the Gain Camaro ZL1, and I know Gain green is going to give us good luck in Phoenix.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 HERTZ CAMARO ZL1 – 24TH IN STANDINGS
“It’ll be a wild race – it’s a cutoff race and I feel like Phoenix (ISM Raceway) is just always a normal short track as far as the style of racing. You just do the things you need to do on a short track to be successful. I like racing there, it’s always been fun. The reconfiguration will create a little difference for the restarts, but other than that, I’m not expecting too much of a change. It’s the same racetrack with the same characteristics, so we’ll just try to go there and make sure we execute.”
TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO MILITARY CAMARO ZL1 – 27TH IN STANDINGS
“I haven’t been back to Phoenix since they made all of the changes, so it’s definitely going to be exciting to figure it all out. It’s going to be fun for the fans since no one really knows what to expect. Phoenix has been a great track for me over the years. I have run a lot of races there and have done really well there in the past. Our GEICO Military team finished 11th in this race last year. Hopefully, we can go back and capitalize on those results and the notes we gathered from that race.”
REGAN SMITH, NO. 95 PROCORE CAMARO ZL1:
“Phoenix is going to be interesting this coming weekend with the new straightaway and moving the Start/Finish line. I don’t think that it’s going to affect anything that we do on the race track driver-wise, but it certainly is going to look different and be a bit more unique for the fans that are watching along in the stands. This weekend should create a bit of buzz with the new infield, and all the cool new elements associated with the remodel. The race track itself is one of the best places we go to in my opinion. Both ends of the track are very unique and very different, so it really forces you to have to adapt. You have to take the good and the bad with your car sometimes because you won’t able to make it entirely perfect at both ends of that track. There’s a lot of times where you have to be willing to sacrifice in one area if you want to be better in another area there typically. Phoenix presents a lot of challenges on both the drivers and the crew chiefs because of that, but it’s also one of the most rewarding tracks, and one of the most fun tracks to drive on when things are going well.”