2014 STP 500

2014 STP 500
Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]
Race 6 of 36 in the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season
Date March 30, 2014 (2014-03-30)
Location Martinsville Speedway
Ridgeway, Virginia
Course Permanent racing facility
0.526 mi (0.847 km)
Distance 500 laps, 263 mi (423.257 km)
Weather Mostly cloudy with a temperature around 48 °F (9 °C); wind out of the NNW at 25 miles per hour (40 km/h)
Average speed 72.176 mph (116.156 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 18.998
Most laps led
Driver Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 296
Winner
No. 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing
Television in the United States
Network Fox & MRN
Announcers Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds (Television)
Joe Moore and Barney Hall (Booth)
Dave Moody (Backstretch) (Radio)
Nielsen Ratings 4.2/10 (Final)
3.8/9 (Overnight)
6.7 Million viewers[9]

The 2014 STP 500 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race that was held on March 30, 2014, at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. Contested over 500 laps on the 0.526 miles (0.847 km) oval, it was the sixth race of the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Kurt Busch won the race, his first win with Stewart-Haas Racing, breaking an 83-race winless streak. Jimmie Johnson finished second, while Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Joey Logano, and Marcos Ambrose rounded out the top five. The top rookies of the race were Austin Dillon (15th), Justin Allgaier (23rd), and Kyle Larson (27th).

Previous week's race

On the final lap of the Auto Club 400, Kyle Busch passed his brother Kurt Busch and held off a hard charging rookie Kyle Larson to win the race.[10] "Holy cow, what do you expect when you have a green-white-checkered finish and everyone comes down pit road to put on four tires," Busch said. "That's a Days of Thunder thing right there. What do you mean, there's two laps to go, everybody is to pit, Cole. I came off the fourth turn in disbelief that we won this thing, because we were mediocre all day. It was really weird for us, not a race that we're typically used to. But now there's a load off your shoulders that you can go out the rest of the season and race the way you want to."[10] After winning his first Nationwide Series race the previous day, Larson stated that it had "been a really good weekend" and that he had been battling "probably a 12th place car for most of the day".[10]

Report

Background

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

The track, Martinsville Speedway, is a four-turn short track that is 0.526 miles (0.847 km) long.[11] The track's turns are banked at eleven degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, has a zero degree banking.[11] Like the front stretch, the backstraightaway also doesn't have a banked surface.[11] The race consisted of 500 laps, equivalent to a race distance of 263 miles (423 km).[11] The defending race winner was Jimmie Johnson.

Entry list

The entry list for the STP 500 was released on Monday, March 24 at 9:03 a.m. Eastern time. Forty-four drivers were entered for the race.

No. Driver Team Manufacturer
1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
2 Brad Keselowski (PC2) Team Penske Ford
3 Austin Dillon (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
7 Michael Annett (R) Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet
9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford
10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Chevrolet
14 Tony Stewart (PC3) Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota
16 Greg Biffle Roush-Fenway Racing Ford
17 Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Roush-Fenway Racing Ford
18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
20 Matt Kenseth (PC5) Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford
23 Alex Bowman (R) BK Racing Toyota
24 Jeff Gordon (PC6) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
26 Cole Whitt (R) Swan Racing Toyota
27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
30 Parker Kligerman (R) Swan Racing Toyota
31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
32 Travis Kvapil Go FAS Racing Ford
33 David Stremme Circle Sport Chevrolet
34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford
35 David Reutimann Front Row Motorsports Ford
36 Reed Sorenson Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet
38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford
40 Landon Cassill (i) Circle Sport Chevrolet
41 Kurt Busch (PC4) Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet
42 Kyle Larson (R) Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford
47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet
48 Jimmie Johnson (PC1) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
51 Justin Allgaier (R) HScott Motorsports Chevrolet
55 Brian Vickers Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota
66 Joe Nemechek (i) Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota
78 Martin Truex, Jr. Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet
83 Ryan Truex (R) BK Racing Toyota
88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Ford
98 Josh Wise Phil Parsons Racing Chevrolet
99 Carl Edwards Roush-Fenway Racing Ford
Official entry list
Key Meaning
(R) Rookie
(i) Ineligible for points
(PC#) Past champions provisional

Practice

Denny Hamlin was the fastest in the first and ultimately, only practice session of the weekend with a time of 18.932 and a speed of 100.021 mph (160.968 km/h).

