2013 STP Gas Booster 500

The 2013 STP Gas Booster 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on April 7, 2013, at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia, United States. Contested over 500 laps on the 0.526-mile (0.847 km) oval, it was the sixth race of the 2013 Sprint Cup Series championship. Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports won the race, his record eighth win at the track, and second win of the season, while Clint Bowyer finished second. Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne and Kyle Busch rounded out the top five.

2013 STP Gas Booster 500
Race details[1][2][3][4]
Race 6 of 36 in the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
A map showing the layout of Martinsville Speedway
Date April 7, 2013 (2013-04-07)
Location Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway, Virginia, U.S.
Course Permanent racing facility
0.526 mi (0.847 km)
Distance 500 laps, 263 mi (423.257 km)
Weather Overcast with a temperature around 71 °F (22 °C); wind out of the SSW at 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h).
Average speed 72.066 mph (115.979 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Hendrick Motorsports
Time 19.244 seconds
Most laps led
Driver Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 346
Winner
No. 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network Fox
Announcers Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, Larry McReynolds
Nielsen Ratings 4.4/10
(6.924 million viewers)

This is the first NASCAR race since 2005 UAW Ford 500 without four-time Martinsville winner Denny Hamlin

Report

Background

Martinsville Speedway, the race track where the race was held.

Martinsville Speedway is a four-turn short track that is 0.526 miles (0.847 km) long.[5] The track's turns are banked at eleven degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, has a zero-degree banking.[5] Like the front stretch, the back straight away also doesn't have a banked surface.[5] The race consists of 500 laps, which is equivalent to a race distance of 263 miles (423 km).[5]

Before the race, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was leading the Drivers' Championship with 199 points, while Brad Keselowski stood in second with 187 points. Jimmie Johnson followed in the third position, 19 points ahead of Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle in fourth and fifth. Kyle Busch, with 163, was four points ahead of Kasey Kahne and nine ahead of Paul Menard, as Joey Logano was one point ahead of Denny Hamlin and five ahead of Matt Kenseth in tenth and eleventh. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. completed the first twelve positions with 139 points.[6] The defending winner of the race was Ryan Newman, who won the race in 2012.[7]

Practice and qualifying

Jimmie Johnson won his 30th pole position during qualifying.

Three practice sessions were scheduled before the race. The first session, held on April 5, 2013, was 90 minutes long. The second and third were scheduled on April 6, and were 45 and 60 minutes long.[8] During the first practice session, Johnson was quickest with a time of 19.214 seconds, ahead of Juan Pablo Montoya and Clint Bowyer in second and third. Jeff Gordon followed in the fourth position, ahead of Keselowski in fifth.[9]

In the Saturday morning session, Bowyer was quickest, ahead of Kyle Busch and Gordon in second and third. Brian Vickers and Newman followed in the fourth and fifth positions.[10] Jamie McMurray, Biffle, Jeff Burton, Martin Truex Jr., and Kevin Harvick rounded out the first ten positions.[10] In the final practice session for the race, Bowyer was quickest with a time of 19.518 seconds.[11] Johnson followed in second, ahead of Edwards and Biffle in third and fourth.[11] Burton, who was eighth-quickest in second practice,[10] managed fifth.[11]

During qualifying, forty-four cars were entered, meaning only one car was not able to start because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure.[12] Johnson clinched his thirtieth career pole position, with a time of 19.244 seconds.[13] After his qualifying run, Johnson commented, "In the first run out, we were in (qualifying) trim and made two or three laps, and I knew right away that we had a great shot at it today. At that point, I just needed to do my job and not mess up."[3] He was joined on the front row of the grid by Marcos Ambrose.[13] Vickers qualified third, Logano took fourth, and Kahne started fifth.[13] Gordon, Keselowski., Kenseth, Newman, and Edwards completed the first ten positions on the grid.[13] The driver who failed to qualify for the race was Mike Bliss.[13]

Start

The race was started at 1:13 p.m. EST. as Marcos Ambrose led the field to the green flag. A couple of laps later, the first caution came out when Danica Patrick spun in Turn 3. The race restarted on lap 22 as Jimmie Johnson led on the first restart. The second caution came out on lap 70 for Scott Speed, who was stopped on the front stretch. Juan Pablo Montoya won the free pass under caution. The race restarted on lap 77, with Jimmie Johnson the race leader.

