2013 Quicken Loans 400

Summary

The 2013 Quicken Loans 400 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on June 16, 2013, at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan, United States. Contested over 200 laps on the two–mile (3.2 km) superspeedway, it was the fifteenth race of the 2013 Sprint Cup Series championship. Greg Biffle of Roush Fenway Racing won the race, his first win of the 2013 season, while Kevin Harvick finished second. Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, and Tony Stewart rounded out the top five. It was also Biffle's 19th Cup Series win.

2013 Quicken Loans 400
Race details[1][2][3]
Race 15 of 36 in the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
2013 Quicken Loans 400 program cover
2013 Quicken Loans 400 program cover
Date June 16, 2013 (2013-06-16)
Location Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Michigan, U.S.
Course Permanent racing facility
2 mi (3.2 km)
Distance 200 laps, 400 mi (643.737 km)
Weather Overcast with a temperature around 78 °F (26 °C); wind out of the SW at 8 miles per hour (13 km/h).
Average speed 139.278 mph (224.146 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Roush Fenway Racing
Time 35.564 seconds
Most laps led
Driver Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing
Laps 48
Winner
No. 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing
Television in the United States
Network TNT
Announcers Adam Alexander, Wally Dallenbach Jr. and Kyle Petty
Nielsen Ratings 2.8[4] (4.533 million viewers)[5]

Report edit

Background edit

 
Michigan International Speedway's front stretch and infield.

Michigan International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2 miles (3.2 km) long.[6] Opened in 1968, the track's turns are banked at eighteen degrees, while the 3,600-foot-long front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at twelve degrees.[6] The back stretch, has a five degree banking and is 2,242 feet long.[6] Michigan International Speedway has a grandstand seating capacity of 71,000 people, with 13,000 seats having been removed from turns 3 and 4 since the race weekend in August 2012.[7] Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the defending race winner, having won the event in 2012.[8]

Before the race, Jimmie Johnson was leading the Drivers' Championship with 521 points, while Carl Edwards stood in second with 470 points.[9] Clint Bowyer followed in the third with 452, thirteen points ahead of fourth-placed Earnhardt Jr. and eighteen ahead of fifth-placed Kevin Harvick.[9] Matt Kenseth, with 418, was in sixth; six ahead of Kyle Busch, who was scored seventh.[9] Eighth-placed Kasey Kahne was two points ahead of ninth-placed Brad Keselowski and five ahead of Greg Biffle, who rounded out the top ten.[9] Jeff Gordon was eleventh with 393, while Paul Menard completed the first twelve positions with 385 points.[9] In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 101 points, thirteen points ahead of Toyota.[10] Ford was third after recording only 70 points before the race.[10]

Veteran driver Jason Leffler, who started the previous week's race at Pocono, was killed in an accident at Bridgeport Speedway in Bridgeport, New Jersey on Wednesday, June 12th, four days prior to this event. Drivers ran with a special "LefTurn" sticker for this event, and Denny Hamlin ran Leffler's 2005 FedEx paint scheme as a tribute.

Entry list edit

(R) - Denotes rookie driver.

(i) - Denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.

No. Driver Team Manufacturer Sponsor
1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet McDonald's
2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Ford Miller Lite
5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Farmers Insurance
7 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet SANY
9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford Stanley Tools / DeWalt
10 Danica Patrick (R) Stewart–Haas Racing Chevrolet GoDaddy.com
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota FedEx Express
13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Ford GEICO
14 Tony Stewart Stewart–Haas Racing Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops / Mobil 1
15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 5-hour Energy
16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 3M / Give Kids a Smile
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (R) Roush Fenway Racing Ford Zest
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota M&M's
19 Mike Bliss (i) Humphrey Smith Racing Toyota Plinker Tactical
20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota The Home Depot / Husky Tools
21 Trevor Bayne (i) Wood Brothers Racing Ford Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center
22 Joey Logano Penske Racing Ford Shell / Pennzoil
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Drive to End Hunger
27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet CertainTeed / Menards
29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Budweiser
30 David Stremme Swan Racing Toyota Widow Wax
31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Caterpillar
32 Ken Schrader FAS Lane Racing Ford Federated Auto Parts
33 Austin Dillon (i) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet American Ethanol
34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford Taco Bell
35 Josh Wise (i) Front Row Motorsports Ford MDS Transport
36 J. J. Yeley Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet Tommy Baldwin Racing
38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford Long John Silver's
39 Ryan Newman Stewart–Haas Racing Chevrolet Quicken Loans
42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet Target
43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford Eckrich
44 Scott Riggs Xxxtreme Motorsports Ford No Label Watches
47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota Charter
48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Lowe's
51 Bobby Labonte Phoenix Racing Chevrolet Phoenix Construction
55 Mark Martin Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine
56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota NAPA Auto Parts
78 Kurt Busch Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet Furniture Row / Sealy
83 David Reutimann BK Racing Toyota Burger King / Dr Pepper
87 Joe Nemechek (i) NEMCO-Jay Robinson Racing Toyota Belle Tire
88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet National Guard / Man of Steel
93 Travis Kvapil BK Racing Toyota Burger King / Dr Pepper
98 Michael McDowell Phil Parsons Racing Ford Phil Parsons Racing
99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford Fastenal
Official entry list