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer Time Speed
1 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 18.932 100.021
2 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 19.067 99.313
3 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.094 99.173
Official first practice results

Qualifying

Kyle Busch won the pole with a time of 18.998 and a speed of 99.674 mph (160.410 km/h).[12] Busch felt that his car seemed "to be working well right now, whatever is working" but felt that he had "to be a little bit faster. There's still some speed to be gained and some consistency throughout races as well keeping speed throughout a run. There's room for improvement still".[12] David Reutimann failed to qualify for the race.[12] Rain washed out the two other practice sessions that were due to be held the day before the race.

Qualifying results

Pos No. Driver Team Manufacturer R1 R2
1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.008 18.988
2 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 18.960 19.022
3 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 18.898 19.045
4 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.053 19.093
5 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.048 19.118
6 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 19.037 19.118
7 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 19.133 19.150
8 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 19.057 19.157
9 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 19.018 19.200
10 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 19.096 19.290
11 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 19.089 19.369
12 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 19.074 19.445
13 55 Brian Vickers Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 19.134
14 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 19.141
15 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 19.149
16 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 19.151
17 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 19.183
18 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 19.184
19 23 Alex Bowman (R) BK Racing Toyota 19.193
20 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 19.200
21 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 19.203
22 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 19.203
23 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Chevrolet 19.205
24 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 19.205
25 51 Justin Allgaier (R) HScott Motorsports Chevrolet 19.238
26 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.248
27 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 19.252
28 42 Kyle Larson (R) Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 19.257
29 32 Travis Kvapil Go FAS Racing Ford 19.274
30 17 Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 19.282
31 78 Martin Truex, Jr. Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 19.283
32 95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Toyota 19.322
33 98 Josh Wise Phil Parsons Racing Chevrolet 19.331
34 3 Austin Dillon (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 19.345
35 26 Cole Whitt (R) Swan Racing Toyota 19.358
36 40 Landon Cassill Circle Sport Chevrolet 19.370[N 1]
37 33 David Stremme Circle Sport Chevrolet 19.385
38 83 Ryan Truex (R) BK Racing Toyota 19.402
39 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 19.430
40 7 Michael Annett (R) Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 19.478
41 30 Parker Kligerman (R) Swan Racing Toyota 19.506
42 36 Reed Sorenson Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 19.511
43 66 Joe Nemechek Identity Ventures Racing Toyota 19.657
Did not qualify
44 35 David Reutimann Front Row Motorsports Ford 19.370
Official qualifying results

Race

First half

Start

The race began at 1:13 p.m. Eastern time with Kyle Busch leading the field to the green flag from the outside line on the initial start. With the tight confines of Martinsville, it did not take long for the first caution of the race to wave. It flew on lap 2 after Parker Kligerman hit the back of Martin Truex, Jr. and spun out in turn 3. A number of cars towards the back were on pit road for damage sustained in a classic Martinsville accordion effect. The race restarted on lap 11, before Matt Kenseth took the lead on lap 18. Jimmie Johnson took the lead on lap 22 and held the lead to the competition caution on lap 40 due to overnight rain. Travis Kvapil stayed out to lead a lap before giving the lead back to Johnson. Brad Keselowski was exiting pit road when he collided with Kasey Kahne who was entering. The bulk of the damage came when Kurt Busch clipped the right side of Keselowski's car. He was forced to take his car to the garage.[13] Keselowski felt that Busch "just accelerated and drove through us, absolutely drove through us" and that he was "tired of his recklessness".[13]

Tempers flaring

The race restarted on lap 48, with Kenseth retaking the lead on lap 57. Kyle Busch took back the lead on lap 60, before the lead cycled to Joey Logano on lap 66, and back to Johnson on lap 83. Keselowski returned to the track for a payback move at Kurt Busch; he gave out the middle finger until Kurt Busch bumped him out of the way. Keselowski's car ultimately left a tire mark on the left side of Kurt Busch's car.[13] After the race, Kurt Busch stated that he had "steered right to go around Brad and he clobbers our left-side door" and later described Keselowski's move as "punk-ass" and that he "will get what he gets back when I decide to give it back".[13] The two drivers battled for 17 laps in total. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. wheel-hopped the curb in turn 1 trying to avoid ramming Kurt Busch and scraped the wall, which brought out the third caution of the race on lap 103. Matt Kenseth beat Jimmie Johnson off pit road to take the lead for the restart, on lap 110.

