TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
AAA TEXAS 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
FORT WORTH, TEXAS
NOVEMBER 3, 2019
BOWTIE BULLETS:
CHECKING ON CHEVROLET CONTENDERS
Chevrolet drivers Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson are competing in the Round of 8 of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Heading into the eighth of 10 races – on the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway oval – a look at their success in 33 starts:
* Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 (3 wins, 11 top fives, 15 top 10s, 5 stage wins and 232 stage bonus points; 8th in points)
* Kyle Larson, No. 42 McDonald’s Camaro ZL1 (1 win, 7 top 5s, 16 top 10s, 5 stage wins and 213 stage bonus points; 7th in points)
HOW CHEVY DRIVERS HAVE FARED
How the drivers fared at Texas on March 31 and in October 2018 playoff race:
Elliott – Started 3rd, Finished 13th (March) Started 16th, Finished 6th (2018)
Larson – Started 22nd, Finished 39th – accident (March) Started 22nd, Finished 5th (2018)
Their career-best start and finish at Texas:
Elliott – Started 3rd (March 2019) Finished 4th (November 2016) *
Larson – Started 5th (November 2015, ‘16) Finished 2nd (April 2017)
* Elliott is tops among active drivers with an average finish of 8.0 at the track.
MAKING STRIDES FOR STRONG FINISH
William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1, made strides to secure a top-10 spot in the final standings with a runner-up finish after starting 11th at Martinsville. He picked up 10 points on ninth-place Brad Keselowski. Byron has five top-fives and 13 top-10s – along with five poles and two stage wins – in 33 starts.
NOVEMBERS TO REMEMBER
Career Chevy driver Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1, has seven wins at Texas Motor Speedway to pace all drivers, including a string of four in a row in November (2012-15). He also won in November 2007, April 2017 and April 2015. Johnson, the pole sitter for the March 31 race at the track, also leads all drivers with 16 top-five, 22 top-10 finishes, 26 lead-lap finishes, and 1,112 laps led in 32 races. He’s had only two DNFs.
TUNE-IN:
NBCSN will telecast the 334-lap race live at 3 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 3. The NBCSports Gold app will stream the race and live coverage can also be found on PRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
BY THE NUMBERS:
* Victories by current Chevrolet drivers at Texas Motor Speedway:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1, has seven wins (April 2017, April and November 2015, November 2014, November 2013, November 2012, November 2007).
Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1, has one win (November 2009).
* Johnson paces active drivers with 72.8% of laps in the top 15 (7,043) at the track.
* In 33 races at the track, Busch has the most poles of any driver with three (April 2018, November 2017, April 2015).
* Chevrolet has scored 13 wins and 15 poles at Texas Motor Speedway.
* Team Chevy drivers have recorded 67 top-five and 160 top-10 finishes at the track.
* Johnson needs one win to tie Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip (84) for fourth on the all-time list.
* Ty Dillon, No. 13 GEICO Military Camaro ZL1, has been running at the finish in the past 42 races – tops among current drivers.
* Chevrolet has surpassed 100 top-10 finishes for the season.
* Chevrolet has won 39 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships.
Chevrolet will be pacing the field at Texas Motor Speedway, with a Camaro SS leading the NASCAR Xfinity Series in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300, and a T1 Silverado leading the NASCAR Monster Energy Series in the AAA Texas 500.
FOR THE FANS:
· Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Texas Motor Speedway
· Fans can check out an assortment of Chevrolet vehicles including: 2020 Silverado 2500 HD Diesel, 2020 Silverado 1500 2LT, 2020 Silverado 1500 High Country, 2020 Traverse 2LT RS, 2019 Blazer RS, Colorado ZR2, and 2019 Corvette Stingray Convertible
· At the Chevrolet Display, fans can also view Chase Elliott’s No. 9 Mountain Dew Camaro ZL1 showcar
· Other activities at the Team Chevy Racing Display include a variety of interactive games for adults and kids
TEAM CHEVY QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSIONS AT THE DISPLAY:
Friday, November 1
· 2:15 p.m. – Michael Annett
Saturday, November 2
· 3:05 p.m. – Tyler Reddick
· 3:50 p.m. – Justin Haley
· 5:00 p.m. – Bubba Wallace
Sunday, November 3
· 10:00 a.m. – Kyle Larson
· 11:00 a.m. – Alex Bowman
· TBD – Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation:
· Friday, November 1st: 11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
· Saturday, November 2nd: 3:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
· Sunday, November 3rd: 8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
QUOTABLE QUOTES:
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 MCDONALD’S CAMARO ZL1 – 7th IN STANDINGS
“I’m really proud of how our team executed last weekend in Martinsville. We knew that was going to be a tough track for us, but knew we needed to have a good race to start off this round of the playoffs. We did a good job, but we know we probably need to win one of the next two races to make it into the final four. This weekend, we’ll feel a lot more confident heading to a track where we’ve had fast Camaros and some good finishes. We’ve had tire issues at three of the last four Texas races, but have been in contention each time and ran well here last fall. Texas, especially Turn 1, can be a tricky place, but I think we’ll be competitive again this time as we go for the win and spot in the next round.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 – 8th IN STANDINGS
“It’s just a different racetrack. (Turns) 3 and 4 are obviously similar with the banking and everything, but 1 and 2 have been the struggle for everyone. Obviously for us, but I think everyone struggles on that end more than 3 and 4, so it’s just a matter of minimizing our problems on the 1-2 side of the track relative to everybody else. I feel like that has been our weak point at the racetrack since they re-did it.”