Practice and qualifying edit

 
Carl Edwards won the pole position with a speed of 202.452 mph.

Three practice sessions were held before the race. The first session, held on June 14, 2013, was 90 minutes long. The second and third sessions, held a day later on June 15, were 55 and 60 minutes long, respectively.[11] During the first practice session, Kasey Kahne was quickest with a fastest time of 35.889 seconds.[12] Kurt Busch, who was 0.068 seconds slower, followed in second, ahead of Aric Almirola in third and Kevin Harvick in fourth.[12] With a fastest time of 36.014 seconds, Dale Earnhardt Jr. managed to be fifth quickest.[12]

During qualifying, forty-four cars were entered, meaning only one car would not obtain a spot in the race per NASCAR's qualifying procedure.[13] Carl Edwards clinched his twelfth career pole position,[3] with a lap time of 35.564 seconds and a speed of 202.452 miles per hour (325.815 km/h).[14] After his qualifying run, Edwards commented on his results, saying, "This is one lap, and it's good. I'm really happy. The process that's going to put us out front of Hendrick Motorsports and the guys at Joe Gibbs Racing and the rest of the guys we race against on Sunday, this process is just starting. We can use these positive things, like the pole position, hopefully a win, Greg [Biffle's] run last week, we can move forward. We've just got to keep moving forward. There's not a faster car in the place than our car today, and that's a big deal.”[3] He was joined on the front row of the grid by Kurt Busch.[14] Kasey Kahne qualified third, Paul Menard took fourth, and Aric Almirola ranked fifth.[14] Joey Logano, Austin Dillon, Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, and Juan Pablo Montoya completed the first ten positions on the grid.[14] The driver who failed to qualify for the race was Scott Riggs.[3]

In the Saturday morning practice session, Kurt Busch was quickest with a fastest lap time of 35.829 seconds, over two-tenths ahead of Carl Edwards in second and Jimmie Johnson in third. Paul Menard and Mark Martin followed in the fourth and fifth positions, respectively.[15] Kasey Kahne, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, and Aric Almirola rounded out the first ten positions.[15] In the final practice session for the race, Kurt Busch remained quickest with a time of 36.480 seconds, 0.651 slower than his fastest time of the second practice session.[15][16] Kahne followed in second, ahead of Martin in third and Johnson in fourth.[16] Edwards, who was second-quickest in second practice,[15] could only manage fifth.[16]

Race edit

The race began with Kurt Busch colliding with pole-sitter Carl Edwards in turn 2 on the opening lap in an attempt to grab the lead. Edwards lost multiple positions as a result, and Kurt Busch emerged in front. The first caution flew on lap 6, after Bobby Labonte got loose and spun in turn 2, collecting Jeff Gordon. A competition caution was thrown on lap 20 for the previous night's rain. Kurt Busch lost the lead to Joey Logano during this caution, and only three laps after the subsequent restart, on lap 29, Busch got loose off of turn two and crashed down the back-straightaway.

