TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
DRYDENE 400
DOVER INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
DOVER, DELAWARE
OCTOBER 6, 2019
BOWTIE BULLETS:
CATCHING UP WIITH CHEVROLET CONTENDERS
Four Chevrolet drivers are among the 12 that remain in contention for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship through three of 10 playoff races. Heading into Race 4 of the playoffs, a look at their start/finish in the last race – on the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course – the May 2019 and October 2018 playoff race at Dover:
* Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hooters Give a Hoot Camaro ZL1
At Charlotte: Start 19, Finish 1 At Dover (May 6): qualified 1, finished 5
At Dover (2018): qualified 9, finished 1
* Kyle Larson, No. 42 Clover Camaro ZL1
At Charlotte: Start 7, Finish 13 At Dover (May 6): qualified 3, finished 3
At Dover (2018): qualified 10, finished 12
* Alex Bowman, No. 88 Cincinnati Camaro ZL1
At Charlotte: Start 2, Finish 2 At Dover (May 6): qualified 5, finished 2
At Dover (2018): qualified 12, finished 28
* William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1
At Charlotte: Start 1, Finish 6 At Dover (May 6): qualified 2, finished 8
At Dover (2018): qualified 22, finished 19
CHEVROLET REPEAT HEADING TO DOVER
Chase Elliott led Alex Bowman across the finish line to complete a 1-2 Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet sweep on September 29 on the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course heading into the race at Dover International Speedway. On April 28, Elliott and Bowman placed 1-2 at Talladega Superspeedway heading into the race at Dover.
CHEVY AND THE CENTURY MARK AT DOVER
The Drydene 400 will mark the 100th MENCS race at Dover International Speedway, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 41 wins. Jimmie Johnson is the all-time leader in wins with 11 in 35 starts – all in a Chevrolet. He’s also the active leader with 17 top-five and 24 top-10 finishes. In May, Chase Elliott became the track’s youngest pole winner at 23 years, 5 months, 8 days — eclipsing career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordan at 23 years, 10 months, 0 days on June 4, 1995 — and reset the qualifying record at 165.96 mph. In October 2018, Elliott became the youngest winner at the track at 22 years, 10 months, 9 days. The pole sitter has won 13 times, including Johnson as the last in September 2010.
THEY’LL BE AMONG FAVORITES TO WIN
Jimmie Johnson, Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson are in the top five of several statistical categories at Dover International Raceway since 2005:
* Johnson (29 races) – 2,714 laps led, tops among active drivers. 8.9 average finish, fourth among active drivers. 9,710 laps in top 15, tops among active drivers.
* Elliott (7 races) – 4.4 average finish, tops among active drivers. 9.4 average start, second among active drivers. 96.0 percent of laps running in top 15, tops among active drivers.
* Larson (11 races) – 8.3 average start, tops among active drivers. 8.0 average finish, third among active drivers.
TUNE-IN:
NBCSN will telecast the 400-lap race on the 1-mile concrete oval live at 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday, Oct. 6. The NBCSports Gold app will stream the race and live coverage can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
BY THE NUMBERS:
* Victories by current Chevrolet drivers at Dover International Raceway:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1, has 11 wins (June 2017, May 2015, June 2014, September 2013, June 2012, September 2010, September 2009, May 2009, September 2005, September 2002, June 2002)
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Gearwrench Camaro ZL1, has one win (October 2011)
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hooters Give a Hoot Camaro ZL1, has one win (October 2018)
* Johnson needs one win to tie Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip (84) for fourth on the all-time list.
* Busch needs one win to tie Dale Jarrett (32) for 25th on the all-time list.
* Team Chevy drivers have earned 13 pole starts this season, led by William Byron with five.
* William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1, is third among drivers with 99.70% (7,953 of 7,977) laps completed this season. Byron has been running at the finish in the past 28 races.
* Team Chevy drivers need to lead 55 laps to surpass 23,400 in the Bowtie brand’s MENCS history.
* Chevrolet has won 39 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships.
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CLOVER CAMARO ZL1 – 8th IN STANDINGS
“Dover has been a good track for our team, and I hope we can get off to a good start there for the second round of the Playoffs. It will be interesting to see how the race is this time compared to the Spring. Earlier in the year I thought it was pretty hard to pass, but I think we’ve all learned a lot about this package since then, so the race could be different this time around. Dover is a really fun, physical place to race, and hopefully we can have another good weekend there.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CINCINNATI CAMARO ZL1 – 9th IN STANDINGS
BOWMAN ON THE ROUND OF 12
“It is great to be able to advance to the next round of the playoffs. Charlotte was rough, that’s for sure. This team never gave up and continued to make the car better and ultimately, we finished second. The three tracks in the Round of 12 were really good to us in the spring. We finished second at each track and we have the notes to hopefully get us one spot further on Sunday.”