Cautions breed cautions

Logano took back the lead on lap 112, before the fourth caution of the race flew on lap 114 after Kvapil clipped Michael Annett going into turn 3, with the incident also involving David Gilliland. From the restart at lap 120, Logano maintained the lead until lap 134, when Johnson returned to the head of the race. Greg Biffle became the race's next leader on lap 156, and held the lead until the fifth caution of the race flew on lap 170 after Casey Mears got tapped by Gilliland in turn 1 and sent him spinning. Marcos Ambrose beat Biffle off pit road to take the lead for the restart on lap 179. Ambrose led until on lap 196 when Kenseth passed him. The sixth caution of the race flew on lap 201 after Dale Earnhardt, Jr. tapped Jamie McMurray in turn 2 and sent his car into the wall. Kenseth led the field to the restart on lap 208, before Johnson returned to the lead on lap 214.

Second half

Halfway

The seventh caution of the race flew on lap 219 after Alex Bowman got hit in the rear by Gilliland and rear-ended the wall in turn 4. Earnhardt, Jr. stayed out on track while others pitted for tires, and thus took the lead for the restart, on lap 226. A short green-flag run followed before debris in turn 1 brought out the eighth caution of the race on lap 231. Kevin Harvick's run of mechanical mishaps continued when he was forced to pit because of a broken rear-end chain. Earnhardt, Jr. still led the field for the restart on lap 238, before Kurt Busch took the lead on lap 244. Johnson returned to the front on lap 246, before the ninth caution of the race flew at the halfway mark, after Ryan Truex was sent spinning into the turn 4 wall. Harvick stayed out to lead a lap before pitting and the lead cycled back to Kenseth for the restart, on lap 258.

Closing stages

Earnhardt, Jr. took back the lead on lap 262, before Johnson (lap 266) and Clint Bowyer (lap 285) both went to the head of the race. Johnson retook the lead on lap 289, and held the top spot until the next caution, the 10th, flew on lap 316 after Joe Nemechek hit the wall in turn 4. The race restarted on lap 323, and Johnson stayed out front until the 11th caution of the race flew on lap 341 after Kyle Larson got loose and spun out exiting turn 2. The race restarted on lap 347, with Bowyer and Johnson swapping the lead before a piece of debris brought out the 12th caution of the race on lap 349. Johnson maintained the lead from the restart on lap 358 to the 13th caution of the race, which flew with 90 laps to go after Martin Truex, Jr. got turned by Keselowski in turn 2.

Finish

The race restarted with 83 laps to go, with Johnson leading until 50 laps to go, when Bowyer assumed the lead. The 14th caution of the race flew with 42 laps to go after Carl Edwards got loose and spun out in turn 2. Bowyer and Johnson swapped the lead on pit road, as Johnson won the race off to take the lead. The race restarted with 35 laps to go, and was passed by Kurt Busch 8 laps later. Johnson had another spell out front with 17 laps to go, but Kurt Busch took the lead back with 10 laps to go and held off Johnson to end his 83-race winless streak, and achieved his 25th career victory.[14] Busch stated that he "didn't know if we'd be able to do it, you know? The 48 car is king here, him or the 24", and that he had "been on this journey for a while and every time you come to Martinsville, you just kind of draw a line through it like there's no way I'll be able to challenge those Hendrick guys or be up in the top 10. This Stewart-Haas team gave me a car to do it."[14] Johnson, who led 296 laps, stated that his car was "so on edge slipping and sliding" and that a "lack of security in our own car kept us from feeling more racy and putting a bumper to someone or really getting inside someone aggressively".[14]

