TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
COKE ZERO SUGAR 400
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
DAYTONA BEACH, FL
AUGUST 29, 2020
DAYTONA: RACE #26
It’s the famed 2.5-mile superspeedway of Daytona International Speedway where the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) kicked off the 2020 season and the series return will mark the end of the regular season with the Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Saturday, August 29, at 7:30 p.m. ET. The 400-mile, 160-lap event under the lights at the “World Center of Racing” will set the stage for the Playoffs to determine the final 16-driver field that will vie for the title of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. It’s the first time in history that the famed Florida high-banked oval will host the regular season championship for NASCAR’s premier series.
NASCAR is continuing to make steps towards introducing fans to events due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and Daytona International Speedway will play a role in that process. In accordance with public health officials and local, state and federal authorities, a limited number of fans will be on hand for the event to witness the conclusion of the series’ regular season. Seating will include socially-distanced front stretch seating and those in attendance will need to adhere to all health and safety protocols in place.
RACE FOR THE PLAYOFFS
It’s race #26 on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule and there’s one last chance for drivers to secure their spot in the 10-race Playoff battle to be crowned the title of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. Heading into the Daytona International Speedway race weekend, four Team Chevy drivers have locked themselves into the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, three by virtue of victory and one has raced his way in by points:
LOCKED IN BY WINS
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hooters Camaro ZL1 1LE – 5th in Standings
Victories: 2 (Charlotte Motor Speedway and Daytona Road Course)
Stage Wins: 6; Stage Top-Five’s: 18; Stage Top-10’s: 35
Alex Bowman, No. 88 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE – 8th in Standings
Victories: 1 (Auto Club Speedway)
Stage Wins: 4; Stage Top-Five’s: 13; Stage Top-10’s: 28
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Dow VORASURF Camaro ZL1 1LE – 9th in Standings
Victories: 1 (Texas Motor Speedway)
Stage Top-Five’s: 3; Stage Top-10’s: 13
LOCKED IN BY POINTS
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE – 13th in Standings
Stage Wins: 1; Stage Top-Five’s: 4; Stage Top-10’s 20
With 13 drivers already locked in by wins or points, there are just three spots up for grabs for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Here is a look where the Playoff cutline battle stands:
14th Clint Bowyer (Ford): + 57 points
15th Matt DiBenedetto (Ford): + 9 points
16th William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 1LE: + 4 points
17th Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE: - 4 pointsBOWTIE BULLETS:
· Current Chevrolet drivers that have recorded wins at Daytona International Speedway include:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, has three wins (February 2006, February and July 2013)
Austin Dillon, No. 3 DOW VORASURF Camaro ZL1 1LE, has one win (February 2018)
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, has one win (February 2017)
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE, has one win (July 2017)
· Of the 146 appearances made by NASCAR’s premier series at “The World Center of Racing”, Chevrolet has recorded 215 top-fives, 432 top-10’s and has led 7,977 laps.
· A Chevrolet has sat on the pole at Daytona International Speedway 50 times, with 22 of them being during the summer race – the most of any manufacturer. Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hooters Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all active series drivers in poles at Daytona with three (February 2016, February 2017 and July 2018). His 2016 Daytona 500 pole made him the youngest Daytona pole winner to-date (February 21, 2016 – 20 years, 2 months, 24 days). In addition, in his 10 career starts at Daytona, Chase Elliott lead all active drivers in average starting position with 9.222.
· Of all organizations, Hendrick Motorsports leads the way in poles at the summer Daytona race with seven: Darrell Waltrip (7/2/88), Greg sacks (7/7/90), Jeff Gordon (7/6/96 and 7/3/04), Mark Martin (7/2/11), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (7/1/17), Chase Elliott (7/7/2018).
· Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all active NCS drivers in wins at Daytona with three (February 2016 and 2013 sweep). He also ties the leaderboard in number of runner-up finishes in the summer race at Daytona with three.
· In his 38 career starts at Daytona International Speedway, Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all active drivers in top-five finishes with 13 (seven in the summer race) and top-10 finishes with 18 (10 in the summer race).
· Austin Dillon, No. 3 Dow VORASURF Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all active NCS drivers in average finishing position at Daytona with 14.857 in his 15 career-starts.
· In four-career starts in the summer race at Daytona, Ty Dillon, No. 13 GEICO Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads the series in average finishing position with 8.667.