BOWMAN ON DOVER
“Dover is a track that is more physically demanding than you would think. There is a lot of elevation change getting into the corner. Depending on how the rubber is laying down, the track changes from run to run. This is a track that is ever changing.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 – 11th IN STANDINGS
YOU HAD AN EIGHTH-PLACE FINISH AT DOVER IN JUNE. WHAT ARE YOU TAKING FROM THAT SPRING RACE TO APPLY TO THIS WEEKEND?
“The main thing is trying to keep track position all race long. It’s a track that’s really hard to pass, so in the spring we unfortunately got stuck in the back at one point and it took almost the whole race to climb back up to the front. We had a really good car then, so I expect to unload with another fast one this weekend. Hopefully we can get a good starting position and keep the track position the entire race.”
CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 KROGER SIMMER LIKE A WINNER CAMARO ZL1 – 20th IN STANDINGS
“It’s no secret that Dover International Speedway has not been my favorite racetrack. We’ve struggled there in the past, but we have some decent notes from the spring race that we are bringing with us so we can unload fast and have good speed all weekend. I love how Dover is a bigger Bristol, but a different short track feel. You get that ‘hold-your-breath’ feeling in the corners coming out to the straightaways. With only six races left in the 2019 season, we’re really pushing to finish the year strong and hopefully gain another position in the points standings before it’s all over.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AAA CAMARO ZL1 – 23rd IN STANDINGS
DOES DOVER JUST DRIVE LIKE A GIANT BRISTOL OR NOT SO MUCH?
“Not so much. There’s a lot of aero stuff that comes into play at Dover because you’re going so fast. We tested at Dover, so I’m pumped about that. You see different lines come into play as the rubber builds up. On the long run you can start running way up by the fence and find some speed so that’s always fun when you can move around and find speed on the long run and people fall off as you run. It’s a good place to go.”
HOW HARD IS THAT WHEN YOU PICK UP RUBBER DURING THE CAUTIONS?
“Yeah it’s just a process that we go through every week that we have to try and balance our car around. It can get difficult at times, but Dover is a place where it’s fun.”
TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO CAMARO ZL1 – 24th IN STANDINGS
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS HEADING BACK TO THE MONSTER MILE FOR A SECOND TIME THIS SEASON?
“We honestly have struggled at Dover a bit the last two or three times we’ve been there, ever since we were leading laps our first season. We just haven’t had that much speed in our cars, but our GEICO team is looking forward to going back and hopefully finding a little different combination that works for our team.”
WHEN CHANGES ARE MADE AT THE SHOP, HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR YOU TO NOTICE DIFFERENCES FROM BEHIND THE WHEEL IN HOW YOUR CAR DRIVES?
“You can get a feel instantly. As a driver, you kind of know what your battle is ahead of you around first or second practice as far as what your car has in terms of capability and what you are going to have for the race. We will know right out of the gate in first practice and go from there to make the most of our weekend.”
BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 VICTORY JUNCTION CAMARO ZL1 – 26th IN STANDINGS
A LOT OF DRIVERS EITHER LOVE OR DISLIKE RACING AT DOVER. WHERE DO YOU FALL?
“I love the Dover International Speedway. I have run both good and bad at the track. The feeling of Dover (International Speedway) is incredible; the sensation and speed. It’s nowhere near one of our fastest tracks, but it feels like it’s the fastest track in the world.
“Usually the first ten laps or so, I don’t breathe. I come-in trying to talk, but I have to take time to calm down for a second. There’s no track on the schedule that gives you that sense of adrenaline, rush and excitement. No matter if our Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 tore-up and running last, or running for our first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory, it’s always going to be a blast.”
RYAN PREECE, NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 – 27th IN STANDINGS
“This season has certainly been full of highs and lows, but I think we’re progressing as we enter the final stretch of 2019. The Rookie of the Year honors are still in sight, we just need to continue executing right off the truck. I’m a short track guy, so Dover International Speedway is always on my list of tracks that I circle at the beginning of the season. I think we have some positives that we learned from the spring race that we can bring into Sunday. It’s going to be cool, so the track should have plenty of grip. I’m looking forward to seeing all that we can get in these last six weeks with our Kroger team.”