Team 48 Daytona International Speedway
Budweiser Shootout/Qualifying Preview
OVER-THE-WALL ROSTER FOR THE BUDWEISER SHOOTOUT
WILL BE AVAILABLE RACE DAY.
RACE NOTES
Budweiser Shootout Chassis Information
| • | Jimmie Johnson piloted primary chassis No. 618 to a seventh place finish at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2010. |
| • | He last drove backup chassis No. 482 at Talladega in 2009, finishing sixth. |
Daytona 500 Qualifying Notes
| • | Johnson started third in last year’s Daytona 500. |
| • | He has started the historic event from the pole two times: in his 2002 Daytona 500 debut and again in 2008. |
| • | In nine Daytona 500 starts, Johnson has qualified outside the top 10 only once. He started 21st in 2007. |
JIMMIE JOHNSON QUOTES
ON THE BUD SHOOTOUT:
“I think the Shootout will be a very good sign for what the 500 will be like. We will be using the push draft, the bump draft, three wide, potentially four wide…it will be a very good prelim for the 500 and show how crazy we can be on this track.”
HOW MUCH FUN IS A SHORT RACE LIKE THE SHOOTOUT?
“It is fun. Especially at the start of the season and coming into such a big race like the Daytona 500, it is nice to get out, get in the flow, make some mistakes. Yes, there is a lot on the line, but it’s not the Daytona 500. It is nice to knock the rust off and go racing.”
HOW AWESOME IS THE TRACK SINCE THE RE-PAVE?
“It is great. There is a part of the racer in us that is missing the old surface because it was a handling exercise and the guy’s car who handled the best won and we had some tools to work with. Now, it is fast for anyone which will put on one heck of a show. As long as we don’t wreck too early, it will be an amazing finish to the Daytona 500.”
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE CHANGES IN THE POINT SYSTEM?
“If you go through and look at it, NASCAR did a very good job of explaining the points and dividing out the math so you could see what the value was before to what it is now and it really trends the same until you get it down to 25th or so and on down, you have a lot more to lose if you have a bad day. I get what they are doing. They are trying to simplify the point system for the fan base. There is certainly going to be a learning curve and I’m sure there is some griping about that now. NASCAR is doing everything in their power to help the sport grow and I think there are some other positive changes as you look at our race weekend and how much takes place at the track. Now practice counts. Practice is important and practice is televised. There is going to be more drama all weekend long and I think a better experience for our fans.”
SPRINT CUP SERIES CAREER NOTES
Career Wins
| • | Johnson has 53 wins in his Sprint Cup Series career, his most recent coming at Dover International Speedway on Sept. 26, 2010. |
| • | The El Cajon, Calif.-native is currently 10th on NASCAR’s all-time wins list, one victory behind Lee Petty. |
| • | He is second in total wins among active drivers, behind Jeff Gordon (82). |
| • | Johnson needed only 296 starts to hit the 50 mark. Only three drivers have reached 50 victories quicker – Gordon (232), Darrell Waltrip (278) and David Pearson (293). |
| • | Johnson has won at least three Cup races a season since he posted his first victory in 2002. He is the only driver in the modern era to win at least three races in each of his first eight full-time seasons. |
| • | Johnson has won Sprint Cup Series races at all but four (Michigan, Chicago, Watkins Glen, Homestead) of the 22 tracks on which the series competes. |
| • | Johnson’s 10 wins in 2007 was the highest number recorded in a single season since Jeff Gordon posted 13 victories in 1998. |
| • | The four-consecutive wins scored by the No. 48 team in the 2007 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup ties a modern-era NASCAR record. |
Career Poles
| • | Johnson has collected 25 poles in his Sprint Cup career. |
| • | The championship driver has earned at least one pole a year since his first full-time season in 2002. |
| • | He had a career-high six poles in 2008. |
| • | Johnson’s most recent pole position was at Dover International Speedway on Sept. 24, 2010. |
Career Starts
| • | Johnson has finished in the top five in the Sprint Cup Series point standings each year since his first full season in 2002. |
| • | Johnson is the only driver to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup every year since the format was adopted in 2004. |
| • | In 327 Sprint Cup Series starts, Johnson has posted 134 top-five and 203 top-10 finishes. |
| • | He has a top-five finish at every track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series circuit. |
| • | Johnson has led a total of 10,996 laps (of 94,228) in his Sprint Cup career, covering over 126,257 miles. |
| • | He has finished on the lead lap 253 times. |
Primary Car History – Chassis No. 618
| Date | Event | Start | Finish |
| 10/31/10 | Talladega | 19 | 7 |
Backup Car History – Chassis No. 482
| Date | Event | Start | Finish |
| 04/27/08 | Talladega | 10 | 13 |
| 01/05/08 | Daytona | 30 | 23 |
| 02/15/09 | Daytona | 7 | 31 |
| 11/01/09 | Talladega | 1 | 6 |
Jimmie Johnson – Budweiser Shootout Statistics
| YEAR | FINISH | HOW HE QUALIFIED TO COMPETE IN THE SHOOTOUT |
| 2010 | 13 | 2005 Bud Shootout Winner; Top six teams from each manufacturer based on final 2009 car owner points. No. 48 team finished first in standings. |
| 2009 | 14 | 2005 Bud Shootout Winner; *Top six teams from each manufacturer based on final 2008 car owner points. No. 48 team finished first in standings. (*new format) |
| 2008 | 3 | 2005 Bud Shootout Winner; Won Poles at Richmond Int’l. Raceway (9/8/07), Dover Int’l. Speedway (9/23/07), Kansas Speedway (9/30/07) and Homestead-Miami Speedway (11/18/07) |
| 2007 | 4 | 2005 Bud Shootout Winner; Won Pole Martinsville Raceway (4/2/06) |
| 2006 | 5 | 2005 Bud Shootout Winner; Won Pole at Chicagoland Speedway (7/10/05) |
| 2005 | 1 | Won Pole at Lowe’s Motor Speedway (5/30/04) |
| 2004 | 9 | Won Poles at Pocono Int’l. Raceway (6/6/03) and Kansas Speedway (10/5/03) |
| 2003 | 7 | Won Poles at Daytona Int’l. Speedway (2/9/02), Talladega Superspeedway (4/21/02), Lowe’s Motor Speedway (5/23/03) and Richmond Int’l. Raceway (9/6/02) |
