2011 AdvoCare 500

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2011 AdvoCare 500
Race details[1][2][3][4]
Race 25 of 36 in the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Date September 6, 2011 (2011-09-06)
Location Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, Georgia
Course Permanent racing facility
1.54 mi (2.48 km)
Distance 325 laps, 500.5 mi (805.5 km)
Weather Partly cloudy with temperatures around 95 °F (35 °C); wind out of the SW at 5 mph (8.0 km/h).
Pole position
Driver Red Bull Racing Team
Time 29.775
Most laps led
Driver Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 146
Winner
No. 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network ESPN
Announcers Allen Bestwick, Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree

The 2011 AdvoCare 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race scheduled to be held on September 4, 2011, at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, but was rescheduled to September 6, 2011 because of Tropical Storm Lee. Contested over 325 laps, it was the 25th race of the 2011 Sprint Cup Series season. Jeff Gordon's win, the 85th of his Cup Series career, gave him sole possession of the record for most Cup wins in NASCAR's "modern era" (1972–present), surpassing Darrell Waltrip.[5] Gordon also took sole possession of third place on the all-time Cup Series wins list, ahead of Waltrip and Bobby Allison.[6] The race was also known for being the first NASCAR race since 2007 to be run on a Tuesday.

Report[edit]

Background[edit]

Atlanta Motor Speedway, the race track where the race was held.

Atlanta Motor Speedway is one of ten intermediate to hold NASCAR races; the others are Charlotte Motor Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Homestead Miami Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and Texas Motor Speedway.[7] The standard track at Atlanta Motor Speedway is a four-turn quad-oval track that is 1.54 miles (2.48 km) long.[8] The track's turns are banked at twenty-four degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, and the back stretch are banked at five.[8]

Before the race, Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson led the Drivers' Championship with 830 points, and Matt Kenseth stood in third with 798 points. Carl Edwards was fourth in the Drivers' Championship with 795 points, and Kevin Harvick was fifth with 782 points. Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart rounded out the first ten positions.[9] In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 153 points, 19 points ahead of Ford. Toyota, with 133 points, was 25 points ahead of Dodge in the battle for third.[10] Stewart was the race's defending champion.[11]

Practice and qualifying[edit]

Kasey Kahne won the pole position for Red Bull Racing Team

Two practice sessions were held before the Sunday race, one on Friday and the other on Saturday. The first session lasted 80 minutes, while the second session ran for 90 minutes.[12] During the first practice session, Brad Keselowski was quickest, ahead of Denny Hamlin and Clint Bowyer in second and third.[13] Martin Truex Jr. was scored fourth quickest, while Mark Martin was fifth.[13] In the second and final practice session, Gordon was scored quickest, as Stewart and Bowyer followed in the second and third positions.[14] Keselowski was scored in the fourth position, while Greg Biffle followed in fifth.[14]

During qualifying, forty-seven cars were entered, but only forty-three would be able because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure.[15] Kasey Kahne clinched his eighth career pole position, with a time of 29.775 seconds.[16] He was joined on the front row of the grid by Bowyer.[16] Kyle Busch qualified third, Brian Vickers took fourth, and Gordon started fifth.[16] Kenseth, Edwards, Truex Jr., Newman, and Kurt Busch rounded out the first ten positions.[16] The four drivers that failed to qualify for the race were T. J. Bell, David Stremme, Geoffrey Bodine, and Tony Raines.[16]

After winning the pole position, Kahne stated, "It was definitely not a perfect lap, but it was a little better than what everyone else did. I've ran better laps than that before and not been on the pole. You never know what you're going to get, but the track is pretty slippery right now and I like it like that." He also commented, "We need to win if we want to make the Chase. Right now we're one of the ones on the outside looking in." Bowyer, who qualified second, was relieved because of his good starting position: "A good qualifying run is a breath of fresh air for all of us. We need a good run desperately." He continued, "She was loose, holy cow! It was a handful for all of us."[17]

Race[edit]

The race, the 25th in the season, was scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. EDT.[1] However, because of inclement weather from Tropical Storm Lee, NASCAR moved the start time twenty minutes earlier than the scheduled time.[18] The race was not able to be held as expected on September 4, 2011 and was rescheduled on September 6, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. EDT.[19] The race was televised live in the United States on ESPN.[1] This race was the first NASCAR race to be held on a Tuesday since 2007.


Results[edit]

Qualifying[edit]

