NSCS: FedEx Racing Express Facts – Dover International Speedway

FedEx Racing Express Facts – Dover International Speedway

Denny Hamlin
#11 FedEx Office Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing

Race Info:
Race: AAA 300
Date/Time: Oct. 4/2:30 p.m. ET
Distance: 400 laps/400 miles
Track Length: 1 mile
Track Shape: Oval
Banking: 24 degrees
2014 Winner: Jeff Gordon

Express Notes:

New Hampshire Recap: Denny Hamlin finished second to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Matt Kenseth in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, recording his eighth top-five finish in the previous 12 events in the #11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry. Hamlin made his final pit stop of the day with 69 laps to go on the flat, one-mile oval, and charged up to second as the laps clicked. Kenseth moved inside Hamlin for the runner-up spot with less than 30 laps to go, and leader Kevin Harvick ran out of fuel with four laps remaining to secure a second-place finish for the FedEx Racing Team at the checkered flag. Hamlin started seventh and led 21 laps at the “Magic Mile,” but felt a right-front tire issue during the final run that prohibited him from making a charge for his second-consecutive Chase win. He remained second in the Chase playoff standings behind Kenseth after the second race of the Challenger Round.

Dover Preview: The Series shifts to Dover International Speedway for Sunday’s 400-mile race on the high-banked, concrete oval. Hamlin is making his 20th-career Cup Series start at the “Monster Mile” this weekend in the #11 FedEx Office Toyota. In 19 previous events, Hamlin has posted six top-10 finishes at Dover, and has captured three poles in the last six races at the track. Earlier this year in the FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover, Hamlin started on the pole and led 118 laps before late-race contact from behind sent the #11 machine spinning on the backstretch and collected by another car, relegating the team to a 21st-place finish.

Hamlin Statistics:

Track: Dover International Speedway

Races: 19

Wins: 0

Top-5: 3

Top-10: 6

Average Start: 11.7

Average Finish: 19.3

Laps Led: 261

Hamlin Conversation — DOVER:

What are the team’s goals for this weekend at Dover?

“Obviously, our goal remains the same as it has been each week – try to win the race. We are certainly in a good position with our victory at Chicago and locked into the next round, giving us the opportunity to take some chances and try some things out of the box at Dover. Dover has some similar characteristics to other tracks coming up, so we can work on some stuff and improve as a team to be better in the next elimination round. It’s important that we remain focused and have a mistake-free weekend, because the racing and advancing will get tougher as we move through the Chase.”