2012 Pocono 400

2012 Pocono 400
Race details[1][2][3][4]
Race 14 of 36 in the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season
Date June 10, 2012 (2012-06-10)
Location Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania
Course Permanent racing facility
2.5 mi (4.023 km)
Distance 160 laps, 400 mi (643.737 km)
Weather Clear with a high temperature around 84°F; wind out of the WNW at 7 mph
Average speed 131.004 miles per hour (210.831 km/h)
Pole position
Driver
Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 50.112
Most laps led
Driver Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps 49
Winner
No. 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network TNT
Announcers Adam Alexander, Kyle Petty and Wally Dallenbach, Jr.

The 2012 Pocono 400 Presented by #NASCAR was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on June 10, 2012 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, United States. Contested over 160 laps, it was the fourteenth race of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Joey Logano of Joe Gibbs Racing won the race from the pole (the second of his career, and the first to have come in a race that went the scheduled distance) while Mark Martin finished second and Tony Stewart finished third.

There were seven cautions and 21 lead changes among ten different drivers during the race. Logano's win moved him to 15th position in the drivers' championship, 125 points behind leader Matt Kenseth and 18 ahead of Kasey Kahne in 16th. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet maintained the first position with 96 points, 13 ahead of Toyota. Ford was placed third with 71 points, 13 ahead of Dodge with 22 races remaining in the season.

Report

Background

Pocono Raceway, the race track where the race was held.

Pocono Raceway is one of six superspeedways to hold NASCAR races, the others being Daytona International Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.[5] The standard track at Pocono Raceway is a three-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long.[6] The track's turns are banked differently; the first is banked at 14°, the second turn at 8° and the final turn with 6°.[6] However, each of the three straightaways are banked at 2°. Jeff Gordon was the defending race winner.[7]

In preparation for the race, NASCAR held three test sessions on June 6–7, 2012 for teams to test the newer pavement at Pocono, as the track had been repaved following the previous year's events.[8] During the first test session, which was held on June 6 for four hours, Mark Martin was quickest ahead of A. J. Allmendinger with a speed of 175.380 miles per hour (282.247 km/h) and a time of .[9][10] Allmendinger was quickest in the first of two test sessions on June 7 with a time of 50.793 seconds and a speed of 177.190 miles per hour (285.160 km/h),[11] while Kasey Kahne was quickest in the second test session with a time of 50.142 seconds[12] and a speed of 179.490 miles per hour (288.861 km/h).[13][14] Top speeds at the end of the front straightaway approached 212 miles per hour (341 km/h), however NASCAR determined that the use of restrictor plates would not be required.[15]

On June 5, 2012, NASCAR suspended Phoenix Racing driver Kurt Busch from the race after verbally abusing a media member and taking actions detrimental to stock car racing one week earlier at Dover International Speedway.[16]

Before the race, Greg Biffle led the Drivers' Championship with 486 points, and Matt Kenseth stood in second with 485. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was third in the Drivers' Championship with 476, twelve points ahead of Denny Hamlin and twenty-three ahead of Jimmie Johnson in fourth and fifth. Martin Truex, Jr., with 453, was one point ahead of Kevin Harvick, as Tony Stewart with 407 points, was one ahead of Kyle Busch and two in front of Clint Bowyer.[17] In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 90 points, sixteen points ahead of Toyota. Ford, with 67 points, was twelve points ahead of Dodge in the battle for third.[18]

Practice and qualifying

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Joey Logano won the pole position

Two practice sessions were also held before the race on June 8, 2012. The first session was 85 minutes long, while the second was 90 minutes.[9][19] Martin was quickest with a time of 50.173 seconds in the first session, 0.124 faster than Jamie McMurray.[20] Earnhardt, Jr. was third quickest, followed by Johnson, Allmendinger, and Ryan Newman. Kahne was seventh, still within half of a second of Martin's time.[20] In the second and final practice, Joey Logano was quickest with a time of 50.139 seconds.[21] Carl Edwards followed in second, ahead of Gordon and Paul Menard.[21] Kyle Busch was fifth quickest, with a time of 50.409 seconds.[21] Kahne, Biffle, Brad Keselowski, Allmendinger, and Marcos Ambrose rounded out the first ten positions.[21] McMurray, who was second quickest in the first session, could only manage 34th.[21] Also in the first practice session, Stephen Leicht struck a groundhog with his car, after Truex, Jr. brushed the SAFER barrier attempting to avoid it.[22]

"I think it's really hard to determine what makes this track faster right now. I don't know if being a little warmer makes it faster. I thought, as we went on and that speedy-dry and the groove got cleaned off, that people would go a lot faster, so it's a surprise to me."

