Pocono Raceway Data
Season Race #: 21 of 36 (08-02-15)
Track Size: 2.5-miles
Banking/Turn 1: 14 degrees
Banking/Turn 2: 8 degrees
Banking/Turn 3: 6 degrees
Frontstretch Length: 3,740 feet
Backstretch Length: 3,055 feet
Shortstretch Length: 1,780 feet
Race Length: 160 laps / 400 miles
Top 10 Driver Ratings at Pocono
Denny Hamlin 108.3
Jimmie Johnson 106.9
Kurt Busch 105.9
Jeff Gordon 103.5
Tony Stewart 97.6
Kyle Larson 95.7
Ryan Newman 95.3
Carl Edwards 94.2
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 92.6
Kasey Kahne 92.1
Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2015 races (21 total) among active drivers at Pocono Raceway.
Qualifying/Race Data
2014 pole winner:
Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
183.438 mph, 49.063 secs, 08-01-14
2014 race winner:
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet
127.411 mph, (03:08:22), 08-03-14
Track qualifying record:
Kyle Larson, Chevrolet
183.438 mph, 49.610 secs, 08-03-14
Track race record:
Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet
145.384 mph, (03:26:21), 06-12-11
Pocono Driver Tale of the Tape
Kurt Busch (No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet)
· Two wins, 12 top fives, 16 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 12.421, eighth-best
· Average Running Position of 10.246, second-best
· Driver Rating of 105.9, third-best
· 332 Fastest Laps Run, sixth-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.733, second-fastest
· 2659 Laps in the Top 15 (77.0), second-most
· 774 Quality Passes, seventh-most
Dale Earnhardt Jr (No. 88 MICROSOFT Chevrolet)
· Two wins, nine top fives, 13 top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 15.900, 11th-best
· Average Running Position of 14.002, 10th-best
· Driver Rating of 92.6, ninth-best
· 102 Fastest Laps Run, third-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.237, eighth-fastest
· 2286 Laps in the Top 15 (63.3), eighth-most
· 727 Quality Passes, eighth-most
Carl Edwards (No. 19 STANLEY Toyota)
· Two wins, five top fives, eight top 10s
· Average finish of 15.500, 10th-best
· Average Running Position of 14.826, 13th-best
· Driver Rating of 94.2, eighth-best
· 176 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.224, ninth-fastest
· 2262 Laps in the Top 15 (62.6), 10th-most
· 712 Quality Passes, ninth-most
Jeff Gordon (No. 24 AARP Member Advantages Chevrolet)
· Six wins, 19 top fives, 31 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 9.650, second-best
· Average Running Position of 9.916, series-best
· Driver Rating of 103.5, fourth-best
· 169 Fastest Laps Run, 12th-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.625, fifth-fastest
· 2777 Laps in the Top 15 (76.9), third-most
· 885 Quality Passes, series-most
Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota)
· Four wins, nine top fives, 13 top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 11.889, seventh-best
· Average Running Position of 10.844, fourth-best
· Driver Rating of 108.3, series-best
· 437 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.806, series-fastest
· 2543 Laps in the Top 15 (79.3), series-most
· 685 Quality Passes, 10th-most
Kevin Harvick (No. 4 Jimmy John's/Budweiser Chevrolet)
· Seven top fives, 11 top 10s
· Average finish of 10.600, fifth-best
· Average Running Position of 13.743, eighth-best
· Driver Rating of 91.9, 11th-best
· 63 Fastest Laps Run, eighth-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.159, 10th-fastest
· 2277 Laps in the Top 15 (63.0), ninth-most
· 789 Quality Passes, sixth-most
Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Kobalt Tools Chevrolet)
· Three wins, 11 top fives, 18 top 10s; three poles
· Average finish of 10.500, third-best
· Average Running Position of 10.487, third-best
· Driver Rating of 106.9, second-best
· 273 Fastest Laps Run, 10th-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.708, third-fastest
· 2774 Laps in the Top 15 (76.8), fourth-most
· 861 Quality Passes, fourth-most
Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Aquafina Chevrolet)
· Two wins, five top fives, eight top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 18.750, 13th-best
· Average Running Position of 14.622, 11th-best
· Driver Rating of 92.1, 10th-best
· 306 Fastest Laps Run, series-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.436, sixth-fastest
· 2199 Laps in the Top 15 (60.9), 11th-most
· 804 Quality Passes, fifth-most
Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Alliance Truck Parts Ford)
