2012 Lenox Industrial Tools 301

2012 Lenox Industrial Tools 301
Race details[1][2][3]
Race 19 of 36 in the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season
Date July 15, 2012 (2012-July-15)
Official name Lenox Industrial Tools 301 The Extra Mile
Location New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire
Course Permanent racing facility
1.058 mi (1.703 km)
Distance 301 laps, 318.458 mi (512.508 km)
Weather Overcast with a temperature around 87°F; wind out of the SW at 6 mph.
Average speed 116.226 miles per hour (187.048 km/h)[4]
Pole position
Driver
Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 28.548
Most laps led
Driver Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps 152
Winner
No. 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network TNT
Announcers Adam Alexander, Wally Dallenbach, Jr. and Kyle Petty
Nielsen Ratings 4.775 million [5]

The 2012 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on July 15, 2012 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire. Contested over 301 laps, it was the nineteenth race of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Kasey Kahne of Hendrick Motorsports took his second win of the season, while Denny Hamlin finished second and Clint Bowyer finished third.

Report

Background

New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the race track where the race was held.

New Hampshire Motor Speedway is one of ten intermediate tracks to hold NASCAR races; the others are Atlanta Motor Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, and Darlington Raceway as well as Homestead Miami Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and Texas Motor Speedway.[6] The standard track at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is a four-turn oval track, 1.6 miles (2.6 km) long.[7] The track's turns are banked from two to seven degrees, while the front stretch, the finish line, and the back stretch are banked at one degree.[7]

Before the race, Matt Kenseth led the Drivers' Championship with 676 points, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. stood in second with 651. Greg Biffle was third in the Drivers' Championship with 632, fourteen points ahead of Jimmie Johnson and forty ahead of Tony Stewart in fourth and fifth. Kevin Harvick, with 586, was two points ahead of Denny Hamlin, as Martin Truex, Jr. with 584 points, was eleven ahead of Brad Keselowski and twelve in front of Clint Bowyer.[8] In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 126 points, twenty-two points ahead of Toyota. Ford, with 90 points, was fourteen points ahead of Dodge in the battle for third.[9] Ryan Newman is the defending race winner after winning the event in 2011.[10]

Shortly before the 2012 Coke Zero 400, held one week earlier, NASCAR announced that A. J. Allmendinger failed a random drug test held on June 29, 2012, and that he was suspended temporarily, depending on the result of his second test.[11] Afterward, Penske Racing announced that Sam Hornish, Jr., who replaced him in the Coke Zero 400, would also replace him for a second consecutive week.[11]

Practice and qualifying

Kyle Busch (pictured in 2015), of the Joe Gibbs Racing team won the pole position.

Three practice sessions were held before the Sunday race—one on Friday, July 13, and two on Saturday, July 14. The first session lasted 90 minutes, and the second was 55 minutes. The third and final session was 60 minutes.[12] Kyle Busch was quickest with a time of 28.555 seconds in the first session, less than one-tenth of a second faster than Biffle.[13] Kurt Busch was just off Biffle's pace, followed by Kasey Kahne, Paul Menard, and Truex, Jr.. Brian Vickers was seventh, still within two-tenths of a second of Kyle Busch's time.[13]

Forty-four cars were entered for qualifying, but only forty-three could qualify for the race because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure.[14] Kyle Busch clinched the ninth pole position of his career, with a time of 28.548 seconds.[15] He was joined on the front row of the grid by Kahne.[15] Hamlin qualified third, Truex, Jr. took fourth, and Bowyer started fifth.[15] Newman, Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Earnhardt, Jr. and Stewart rounded out the top ten. The driver that failed to qualify for the race was Mike Bliss.[15] Once the qualifying session concluded, Kyle Busch expressed his happiness with qualifying: "Excellent lap, just tried to hit the same marks in practice. Haven't found the magic way to get around the Magic Mile but today we did."[3]

In the second practice session, Hamlin was quickest with a time of 28.969 seconds.[16] Gordon, with a time of 28.993, was second quickest, ahead of Truex, Jr., Aric Almirola, and Bowyer.[16] Kahne, Johnson, Kyle Busch, Vickers, and Jeff Burton completed the first ten positions.[16] Hamlin continued to be quickest through the third practice session with a time of 28.990, 0.009 seconds faster than his fastest lap during the second session.[17] Kyle Busch was second quickest in the session, while Keselowski was scored third.[17] Bowyer followed in the fourth position ahead of Johnson, Vickers and Truex, Jr..[17] Kahne, Lgano and Carl Edwards rounded out the first ten positions in eighth, ninth and tenth, respectively.[17]

Race

The race, the nineteenth in the season, began with Kyle Busch on the Pole and Kasey Kahne starting second, not much happened here but three cautions, two for debris and one for David Reutimann's blown engine, Kyle Busch, the races polesitter had a speeding penalty which brought him to finish 16th, Kasey Kahne won the race on lap 301 of a scheduled 301.[1]

