CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY (1.5-MILE OVAL)
LOCATION: JOLIET, ILLINOIS
EVENT: NASCAR CUP SERIES (RACE 17 OF 36)
TUNE IN: 2:30 P.M. ET, SUNDAY, JULY 1 (NBCSN/MRN/SIRIUSXM)
Chase Elliott
No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Chase Elliott Hometown Dawsonville, Georgia
Age 22 Resides Dawsonville, Georgia
2018 Season
13th in standings
16 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
4 top-five finishes
8 top-10 finishes
8 laps led
Career
93 starts
0 wins
3 pole positions
26 top-five finishes
46 top-10 finishes
926 laps led
Track Career
2 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
2 top-five finishes
2 top-10 finishes
117 laps led
NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1: NAPA AUTO PARTS will return to the hood of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. The Atlanta-based company will serve as majority sponsor for Chase Elliott and the No. 9 team for 26 NASCAR Cup Series races this year.
CHICAGOLAND STATS: This weekend, Elliott will make his third Cup Series start at Chicagoland Speedway. In his 2016 start at the 1.5-mile track, Elliott qualified 14th and finished third after leading 75 laps, making him one of just six drivers to earn a top-five finish at Chicagoland as a rookie. He followed that in 2017 by leading 42 laps en route to a second-place result. His average finish of 2.5 is the best of all active drivers at a single track. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native has led a total of 117 laps at the venue, ranking him second to teammate Jimmie Johnson (695 laps) for most laps led at the 1.5-mile track without a win. It is one of five venues on the Cup circuit where Elliott has led at least 100 laps. He also has four NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Chicagoland – collecting a win in his first start at the speedway in July 2014. In the four Xfinity starts, he averaged a starting position of 7.5 and finishing position of 9.8.
GUSTAFSON AT CHICAGOLAND: No. 9 team crew chief Alan Gustafson will call his 14th Cup Series race from atop the pit box at Chicagoland Speedway this weekend. In his previous 13 races calling the shots for five different drivers at the Joliet, Illinois, track, Gustafson has collected one win in 2009 with Mark Martin, five top-five finishes – two of which were runner-up results – six top-10s and 403 laps led.
SONOMA REWIND: Elliott started and finished in the top five at the 110-lap event at Sonoma Raceway last weekend, posting his best career road course result of fourth. The fourth-place finish also gave Elliott and the No. 9 team their third consecutive top-10, the team’s longest streak of the season.
DOUBLE DUTY: In addition to his full-time duty piloting the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the Cup Series, Elliott will once again compete in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race driving the No. 23 Chevrolet for GMS Racing on Saturday at Chicagoland Speedway. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native will also drive the No. 23 Chevy in the upcoming Daytona (July 6) and Bristol (Aug. 17) Xfinity races.
William Byron
No. 24 UniFirst Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver William Byron Hometown Charlotte, North Carolina
Age 20 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina
2018 Season
20th in standings
16 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
1 top-10 finish
31 laps led
Career
16 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
1 top-10 finish
31 laps led
Track Career
0 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
0 top-10 finishes
0 laps led
UNIFIRST RETURNS: UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF), a North American leader in providing customized work uniform programs, corporate attire and facility service products, will return for its second race as the primary partner of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. The workwear provider is the primary partner on the No. 24 Chevy for four total races in 2018, making its debut at Pocono Raceway for the June race weekend. After Chicagoland, the No. 24 UniFirst Chevrolet, whose paint scheme incorporates the company’s signature green and white colors, will run at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sept. 30 and Kansas Speedway on Oct. 21. The 2018 season marks the second of an eight-year agreement with Hendrick Motorsports that names UniFirst as a primary sponsor of select races and a full-season associate sponsor of the No. 24 team through 2023. UniFirst is the official workwear provider for Hendrick Motorsports and sister company Hendrick Automotive Group, which is the largest privately held retail automotive organization in the United States.
