NASCAR Cup Series

“Last year was the first time I had raced at Pocono in the Cup car and I felt like I learned a lot during those two races. Pocono was recently repaved which has made it a fast triangle-shaped track. Pocono is tricky because all three corners are different. After last weekend it would be great if we could leave Pocono with a top-10 finish.”

“It’s definitely a tough racetrack,” Allmendinger said. “You can’t really make anything perfect. You just try to get all three corners good. It seems that if you make one perfect, the other two are horrible.”

“I think seeing the success that the team has had there in the past and seeing the success that Hendrick Motorsports has had, I think Pocono has probably been one of the places on the schedule that I’m looking forward to going to the most this year.

"Pocono, since the repave, is definitely a little easier for tuning on your car. Prior to the repave, tire wear was an issue and it was a challenging racetrack. It's a little bit better, a little smoother and definitely a lot faster since the repave. But at the same time, it's still the same old Pocono.

"Pocono is always challenging. It's three completely different turns, which makes it a completely different racetrack from anything else we race on. You've got to pick your turn. In the past, I've worked on Turn 1 too much, and Turn 3 is really where you make or break yourself.

DID YOU KNOW? … Alan Kulwicki’s final NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory came on June 14, 1992 at Pocono Raceway when he won the Champion Spark Plug 500. Kulwicki, who won five series races in his career, eventually went on to claim the championship over fellow Ford drivers Bill Elliott and Davey Allison.

With Miles the Monster rearing his ugly head in more ways than one, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 45th annual FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway.

Fred Lorenzen was one of NASCAR’s first superstars. His aggressive style on the track gained him the admiration and respect of his fellow competitors. Off the track, his blonde good looks and charisma made him a favorite among fans.

Even a ball player could appreciate Jimmie Johnson’s average at Dover, having gone 9 for 25 for a sweet .360 average. Sunday, Johnson led much of the way to lock down his second of the season. Brad Keselowski, who has a win, finished second while Matt Kenseth, who does not, was third.

For the ninth time, Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet stole the show at the Monster Mile, making it two race wins in a row and virtually guaranteeing himself a place in the Chase for the tenth consecutive year.