Race 2 Win: Aaron’s 499 - Raybestos® Rookie Notes

Winston Cup Series

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Aaron’s 499 - Raybestos® Rookie Notes

Jamie McMurray took Raybestos® Rookie of the Race honors in the Samsung/RadioShack 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. McMurray finished 10th, his second top-10 of the 2003 Winston Cup season and the fourth of his career. He took Raybestos® Rookie of the Race honors for the second time this season. He was also the top rookie in the Subway 400 at North Carolina Speedway on February 23. McMurray's top-10 finish at Texas was the third by a Raybestos® Rookie this season.

McMurray stretches his lead in the Raybestos® Rookie standings to five points (73-68) over Greg Biffle entering the Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. He ranks 21st in Winston Cup points, best of all Raybestos® Rookie contenders.

McMurray is also the only member of the 2003 Raybestos® Rookie class to start a Winston Cup race at Talladega last season. He made his first career Winston Cup start in last October's EA Sports 500 where he started fifth and finished 26th while subbing for Sterling Marlin.

DID YOU KNOW? Casey Mears is the only Raybestos® Rookie that has started all seven races this season and has not posted a DNF. Mears is also the only Raybestos® Rookie to lead a lap this season. He led once for one lap in the Daytona 500 (2.5 miles).

A FIRST FOR THE CLASS OF '03: The Samsung/RadioShack 500 is the first race this season where all six Raybestos® Rookies qualified for the race on their speed: Biffle (20th), McMurray (24th), Casey Mears (26th), Tony Raines (34th), and Larry Foyt (35th).

WOULD YOU BELIEVE? Biffle was the top qualifying Raybestos® Rookie at Texas, the fourth consecutive race he has taken the honor. McMurray was the top qualifying rookie in each of the first three races.

Jack Sprague had a competitive run at Texas, coming away with a 22nd place finish. The finish was the best for Sprague since he placed 14th in the season opening Daytona 500 on February 16.

McMurray is the only Raybestos® Rookie to start all seven 2003 Winston Cup races without using a provisional. Mears, Jack Sprague, and Tony Raines are the other first-year drivers that have qualified for all seven races entering the Aaron's 499.

Four of the five Raybestos® Rookies that started the race at Texas were running at the finish: McMurray, Sprague, Mears (27th), Biffle (28th), and Larry Foyt (30th). Tony Raines (42nd) was the only Raybestos® Rookie that did not finish the race. He completed 152 laps before parking his car with engine failure.

The Subway 400 at North Carolina Speedway is the only race this season where all six Raybestos® Rookies qualified for the race AND all six were running at the finish of the race.

Jimmie Johnson was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the 2002 Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. He started from the pole and finished seventh, the only Raybestos® Rookie to place inside the top-10. Johnson led the race once for eight laps and was the only first year driver to be running at the end of the race.

Johnson's pole was his second in the two restrictor place races through the first nine races of the 2002 season. Johnson also took the top starting position in the season opening Daytona 500.

Ryan Newman had a strong run going in the Aaron's 499 until his engine soured after 141 laps in the race, just 41 shy of the finish. Newman started eighth and led the race twice for three laps. He was the first car out of the race and was credited with a 43rd place finish.

Newman and Johnson became the third pair of Raybestos® Rookies to win in their rookie season. They joined Morgan Shepherd (Martinsville) and Ron Bouchard (Talladega) in 1981 and Matt Kenseth (Charlotte) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Texas and Richmond) in 2000.

A Raybestos® Rookie has posted multiple victories five times in NASCAR Winston Cup history: Davey Allison (two wins in 1987), Tony Stewart (three wins in 1999), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two wins in 2000), Kevin Harvick (two wins in 2001), and Jimmie Johnson (two wins in 2002).

A Raybestos® Rookie Contender has won at least one race in each of the last four seasons dating back to Tony Stewart's win at Richmond in September, 1999. Other freshman drivers to win: Earnhardt Jr. (Richmond, 2000), Matt Kenseth (Charlotte, 2000), Harvick (Atlanta, 2001), Newman (New Hampshire 2002), and Johnson (Charlotte and both 2002 Dover races). The record for most wins by a Raybestos® Rookie is held by Stewart, who won three races in 1999.

A Raybestos® Rookie has won at least one pole position in each of the past seven consecutive seasons, dating back to 1996. The record for most poles in a rookie season is held by Ryan Newman, who won six in 2002.

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDER POINT STANDINGS

DRIVER              POINTS
Jamie McMurray          73
Greg Biffle             68
Casey Mears             65
Jack Sprague            60 
Tony Raines             51
Larry Foyt              37
Hideo Fukuyama           7
 
HIGHEST FINISHING RAYBESTOS® ROOKIES BY RACE

EVENT                           HIGHEST FINISHING ROOKIE
Daytona 500                     Jack Sprague, 14th 
Subway 400                      Jamie McMurray, fifth
UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400        Casey Mears, 15th 
Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500         Greg Biffle, 13th 
Carolina Dodge Dealers 400      Greg Biffle, 12th 
Food City 500                   Greg Biffle, fifth
Samsung/RadioShack 500          Jamie McMurray, 10th

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