Second Quarter

On Lap 173, the third caution came out for debris on the track. The race restarted on lap 180 and immediately the fourth caution came out for a multi-car wreck on the back straightaway. Jamie McMurray, Marcos Ambrose, and others were involved. The race restarted on lap 197. On lap 246, the fifth caution came out for a crash. The race restarted on lap 248. A few laps later, the sixth caution came out with 244 laps to go. Carl Edwards spun out in Turn 4. The race restarted with 239 laps to go, with Matt Kenseth in the lead.

Third quarter

The seventh caution came out for Martin Truex Jr. who spun on the track with 219 laps to go. The race restarted with 213 laps to go. The eighth caution came out for the spin of Kurt Busch with 206 laps to go. The race restarted with 201 laps to go. Kyle Busch led the field to the green. The ninth caution came with Ryan Newman cutting a front tire. The race restarted with 131 laps to go. The tenth caution came out with 51 laps to go when Brian Vickers spun out on the back straightaway. Paul Menard won the free pass under caution. The race restarted with 41 laps to go.

Fourth quarter

The eleventh caution came out with 33 laps to go when Dale Earnhardt Jr. spun out in Turn 4. The race restarted with 27 laps to go. With 13 laps to go, the twelfth caution came out when Kurt Busch caught fire on the front straightaway. The race was red flagged for more than six minutes for clean up. The race restarted with 7 laps to go. Jimmie Johnson won his eighth race at Martinsville.

Results

Qualifying

Grid No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 48Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet19.24498.400
2 9Marcos AmbroseRichard Petty MotorsportsFord19. 25198.364
3 55Brian VickersMichael Waltrip RacingToyota19.26698.287
4 22Joey LoganoPenske RacingFord19.26998.272
5 5Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet19.28698.185
6 24Jeff GordonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet19.28698.185
7 2Brad KeselowskiPenske RacingFord19.30798.078
8 20Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota19.31998.017
9 39Ryan NewmanStewart-Haas RacingChevrolet19.33097.962
10 99Carl EdwardsRoush Fenway RacingFord19.33097.962
11 18Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota19.33397.947
12 56Martin Truex Jr.Michael Waltrip RacingToyota19.33497.941
13 1Jamie McMurrayEarnhardt Ganassi RacingChevrolet19.35297.850
14 42Juan Pablo MontoyaEarnhardt Ganassi RacingChevrolet19.36697.780
15 15Clint BowyerMichael Waltrip RacingToyota19.37897.719
16 27Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet19.39397.643
17 88Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet19.39997.613
18 51Regan SmithPhoenix RacingChevrolet19.41997.513
19 78Kurt BuschFurniture Row RacingChevrolet19.43097.458
20 17Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord19.43397.442
21 29Kevin HarvickRichard Childress RacingChevrolet19.43597.432
22 16Greg BiffleRoush Fenway RacingFord19.43897.417
23 34David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord19.44597.382
24 30David StremmeSwan RacingFord19.46297.297
25 93Travis KvapilBK RacingToyota19.47297.247
26 14Tony StewartStewart-Haas RacingChevrolet19.47897.217
27 98Michael McDowellPhil Parsons RacingToyota19.48797.177
28 95Scott SpeedLeavine Family RacingFord19.51297.048
29 31Jeff BurtonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet19.52396.993
30 38David GillilandFront Row MotorsportsFord19.53296.949
31 47Bobby LabonteJTG Daugherty RacingToyota19.54196.904
32 10Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingChevrolet19.54296.889*
33 33Landon CassillCircle SportChevrolet19.54696.879
34 43Aric AlmirolaRichard Petty MotorsportsFord19.55696.830
35 11Mark MartinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota19.57196.755
36 32Ken SchraderFAS Lane RacingFord19.58796.676
37 36JJ YeleyTommy Baldwin RacingChevrolet19.59196.657
38 44Scott RiggsXxxtreme MotorsportsFord19.60396.597
39 7Dave BlaneyTommy Baldwin RacingChevrolet19.62596.489
40 83David ReutimannBK RacingToyota19.62896.474
41 13Casey MearsGermain RacingFord19.64296.406
42 35Josh WiseFront Row MotorsportsFord19.67296.259
43 87Joe NemechekNEMCO-Jay Robinson RacingToyota19.82495.521
Failed to Qualify
19Mike BlissHumphrey Smith RacingToyota19.61496.543
Source:[13]

