NASCAR Chase heads to Charlotte

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to Charlotte Motor Speedway for Saturday night’s Bank of America 500. It’s the fifth race in the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Brad Keselowski heads into Charlotte with the championship points lead, 14 points up on second-place Jimmie Johnson, a six-time Charlotte winner.

The Chase is short one driver, as Dale Earnhardt Jr. sits out the first of two-straight races after suffering his second concussion in six weeks last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.

Below, is a statistical look at how the remaining 11 Chase drivers have fared over the years at Charlotte Motor Speedway and up to this point in 2012 (statistics provided by NASCAR Media Group):

1 – Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 97.5
2012 Rundown
·         Five wins, 12 top fives, 19 top 10s
·         Average finish of 10.5
·         Led 17 races for 503 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         One top five, one top 10; one pole
·         Average finish of 16.5 in six races
·         Average Running Position of 17.4, 15th-best
·         Driver Rating of 76.8, 21st-best

2 – Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 MyLowe’s Chevrolet)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 108.6
2012 Rundown
·         Three wins, 15 top fives, 20 top 10s; two poles
·         Average finish of 10.7
·         Led 21 races for 1,261 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         Six wins, 10 top fives, 14 top 10s; three poles
·         Average finish of 11.8 in 22 races
·         Series-best Average Running Position of 8.2
·         Series-best Driver Rating of 111.0
·         Series-high 488 Fastest Laps Run
·         1,095 Green Flag Passes, ninth-most
·         Series-best Average Green Flag Speed of 176.468 mph
·         Series-high 4,599 Laps in the Top 15 (85.6%)
·         Series-high 772 Quality Passes

3 – Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 102.1
2012 Rundown
·         Five wins, 12 top fives, 15 top 10s; three poles
·         Average finish of 12.2
·         Led 21 races for 1,132 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         Two top fives, seven top 10s
·         Average finish of 15.0 in 14 races
·         Average Running Position of 13.5, fifth-best
·         Driver Rating of 89.3, sixth-best
·         142 Fastest Laps Run, 11th-most
·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.376 mph, 10th-fastest
·         3,446 Laps in the Top 15 (69.3%), fifth-most
·         565 Quality Passes, sixth-most

4 – Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 94.5
2012 Rundown
·         Two wins, nine top fives, 15 top 10s; three poles
·         Average finish of 13.6
·         Led 9 races for 262 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         Four wins, seven top fives, nine top 10s
·         Average finish of 12.7 in 17 races
·         Average Running Position of 12.7, fourth-best
·         Driver Rating of 97.5, third-best
·         453 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
·         1,206 Green Flag Passes, fourth-most
·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.443 mph, eighth-fastest
·         3,402 Laps in the Top 15 (63.3%), sixth-most
·         651 Quality Passes, fourth-most

5 – Clint Bowyer (No. 15 5-hour Energy Benefiting Avon Foundation for Women Toyota)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 93.3
2012 Rundown
·         Two wins, seven top fives, 18 top 10s
·         Average finish of 11.5
·         Led 10 races for 200 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         One top five, three top 10s
·         Average finish of 17.5 in 13 races
·         Average Running Position of 18.5, 20th-best
·         Driver Rating of 77.4, 18th-best

6 – Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 97.4
2012 Rundown
·         One win, 10 top fives, 15 top 10s; two poles
·         Average finish of 14.3
·         Led 19 races for 458 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         Five wins, 16 top fives, 21 top 10s; eight poles
·         Average finish of 15.7 in 39 races
·         Average Running Position of 16.0, 12th-best
·         Driver Rating of 87.7, ninth-best
·         176 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most
·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.523 mph, sixth-fastest
·         3,001 Laps in the Top 15 (55.9%), eighth-most
·         551 Quality Passes, ninth-most

7 – Tony Stewart (No. 14 Mobil 1/Office Depot Chevrolet)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 87.7
2012 Rundown
·         Three wins, 10 top fives, 14 top 10s; one pole
·         Average finish of 13.5
·         Led 14 races for 420 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         One win, six top fives, 12 top 10s; one pole
·         Average finish of 14.0 in 27 races
·         Average Running Position of 16.0, 13th-best
·         Driver Rating of 83.4, 12th-best
·         182 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most
·         1,121 Green Flag Passes, eighth-most
·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.515 mph, seventh-fastest
·         2,730 Laps in the Top 15 (50.8%), 11th-most
·         508 Quality Passes, 11th-most

8 – Martin Truex Jr. (No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 96.8
2012 Rundown
·         Six top fives, 16 top 10s; one pole
·         Average finish of 11.3
·         Led 11 races for 423 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         Two top 10s
·         Average finish of 19.4 in 14 races
·         Average Running Position of 18.0, 17th-best
·         Driver Rating of 73.3, 25th-best
·         1,079 Green Flag Passes, 10th-most

9 – Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M/IDG Ford)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 101.0
2012 Rundown
·         Two wins, 10 top fives, 16 top 10s; two poles
·         Average finish of 10.1
·         Led 15 races for 650 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         Four top fives, seven top 10s
·         Average finish of 17.1 in 19 races
·         Average Running Position of 14.5, eighth-best
·         Driver Rating of 92.3, fifth-best
·         282 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
·         1,061 Green Flag Passes, 11th-most
·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.669 mph, third-fastest
·         3,385 Laps in the Top 15 (63.0%), seventh-most
·         576 Quality Passes, fifth-most

10 – Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Jimmy Johns Chevrolet)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 92.1
2012 Rundown
·         Four top fives, 11 top 10s
·         Average finish of 11.9
·         Led 8 races for 241 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         One win, two top fives, seven top 10s
·         Average finish of 18.1 in 23 races
·         Average Running Position of 19.5, 24th-best
·         Driver Rating of 74.9, 24th-best
·         1,153 Green Flag Passes, sixth-most
·         2,508 Laps in the Top 15 (46.7%), 13th-most

11 – Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet)

12 – Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Best Buy Ford)
·         Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 100.8
2012 Rundown
·         Two wins, 11 top fives, 17 top 10s; one pole
·         Average finish of 11.2
·         Led 19 races for 398 laps
Charlotte Motor Speedway Outlook:
·         Two wins, seven top fives, 14 top 10s
·         Average finish of 14.2 in 26 races
·         Average Running Position of 14.4, seventh-best
·         Driver Rating of 95.1, fourth-best
·         294 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
·         1,126 Green Flag Passes, seventh-most
·         Average Green Flag Speed of 175.586 mph, fourth-fastest
·         3,482 Laps in the Top 15 (64.8%), fourth-most
·         655 Quality Passes, third-most