TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
FIREKEEPERS CASINO 400
MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
BROOKLYN, MICHIGAN
JUNE 10, 2018
BOWTIE BULLETS
MICHIGAN HERITAGE:
In 2013, Michigan International Speedway (MIS) began the tradition of honoring the winning manufacturer of each MIS race with a special trophy, the Michigan Heritage Trophy. Since the inception of the award, Chevrolet has earned six wins at MIS and has earned the prestigious award more times than any other manufacturer.
FOUR-PEAT IN THE IRISH HILLS?
Chevrolet’s Kyle Larson earned his first career Cup Series victory in the backyard of his manufacturer, Chevrolet, by taking home the hardware from Michigan International Speedway in 2016. Since then, three of his five career wins have occurred at the 2-mile track nestled in the Irish Hills of Michigan.
This weekend, Larson will go for four in a row at MIS. If he is able to achieve this feat, he will be the first driver to win four consecutive races at a venue since Kevin Harvick did it (all while driving a Chevrolet) at ISM Raceway (Fall 2013 – Spring 2015). Larson also has the opportunity to give Chevrolet an unprecedented eighth Michigan Heritage Trophy and take the all-new Camaro ZL1 to Winner’s Circle for the second time in 2018 making it the eighth different Chevy nameplate to win at the manufacturer’s home track.
CHEVY HISTORY MINUTE:
Cale Yarborough took Chevrolet to Victory Lane for the first time at Michigan International Speedway in 1977. Since then, Chevrolet has powered 14 different drivers and seven different brands to Winner’s Circle at Chevrolet’s home track.
FASTER THAN A SPEEDING…CHEVROLET:
Career-long Chevrolet driver, Jeff Gordon, holds the track qualifying record at Michigan International Speedway. Gordon posted a lap of 206.558 mph in his Chevrolet SS on August 15, 2014.
TUNE-IN:
The FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway is scheduled to begin on Sunday, June 10th. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN, and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 at 2:00 p.m.
BY THE NUMBERS:
Chevrolet has won 39 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships
Team Chevy drivers have scored 776 wins and 696 poles in MENCS competition
Chevrolet drivers have won 26 of 97 races at Michigan International Speedway. Victories by current Team Chevy drivers are:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s for Pros Camaro ZL1, has made one trip to Victory Lane at Michigan International Speedway (’14)
Kasey Kahne, No. 95 Camaro ZL1, has one victory at Michigan International Speedway (’06)
Kyle Larson, No. 42 Credit One Bank Camaro ZL1, earned his first career victory at Michigan International Speedway in 2016 and followed that up with a season sweep at the 2-mile venue in 2017 giving him three career victories at MIS
Ryan Newman, No. 31 Camaro ZL1, has two trophies from Michigan International Speedway (’03 & ’04)
A Chevrolet driver has won five of the last eight races at Michigan International Speedway
A Chevrolet driver has sat on the pole at Michigan International Speedway 27 times
Team Chevy drivers have scored 177 top-five and 356 top-10 finishes at Michigan International Speedway
A Chevrolet has led 7,122 laps (37.0% of possible 19,233 laps) at Michigan International Speedway
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 – 9TH IN STANDINGS
“What our team has been able to do at Michigan the last few races is pretty special, and I hope we can keep it up this weekend with another win. We have had good cars there just about every year I’ve raced, and I think we’ve hit on some things recently that will have us taking another fast Chevy to Michigan this time around too. Getting the setup right is important everywhere, but I feel like it’s even more important at a track like Michigan. We’re coming off a good week of executing throughout the race, so hopefully more of that can lead to another win.”
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S FOR PROS CAMARO ZL1 – 12TH IN STANDINGS
“Michigan is so big, fast and has so much grip the amount of wide open throttle you can carry around the track is the key to success. The longer you can stay in the gas pedal the faster you will be. They did a really nice job repaving the track, it’s been slow to open up a wider groove – hopefully we can get up above the middle portion of the track near the wall this time around.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 MOUNTAIN DEW/LITTLE CAESARS CAMARO ZL1 – 13TH IN STANDINGS
“Michigan has been a good track for me and my team. I don’t really know why, but I think a lot of that has been really circumstantial with our performance at that point in time. I am looking forward to getting back and hopefully giving it a good run.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 NATIONWIDE CAMARO ZL1 – 16TH IN STANDINGS
“Michigan is still super narrow, hasn’t widened out at all. I wouldn’t really say it’s aging really at all. The test was really narrow so hopefully that will come with time. I don’t know, Kansas, seemed to widen out pretty quick and some other places and Michigan just has kind of stayed how it is. We will see.
“It would be really cool to win at Michigan for Chevy. It would be a really neat experience and I think we have a shot at doing it. We were really strong there in 2016, so hopefully we can pull it off.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW SALUTES VETERANS CAMARO ZL1 – 18TH IN STANDINGS
“I think MIS is definitely getting more worn out. The temperature when we get there hopefully will be warmed up and you will see some good racing. Big track, a lot of different options and then different strategies really play into that race also.”
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 MCDONALD’S CAMARO ZL1 – 20TH IN STANDINGS
“I think that Michigan (Speedway) is one of the fastest tracks that we race at with regard to top-end speed. Carrying momentum off of turn two and four are important to have a good run down the long straightaways. The nice thing about Michigan is that it is so wide and the track offers a lot of room to find a groove that works good for the car. Our team cars have been good at Michigan recently, so we know that we have a team capable of running up front. I would guess that there will be a lot of different strategies on Sunday, as this is often a fuel-mileage race.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 – 21ST IN STANDINGS
“Michigan is really fast. I’ve been there in a truck and in a Xfinity car. The trucks are so different it’s hard to compare, but the Xfinity car was fast, so it’s a little more comparable to what the Cup car will be. You’re going down the straightaway and into the corner really quickly, so vibrations are always a lot bigger there and things happen a lot faster. That’s the biggest thing at Michigan. I had good success there last year, and I feel like our Hendrick engine package there works really well and I think that should be a key to success there this weekend. Obviously, you have to move around a little bit in the race, but the groove is fairly narrow, so you’ve got to stay disciplined the whole race.”