Carl Edwards said about the oil-dry problem.[23]

Forty-four cars were entered for qualifying on June 9, 2012,[19] but only forty-three could qualify for the race because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure.[24] After having problems with oil-dry in turn one,[23] Logano of Joe Gibbs Racing clinched the fourth pole position of his Sprint Cup Series career, with a time of 50.112 seconds, which beat the old track record.[23][25] He was joined on the front row of the grid by Edwards.[25] Menard qualified third, Kyle Busch took fourth, and Hamlin started fifth.[25] Martin, Regan Smith, Earnhardt, Jr., Ambrose and Kahne rounded out the top ten. The driver that failed to qualify for the race was David Stremme.[25]

Once the qualifying session was completed, Logano stated, "The track was dirty. When I went out there and got to that trouble spot, I got loose a little bit and didn't get to the bottom as well as I wanted to. So I felt like I left a tenth and a half [of a second] or so right there, but I felt like I nailed [Turns] 2 and 3 pretty well. I was hoping it would be in the top five, and it ended up being good enough."[23]

Race

The race, the fourteenth in the season, began at 1:20 p.m. EDT and was televised live in the United States on TNT.[1] The conditions on the grid were dry before the race with the air temperature around 84 °F (29 °C).[2] Mike Kloton, Archdiocese of Scranton, Pennsylvania began pre-race ceremonies, by giving the invocation.[19][26] Next, Naomi Scott performed the national anthem, and Dr. Rose Mattioli, chairman of Pocono Raceway, gave the command for drivers to start their engines.[26]

At the start of the race, Logano maintained his pole position lead as Hamlin collided into Edwards going into the first turn, causing Edwards' car to rub against the tire. Also on the first lap, the first caution was given after Landon Cassill spun sideways and collided into Truex, Jr. in the third turn. Allmendinger was also involved in the accident. During the caution, Edwards pitted to repair damages to his car, as Cassill drove to the garage. On the sixth lap, Logano led Menard on the restart. Two laps later, the three drivers involved in the first caution were forced to pit after being penalized by NASCAR. By the twelfth lap, Logano had extended his lead to two seconds over second placed Menard. Two laps later, J. J. Yeley, Tony Raines and Reed Sorenson crashed into the wall, prompting the second caution. During the caution most of the front-runners pitted while Hamlin stayed on-track. Also under the caution, Montoya drove to the garage after having damage to the right side of his car, as Bowyer received a pit road speeding penalty.[26][27]

At the lap 20 restart, McMurray led Keselowski, Hamlin, and Logano into the first turn. On the following lap, Leicht made a pit stop, as Hamlin took the first position. Hamlin, who had won four previous times at Pocono Raceway, continued to extend his lead to 1.1 seconds by the 25th lap. Six laps later on lap 31, Joe Nemechek pitted, only two laps before Hamlin and Keselowski, and three before McMurray. On the 34th lap, Keselowski received a pit road speeding penalty, as Earnhardt, Jr. became the leader. Four laps later, Casey Mears drove to the garage, while Michael McDowell pitted. At lap 42, Gordon and Ambrose started the second set of green flag pit stops. On the following lap, Johnson pitted, as Gordon had to return to pit road after receiving a pit road speeding penalty. On the 44th lap, Kyle Busch, Logano and Ambrose pitted, as Johnson received a pit road speeding penalty. Johnson received a second penalty for speeding on pit road on the next lap. Kyle Busch, Harvick, David Reutimann and Newman were also given a pit road speeding penalty. Following pit stops, Hamlin was the leader ahead of Earnhardt, Jr.[26][27]

On the 58th lap, Kenseth passed McMurray for the third position, as Johnson remained a lap behind the leaders after three penalties. Two laps later, Earnhardt, Jr. reclaimed the lead from Hamlin. At lap 64, McMurray pitted, as Hamlin told his team he ran out of fuel. The third caution was given two laps later after Allmendinger crashed in the second turn from having no brakes. Most of the leaders pitted during the caution as McMurray, who pitted a few laps earlier, stayed on the track. Also during the caution, Jeff Burton became the 17th driver to be penalized for speeding on pit road, as Johnson chose the wave-around to return to the lead lap. At the lap 72 restart, McMurray was the leader ahead of Kahne. Two laps later, the fourth caution was given after debris was located on the track. McMurray, Hamlin, Kahne and Johnson pitted during the caution, as Kyle Busch drove to the garage. On the 83rd lap, the race resumed with Biffle the leader ahead of Martin, Earnhardt, Jr., Logano and Kenseth.[26][27]