Race results

Johnson's car during the race
Pos. Grid No. Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 148Jimmie JohnsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet50048
2 1515Clint BowyerMichael Waltrip RacingToyota50042
3 624Jeff GordonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet50041
4 55Kasey KahneHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet50040
5 1118Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota50040
6 72Brad KeselowskiPenske RacingFord50038
7 131Jamie McMurrayEarnhardt Ganassi RacingChevrolet50037
8 29Marcos AmbroseRichard Petty MotorsportsFord50037
9 2216Greg BiffleRoush Fenway RacingFord50035
10 3511Mark MartinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota50034
11 355Brian VickersMichael Waltrip RacingToyota500
12 3210Danica PatrickStewart-Haas RacingChevrolet50032
13 2129Kevin HarvickRichard Childress RacingChevrolet50031
14 820Matt KensethJoe Gibbs RacingToyota50031
15 999Carl EdwardsRoush Fenway RacingFord50029
16 4113Casey MearsGermain RacingFord50028
17 2614Tony StewartStewart-Haas RacingChevrolet50027
18 2931Jeff BurtonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet50026
19 1627Paul MenardRichard Childress RacingChevrolet50025
20 3443Aric AlmirolaRichard Petty MotorsportsChevrolet50024
21 3147Bobby LabonteJTG Daugherty RacingToyota50023
22 1851Regan SmithPhoenix RacingChevrolet500
23 422Joey LoganoPenske RacingFord49921
24 1788Dale Earnhardt Jr.Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet49820
25 2017Ricky Stenhouse Jr.Roush Fenway RacingFord49819
26 1442Juan Pablo MontoyaEarnhardt Ganassi RacingChevrolet49718
27 3736J. J. YeleyTommy Baldwin RacingChevrolet49717
28 3038David GillilandFront Row MotorsportsFord49616
29 397Dave BlaneyTommy Baldwin RacingChevrolet49515
30 2334David RaganFront Row MotorsportsFord49314
31 1039Ryan NewmanStewart-Haas RacingChevrolet49213
32 3632Ken SchraderFAS Lane RacingFord49212
33 3333Landon CassillCircle SportChevrolet49211
34 4387Joe NemechekNEMCO-Jay Robinson RacingToyota491
35 4235Josh WiseFront Row MotorsportsFord488
36 2430David StremmeSwan RacingToyota4858
37 1978Kurt BuschFurniture Row RacingChevrolet4577
38 4083David ReutimannBK RacingToyota4576
39 2593Travis KvapilBK RacingToyota4366
40 1256Martin Truex Jr.Michael Waltrip RacingToyota3854
41 2895Scott SpeedLeavine Family RacingFord643
42 3844Scott RiggsXxxtreme MotorsportsFord472
43 2798Michael McDowellPhil Parsons RacingFord261
Source:[14]

Standings after the race

References

  1. "Sprint Cup Series Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  2. Brown, Brian (April 3, 2013). "The STP Gas Booster 500". Rotoworld.com. NBC Sports. Archived from the original on April 5, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  3. Spencer, Reid (April 5, 2013). "Johnson Earns Third Martinsville Pole". NASCAR. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  4. Spencer, Reid (April 7, 2013). "Johnson Wins For Eighth Time At Martinsville". NASCAR. Retrieved April 13, 2013.
  5. "About the Track". Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  6. "Pre-race Drivers' Championship Standings" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 18, 2013. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  7. "2012 Goody's Fast Relief 500". Racing-reference.info. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  8. "STP Gas Gooster 500 Practice/Qualifying Times". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original on April 10, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  9. "STP Gas Booster 500 1st Practice Speeds". Motor Racing Network. April 5, 2013. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  10. "STP Gas Booster 500 2nd Practice Speeds". Motor Racing Network. April 6, 2013. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved April 13, 2013.
  11. "STP Gas Booster 500 Final Practice Speeds". Motor Racing Network. April 6, 2013. Archived from the original on April 9, 2013. Retrieved April 13, 2013.
  12. "Entry List: STP Gas Booster 500". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original on April 4, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  13. "STP Gas Booster 500 Starting Grid". Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on June 29, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
  14. "Sprint Cup Results: STP Gas Booster 500". NASCAR. April 7, 2013. Retrieved April 14, 2013.
  15. "NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Official Race Report No. 6" (PDF). Jayski's Sill Season Site. ESPN. April 8, 2013. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 18, 2013. Retrieved April 13, 2013.
  16. "2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Manufacturer Standings". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Archived from the original on April 16, 2013. Retrieved April 13, 2013.
Previous race:
2013 Auto Club 400
Sprint Cup Series
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Next race:
2013 NRA 500
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