Afterward, multiple caution flags and different pit stop strategies gave Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kasey Kahne turns at leading the race. At one point, Johnson rebounded to the second position after falling to twelfth as a result of a mistake made on a restart. On lap 104 and while leading the race, Kahne experienced a right-front tire failure and crashed into the outside wall in turn 1, setting his car ablaze and eliminating him from the event. Fortunately, Kahne was not harmed by the impact or the fire. Johnson took over the lead but lost it to Earnhardt during pit stops. On the restart on lap 113, Earnhardt began to pull away from Kenseth and Biffle as Johnson struggled to battle back to the front. Several laps later, Earnhardt developed engine problems and fell off the pace, giving Johnson (who had successfully passed Kenseth and Biffle) the lead. After a few slow laps, Earnhardt's engine blew up, bringing out another caution on lap 131. After taking four tires in the pits, Johnson fell to 20th and Edwards took the lead ahead of Logano, Kenseth, and Biffle.

Following the restart on lap 136, Biffle worked his way past both Kenseth and Logano into second and proceeded to chase down Edwards, passing him for the lead on lap 150 and quickly pulling away afterward. A caution for a right-front tire failure on the car of McMurray occurred in the middle of the last round of pit stops, trapping Edwards a lap down (although he would immediately receive the free pass). Biffle, who had pitted under the green but did not go a lap down, cycled out as the leader. On the lap of the restart (lap 174), Kenseth got loose off of turn two, causing him to drop several positions while Johnson, who restarted tenth, began to pass cars. Johnson gradually worked his way through the field, eventually passing Harvick to move into second with eight laps to go. However, as Johnson struggled to catch Biffle, he experienced a right-front tire failure off of turn 2 on lap 198, causing him to make contact with the outside wall and relegating him to a 28th-place finish after having to pit to address the tire. Biffle sped away to take the victory over Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, and Tony Stewart. Biffle's win was the 615th race victory for the Ford marque and 715th for Ford Motor Company in the Cup Series. It was also the 1,000th race victory for Ford Motor Company in NASCAR's three national touring series.[17][18]

Results edit

Qualifying edit

Grid No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 35.564 202.452
2 78 Kurt Busch Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 35.665 201.879
3 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 35.783 201.213
4 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 35.856 200.803
5 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 35.863 200.764
6 22 Joey Logano Penske Racing Ford 35.870 200.725
7 33 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 35.887 200.630
8 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 35.898 200.568
9 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 35.918 200.457
10 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 35.920 200.445
11 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 35.927 200.406
12 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 35.982 200.100
13 56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 35.991 200.050
14 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 36.038 199.789
15 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 36.043 199.761
16 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Ford 36.045 199.750
17 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 36.056 199.689
18 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 36.062 199.656
19 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 36.112 199.380
20 51 Bobby Labonte Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 36.116 199.358
21 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 36.139 199.231
22 55 Mark Martin Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 36.142 199.214
23 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 36.237 198.692
24 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Ford 36.255 198.593
25 21 Trevor Bayne Wood Brothers Racing Ford 36.285 198.429
26 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 36.297 198.364
27 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 36.310 198.292
28 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 36.349 198.080
29 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 36.378 197.922
30 98 Michael McDowell Phil Parsons Racing Ford 36.508 197.217
31 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 36.583 196.813
32 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 36.587 196.791
33 83 David Reutimann BK Racing Toyota 36.683 196.276
34 30 David Stremme Swan Racing Toyota 36.685 196.266
35 39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 36.784 195.737
36 7 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 36.826 195.514
37 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 36.942 194.900
38 35 Josh Wise Front Row Motorsports Ford 37.131 193.908
39 32 Ken Schrader FAS Lane Racing Ford 37.288 193.092
40 36 J. J. Yeley Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 37.313 192.962
41 93 Travis Kvapil BK Racing Toyota 37.338 192.833
42 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO-Jay Robinson Racing Toyota 37.502 191.990
43 19 Mike Bliss Humphrey Smith Racing Toyota 38.472 187.149
Failed to Qualify
44 Scott Riggs Xxxtreme Motorsports Ford 39.047 184.393
Source:[3][14]