· One win, three top fives, four top 10s
· Average finish of 13.400, ninth-best
· Average Running Position of 14.786, 12th-best
· Driver Rating of 90.8, 12th-best
· 96 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 161.894, 13th-fastest
· 852 Laps in the Top 15 (50.1), 13th-most
· 306 Quality Passes, 12th-most
Kyle Larson (No. 42 Suave Men Chevrolet)
· One top five, two top 10s; one pole
· Average finish of 8.000, series-best
· Average Running Position of 12.672, seventh-best
· Driver Rating of 95.7, sixth-best
· 2 Fastest Laps Run, 13th-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.690, fourth-fastest
· 230 Laps in the Top 15 (71.9), seventh-most
· 87 Quality Passes, 13th-most
Joey Logano (No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford)
· One win, three top fives, five top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 16.583, 12th-best
· Average Running Position of 13.811, ninth-best
· Driver Rating of 88.9, 13th-best
· 61 Fastest Laps Run, second-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.097, 12th-fastest
· 1190 Laps in the Top 15 (56.6), 12th-most
· 456 Quality Passes, 11th-most
Ryan Newman (No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet)
· One win, nine top fives, 14 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 10.500, fourth-best
· Average Running Position of 11.426, fifth-best
· Driver Rating of 95.3, seventh-best
· 36 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.135, 11th-fastest
· 2689 Laps in the Top 15 (74.4), fifth-most
· 883 Quality Passes, second-most
Tony Stewart (No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 Chevrolet)
· Two wins, 12 top fives, 22 top 10s; two poles
· Average finish of 10.600, sixth-best
· Average Running Position of 12.223, sixth-best
· Driver Rating of 97.6, fifth-best
· 99 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-best
· Average Green Flag Speed of 162.319, seventh-fastest
· 2619 Laps in the Top 15 (72.5), sixth-most
· 880 Quality Passes, third-most
Windows 10 400 Preview
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com
The big story this week at Pocono Raceway is Kyle Busch going for his fourth straight win, something we haven't seen done since 2007. It's hard to bet against someone on such a roll, but there are plenty of reasons to suggest he won't win starting with the fact that the race set-up goes back to being the one used for most of the season and not either of the two he won with at Kentucky or Indy. He also has never won at Pocono.
After missing the first 11 races of the season due to breaking his leg during a crash in the Xfinity Series opener at Daytona, no one has been better than Busch in his nine races since coming back. His win Sunday at the Brickyard was his third straight on the schedule and fourth in the past five races. The Las Vegan now sits only 21 points behind Justin Allgaier for that coveted 30th-place position in points which would allow him to be eligible for the Chase that begins Sept. 20 at Chicagoland.
Busch has failed miserably in every Chase he’s participated in. He’s been outstanding through most of his career during the first 26 races, but for whatever reason he mentally runs out of fuel in the final 10 races when the chips are all on the line. Things might be a little different in his own mind this season because by the time the Chase starts it’ll technically only be his 15th race of the season. Maybe he can play this Chase out like it’s just another race and use it his advantage.
Prior to the season the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook had Busch at 10/1 odds (Bet $100 to win $1,000) to win the Sprint Cup. After he got hurt, the Westgate didn’t drop him too low at 25/1 just because they knew mathematically he could still get in the Chase on points by winning at least one race. However, as things started looking bleak as he missed so many races, Busch got as high as 75-to-1 odds, but got little takers. By the time he made his season debut in the Coca-Cola 600 he was adjusted down to 15/1 odds. Now he’s 5/1 as the second choice on the board, just behind Kevin Harvick at 4/1 odds.
This is one of the most amazing turnarounds I’ve ever seen in NASCAR, where not only the driver, but a team shifted so well in a positive direction. Joe Gibbs Racing has not been at their best this season, but they've got more wins than any team. They’ve made the most of things with all these new packages NASCAR has been throwing at the series and have taken advantage on the smaller tracks and lone road course.