Nine laps later, Kenseth and Earnhardt, Jr. passed Biffle to claim the first two positions. On the 98th lap, Kyle Busch retired from the race after having engine problems. On the following lap, Edwards began another set of green flag pit stops. On the 101st lap, Ambrose, Newman, Johnson and three others pitted, just one lap before Kenseth, Earnhardt, and Biffle. After every team pitted, Earnhardt, Jr. reclaimed the first position, as Biffle reported engine problems to his team. By lap 118, Newman and Johnson were placed sixth and seventh. Five laps later, the fifth caution was given after debris from Aric Almirola collision with the wall was located on the track. During the caution most of the front-runners pitted. At the lap 129 restart, Logano led Martin into the first turn. During the next three laps, Keselowski, Dave Blaney, Reutimann and Harvick pitted.[26][27]

At lap 138, Kahne collided into the turn 2 wall, prompting the sixth caution. Only some of the drivers chose to pit during the caution, leaving Logano and Martin in the first two positions for the restart on lap 143. Six laps later, the seventh caution was given after debris was located. Logano and Martin continued to be in the first two positions at the lap 152 restart. During the same lap, Martin claimed the first position from Logano, as Stewart, Hamlin and Johnson rounded out the first five positions. With four laps remaining, Logano reclaimed the lead from Martin with a bump-and-run. Logano maintained the first position to claim his second Sprint Cup Series career win. Martin took the second position ahead of Stewart and Johnson. Hamlin finished in the fifth position, as Bowyer, Kenseth, Earnhardt, Jr., Menard and McMurray completed the first ten positions.[26][27]

Results

Qualifying

No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed Grid
20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 50.112 179.598 1
99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 50.317 178.866 2
27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 50.397 178.582 3
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 50.399 178.575 4
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 50.408 178.543 5
55 Mark Martin Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 50.497 178.228 6
78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 50.517 178.158 7
88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 50.579 177.939 8
9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 50.601 177.862 9
5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 50.612 177.823 10
1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 50.659 177.658 11
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 50.694 177.536 12
16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 50.699 177.518 13
17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 50.704 177.501 14
83 Landon Cassill BK Racing Toyota 50.789 177.204 15
15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 50.840 177.026 16
42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 50.851 176.988 17
39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 50.890 176.852 18
22 A. J. Allmendinger Penske Racing Dodge 50.904 176.803 19
31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 50.946 176.658 20
29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 50.979 176.543 21
14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 51.015 176.419 22
56 Martin Truex, Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 51.090 176.160 23
48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.093 176.149 24
51 David Reutimann Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 51.115 176.074 25
13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Ford 51.254 175.596 26
47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 51.260 175.576 27
19 Mike Bliss Humphrey Smith Racing Toyota 51.315 175.387 28
43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 51.382 175.159 29
98 Michael McDowell Phil Parsons Racing Ford 51.407 175.073 30
2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 51.464 174.880 31
49 J. J. Yeley Robinson-Blakeney Racing Toyota 51.741 173.943 32
87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 51.763 173.869 33
34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 51.768 173.853 34
26 Josh Wise Front Row Motorsports Ford 51.874 173.497 35
38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 51.951 173.240 36
93 Travis Kvapil BK Racing Toyota 52.370 171.854 37
23 Scott Riggs R3 Motorsports Chevrolet 52.472 171.520 38
74 Cole Whitt Turn One Racing Chevrolet 52.584 171.155 39
36 Tony Raines Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 53.760 167.411 40
32 Reed Sorenson FAS Lane Racing Ford
—
—
41
10 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet
—
—
42
33 Stephen Leicht Circle Sport Racing Chevrolet 52.834 170.345 43
Failed to Qualify
30 David Stremme Inception Motorsports Toyota 52.940 170.004
Source:[25]

