Sylvania 300
Here is a quick run down of trivial facts and statistics for this weekend’s Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, NH.
New Hampshire Motor Speedway History
- Groundbreaking for New Hampshire International Speedway, as New Hampshire Motor Speedway was originally named, was Aug. 13, 1989. It was the first superspeedway to be constructed in the United States since 1969.
- The official opening was June 5, 1990 with the first race being a NASCAR Nationwide Series race on July 15, 1990.
- The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on July 11, 1993.
- The first NASCAR Craftsman Truck series race was on Sept. 9, 1996.
- The track was renamed New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2008.
Track Numbers
- NASCAR Cup Series Races: 27
- Pole Winners: 15
- Race Winners: 17
- There was originally one race a year from 1993 through 1996 and two per year since.
- Four drivers have competed in all 27 races: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte and Joe Nemechek.
- Mark Martin won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup pole.
- Rusty Wallace won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race.
- Ryan Newman has the most poles (four). Qualifying has been canceled three times.
- Jeff Burton has the most wins at New Hampshire with four.
- Jimmie Johnson (2003) and Kurt Busch (2004) are the only drivers that have posted season sweeps. Those are also the only back-to-back winners.
- Roush Fenway Racing and Hendrick Motorsports have each won six races, more than any other organization.
- Chevrolet has won 12 races – including five of the past seven.
- 14 of 27 races have been won from the top-10 starting positions, including four from the pole.
- The deepest in the field that a New Hampshire race winner started was 38th by Jeff Burton in 1999.
- All NASCAR Sprint Cup races at New Hampshire have been scheduled for 300 laps.
- There has been one postponed/rescheduled race at New Hampshire. The 2001 fall race was run as the season finale in November, after being rescheduled following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
- There have been eight different pole winners in the past nine New Hampshire races (qualifying was canceled once in the nine-race period).
- There have been seven different race winners in the past seven New Hampshire races.
- There have been three shortened races at New Hampshire: July 2002 (273 laps), September 2002 (207) and June 2008 (284).
- Jeff Burton led all 300 laps raced in the 2000 fall race.
- Clint Bowyer led 222 laps and scored a perfect Driver Rating of 150.0 in last year’s fall New Hampshire race.
- In the Chase era, the eventual champion has an average finish of 12.0 in the first race of the Chase, which has always been held at New Hampshire. Kurt Busch won in 2004, Tony Stewart finished second in 2005 and Jimmie Johnson finished 39th and sixth in 2006 and 2007, respectively.
Track Records
- Track qualifying record: Ryan Newman (133.357 mph, 28.561 secs., 9-12-03)
- Track race record: Jeff Burton (117.134 mph, 7-13-97)
Qualifying/Race Data
- 2007 pole winner: Clint Bowyer (130.412 mph, 29.206 seconds)
- 2007 race winner: Clint Bowyer (110.475 mph, 9-16-07)
New Hampshire Race Day Data
- Estimated Pit Window: 70-78 laps, based on fuel mileage
- # 27 of 36 (9-14-08)
- Track Size: 1.058 miles
- Race Length: 317.4 miles (300 laps)
- Banking/Corners: 12 degrees
- Banking/Straights: 2 degrees