What’s most amazing about Busch winning three straight races is that he’s done it with three different packages. He won at Kentucky with the new aero-package, then at New Hampshire with the regular set-up and then Sunday with the high-drag package. And if you really want to call him the diversity King, throw in his road course win at Sonoma five races ago in late June.
When looking at Busch’s body of work, it’s impressive, but it’s also been helped all the NASCAR changes. Before running the window and betting Busch to win the title, consider that during the Chase, they’ll return to the set-up for all 10 races that the season started with, a set-up that JGR drivers had a rough time with on 1.5-mile tracks, and one that Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. and Jimmie Johnson thrived with. Half of the races during the Chase are on 1.5-mile tracks.
Busch will try to make it four straight wins this Sunday on Pocono's tricky 2.5-mile triangle, which will be the first time we’ll see a track for the second time on the season. Martin Truex Jr. dominated the June 6 race leading 97 laps for his first and only win of the season. Harvick finished second (he's been runner-up nine times this season) and led 39 laps in that race. Only six drivers led laps. Kyle Busch would finish ninth.
There are no unique set-ups this week at Pocono. It’ll be racing similar to what we saw in the first race which means little passing and the cream rising to the top. Harvick has never won at Pocono in 29 starts, but he has finished second in his past two starts. He hasn’t won this season since the fourth race at Phoenix, and surprisingly he hasn’t even finished second since Pocono seven races ago. He’ll be very happy to get back into his old set-up this week and is the easy favorite to win.
Johnson is a three-time winner at Pocono with a 9.6 average finish in 27 starts. He finished third in the June event and last won in 2013. He's also the last driver to win four straight races (2007). Prior to Johnson, it was his boss Jeff Gordon in 1998 who was the last to win four straight. In both instances, they won titles the same season.
Gordon leads all active drivers with six Pocono wins and has a 9.9 average finish over 45 starts. Sunday will be his last start on the triangle and he’s still searching for his first win of 2015. In what was supposed to be a glorious send off for one of the greatest drivers ever is turning out to be one of his worst seasons ever with only two top-five finishes through 20 races.
I don't like Kyle Busch this week, but I do love his brother. Kurt Busch started on the pole and finished fifth in the first Pocono race and has two wins there over his career. He should have a car similar to Harvick’s, but way better odds on the board at about 10/1 odds.
Top-5 Finish Prediction:
1) #41 Kurt Busch (10/1)
2) #4 Kevin Harvick (9/2)
3) #78 Martin Truex Jr. (8/1)
4) #48 Jimmie Johnson (7/1)
5) #88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (10/1)
Drivers to Watch - Pocono
By Sportsbook.ag
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series continues its season in the second visit to Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania, with the first being the Axalta “We Paint Winners” 400 back in early June.
Last year, Dale Earnhardt Jr. completed the sweep at this track, winning each time despite a very close finish, but he fell off quite a bit in this year’s installment with a finish of 11th.
In that race, Martin Truex Jr. continued his fantastic season with a victory in 3:08:22 as his average speed of 127.411 MPH was the slowest in this event since 2009.
Last week, six different drivers were able to lead at least five laps at The Brickyard, and despite Kevin Harvick leading the most (75), it was Kyle Busch who started in ninth that took down his fourth win in just his ninth start on the year.
Let’s go through the entrants for this week and find a few racers who may be able to take down the checkered flag at this 2.5-mile, triangular course.
Drivers to Watch
Kyle Busch (6/1) - Busch is on too much of a tear right now to not drop some units on him, as he has won in each of the last three events and four of the last five. He has never taken the checkered flag when running at Pocono in 21 attempts, but has two top-eight finishes over his last four attempts; including a runner-up performance in 2011. His average finish here (18.3) is on the poor side compared to his career average in all races (15.1), but there is no one doing better than Busch at the moment and there is no reason why this tremendous run cannot continue in Pennsylvania.
Martin Truex Jr. (7/1) - Truex Jr. is in the midst of a career season at the age of 35 and earlier this year was able to conquer this course and win for just the third time in the Sprint Cup Series. His consistency has been amazing and he has done just as well as anybody in getting into the top-10, doing so in 15-of-20 races (75%) while getting into the top-five a total of six times. All of this success has aided him into a current standing of sixth in the Sprint Cup Series, but he has not excelled in his last four times out, doing no better than 12th in New Hampshire and his finishes have continued to get worse since; ending in a 42nd last week. Truex Jr. still possesses the talents to perform week in and week out and should get back on track where he won earlier in the year.