Race results edit

 
Greg Biffle won the race.
Pos Grid No. Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Led Points1
1 19 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 200 48 48
2 21 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 200 0 42
3 13 56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 200 0 41
4 9 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 200 0 40
5 14 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 200 0 39
6 8 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 200 0 38
7 27 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 200 0 37
8 1 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 200 16 37
9 6 22 Joey Logano Penske Racing Ford 200 21 36
10 18 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 200 0 34
11 7 33 Austin Dillon Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 200 0
12 16 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Ford 200 0 32
13 37 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 200 0 31
14 4 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 200 0 30
15 25 21 Trevor Bayne Wood Brothers Racing Ford 200 0
16 15 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 200 0 28
17 5 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 200 0 27
18 35 39 Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 200 0 26
19 32 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Ford 200 0 25
20 10 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 200 0 24
21 24 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Ford 200 2 24
22 26 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 200 0 22
23 23 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 200 0 21
24 40 36 J. J. Yeley Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 200 1 21
25 31 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 200 1 20
26 22 55 Mark Martin Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 200 0 18
27 41 93 Travis Kvapil BK Racing Toyota 200 2 18
28 17 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 199 18 17
29 34 30 David Stremme Swan Racing Toyota 199 0 15
30 11 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 199 0 14
31 36 7 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 199 0 13
32 33 83 David Reutimann BK Racing Toyota 198 0 12
33 28 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 196 21 12
34 39 32 Ken Schrader FAS Lane Racing Ford 195 0 10
35 2 78 Kurt Busch Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 193 21 10
36 42 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO-Jay Robinson Racing Toyota 193 0
37 12 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 131 34 8
38 3 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 103 14 7
39 29 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 52 0 5
40 38 35 Josh Wise Front Row Motorsports Ford 51 0
41 43 19 Mike Bliss Humphrey Smith Racing Toyota 50 0
42 30 98 Michael McDowell Phil Parsons Racing Ford 36 1 3
43 20 51 Bobby Labonte Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 5 0 1
Source:
Notes

^1 Points include 3 Chase for the Sprint Cup points for winning, 1 point for leading a lap, and 1 point for most laps led.

Standings after the race edit

References edit

  1. ^ "2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  2. ^ Brown, Brian (2013-06-12). "The Quicken Loans 400". Rotoworld.com. NBC Sports. Archived from the original on 2013-06-14. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
  3. ^ a b c d e Pryson, Mike (2013-06-14). "Carl Edwards on pole with speed of 202.452 mph for NASCAR Cup race at Michigan". Autoweek. Archived from the original on 2013-06-19. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
  4. ^ Golum, Rob (2013-06-18). "U.S. Cable Television Ratings for the Week Ended June 16". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on September 26, 2013. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
  5. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (2013-06-18). "Cable Top 25: 'Major Crimes' Tops Cable Viewership for the Week Ending June 16, 2013". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on 2013-06-21. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
  6. ^ a b c "Michigan International Speedway". CBS Sports. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  7. ^ "Michigan International Speedway Track News, Records & Links". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved 2016-03-10.
  8. ^ "2012 Quicken Loans 400". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  9. ^ a b c d e "2013 Party in the Poconos 400 Report" (PDF). Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. 2013-06-09. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-06-26. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  10. ^ a b "Manufacturer's Championship Classification". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original on 2013-04-16. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  11. ^ "Quicken Loans 400 Practice/Qualifying Times". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original on 2013-06-13. Retrieved 2013-06-11.
  12. ^ a b c "Quicken Loans 400 1st Practice Speeds". Motor Racing Network. 2013-06-14. Archived from the original on 2013-06-18. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
  13. ^ "Entry List: Quicken Loans 400". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original on 2013-06-13. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
  14. ^ a b c d e "2013 Quicken Loans 400 Qualifying Results". Motor Racing Network. 2013-06-14. Archived from the original on 2013-06-28. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
  15. ^ a b c d "Quicken Loans 400 2nd Practice Speeds". Motor Racing Network. 2013-06-15. Archived from the original on 2013-06-19. Retrieved 2013-06-15.
  16. ^ a b c "Quicken Loans 400 Final Practice Speeds". Motor Racing Network. 2013-06-15. Archived from the original on 2013-06-19. Retrieved 2013-06-15.
  17. ^ Held, Scott (June 16, 2013). "Biffle emerges late, lands Michigan victory". NASCAR. Archived from the original on June 20, 2013. Retrieved June 16, 2013.
  18. ^ "Ford Manufacturer News". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original on 2016-03-08. Retrieved 2016-03-15.


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Sprint Cup Series
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