DAYTONA HISTORY BOOK
Chevrolet is no stranger to victory lane at the famed 2.5-mile high-banked oval of Daytona International Speedway. On February 20, 1959, the track held its first NCS event (100-mile qualifying race to start on the pole for the inaugural Daytona 500), in which Bob Welborn took Chevrolet to victory lane. Later in Daytona’s debut year and the track’s first summer race, Fireball Roberts put his name in the record books by taking the checkers in a Pontiac. Chevrolet or GM brands Oldsmobile and Pontiac would go on to win the first 17 races at the speedway. To-date, of the 146 NASCAR Cup Series events at Daytona, Chevrolet drivers have scored 47 victories, with Oldsmobile, Pontiac and Buick adding an additional 23 wins. The 2019 Coke Zero Sugar winner was Justin Haley, who’s first-career NCS win in his Chevrolet after a rain-shortened race made him the youngest Daytona summer race winner (7/7/2019 – 20 years, 2 months, 9 days).
STARTING LINEUP
For the remainder of the 2020 NCS season, the race weekend format will consist of no practice or qualifying. The starting lineup for Saturday’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 will be set by a combination of the following factors: finishing position from the previous race (weighted 50%), rank in team owner points standings (35%) and the fastest lap from the previous race (15%).
Here are Team Chevy’s top-20 starters:
6th William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 1LE
7th Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE
8th Alex Bowman, No. 88 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE
12th Austin Dillon, No. 3 Dow VORASURF Camaro ZL1 1LE
13th Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE
18th Tyler Reddick, No. 8 KCMG Camaro ZL1 1LE
19th Matt Kenseth, No. 42 Credit One Bank Camaro ZL1 1LETUNE-IN:
NBC will telecast the Coke Zero Sugar 400 live at 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday, August 29. NBCSports Gold will stream the race and live coverage can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 5th IN STANDINGS
“I think this weekend is all going to depend on where you are in the standings heading into the race and what you have to do or don’t have to do to make it into the playoffs. There are guys that have to win to get in, there’s guys who are right on the cutline who are trying to be consistent to advance. There are guys on offense, there’s guys on defense. Lucky for us, we are not really having to play the points game necessarily to get in, but we are still battling for regular season points finishing position because that has a direct impact on your playoff points for the final 10 races. We want to better ourselves as much as we can. Obviously, Sunday (at Dover) really killed us picking up some more points. We don’t need to do that this weekend so maybe we can move up a little bit in that regular season standings.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 8th IN STANDINGS
“Going into Daytona this weekend, it is really great knowing that we are already in the playoffs. We had a great top-five finish on Sunday in Dover, so that gives this No. 88 team and really everyone at Hendrick Motorsports some motivation going into Saturday night’s race. Daytona, and really any superspeedway, is a great track for our team. I feel like every time we go to one of these tracks, we always have a chance to bring home a win.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW VORASURF CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 9th IN STANDINGS
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE TRACK, AND WHY?
“My favorite track would probably be Daytona International Speedway, simply because of the memories there. It’s filled with history, and it’s been a fun track for me. It’s been wild there. A lot of things have happened. I’ve torn down the fence and won the Daytona 500, so I have to choose Daytona just from the historical perspective”
ARE YOU A GUY WHO LIKES TO PLAY IT CONSERVATIVELY AT SPEEDWAY RACES, OR ARE YOU A GUY THAT ACTS A LITTLE BIT MORE AGGRESSIVELY?
“It’s a good mix. I think you have to be able to just pick your battles throughout the race. If you can score some Stage points in the race that’s a nice thing. It’s an advantage going into the Playoffs. But you also have to be able to keep your car in one piece so that you can be there at the end of the race and try to win. I like to pick my battles.”
DO YOU THINK IT’S GOING TO BE STRANGE HAVING DAYTONA SERVE AS THE REGULAR SEASON FINALE THIS YEAR? THAT’S QUITE A CHANGE TO THE SCHEDULE.
“Well if Daytona wasn’t already wild enough. It’s now positioned in a spot on the schedule where it makes it extremely crazy. With the race serving as the final race to get into the Playoffs, we’re all going to be doing everything we can, obviously. We already do, but that race is just going to be extreme. I predict some crazy wrecks.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 13th IN STANDINGS
“The goal for me, I didn’t tell anybody about, at the beginning of the year was to make sure we were locked into the Playoffs before this race. The schedule change this year, putting a restrictor plate race as the cutoff for the playoffs, holds so many unknowns and variables. It is such a huge wildcard already. We didn’t want to be reliant on points in order to make into the Playoffs.”