Denny Hamlin (12/1) - In his 19 visits to Pocono Raceway, Hamlin has earned the checkered flag four times while finishing in the top-10 a total of 13 (68%). He’s been victorious at this specific race twice (2006, 2009), and since his last win owns two other top-10 finishes; including a ninth last year. Hamlin was also solid here earlier this season when he started in eighth and finished in 10th, one of his nine top-10s which also included a victory in the All-Star Race and at Martinsville. His team is running hot at the moment with a finish in the top-five at three of the last four events and he improved his 17th-place start to a fifth at The Brickyard most recently. He tops all racers with his driver rating (108.3), average green flag speed (162.806 MPH) and laps in the top-15 (2,543, 79.3%) at this raceway and will have his sights set at another great showing.
Ryan Newman (70/1) - Newman has quietly been moving up the Sprint Cup Series standings and in the past five weeks went from 16th to 13th thanks to four top-11 performances. None of his poles were stellar during that time, starting no better than 16th, but he really moved up last week when his poor start of 43rd was changed to an 11th by the race’s end. Newman does have a victory here in the past, coming way back in 2003, but he has been on fire at this race in the last four years, doing no worse than eighth in that time. It seems more like Newman is treading water when he is on the course, but 17 career victories don’t lie and it would not be a surprise for this underdog to come out from the shadows and take this one down.
David Ragan (200/1) - Signs have been pointing up for the 29-year-old Ragan, who despite being 25th in the Sprint Cup standings, has been able to rattle off a top-18 finish in three of the last four weeks. Much of his success comes from his strong showings before the race as his pole position has been in the single digits at four of the last five venues. Although they do not come often, Ragan has won on this circuit twice in his career, and if he continues to get to the front of the pack at the start, he is due for a big outing.
Odds to win Windows 10 400
Kevin Harvick 4/1
Kyle Busch 6/1
Jimmie Johnson 7/1
Martin Truex Jr. 7/1
Kurt Busch 8/1
Brad Keselowski 12/1
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 12/1
Denny Hamlin 12/1
Jeff Gordon 12/1
Joey Logano 12/1
Matt Kenseth 15/1
Kasey Kahne 18/1
Carl Edwards 20/1
Kyle Larson 25/1
Jamie McMurray 40/1
Tony Stewart 50/1
Ryan Newman 70/1
Austin Dillon 100/1
Clint Bowyer 100/1
Paul Menard 100/1
David Ragan 200/1
Greg Biffle 200/1
Field (Any Other Driver) 300/1
AJ Allmendinger 500/1
Aric Almirola 500/1
Casey Mears 500/1
Danica Patrick 500/1
Ricky Stenhouse 500/1
Sam Hornish Jr. 500/1
Trevor Bayne 500/1
Driver Handicaps: Pocono
By: Jeff Wackerlin
Racingone.com
MRN.com's detailed notes and statistics to help you set your fantasy racing lineup for Sunday's Windows 10 400 at Pocono Raceway.
Who's HOT at Pocono
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads all divers with a 8.7 average finish in the last seven races with the current tire combination and is the only multiple winner in that span.
• Three-time winner Jimmie Johnson has led the most laps (220) in the last seven races.
• Joey Logano has posted five top 10s, including a win, in the last seven races.
• Kurt Busch, a two-time winner, has posted a 6.2 average finish in his last five races.
• Denny Hamlin (four-time winner) and Jamie McMurray are the only drivers that have finished in the top 10 in each of the last three races.
• Kevin Harvick, who led 39 laps in June, has finished second in the last two races.
• Martin Truex Jr. led 97 laps en route to the win in June.
• Jeff Gordon (six-time winner) has posted one win and an 8.9 average finish in the last seven races.
Who to Keep an Eye On at Pocono
• Kyle Busch, who finished ninth in June will be seeking his first Pocono win and fourth straight of the season.
• Kasey Kahne has finished in the top 10 in the last three August Pocono races, including a win in 2013.
• A accident in the June race snapped Ryan Newman's streak of five consecutive finishes of eighth or better at Pocono.