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 31 CAMARO ZL1 – 22ND IN STANDINGS
DARRELL ‘BUBBA’ WALLACE, NO. 43 CAMARO ZL1 – 23RD IN STANDINGS
“It’s a really big weekend for Chevrolet, us racing in their backyard. You always go to Michigan thinking about the manufacturer, especially for us since it’s our first year with Chevrolet and the Camaro ZL1. I’m visiting their plant in Lansing this week and that will be pretty cool. We have some work to do, but I think we’re all pulling in the same direction. We’re working close with our partners at Richard Childress Racing, and in our meetings, we’re saying the same thing, so I think we know where we want to improve. At the same time, I like Michigan. I’m returning to the track for a second time in the Cup car and I’m feeling good. We should show progress and have a good run for Chevrolet.”
AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 47 KROGER CLICKLIST CAMARO ZL1 – 24TH IN STANDINGS
“Michigan (International Speedway) is a place where, over the years, the track has really gotten slick and widens out. I always find it’s a challenging weekend because when you start out the weekend for practice on Friday, the track is one groove-wide and it doesn’t really widen out until the end of final practice on Saturday. It’s a challenge to get your car set up off the truck and get a good feel for the race in our No. 47 Kroger ClickList Camaro ZL1. With the high-speeds we run at a two-mile track like Michigan, I’d say Turn 3 is the most challenging. There’s a hump as you get into the corner that can get you really free. We work on getting the Kroger ClickList Camaro ZL1 comfortable getting into the corner, but it’s really fast so you still have to have a good turn and get off the corner comfortably. It’s a fast racetrack that you have to hold your breath in qualifying, then when you get next to cars in the race, you hold on and hope you make the right moves.”
CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 SCOTT’S COMFORTPLUS CAMARO ZL1 – 26TH IN STANDINGS
“Michigan (International Speedway) is a really fast racetrack. I really like that track. It’s a fun to race on and is starting to get racier every time we go. It’s come into its own a little bit slower than some of the other tracks that have undergone repaves, and it’s been really narrow. We’re starting to be able to move around and run the bottom a little bit more. You can make some time going up a little bit higher than the middle groove, too. It’s a place that I’ve enjoyed in the past and was able to get an ARCA win there years ago (in 2008). I just remember how awesome that was. It was one of my only big-track wins. It’s a place where we can go and spread out and actually start to draft a little bit there as well. I love Auto Club Speedway, and that has a lot of similarities to Michigan in terms of the size, but they’re 180-degrees different. It’s a smooth racetrack and has really held up through all the winters there very well. I’m happy it’s starting to widen out, and we’re looking forward to getting some better racing in our No. 37 Scott ComfortPlus Camaro ZL1 this weekend.”
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 95 CHEVROLET ACCESSORIES CAMARO ZL1 – 28TH IN STANDINGS
“The racing at Michigan has definitely been different the past few years since they repaved the track. It’s still different than it used to be years ago of course, but I feel like it’s a good track and it’s going to be much different this year with our new team trying to figure it all out with the new Camaros as well. Michigan has really become our fastest track on the circuit since the repave. You can move around there with the various lanes, but really, you’re always going to go slower unless you’re in what becomes the preferred lane during the weekend. The preferred lane at Michigan is a little tough to explain, but it’s basically through the middle of the track where everybody usually runs most of the time. Everyone is fighting for the limited space in that lane during the race. Restarts are crucial at Michigan as well because you can get passed pretty easily, or you can pass cars easily depending on where you start in the inside or outside lanes, and then how everybody gets through the first corner in your lane.”
TY DILLON, NO. 13 TWISTED TEA CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 – 29TH IN STANDINGS
“I ran one of my early Cup Series races at Michigan. I was running about seventh on the track, and we were going to have a really good day. We thought we were going to get a top-10 finish out of it. We decided to pit before the rain delay, but then, as luck would have it, the rain ended the race. Our team still took home a top-15 finish though. It wasn’t what we wanted, but because of that I always have confidence going to Michigan. I run well there, and our team has been building momentum these past few weeks. Every week is a big weekend for our team, and with this being one of Chevrolet’s biggest weekends of the year since we are in Michigan, I’m looking forward to getting our Twisted Tea Camaro ZL1 on track.”
Chevrolet NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series Statistics
Manufacturers Championships
Total (1949 – 2015): 39
First title for Chevrolet: 1958
Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-2015)
Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
Drivers Championships
Total (1949 – 2016): 31
First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)
Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005 – ’11)
Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016
Event Victories
Record for total race wins in single season: 26 – (in 2007)
2018 STATISTICS:
Wins: 1
Poles: 2
Laps Led: 530
Top-five finishes: 15
Top-10 finishes: 38
CHEVROLET IN NASCAR SPRINT CUP CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 776 (1949 – to date)
Poles Won to Date: 696
Laps Led to Date: 231,331
Top-Five Finishes to Date: 3,947
Top-10 Finishes to Date: 8,106
Total NASCAR Cup wins by Corporation, 1949 – To-Date
GM: 1,111
Chevrolet: 776
Pontiac: 155
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65
Ford: 765
Ford: 665
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4
Chrysler: 466
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 190
Chrysler: 59
Toyota: 116
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About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.