BYRON AT CHICAGO: While this weekend marks William Byron’s first NASCAR Cup Series start at Chicagoland Speedway, he has raced at the 1.5-mile track in both the NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series. Byron has always shown speed in qualifying at the track, but various circumstances have affected his finishes. In the Xfinity Series last season, he qualified eighth before transmission issues relegated him to a 33rd-place result. In the Truck Series in 2016, Byron qualified ninth but an on-track incident on Lap 40 ended his day, resulting in a 30th-place finish. However, the Joliet, Illinois, track is one that he enjoys, so Byron and the No. 24 team will look to secure a solid finish this weekend.
CHICAGOLAND, HISTORICALLY: Six Cup drivers have earned top-five finishes in their rookie starts at Chicagoland over the past 15 years, including two of Byron’s Hendrick Motorsports teammates – Jimmie Johnson in 2002 (fourth) and Chase Elliott in 2016 (third). While driving the No. 24 Chevy, Jeff Gordon racked up seven top-five finishes at Chicagoland including a win in 2006. Current No. 24 team crew chief Darian Grubb earned a victory at the track with Tony Stewart in 2011, the same year the duo won the Cup championship.
YOUTH AUTOGRAPH SESSION: On Sunday at 10 a.m. local time, Byron will participate in a NASCAR youth autograph session at the Kids Club display in Champions Park in the Chicagoland midway. Wristband pickup for the kids-only autograph session begins at 9 a.m. local time, and the session is open to the first 100 kids with wristbands.
SONOMA RECAP: Byron and the No. 24 team had a solid weekend at Sonoma Raceway in the rookie’s first NASCAR Cup Series road course event. Byron was the top-finishing Cup rookie in Sunday’s 110-lap race, coming home with a top-25 finish. The 20-year-old pulled double duty during the Sonoma, California, race weekend, driving the No. 27 Liberty University Chevy in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West (NKNPSW) race on Saturday in addition to his primary No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet in the Cup race on Sunday. He qualified well in both series, starting second for the NKNPSW race in which he earned a third-place finish, and rolling off the grid in eighth for Sunday’s Cup race before finishing 25th. Byron is 74 points out of the 16th-place position in the overall Cup driver standings with 10 races to go before the playoffs.
Jimmie Johnson
No. 48 Lowe’s for Pros Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Jimmie Johnson Hometown El Cajon, California
Age 42 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina
2018 Season
12th in standings
16 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
2 top-five finishes
6 top-10 finishes
2 laps led
Career
595 starts
83 wins
35 pole positions
224 top-five finishes
347 top-10 finishes
18,665 laps led
Track Career
16 starts
0 wins
2 pole positions
7 top-five finishes
11 top-10 finishes
695 laps led
SO CLOSE AT CHICAGO: The 695 laps Jimmie Johnson has the led around Chicagoland Speedway are the most all-time of any driver in NASCAR Cup Series history. The No. 48 Lowe’s for Pros team has won two pole positions at the track but has yet to find Victory Lane. Three of Johnson’s seven top-five finishes at Chicagoland have been runner-up results – the closest was on July 12, 2008, when Johnson was edged out by competitor Kyle Busch in a wild finish and the margin of victory was a mere 0.159 seconds.
ONE OF THREE: Chicagoland is one of just three tracks on the Cup Series circuit where Johnson has not scored one of his 83 career wins. The other tracks are Watkins Glen and Kentucky.
CHAD KNAUS, A LEGEND: Rockford, Illinois, native and longtime No. 48 team crew chief Chad Knaus will be inducted into the Chicagoland Speedway Legend’s Club at 10:30 a.m. local time on Sunday, July 1. The Legends Club, located in Chicagoland Speedway Suite Tower, Room 506, has featured some of the most storied figures, families and personalities in the sport. Since its inception, the Legends Club has honored and recognized some of the most notable drivers in the sport, including Brett Bodine, Richard Childress, Richard Petty, Joe Nemechek, Bill Elliott, Rusty Wallace, Fred Lorenzen, Dale Jarrett, Kyle Petty and Jeff Burton. Media are invited to cover the event – contact Denny Hartwig at dhartwig@chicagolandspeedway.com for more information.