Results

Qualifying

No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed Grid
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.548 133.417 1
5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.551 133.403 2
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.552 133.399 3
56 Martin Truex, Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 28.565 133.338 4
15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 28.569 133.319 5
39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 28.578 133.277 6
48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.583 133.254 7
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.595 133.198 8
88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.628 133.045 9
14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 28.651 132.938 10
16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 28.665 132.873 11
29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.666 132.868 12
27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.730 132.572 13
51 Kurt Busch Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 28.735 132.549 14
55 Brian Vickers Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 28.762 132.425 15
20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 28.762 132.425 16
78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 28.769 132.393 17
47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 28.782 132.333 18
34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 28.797 132.264 19
9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 28.811 132.200 20
99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 28.814 132.186 21
2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 28.836 132.085 22
43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 28.891 131.833 23
22 Sam Hornish, Jr. Penske Racing Dodge 28.952 131.556 24
31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.972 131.465 25
10 David Reutimann Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 29.016 131.266 26
17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 29.023 131.234 27
1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 29.023 131.234 28
83 Landon Cassill BK Racing Toyota 29.034 131.184 29
93 Travis Kvapil BK Racing Toyota 29.112 130.833 30
42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 29.150 130.662 31
26 Josh Wise Front Row Motorsports Ford 29.267 130.140 32
13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Ford 29.336 129.834 33
87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 29.342 129.807 34
36 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 29.371 129.679 35
98 Michael McDowell Phil Parsons Racing Ford 29.406 129.525 36
32 Ken Schrader FAS Lane Racing Ford 29.453 129.318 37
49 J. J. Yeley Robinson-Blakeney Racing Toyota 29.463 129.274 38
38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 29.490 129.156 39
30 David Stremme Inception Motorsports Toyota 29.504 129.094 40
23 Scott Riggs R3 Motorsports Toyota 29.557 128.863 41
79 Kelly Bires Go Green Racing Ford 29.637 128.515 42
33 Stephen Leicht Circle Sport Racing Chevrolet 29.714 128.182 43
Failed to Qualify
19 Mike Bliss Humphrey Smith Racing Toyota 29.740 128.070
Source:[15]

Race results

Pos Grid Car Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 2 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 301 47
2 3 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 301 44
3 5 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 301 42
4 9 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 301 40
5 22 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 301 39
6 8 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 301 39
7 7 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 301 38
8 12 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 301 36
9 11 16 Greg Biffle Roush-Fenway Racing Ford 301 35
10 6 39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 301 34
11 4 56 Martin Truex, Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 301 33
12 10 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 301 32
13 27 17 Matt Kenseth Roush-Fenway Racing Ford 301 31
14 16 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 301 30
15 15 55 Brian Vickers Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 301 0
16 1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 301 29
17 13 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 301 27
18 21 99 Carl Edwards Roush-Fenway Racing Ford 301 26
19 20 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 301 25
20 28 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 301 24
21 25 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 301 23
22 24 22 Sam Hornish, Jr. Penske Racing Dodge 301 22
23 18 47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 301 21
24 14 51 Kurt Busch Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 299 21
25 31 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 299 19
26 17 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 298 18
27 39 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 298 17
28 23 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 298 16
29 29 83 Landon Cassill BK Racing Toyota 297 15
30 30 93 Travis Kvapil BK Racing Toyota 297 14
31 37 32 Ken Schrader FAS Lane Racing Ford 294 13
32 43 33 Stephen Leicht Circle Sport Racing Chevrolet 293 12
33 26 10 David Reutimann Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 229 11
34 19 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 139 10
35 40 33 David Stremme Inception Motorsports Toyota 101 9
36 33 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Toyota 91 8
37 32 26 Josh Wise Front Row Motorsports Ford 82 7
38 34 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 71 0
39 35 36 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 68 5
40 36 98 Michael McDowell Phil Parsons Racing Ford 63 4
41 41 23 Scott Riggs R3 Motorsports Chevrolet 32 3
42 42 79 Kelly Bires Go Green Racing Ford 19 2
43 38 49 J. J. Yeley Robinson-Blakeney Racing Toyota 4 1

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 Matt Kenseth 707
2 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 691
3 Greg Biffle 667
4 Jimmie Johnson 656
5 Denny Hamlin 628
Manufacturers' Championship standings[9]
Pos Manufacturer Points
1 Chevrolet 135
2 Toyota 110
3 Ford 93
4 Dodge 80
  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for the driver standings.

References

  1. 1 2 "Sprint Cup Series Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  2. ↑ Brown, Brian (July 10, 2012). "The Lenox Industrial Tools 301". Rotoworld.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  3. 1 2 Ryan, Nate (July 13, 2012). "Kyle Busch zooms past Kasey Kahne for New Hampshire pole". Loudon, New Hampshire. USA Today. Retrieved July 14, 2012.
  4. ↑ "2012 Lenox Industrial Tools 301". Racing-reference.info. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved 2013-06-21.
  5. ↑
  6. ↑ "NASCAR Race Tracks". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  7. 1 2 "NASCAR Tracks—The New Hampshire Motor Speedway". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  8. ↑ "2012 Official Driver Standings: Coke Zero 400". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  9. 1 2 "Manufactures' Championship Classification". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  10. ↑ "2011 Lenox Industrial Tools 301". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  11. 1 2 "Hornish back in 22 as Allmendinger awaits results". NASCAR. Turner Sports. July 9, 2012. Retrieved July 10, 2012.
  12. ↑ "THE RACE: Lenox Industrial Tools 301". Jayski NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved July 10, 2012.
  13. 1 2 "Practice One Timing and Scoring". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  14. ↑ "Qualifying Entry List". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 "Race Official Lineup". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  16. 1 2 3 "Practice Two Timing and Scoring". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 14, 2012.
  17. 1 2 3 4 "Practice Three Timing and Scoring". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved July 14, 2012.
Previous race:
2012 Coke Zero 400		 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
2012 season		 Next race:
2012 Brickyard 400
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/31/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.