TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
QUAKER STATE 400 PRESENTED BY WALMART
KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY
SPARTA, KY
JULY 13, 2019
BOWTIE BULLETS:
RESURGENCE OF THE CAMARO ZL1:
For the second consecutive Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race, Chevrolet drivers finished 1-2. Alex Bowman won at Chicagoland Speedway for his initial victory and Justin Haley followed a week later at Daytona International Speedway with his first win. William Byron was runner-up to Haley in the rain-shortened race and Kyle Larson followed Bowman across the finish line. In both races, Team Chevy placed five drivers in the top 10. Chevrolet has won the pole the past two races it has been contested and leads all manufacturers with 10 pole starts.
YOUNG VISITORS TO WINNER’S CIRCLE:
Daytona victor Haley (20 years, 2 months, 9 days) is the third-youngest winner in MENCS history. The top 10 also includes current Team Chevy driver Chase Elliott (22 years, 8 months, 8 days at Watkins Glen in 2018), career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordon, who was 22 years, 9 months, 25 days when he won at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1994, former Chevrolet driver Kyle Busch (20 years, 4 months, 2 days at California Speedway in 2005), Fireball Roberts in GM brand Oldsmobile (21 years, 6 months, 24 days at Hillsboro Speedway in 1950), and Bobby Hillin in GM brand Buick (22 years, 1 months, 22 days at Talladega Superspeedway in 1986).
TUNE-IN:
NBCSN will telecast the Quaker State 400 presented by Walmart live at 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday, July 13. NBCSports Gold will stream the race and live coverage can also be found on PRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
BY THE NUMBERS:
* Numbers of note by current Team Chevy drivers at the 1.5-mile Kentucky Speedway:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1, and Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1, have five top-10 finishes in the eight races.
* Johnson in 2012 is among the five pole winners at the track. Career Chevrolet driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. claimed the pole in 2013.
* Kentucky Speedway is the only racetrack on the MENCS schedule where a Chevrolet driver or team has not won.
* Team Chevy drivers have recorded 13 top-five and 31 top-10 finishes at Kentucky Speedway.
* William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1, has completed 99.75 percent of the laps through 18 races. Johnson and Busch have completed 99.69 percent.
* Chevrolet drivers combined to lead 60 laps in the 1-4 finish at Daytona International Speedway, surpassing 233,450 laps led since 1949.
* Chevrolet has won 39 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships.
* Team Chevy drivers have scored 782 wins and 709 poles in MENCS competition.
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 NATIONWIDE CAMARO ZL1 – 9th IN STANDINGS
“It is going to be exciting going back to a mile and a half track this weekend. Last year in Kentucky it didn’t end well. We are hoping that with our recent success at a track this size, we will have a good weekend. This Nationwide team has been working hard on our programs and it is definitely paying off.”
“Having the Nationwide Children’s Hospital on our Chevrolet this weekend is definitely special. Seeing these amazing patient champions at track is always great and carrying their names on the decklid this weekend will be an honor. I have been to the hospital multiple times and it is such an amazing facility. The work that they are able to do there helps so many kids and it is an honor to carry these butterflies on the car this weekend.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 – 12th IN STANDINGS
“You know, Kentucky has lost a lot of grip quickly. They repaved it less than five years ago and it has really gotten greyer and greyer each year. I’m sure it’s going to be even more slick this year when we go back. It’s one of those tracks that takes a while to get rubber, so you just have to almost wait for that process to happen and make sure you tune your car to the rubber and not the clean track. That’s really all I’m worried about is once the rubber lays down you know it’s going to be a different race track.”
CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 PLANTERS CAMARO ZL1 – 21st IN STANDINGS
“This weekend at Kentucky Speedway is a special race for us. Kroger’s headquarters is a short drive away in Cincinnati, and we have a lot of guests and support coming to the track. That just brings up our level of excitement because we want to put on a good show for everyone there that supports us throughout the entire season. As far as the racing goes, the new package and racing at night on 1.5-mile tracks has been on my side this season. We were able to get a top-10 finish at Kansas Speedway and at Charlotte Motor Speedway earlier in the year, so that gives us a lot of good momentum heading into Kentucky. After a rough start to the season, we’ve been on an upswing since that Kansas race, and I’m looking forward to building on that this weekend. Getting into the Playoffs is still going to be really tough, but we’re as close as we’ve been in my three years at JTG Daugherty Racing and that is something we are all proud of and keeps us hungry for more.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AAA CAMARO ZL1 – 22nd IN STANDINGS
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS GOING INTO KENTUCKY?
“Kentucky is one of those places I’ve always been pretty decent at, going back to the NASCAR Truck Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series days. We were able to win there, and any time that you head into a track that you’ve been successful at in the past you go in with some confidence. The repave is a few years old now so it should be fun to see how that’s shaping up. We will look forward to Kentucky as one of those places that we feel like we can run well at. At this point, we need a win in order to make it into the Playoffs and that is our goal.”
TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO MILITARY CAMARO ZL1 – 23rd IN STANDINGS
“Every time we go somewhere new with this package it’s a different game. So, we don’t really know what to expect this weekend. This first year has been all about learning the ins and outs of this package and growing with it. Hopefully, as we continue to dial in this package, it will get stronger and stronger and feel pretty good at tracks like Kentucky. I’m looking forward to getting my GEICO Military Camaro ZL1 on track because Kentucky is a stronger track for me. I’ve had pretty solid runs in the Cup Series and the Xfinity Series, and I’ve won a Truck Series race there. It’s definitely a track that I have a lot of confidence at.”
RYAN PREECE, NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 – 26th IN STANDINGS
“I’m looking forward to heading to Kroger’s home track this weekend at Kentucky Speedway. Chris (Buescher) and I are fortunate enough to be heading up there early and spending time with all of our great partners in Cincinnati, and it only adds to how special the weekend is for them. This will be my first Cup start at Kentucky, but I’ve had a top-five run there in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and I know our 1.5-mile program at JTG Daugherty Racing is only getting stronger each week. We haven’t had some of the finishes we’ve been hoping for, but all we can do is continue to build our notebook and strive to get better every week.”
BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 VICTORY JUNCTION CAMARO ZL1 – 28th IN STANDINGS
“When we think about the Kentucky Speedway, we think about the entry into Turn 3 and how flat it is there. And, I know the old repave was our worst nightmare on the schedule – just because it is so hard to keep traction in the rear of the car when you entered in that corner, especially on long runs. With the new repave though, it’s added a little bit of grip back but the ‘getting light and kind of going over the hill’ feeling is still here. So, it’s still a challenge within itself. Kentucky Speedway is such a smooth race track now. It’s fast. With the package we had last year, we were almost wide-open in Turn 1 and Turn 2. Now this year, we will definitely be wide-open. Turn 3 will be exciting to see how this new package will go hand-in-hand with that, and see what kind of challenges it will provide there. I’ve always enjoyed going to Kentucky and we’ve always had a lot of success there and hope to continue that with our No. 43 Victory Junction Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 on Saturday night.”
Chevrolet Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Statistics
Manufacturers Championships
Total (1949 – 2018): 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 – 2018): 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)
2019 STATISTICS:
Wins: 3
Poles: 10
Laps Led: 1204
Top-five finishes: 24
Top-10 finishes: 58
CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 782 (1949 – to date)
Poles Won to Date: 709
Laps Led to Date: 233,459
Top-Five Finishes to Date: 3,993
Top-10 Finishes to Date: 8,230
Total NASCAR Cup wins by Corporation, 1949 – To-Date
GM: 1,115
Chevrolet: 782
Pontiac: 155
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65
Ford: 782
Ford: 682
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4
Chrysler: 466
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 190
Chrysler: 59
Toyota: 132
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
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.