Race results

Pos Grid No. Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 1 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 48
2 6 55 Mark Martin Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 160 43
3 22 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 160 41
4 24 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 40
5 5 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 160 40
6 16 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 160 38
7 14 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 160 38
8 8 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 37
9 3 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 35
10 11 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 160 35
11 2 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 160 33
12 18 39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 160 32
13 9 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 160 31
14 21 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 30
15 20 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 29
16 7 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 160 28
17 17 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 160 28
18 31 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 160 26
19 12 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 25
20 23 56 Martin Truex, Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 160 24
21 25 51 David Reutimann Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 160 23
22 27 47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 160 22
23 36 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 160 22
24 13 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 160 21
25 42 10 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 160 19
26 37 93 Travis Kvapil BK Racing Toyota 160 18
27 34 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 160 18
28 29 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 158 16
29 10 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 139 15
30 4 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 76 14
31 19 22 A. J. Allmendinger Penske Racing Dodge 64 13
32 40 36 Tony Raines Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 47 12
33 43 33 Stephen Leicht Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 39 11
34 30 98 Michael McDowell Phil Parsons Racing Ford 37 10
35 26 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Ford 36 9
36 32 49 J. J. Yeley Robinson-Blakeney Racing Toyota 33 8
37 33 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 30 0
38 28 19 Mike Bliss Humphrey Smith Racing Toyota 26 0
39 39 74 Stacy Compton Turn One Racing Chevrolet 24 5
40 38 23 Scott Riggs R3 Motorsports Chevrolet 19 4
41 41 32 Reed Sorenson FAS Lane Racing Ford 12 0
42 35 26 Josh Wise Front Row Motorsports Ford 12 2
43 15 83 Landon Cassill BK Racing Toyota 1 1
Source:[4]

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 Matt Kenseth 523
2 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 513
3 Greg Biffle 507
4 Denny Hamlin 504
5 Jimmie Johnson 493
Source:[28]
Manufacturers' Championship standings
Pos Manufacturer Points
1 Chevrolet 96
2 Toyota 83
3 Ford 71
4 Dodge 58
Source:[18]
  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for the driver standings.

References

  1. 1 2 "2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved May 28, 2012.
  2. 1 2 Brown, Brian (June 6, 2012). "The Pocono 400". Rotoworld.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Joey Logano rolls to Pocono win from pole position". ESPN. Associated Press. June 11, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  4. 1 2 "2012 Official Race Results : Pocono 400 presented by #NASCAR". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  5. ↑ "List of NASCAR race tracks". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  6. 1 2 "Pocono Raceway". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  7. ↑ "2011 5-Hour Energy 500". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  8. ↑ Jensen, Tom (June 6, 2012). "CUP: Long Weekend Starts Now". SPEED Channel. Fox Sports. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  9. 1 2 Jensen, Tom (June 6, 2012). "CUP: Martin Fastest On New Surface". SPEED Channel. Fox Sports. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  10. ↑ "NSCS All Day 1 Practice Session: Test Session" (PDF). Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. June 6, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  11. ↑ "NSCS AM Practice Session: Test Session" (PDF). NASCAR statistics. Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site/ESPN. June 7, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  12. ↑ "NSCS PM Practice Session: Test Session" (PDF). NASCAR statistics. Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site/ESPN. June 7, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  13. ↑ Jensen, Tom (June 7, 2012). "CUP: New Pocono Is Wicked Fast". SPEED Channel. Fox Sports. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  14. ↑ Caraviello, David (June 7, 2012). "Drivers come to grips with new, faster Pocono". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  15. ↑ Spencer, Lee (June 7, 2012). "Officials comfortable with speeds". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2012-06-08.
  16. ↑ Caraviello, David (June 5, 2012). "NASCAR suspends Kurt Busch for Pocono". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  17. ↑ "2012 Official Driver Standings: FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  18. 1 2 "Manufactures' Championship Classification". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  19. 1 2 3 "Jayski's© NASCAR Silly Season Site – Sprint Cup Race Info / Rundown Page". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  20. 1 2 "Practice One Timing and Scoring". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  21. 1 2 3 4 5 "Practice 2 Timing and Scoring". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  22. ↑ "Weekend Top Five: Pocono". NASCAR. Turner Sports. June 11, 2012. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  23. 1 2 3 4 "Logano makes record run to Pocono pole". NASCAR. Turner Sports. June 9, 2012. Retrieved June 9, 2012.
  24. ↑ "Qualifying Entry List". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  25. 1 2 3 4 5 "Race Official Lineup". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 9, 2012.
  26. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Lap-by-Lap: Pocono". NASCAR. Turner Sports. June 10, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 "NASCAR Race Trax: Pocono 400". Fox Sports. June 10, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2012.
  28. ↑ "2012 Official Driver Standings: Pocono 400 presented by #NASCAR". NASCAR. Turner Sports. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
Previous race:
2012 FedEx 400		 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
2012 season		 Next race:
2012 Quicken Loans 400
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