Race 2 Win: Sprint Cup Series Race Notes

Sprint Cup Series

Samsung 500 - Raybestos Rookie Notes

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

Regan Smith was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the March 30 Goody’s Cool Orange 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. Smith scored a 14th-place finish, his best in 13 career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races. He claimed Raybestos® Rookie of the Race honors for the second consecutive race and for the third time in six events this season. Smith has been running at the finish of every race in 2008.

Smith and Dario Franchitti are tied for the lead in the Raybestos® Rookie standings (60-60) entering the April 6 Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Franchitti (22nd) also scored his best Sprint Cup Series finish (six career starts) at Martinsville while Michael McDowell finished 26th in his Sprint Cup Series debut.

GUARANTEED IN THE SHOW: Smith and McDowell are the only members of the Raybestos® Rookie class with a guaranteed starting spot at Texas.

GOTTA GO: Three Raybestos® Rookies entered in this weekend’s race at Texas do not have a guaranteed starting positions: Franchitti, Sam Hornish, Jr. and Patrick Carpentier.

Juan Pablo Montoya was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the 2007 Samsung 500, grabbing an eighth-place finish.

Only once in 14 previous Sprint Cup races at Texas has a Raybestos® Rookie won the race. Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored his first career Sprint Cup Series win by 5.920 seconds over Jeff Burton in 2000. Earnhardt Jr. also led the most laps in the event (six times for 106 laps).

Top-five finishes by Raybestos® Rookies in the Samsung 500:
2000: Dale Earnhardt Jr., FIRST
2001: Kurt Busch, fourth
2004: Kasey Kahne, second
2006: Denny Hamlin, fourth

DID YOU KNOW? A Raybestos® Rookie has finished in the top-10 in eight of the past nine Samsung 500 races.

Top-10 finishes by Raybestos® Rookies in the Samsung 500:
1999: Tony Stewart, sixth
1999: Elliott Sadler, 10th
2000: Dale Earnhardt Jr., FIRST
2001: Kurt Busch, fourth
2001: Kevin Harvick, seventh
2002: Jimmie Johnson, sixth
2003: Jamie McMurray, 10th
2004: Kasey Kahne, second
2006: Denny Hamlin, fourth
2006: Martin Truex Jr., eighth
2007: Juan Pablo Montoya, eighth

TWO or more Raybestos® Rookies have finished in the top-10 THREE times in 11 spring races at Texas:
1999: Tony Stewart (sixth) and Elliott Sadler (10th)
2001: Kurt Busch (fourth) and Kevin Harvick (seventh)
2006: Denny Hamlin (fourth) and Martin Truex Jr. (eighth)

The most Raybestos® Rookies to lead the Samsung 500 is THREE in 2006:
Denny Hamlin: three times for 41 laps
Martin Truex Jr: once for two laps
J.J. Yeley: once for two laps.

DID YOU KNOW? Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne are the only Raybestos® Rookies to lead the most laps in a Sprint Cup Series race at Texas.

The best start by a Raybestos® Rookie in the spring race at Texas is third by Kasey Kahne in 2004.

Raybestos Rookies that have led a lap in the 10 previous Samsung 500 races:
1997: Mike Skinner (once for 10 laps)
1999: Elliott Sadler (once for one lap)
2000: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (six times for 106 laps)
2001: Scott Pruett (once for 13 laps)
2002: Ryan Newman (once for two laps)
2004: Kasey Kahne (six times for 148 laps)
2004: Johnny Sauter (once for one lap)
2006: Denny Hamlin (three times for 41 laps)
2006: Martin Truex Jr. (once for two laps)
2006: J.J. Yeley (once for two laps)

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDER POINT STANDINGS
DRIVER POINTS
Dario Franchitti 60
Regan Smith 60
Sam Hornish, Jr. 57
Patrick Carpentier 28
Michael McDowell 9
Jacques Villeneuve 1

HIGHEST-FINISHING RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE BY RACE
EVENT HIGHEST-FINISHING ROOKIE
Daytona 500 Hornish Jr., 15th
Auto Club 500 Smith, 31st
UAW-Dodge 400 Franchitti, 31st
Kobalt Tools 500 Hornish Jr., 25th
Food City 500 Smith, 26th
Goody’s Cool Orange 500 Smith, 14th

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE HISTORY

DID YOU KNOW? The most recent Raybestos® Rookie to win a Sprint Cup Series race is Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya captured the 2007 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon (Sonoma, Calif.) Raceway, crossing the finish line 4.097 seconds ahead of second-place Kevin Harvick (26 races).

DID YOU KNOW? The most recent Raybestos® Rookie to win a pole position in the Sprint Cup Series is Denny Hamlin. Hamlin captured the top starting spot for the 2006 Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway (52 races).

AN HISTORICAL FIRST: For the first time in NASCAR’s modern-era (since 1972), THREE drivers shared the lead in the Raybestos® Rookie standings in 2008. After the second race of the season, Sam Hornish, Jr., Dario Franchitti and Regan Smith were all tied at the top of the standings.

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

Denny Hamlin is the only Raybestos® Rookie to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup since the program was created in 2004.

Hamlin holds the record for most earnings by a Raybestos® Rookie ($6.6 million in 2006).

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

A Raybestos® Rookie has posted multiple victories SEVEN times in NASCAR Sprint Cup:
1987: Davey Allison, two
1999: Tony Stewart, three
2000: Dale Earnhardt Jr., two
2001: Kevin Harvick, two
2002: Jimmie Johnson, three
2005: Kyle Busch, two
2006: Denny Hamlin, two

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

The way to the NASCAR Sprint Cup 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 Sprint Cup title: Dale Earnhardt (1979), Rusty Wallace (1984), Alan Kulwicki (1986), Jeff Gordon (1993), Tony Stewart (1999, 2005) and Matt Kenseth (2000).

The longest streak for a Raybestos® Rookie to be in the top-10 in the Sprint Cup Series championship standings during the sport’s modern-era is 60 races (2001 MBNA Platinum 400 through 2002 Ford 400).