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 – 10th IN STANDINGS
AFTER THE REPAVE, THE CORNERS AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY ARE VERY DIFFERENT AT EACH END. DOES THAT MEAN YOU HAVE TO COMPROMISE A LITTLE BIT OR CAN YOU BE GOOD IN BOTH AT THE SAME TIME?
“I think you can be good in both. Turns 1 and 2 was where more speed was made earlier this year and getting off Turn 2 was an important thing for a fast lap. I’ll be interested to see if Turns 3 and 4 have worn at all since we were there last though. It’s usually a pretty hot race, even in November. We had a great race there in the spring though. We weren’t position to win that early on in the season but we were in the top-five most of the day before finishing sixth. I think this time we’ll have a great opportunity to go in there and have a great run.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1 – 12th IN STANDINGS
“Our intermediate program at Hendrick (Motorsports) is pretty good. I feel like we are able to work on our cars throughout the weekend and continue to improve throughout the race. Earlier this year, we had a really good car in Texas. We had a pit road penalty in the race that kind of threw off our strategy. I am looking forward to unloading on Friday and seeing what this Valvoline Chevrolet can do.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 – 13th IN STANDINGS
“Texas was a solid race for us in the Spring. We had to work around an issue with a tire that separated, but were able to catch the issue quick enough and battle back to finish in the top-10. We felt like we had the pace to be where the No. 11 car was, the eventual winner. Texas (Motor Speedway) is as close as you can get to Kentucky (Speedway), as far as sister tracks go. This is a race that we look to win!”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 RIGUP CAMARO ZL1 – 23rd IN STANDINGS
TELL US ABOUT RACING AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY AND HOW IT DIFFERS FROM OTHER 1.5-MILE TRACKS, SUCH AS KANSAS SPEEDWAY?
“Texas Motor Speedway is a bit different from Kansas Speedway in that it has two different ends. You have one end that’s very banked and has high speeds, and then you have a hard end where you have to get turned and get back on the gas. Texas Motor Speedway just has so much grip now. It’s quite a bit different, and the banking has changed a lot from the old track to the new track. I really like Texas and am looking forward to getting there.”
BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 COVERT AUTO GROUP CAMARO ZL1 – 27th IN STANDINGS
YOU’RE GOING TO TEXAS FOR THE SECOND TIME THIS SEASON. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU LEARNED FROM THE SPRING RACE THAT CAN BE APPLIED TO THIS RACE?
“Texas Motor Speedway has a lot of speed. I think we have a good No. 43 Covert Auto Group Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 going there, so I’m excited. The place is fast! We are still trying to get the grooves widened-out more, and more. Hopefully, the track is starting to age a little with the re-pave. Our Richard Petty Motorsports team has been okay at the Texas Motor Speedway; it’s been one of our better tracks. We finished in the eighth-place there last year. We have to make sure we are hitting all of our marks, and see if we can come away with another good finish. Our 1.5-mile program has really ramped-up over the last couple of months, so we’ll keep on digging.”
Chevrolet Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Statistics
Manufacturers Championships:
Total (1949-2018): 39
First title for Chevrolet: 1958
Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)
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 (1949-2018): 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 (2007)
2019 STATISTICS:
Wins: 7
Poles: 15
Laps Led: 2,032
Top-five finishes: 43
Top-10 finishes: 105
CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 786 (1949 to date)
Poles won to date: 714
Laps led to date: 234,242
Top-five finishes to date: 4,012
Top-10 finishes to date: 8,277
Total NASCAR Cup wins by corporation, 1949 to date
General Motors: 1,120
Chevrolet: 786
Pontiac: 154
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65
Ford: 785
Ford: 685
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 191
Chrysler: 59
Toyota: 141
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.