CHICAGO TIES: Tanner Andrews, front-tire changer for the No. 48 team, hails from North Aurora, Illinois, and graduated from Northern Michigan University with a degree in criminal justice. He was a four-year Greco-Roman wrestling standout and trained at the United States Olympic Education Center. Andrews was recognized as one of two recipients of the 2012 Jacob Curby Memorial Award, which is presented annually to a wrestler from each of USA Wrestling’s Olympic Training Centers for displaying strong personal character and commitment. He was a 2011 University Nationals champion at 70 kilograms and also won a bronze medal at the 2011 Dave Schultz Memorial International Championships. Andrews wrestled at the US Open four times and placed fourth in his final tournament.
SEVEN CUPS AND A ‘BYRNSIE’: Last Sunday at Sonoma, Johnson was honored by FOX with the Byrnsie Award. The award was established to celebrate an individual in the NASCAR Cup Series who showcases the same principles late FOX broadcaster Steve Byrnes embodied — preparation, teamwork and family within the garage area. Byrnes’ son Bryson presented Johnson with the fourth annual Byrnsie via video. Steve Byrnes was a celebrated member of the media and passed away in April 2015 following a courageous battle with cancer. Johnson and Byrnes were close friends and Johnson remains close with Byrnes’ son as well as his wife, Karen. Click here to see the award presentation.
83 AND COUNTING: Johnson’s next trip to Victory Lane will be his 84th points-paying NASCAR Cup Series win. He secured his 83rd in June 2017 to tie NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough for sixth on the all-time wins list. An 84th win would tie Hall of Famers Darrell Waltrip and Bobby Allison for fourth all-time. Johnson is currently 10 wins behind former teammate Jeff Gordon, who has 93 victories and is third on the list. Johnson has the most wins of all active drivers and Knaus has the most wins of all active crew chiefs with 81.
Alex Bowman
No. 88 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Alex Bowman Hometown Tucson, Arizona
Age 25 Resides Mooresville, North Carolina
2018 Season
15th in standings
16 starts
0 wins
1 pole position
1 top-five finish
5 top-10 finishes
65 laps led
Career
97 starts
0 wins
2 pole positions
1 top-five finish
8 top-10 finishes
268 laps led
Track Career
3 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
1 top-10 finish
6 laps led
AXALTA: The Axalta colors will be on board the No. 88 Camaro ZL1 this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. It marks the fifth time this season that Axalta’s primary colors will adorn the No. 88 machine. Axalta has been the primary partner twice at the 1.5-mile track, once with Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2017 and once with Alex Bowman in 2016, when he finished 10th.
BOWMAN IN CHICAGO: Bowman has three starts at Chicagoland in the NASCAR Cup Series, with his best finish of 10th coming back in 2016 when he was the substitute driver for Earnhardt in the No. 88 Chevy. In addition to finishing in the top 10, Bowman also led six laps during the event. The 25-year-old driver has three starts at the track in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, including his best qualifying effort of eighth in 2013. A year prior in 2012, Bowman made one start at the track in the ARCA Racing Series, qualifying seventh and finishing eighth.
IVES IN CHICAGO: Crew chief Greg Ives has called the shots three times for the No. 88 team at Chicagoland, logging one top-10 finish at the Illinois-based track with Bowman in 2016. As a crew chief in the Xfinity Series, Ives has one win with Chase Elliott in 2014 and two top-10 finishes. From 2006-2012, Ives was a race engineer for the No. 48 team and captured five top-10 finishes, including two runner-up results. During his seven years with the No. 48 Chevrolet, the team led 458 laps at the track.
SONOMA REWIND: Last weekend, Bowman and the No. 88 Axalta team captured their fifth top-10 finish of the 2018 season after finishing the 110-lap event at Sonoma Raceway in the ninth position. The Tucson, Arizona, native finished Stage 1 in the 33rd position after the team made a green-flag pit stop just prior to the end of the stage. Bowman restarted 10th for Stage 2 and maintained his position on track throughout much of that stage, finishing the segment in seventh and earning valuable stage points. Bowman continued to race near the top 10 for most of the final stage, ultimately finishing ninth.
