Race 2 Win: Pepsi 400 - Raybestos® Rookie Notes

Nextel Cup Series

Pepsi 400 - Raybestos® Rookie Notes

NEWS AND NOTES FROM THE RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDERS – NASCAR NEXTEL CUP SERIES

Denny Hamlin was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the June 25 Dodge/Save Mart 350 at Infineon (Sonoma, Calif.) Raceway. Hamlin finished 12th and took Raybestos® Rookie of the Race honors for the ninth time this season.

Hamlin stretched his lead in the Raybestos® Rookie standings to 31 points (185-154) over Clint Bowyer entering the July 1 Pepsi 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.

THE STREAK STAYS ALIVE: A Raybestos® Rookie has finished in the top-15 in all 16 races this season.

Hamlin is 11th in the NEXTEL Cup Series championship standings, nine points behind 10th-place Kevin Harvick. He holds an 11-point advantage over 12th-place Kyle Busch.

WIX Filters is an associate sponsor for Joe Gibbs Racing. Raybestos® and WIX Filters are corporate siblings in the Affinia Group.

TWO Raybestos® Rookies rank among the top-20 in the NEXTEL Cup Series championship standings: Hamlin and Bowyer (18th).

Travis Kvapil was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the 2005 Pepsi 400, scoring a 23rd-place finish. Kvapil was the only first-year driver to finish on the lead lap.

DID YOU KNOW? Greg Biffle is the only Raybestos® Rookie to win the Pepsi 400. Biffle won the race in 2003, scoring his first career win in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series. Biffle crossed the finish line 4.102 second ahead of second place finisher Jeff Burton and led only once, covering the final 21 laps. He was the only Raybestos® Rookie to score a win during the 2003 season.

DID YOU KNOW? Since 1975, only THREE Raybestos® Rookies have scored a top-five finish in the Pepsi 400: 1979: Dale Earnhardt, third 1993: Jeff Gordon, fifth 2003: Greg Biffle, first

DID YOU KNOW? Since 1975, THREE Raybestos® Rookies have won the pole position for the Pepsi 400 at Daytona: Geoffrey Bodine (1982), Davey Allison (1987), and Mike Skinner (1997).

DID YOU KNOW? Davey Allison is the only Raybestos® Rookie since 1975 to lead the most laps in the Pepsi 400. He led the 1987 event twice for 32 laps.

Raybestos® Rookies that have led at least one lap in the Pepsi 400 (since 1975): 1979: Dale Earnhardt (once for one lap) 1981: Mike Alexander (once for four laps) 1981: Stan Barrett (once for three laps) 1982: Geoffrey Bodine (once for four laps) 1987: Davey Allison (twice for 32 laps) 1987: Brett Bodine (once for one lap) 1990: Rob Moroso (once for four laps) 1993: Jeff Gordon (once for three laps) 1994: Loy Allen (once for one lap) 1997: Mike Skinner (once for two laps) 1998: Kenny Irwin (once for 15 laps) 1999: Elliott Sadler (once for one lap) 2001: Kevin Harvick (twice for two laps) 2003: Greg Biffle (once for 21 laps) 2004: Kasey Kahne (once for one lap)

Top-10 finishes by Raybestos® Rookies in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona (since 1975): 1975: Ritchie Panch, sixth 1977: Sam Sommers, seventh 1977: Terry Ryan, 10th 1979: Dale Earnhardt, third 1979 Harry Gant, seventh 1979 Joe Millikan, eighth 1979: Dale Earnhardt, sixth 1980: Jody Ridley, seventh 1980: John Anderson, ninth 1981: Mike Alexander, seventh 1981: Ron Bouchard, ninth 1982: Geoffrey Bodine, sixth 1986: Alan Kulwicki, 10th 1989: Dick Trickle, eighth 1989: Hut Stricklin, 10th 1990: Rob Moroso, ninth 1993: Jeff Gordon, fifth 1999: Tony Stewart, sixth 2002: Jimmie Johnson, eighth 2004: Brian Vickers, ninth

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE HISTORY

The way to the NASCAR NEXTEL championship is to win Raybestos® Rookie of the Year. Since 1979, SIX Raybestos® Rookie of the Year drivers have gone on to win a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup title: Dale Earnhardt (1979), Rusty Wallace (1984), Alan Kulwicki (1986), Jeff Gordon (1993), Tony Stewart (1999, 2005) and Kenseth (2000).

At least one Raybestos® Rookie has won a Bud Pole in each of the last 11 years (1996-2006).

Ryan Newman holds the all-time Raybestos® Rookie record for most poles (6), most top-fives (14) and most top-10s (22).

Kasey Kahne holds the record for most earnings by a Raybestos® Rookie ($5.4 million in 2004).

The record for most wins by a Raybestos® Rookie is three, shared by Stewart (1999) and Jimmie Johnson (2002).

Johnson also holds the best ever points finish by a Raybestos® Rookie, placing fifth in the championship standings in 2002.

A Raybestos® Rookie has posted multiple victories SIX times in NASCAR Winston Cup history: Davey Allison (two wins in 1987), Stewart (three wins in 1999), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two wins in 2000), Kevin Harvick (two wins in 2001), Johnson (three wins in 2002), and Kyle Busch (two wins in 2005).

More than one Raybestos® Rookie has posted victories in their rookie season only three times: Morgan Shepherd and Ron Bouchard (one each in 1981), Earnhardt Jr. (two) and Kenseth (2000), Johnson (three) and Newman (2002).

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDER POINT STANDINGS
DRIVER POINTS
Denny Hamlin 185
Clint Bowyer 154
Reed Sorenson 144
Martin Truex Jr. 138
J.J. Yeley 133 
David Stremme 105
Brent Sherman 40 

HIGHEST-FINISHING RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE BY RACE
EVENT HIGHEST-FINISHING ROOKIE
Daytona 500 Bowyer, sixth
Auto Club 500 Yeley, eighth
UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 Hamlin, 10th 
Golden Corral 500 Sorenson, 10th 
Food City 500 Hamlin, 14th 
DIRECTV 500 Sorenson, 12th 
Samsung/RadioShack 500 Hamlin, fourth
Subway Fresh 500 Bowyer, fifth
Aaron’s 499 Yeley, 11th 
Crown Royal 400 Hamlin, second
Dodge Charger 500 Hamlin, 10th 
Coca-Cola 600 Hamlin, ninth
Neighborhood Excellence 400 Hamlin, 11th 
Pocono 500 Hamlin, FIRST
3M Performance 400 Sorenson, fifth
Dodge/Save Mart 350 Hamlin, 12th