• Kyle Larson has posted an 8.0 average finish in three Pocono starts.
• Carl Edwards led 16 laps in June and finished 15th in his first Pocono start with Joe Gibbs Racing.
• Matt Kenseth, who finished sixth in June at Pocono, has finished seventh or better in the last three races of the season.
• Brad Keselowski, winner of the 2011 August race, has finished sixth or better in three of his last six Pocono starts. He's also finished in the top 10 in the last three races of the season.
MRN.com Staff Picks
Jeff Wackerlin: Joey Logano
Pete Pistone: Brad Keselowski
John Singler: Kasey Kahne
Driver Notes - Ordered by Top 20 in Average Finish in the Five Races at Pocono
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Finished 11th in June after sweeping both races last season. Earnhardt has the best average finish (8.7) among drivers that have competed in all seven races with the current tire combination.
Kurt Busch: Posted a 7.0 average finish and combined to lead 35 laps in his first three track starts with Stewart-Haas Racing. Busch has competed in six of the seven races with current tire combination, posting a 10.2 average finish. This weekend, Busch will pilot the same car (chassis No. 894) he won the pole and finished fifth with at Pocono in June.
Kyle Larson: Has posted an 8.0 average finish in three starts. Larson finished eighth in June and is coming off a ninth-place finish at Indianapolis. Last year, Larson won the pole for this event and finished 11th.
Jeff Gordon: Finished 14th in June to snap a streak of three consecutive top 10s. Gordon, who won this event in 2012, holds the second-best average finish (8.9) among drivers that have competed in all seven races with the current tire combination.
Kevin Harvick: Is coming off his second consecutive runner-up finish. Harvick led 39 laps in June and has posted a 6.0 average finish in three track starts with Stewart-Haas Racing. This weekend, Harvick will return in the same car (chassis No. 843) that he last finished ninth with in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Greg Biffle: Has finished in the top 10 in three of the last five races, including a runner-up finish in the 2013 June race. His 12th-place finish in the June race is his best finish in the last eight races of 2015. Biffle does have one win, coming in the 2010 August race, and has a 15.8 average finish in 25 overall starts.
Jamie McMurray: Joins Denny Hamlin as the only drivers that have finished in the top 10 in the last three races. McMurray's seventh-place finish in June lowered his average finish to 11.4 in the seven races with the current tire combination.
Jimmie Johnson: Won the 2013 June race for his third win in 27 starts. A crash in last year's August race raised his average finish to 11.4 in the seven races with the current tire combination. Johnson was able to rebound in June with a third-place finish.
Ryan Newman: A 39th-place finish in June raised his finishing average to 11.6 in the seven races with the current tire combination. Newman is one of four drivers that have scored five top 10s in that span. Last season, Newman posted a 7.5 average finish in his first two track starts with Richard Childress Racing. This weekend, Newman will be back in the same car (chassis No. 491) that he finished fifth with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and raced at Pocono in June.
Brad Keselowski: Has finished outside the top 15 in his last two starts. Keselowski led 95 laps and finished second in the 2014 June race. Keselowski does have one win (August 2011), but it was on the old tire combination at the track. In the seven races with the current tire combination, Keselowski ranks 10th in average finish (12.3) among all drivers that have competed in all those races.
Joey Logano: Has finished in the top 10 in four of his five track starts with Team Penske. In the seven races with the current tire combination, Logano has posted an 11.1 average finish, including a win in the 2012 June race when he drove for Joe Gibbs Racing.
Clint Bowyer: Coming off worst finish (22nd) in the seven races with the current tire combination. Bowyer finished fourth in this event last year, but has yet to lead a lap in last 10 starts. Last weekend at Indianapolis Bowyer finished sixth for his second top 10 since crew chief Billy Scott joined the team, four races ago.
Denny Hamlin: Is a four-time winner, but has yet to win in the last seven races with the current tire combination. Hamlin finished 10th in June for his third consecutive top 10. He's only led four laps in his last five starts.
Kyle Busch: Finished ninth in June in his first track start with crew chief Adam Stevens. Busch will be seeking his first win at Pocono and fourth straight on the season this weekend.
Martin Truex Jr.: Won the June race after leading 97 laps. He will be looking to become the eighth driver to complete the season sweep.
