Seven eye-opening Chase stats
The just completed 2016 NASCAR Premier Series season saw some unusual numbers posted during the playoffs. In honor of Jimmie Johnson’s seventh championship, here are seven eye-opening stats from the Chase for the NASCAR Cup:
A tale of two drivers
Jamie McMurray made the Chase despite not leading a single lap all season long. Predictably, Jamie Mac was knocked out in the first round of the Chase. Martin Truex Jr., on the other hand, led a series-high and career-high 1,809 laps. Despite winning two of the first three Chase races, Truex did not advance past the Chase Round of 12.
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Not championship numbers
Carl Edwards appeared headed to a championship until he crashed with 10 laps to go at Homestead. But Edwards’ numbers in the Chase were not great: Yes, he scored a huge win at Texas, but he finished 12th or worse in seven of the 10 Chase races and had the worst average finish of any of the final eight Chase drivers.
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Out front
Jimmie Johnson led all drivers who made the Chase Round of 8 with 471 laps led in the 10 Chase races. Kurt Busch led the fewest laps in the Chase — just one — while brother Kyle led 67 laps in the Chase, second worst among the final eight. But Kyle did earn one key distinction: He was the only driver to lead at least one lap in all 10 Chase races.
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Finishing strong
Kyle Busch had the best average finish of any driver who made it to the Chase Round of 8. Even with a 30th-place finish at Talladega, Busch’s average finish in the 10 Chase races was 7.2, which included nine finishes of eighth or better.
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Twice as nice
Here’s an odd little stat for you: Four different drivers won multiple Chase races: Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick, and Joey Logano won two each, while Jimmie Johnson won three. Carl Edwards was the only Chase driver to win one race.
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It's all about timing
Although they were unable to win a second consecutive championship, Joe Gibbs Racing had a sensational season getting all four drivers to the Chase round of 8, and two drivers to the final. But after winning seven of the first 12 races of the year, JGR won only four more in the final 14 races of the regular season and only one of the 10 Chase races.
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Seven-time's stats
When Jimmie Johnson won the Charlotte Chase race, it broke a career-long 24-race winless streak. Johnson won just two of the first 29 races of the season, but with the title on the line he won three of the final seven races to tie Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt with seven championships each. In 26-race NASCAR regular season, Johnson led just 266 laps. In the 10 Chase races, he led 471.
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