California: A Saving Grace for Johnson, Kenseth?
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 20, 2008) – Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth are right where they want to be – sort of.
Johnson and Kenseth have been in this position before – coming off poor Daytona 500 finishes, needing success at California to right the season. The same scenario happened just a season ago. And look how that turned out.
Will Race 2 of 36 steady the ship for the two former series champions like it did last season?
In 2007, Kenseth finished 27th and Johnson finished 39th at Daytona. A week later at California? Kenseth won; Johnson came home third. Below is a statistical tale of the tape for the two drivers in the first two races last season:
Jimmie Johnson at 2007 Daytona 500 and 2007 Auto Club 500
2007 Daytona 500 Statistic 2007 Auto Club 500
39 Finish 3
54.6 Driver Rating 118.2
24.5 Average Running Position 7.4
2 Fastest Laps Run 24
0 Laps Led 31
29 Laps in the Top 15 232
82 Quality Passes 72
Matt Kenseth at 2007 Daytona 500 and 2007 Auto Club 500
2007 Daytona 500 Statistic 2007 Auto Club 500
27 Finish 1
93.5 Driver Rating 141.5
8.7 Average Running Position 3.7
9 Fastest Laps Run 23
13 Laps Led 133
190 Laps in the Top 15 234
40 Quality Passes 36
Both hope for the same fate during this Sunday’s Auto Club 500. Last Sunday, Kenseth finished 36th and Johnson finished 27th – similar results as last season.
But the stats suggest a strong run at California. Below is this season’s tale of the tape, with each driver’s California stats since 2005.
Jimmie Johnson at 2008 Daytona 500 and at California Speedway since 2005
2008 Daytona 500 Statistic California (since 2005)
27 Finish 5.8
79.9 Driver Rating 111.3
14.6 Average Running Position 7.7
3 Fastest Laps Run 99 (16.5)
1 Laps Led 119 (19.
128 Laps in the Top 15 1,381 (230.2)
127 Quality Passes 325 (54.2)
Matt Kenseth at 2008 Daytona 500 and at California Speedway since 2005
2008 Daytona 500 Statistic California (since 2005)
36 Finish 8.2
81.8 Driver Rating 113.9
14.4 Average Running Position 7.2
4 Fastest Laps Run 89 (14.8 per)
1 Laps Led 244 (40.7)
143 Laps in the Top 15 1,332 (222)
115 Quality Passes 256 (42.7)
The pre-race Driver Rating for Daytona came pretty close to the actual finish. The top-three finishers – Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart – ranked fourth, third and first, respectively, in the pre-race Daytona Driver Rating.
For more information contact:
Mike Forde, NASCAR Public Relations, (386) 681-4391 or mforde@nascar.com.
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