No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time (s) Speed (mph)[cleanup needed] Grid
4 Kasey Kahne Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 29.775 186.197 1
33 Clint Bowyer Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 29.819 185.922 2
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 29.832 185.841 3
83 Brian Vickers Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 29.843 185.772 4
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.849 185.735 5
17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 29.853 185.710 6
99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 29.877 185.561 7
56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 29.880 185.542 8
39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 29.889 185.486 9
22 Kurt Busch Penske Racing Dodge 29.915 185.325 10
43 A. J. Allmendinger Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 29.921 185.288 11
42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 29.939 185.176 12
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 29.947 185.127 13
2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 29.949 185.115 14
16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 29.958 185.059 15
00 David Reutimann Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 30.000 184.800 16
48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 30.055 184.462 17
9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 30.086 184.272 18
6 David Ragan Roush Fenway Racing Ford 30.128 184.015 19
14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 30.147 183.899 20
29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 30.163 183.801 21
27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 30.183 183.680 22
47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 30.230 183.394 23
20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 30.232 183.382 24
1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 30.239 183.339 25
78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 30.270 183.152 26
31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 30.275 183.121 27
66 Michael McDowell HP Racing Toyota 30.291 183.025 28
88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 30.312 182.898 29
46 Scott Speed Whitney Motorsports Ford 30.319 182.856 30
38 J. J. Yeley Front Row Motorsports Ford 30.378 182.501 31
5 Mark Martin Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 30.388 182.440 32
7 Robby Gordon Robby Gordon Motorsports Dodge 30.502 181.759 33
87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 30.513 181.693 34
36 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 30.556 181.437 35
34 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 30.673 180.745 36
51 Landon Cassill Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 30.702 180.575 37
13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Toyota 30.757 180.252 38
60 Mike Skinner Germain Racing Chevrolet 30.798 180.012 39
32 Mike Bliss FAS Lane Racing Ford 30.819 179.889 40
55 Travis Kvapil Front Row Motorsports Ford 30.822 179.872 41
71 Andy Lally TRG Motorsports Ford 31.060 178.493 42
95 David Starr Leavine Family Racing Ford 30.845 179.737 43
Failed to Qualify
37 Tony Raines Max Q Motorsports Ford 30.870 179.592
30 David Stremme Inception Motorsports Chevrolet 30.883 179.516
35 Geoffrey Bodine Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 31.014 178.758
50 T. J. Bell LTD Powersports Chevrolet 31.034 178.643

Race results[edit]

Jeff Gordon scored the 85th win of his Cup Series career.
Race results
Pos Grid Car Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 5 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 325 48
2 17 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 325 43
3 20 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 325 41
4 10 22 Kurt Busch Penske Racing Dodge 325 40
5 7 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 325 40
6 14 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 325 39
7 21 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 325 37
8 13 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 325 37
9 6 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 325 36
10 11 43 A.J. Allmendinger Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 325 34
11 4 83 Brian Vickers Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 325 33
12 15 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 325 32
13 27 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 325 31
14 8 56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 325 31
15 12 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 325 29
16 25 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 325 28
17 32 5 Mark Martin Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 325 27
18 22 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 325 26
19 29 88 Dale Earnahrdt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 325 25
20 9 39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 325 24
21 18 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 324 23
22 37 51 Landon Cassill Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 324 0
23 3 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 324 22
24 24 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 324 20
25 31 38 J. J. Yeley Front Row Motorsports Ford 324 20
26 40 32 Mike Bliss FAS Lane Racing Ford 324 0
27 35 36 Mike Skinner Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 323 0
28 38 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Toyota 321 16
29 43 95 David Starr Leavine Family Racing Ford 320 0
30 42 71 Andy Lally TRG Motorsports Ford 319 15
31 16 00 David Reutimann Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 315 13
32 30 46 Scott Speed Whitney Motorsports Ford 310 0
33 26 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 284 11
34 1 4 Kasey Kahne Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 269 11
35 19 6 David Ragan Roush Fenway Racing Ford 249 9
36 2 33 Clint Bowyer Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 243 9
37 36 34 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 174 7
38 23 47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 91 0
39 33 7 Robby Gordon Robby Gordon Motorsports Dodge 34 5
40 34 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 27 0
41 28 66 Michael McDowell HP Racing Toyota 23 3
42 41 55 Travis Kvapil Front Row Motorsports Ford 17 0
43 39 60 Dave Blaney Germain Racing Chevrolet 2 1
Source:[21]

Standings after the race[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Sprint Cup Series Schedule". ESPN. Archived from the original on January 20, 2012. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  2. ^ Brown, Brian (August 30, 2011). "The AdvoCare 500". Rotoworld.com. Archived from the original on September 24, 2011. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
  3. ^ "Kahne wins pole at Atlanta; Bowyer second — Sep 03, 2011 - NASCAR.COM". Sporting News Wire Service. NASCAR. September 3, 2011. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  4. ^ Jensen, Tom (September 4, 2011). "NASCAR – CUP: Wet 'Lanta Rained Out". Speedtv.com. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  5. ^ "Talking Points: Gordon's 85th". The Columbian. Vancouver, Washington. September 10, 2011. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  6. ^ Newberry, Paul (September 7, 2011). "Gordon holds on at Atlanta for 85th career win". Yahoo! Sports. Associated Press. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  7. ^ "NASCAR Race Tracks". NASCAR. Archived from the original on October 12, 2010. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  8. ^ a b "NASCAR Tracks—The Atlanta Motor Speedway". Atlanta Motor Speedway. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  9. ^ "Driver's Championship Classification". NASCAR. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  10. ^ a b "Manufactures' Championship Classification". Jayski.com. Archived from the original on September 1, 2011. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  11. ^ "2010 Emory Healthcare 500". racing-reference.com. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  12. ^ "Event Schedule". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on September 1, 2011. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  13. ^ a b "Practice 1 Timing and Scoring". NASCAR. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
  14. ^ a b "Practice 2 Timing and Scoring". NASCAR. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
  15. ^ "Qualifying Order". NASCAR. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
  16. ^ a b c d e f "Race Lineup: Atlanta". NASCAR. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
  17. ^ a b "Kasey Kahne wins Sprint Cup pole on Atlanta's slippery track — USATODAY.com". USA Today. Atlanta, Georgia. Associated Press. September 3, 2011. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  18. ^ Aumann, Mark (September 4, 2011). "Racing the weather — Sep 04, 2011 - NASCAR.COM". NASCAR. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  19. ^ "Lap-by-Lap: Atlanta — Sep 04, 2011 - NASCAR.COM". NASCAR. September 4, 2011. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  20. ^ "2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup AdvoCare 500 Starting Lineup". Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on June 14, 2012. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  21. ^ "Race Results".


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