Tony Stewart: Has posted a 23.3 average finish in three track starts with crew chief Chad Johnston. Stewart's last of two wins came in the 2009 June race. This season Stewart has yet to record a top 10 on a track with an asphalt surface.
Austin Dillon: Has posted a 17.0 average finish in three starts. This weekend, Dillon will return in the same car (chassis No. 507) that he last finished 20th with at Michigan International Speedway.
Casey Mears: Finished 12th last year in this event for his best finish in the seven races with the current tire combination. Mears has also failed to lead a lap in that span where he's posted a 23.9 average finish.
Kasey Kahne: Has finished in the top 10 in the last three August races, including a win in the 2013. Kahne finished 13th in June to give him an average finish of 19.0 in the seven races with the current tire combination.
Justin Allgaier: Has posted a 21.0 average finish in three starts. Allgaier's 16th-place finish last year in this event is his best to date at Pocono.
Pocono Practice Notes
By Micah Roberts
Sportingnews.com
If Saturday’s final practice at Pocono Raceway is any indication, we might see two brothers battling for the win in Sunday’s Windows 10 400. With five minutes remaining during the 50-minute session, Kurt Busch laid down the fastest lap at 175.067 mph. A minute later, his younger brother Kyle Busch — the hottest topic in NASCAR for the past five weeks — was just a little faster at 175.240 mph.
Seeing the two Las Vegas brothers battle for victory wouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone considering they have combined to win five of the past six races on the Cup schedule with Kyle carrying most of the load, grabbing the checkers four times.
However, it’s Kurt who has history on his side on Pocono’s 2.5-mile triangular track with two wins and five second-place finishes while Kyle has never won in 21 starts with a best finish of second, twice. In the June 7 Pocono race, Kurt started from the pole and finished fifth while Kyle finished ninth. But Kyle starts from the pole on Sunday. Big brother starts sixth.
The thing that stands out the most in favor in Kyle Busch in this race is that the Joe Gibbs organization has been completely transformed from what we saw most of the season on big horsepower tracks. It seems like they’ve used some of the winning set-up notes on temporary race packages used at Kentucky and Indianapolis to better themselves with the regular package where they were struggling.
Or maybe the JGR engine program finally cracked the code that Chevrolet drivers Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Martin Truex Jr. had used to their advantage most of the season. What ever the case may be, it’s like a light switch has suddenly been flipped and the JGR Toyotas have things all figured out. That edge that Harvick had for most of the season with 11 top-two finishes has been closed.
During Saturday’s first 50-minute practice, it was JGR cars stacking the speed charts 1-2-3-4 led by Carl Edwards (175.812) and followed by Matt Kenseth (175.418), Kyle Busch (175.408) and Denny Hamlin (175.298). Kurt Busch would come in with the fifth fastest speed at 175.285.
For four-time Pocono winner Hamlin, this is the best he’s looked at Pocono since the repave in 2012. His last win came in 2010. Edwards is a two-time winner, the last coming in 2008. The unique thing about the two teammates is that they are the only active drivers to win in their first Cup attempt at Pocono. Edwards accomplished the feat in 2005 and Hamlin followed suit in 2006 when he ended up sweeping the season.
If you're thinking sweep at Pocono just because it’s happened seven other times — including last season with Dale Earnhardt Jr. — then Martin Truex Jr. is your driver. He led 97 laps in the June race after finishing with the sixth fast lap during final practice. In Saturday’s final practice he had the ninth-fastest lap (174.081) and was 11th fastest in the early session (174.547).
When looking at average speeds it was Edwards and Hamlin with the best 10-consecutive lap average in the early session followed by Kurt Busch and Harvick in the final session. Harvick was sluggish in the morning practice, but his team figured things out in the afternoon and should be in line to battle the JGR power Sunday. He’s finished second in the past two Pocono events, but has never won in 29 starts.
The Gibbs cars look outstanding, but it's still the Stewart Haas Racing duo of Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick that top our charts simply because we have so much more data to go on from the season with this race package. If a Gibbs car wins again, then it's almost as if we can erase just about everything we saw through May with the package that is expected to run exclusively through the Chase. Let's see it happen first before we go changing a formula.