“My congratulations to everybody on the No. 1 Monster Energy / GEARWRENCH Chevrolet team; they did their jobs with consistency. I’ve tried to make the best decisions that I possibly could out on-track to build that up. Of course, we haven’t made it to Victory Lane yet, but Daytona is a great chance for us to do that. With no concerns about points in regards to anything for the Playoffs we can just go for it. We are in position to go for a championship, so it’s just a matter of operating and executing as a team. Our first priority at Daytona is to try to get the No. 42 car a win and get them into the Playoffs. It would be huge for Chip Ganassi Racing to have both cars in the Playoffs. The second priority will be the No. 24 (William Byron) and No. 48 (Jimmie Johnson) cars, with both of them on the bubble, we want to help with Team Chevy. We’ll see how it all plays out. I’m really proud of our team and going back to Daytona this time will be just the same as it was when we raced in July; it’s just that it’s a cutoff race so the craziness is going to be at an all-time high!”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 16th IN STANDINGS
“Whatever way you look at it, no matter where we’re at, our approach isn’t going to change that much going into Daytona. You’re going to have to be aggressive in this race regardless of the situation by trying to get stage points and trying to win the race. We had a Duel win there earlier this year at Daytona, which is great. I absolutely think we can go there and be aggressive and win again. That doesn’t change after how Dover went.”
“Daytona is an accept-it-as-it-happens kind of place, which makes it a challenge. You have to go in expecting that things aren’t going to go your way, and hopefully they do. It’s one of those things that you have to go in with low expectations, try race as hard as you can, and hopefully you come out on the good side of things. No one knows exactly what to expect but I am excited and hopeful that we’ll have a good run.”
TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 KCMG CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 19th IN STANDINGS
HEADING INTO DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY THIS WEEKEND FOR THE FINAL RACE OF THE REGULAR SEASON, WHAT IS YOUR PLAN TO MAKE THE PLAYOFFS?
“It’s very simple for myself and the No. 8 KCMG team this weekend. We have to win to make the Playoffs. For a while, it was looking like if those surprise winners had not jumped us, maybe we would have made it in. These past few weeks have been tough though, so we’re on the outside looking in right now and know what we have to do to make it. We’ve had speed at times this year, so I’m looking to running a strong race on Saturday from start to finish. I’d like to run up front all day and run around the drivers I’d want to work with at the end. There is always the strategy to run in the back, but I just feel like right when it’s go time and you start moving up through the field is when the big one happens, and you’re caught up in it. So, my plan is to run up front, see who can push me well, see who I can push well, and make a game plan on who to work with at the end. I was able to do some of that at Talladega Superspeedway earlier this year, so hopefully other drivers will remember that and be willing to work with me.”
MATT KENSETH, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 28th IN STANDINGS
“It’s fun to go to Daytona, but plate racing is always unpredictable. Not sure what it will be like this weekend, since it’s the last race before the Playoffs. There are a lot of us that have to win to get in, and are going to be pushing hard to try to be in the front. You’ll also have drivers that are already in the Playoffs that are probably going to be more careful. I expect a lot of aggression out there, but also some guys who are trying to keep their spot in the points. It certainly mixes everything up and gives more of an equal opportunity to get into the post season with a win. We just need to keep from getting torn up and stay in that lead group toward the end to have a shot.”
Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics
Manufacturers Championships:
Total (1949-2019): 39
First title for Chevrolet: 1958
Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)
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 (1949-2019): 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 (2007)
2020 STATISTICS:
Wins: 4
Poles: 3
Laps Led: 1,394
Top-five finishes: 30
Top-10 finishes: 82
CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 790 (1949 to date)
Poles won to date: 717
Laps led to date: 235,700
Top-five finishes to date: 4,044
Top-10 finishes to date: 8,364
Total NASCAR Cup wins by corporation, 1949 to date
General Motors: 1,124
Chevrolet: 790
Pontiac: 154
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65
Ford: 800
Ford: 700
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 191
Chrysler: 59
Toyota: 150Team 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.