Hendrick Motorsports
HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AT CHICAGO: At Chicagoland Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports has two wins, four pole positions, 22 top-five finishes and 33 top-10s. Mark Martin most recently visited Victory Lane for the organization at the track in 2009.
STRONG ‘WINDY CITY’ SHOWINGS: Since the inaugural race held at Chicagoland Speedway in 2001, Hendrick Motorsports has led laps in all 17 races at the track and has had at least one car finish inside the top 10 in all but two.
PLAYOFF POSITIONING: Hendrick Motosports is one of four NASCAR Cup Series teams with at least three drivers currently in position to make the 16-driver field for the playoffs. The organization’s three drivers in playoff position are tied for the second-most behind Stewart-Haas Racing’s four.
250 ON THE HORIZON: The next points-paying win by a Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet will be the organization’s milestone 250th in NASCAR Cup Series competition. With 268 Cup victories, only Petty Enterprises has more. Junior Johnson and Associates is third all-time at 153 wins, followed by Joe Gibbs Racing with 152 and Roush Fenway Racing with 137.
16 MAKES 249: Sixteen different drivers have contributed to Hendrick Motorsports’ total of 249 points-paying Cup wins. Only the Wood Brothers team, which has sent 19 different drivers to Victory Lane, has more. Junior Johnson and Associates won with 13 different drivers.
FIRST-TIME WINNERS: If Chase Elliott, William Byron or Alex Bowman wins at Chicagoland, it will mark the ninth time a driver has recorded his first career Cup Series win while driving for Hendrick Motorsports. Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Fenway Racing share the all-time record, having each sent eight first-time winners to Victory Lane in Cup Series competition.
ORGANIZATION STATS: To date, Hendrick Motorsports has totals of 12 championships, 249 race victories, 214 pole positions, 1,036 top-five finishes and 1,760 top-10 finishes in points-paying NASCAR Cup Series competition. Its teams have led more than 67,000 laps since 1984.
QUOTABLE /
Chase Elliott on what makes Chicagoland unique:
“The surface, for sure. It hadn’t been paved in a while, one of the older surfaces that we race on. The racetrack is pretty friendly to moving around and lets everybody kind of spread out, which is always fun. It has a good feel to it. It has some bumps and some character, which is nice, and I have always enjoyed racing there.”
William Byron on racing at Chicagoland:
“Chicagoland is a fun racetrack. It’s probably going to be the hottest race of the year, so I can’t say that’s something I’m going to look forward to (laughs). But, I like Chicago and how you can run against the fence there. I had a parts failure in the transmission there last year (in the NASCAR Xfinity Series), but I was able to just run some laps and run laps on the top. I feel like it’s very similar to Homestead in that aspect, so you go there with the same mentality you have at Homestead – you try to move around and work your car in the different lanes to figure out something that works.”
Jimmie Johnson on racing at Chicagoland:
“After my first Cup Series win in 2003 at my home track in California, I made a promise to (No. 48 team crew chief) Chad (Knaus) that we would win at his home track in Chicago. We have had a few opportunities and just haven’t been able to close the deal. I love the track. It’s a very fun 1.5-mile track. The asphalt is really porous at Chicagoland, so tire wear will be high. The track should be more racy with higher temperatures since we are racing there in July instead of September, so it should be a great show for the fans.”
Alex Bowman on racing at Chicagoland:
“I feel like we can go there and be strong. We have done a lot of work on our intermediate package since we started with it in Atlanta. I think it’s come a long way. I think we should be pretty good there.”
Bowman on Chicagoland versus Kansas:
“Chicago and Kansas look similar, but they drive different. Chicago is so bumpy compared to Kansas. They would be comparable if they paved the track, but since it hasn’t been repaved, it is quite a bit different.”