Race results

Pos Grid No. Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points
1 22 41 Kurt Busch Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 500 47
2 5 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 44
3 26 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 42
4 3 22 Joey Logano Team Penske Ford 500 41
5 17 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 500 40
6 6 20 Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 500 39
7 18 4 Kevin Harvick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 500 38
8 20 43 Aric Almirola Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 500 36
9 12 15 Clint Bowyer Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 500 36
10 21 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 500 34
11 15 47 A. J. Allmendinger JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet 500 34
12 5 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 32
13 8 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 500 31
14 1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 500 31
15 34 3 Austin Dillon (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 500 29
16 13 55 Brian Vickers Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 500 28
17 7 14 Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 500 27
18 11 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 500 27
19 2 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 500 25
20 16 31 Ryan Newman Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 500 24
21 31 78 Martin Truex, Jr. Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 500 23
22 27 5 Kasey Kahne Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 22
23 25 51 Justin Allgaier (R) HScott Motorsports Chevrolet 500 21
24 23 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Chevrolet 500 20
25 36 40 Landon Cassill Circle Sport Chevrolet 500 0
26 39 38 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 499 18
27 28 42 Kyle Larson (R) Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 498 17
28 24 34 David Ragan Front Row Motorsports Ford 497 16
29 35 26 Cole Whitt (R) Swan Racing Toyota 497 15
30 38 83 Ryan Truex (R) BK Racing Toyota 496 14
31 40 7 Michael Annett (R) Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 495 13
32 10 10 Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet 494 12
33 29 32 Travis Kvapil Go FAS Racing Ford 493 12
34 42 36 Reed Sorenson Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 492 10
35 33 98 Josh Wise Phil Parsons Racing Chevrolet 492 9
36 19 23 Alex Bowman (R) BK Racing Toyota 488 8
37 32 95 Michael McDowell Leavine Family Racing Toyota 474 7
38 14 2 Brad Keselowski Team Penske Ford 469 6
39 37 33 David Stremme Circle Sport Chevrolet 440 5
40 30 17 Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Roush Fenway Racing Ford 409 4
41 41 30 Parker Kligerman (R) Swan Racing Toyota 408 3
42 9 1 Jamie McMurray Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 396 2
43 43 66 Joe Nemechek Identity Ventures Racing Toyota 310 0

Race statistics

Media

Television

Fox Sports
Booth announcersPit reporters
Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy
Color-commentator: Larry McReynolds
Color commentator: Darrell Waltrip
Matt Yocum
Steve Byrnes
Krista Voda
Jeff Hammond

Radio

MRN Radio
Booth announcersTurn announcersPit reporters
Lead announcer: Joe Moore
Announcer: Barney Hall
Backstretch: Dave Moody Winston Kelly
Steve Post
Alex Hayden
Woody Cain

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 1 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 227
2 2 Matt Kenseth 218 (−9)
2 3 Carl Edwards 217 (−10)
1 4 Jeff Gordon 216 (−11)
1 5 Jimmie Johnson 209 (−18)
1 6 Kyle Busch 189 (−38)
3 7 Brad Keselowski 188 (−39)
2 8 Joey Logano 187 (−40)
9 Austin Dillon (R) 179 (−48)
2 10 Ryan Newman 174 (−53)
3 11 Paul Menard 168 (−59)
1 12 Denny Hamlin 165 (−62)
13 Brian Vickers 165 (−62)
6 14 Marcos Ambrose 162 (−65)
2 15 Tony Stewart 154 (−73)
6 16 A. J. Allmendinger 152 (−75)

Manufacturers' Championship standings
Pos Manufacturer Points
1 Chevrolet 268
2 Ford 254 (−14)
3 Toyota 238 (−26)
  • Note: Only the first sixteen positions are included for the driver standings.

Notes

  1. Landon Cassill and David Reutimann both set a lap time of 19.370 in Round 1 for 36th position, the final guaranteed starting spot. As Cassill's team was higher in owner's points, Cassill qualified for the race at the expense of Reutimann, since his team was lowest in owner's points of those whose times were outside the top 36.

References

  1. "Sprint Cup Series Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved March 26, 2014.
  2. "Martinsville Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  3. "Entry List". jayski.com. NASCAR Public Relations Statistics. March 24, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  4. "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 28, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  5. "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 28, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  6. "STP 500 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. March 30, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  7. "Points Standings" (PDF). jayski.com. NASCAR Statistics. March 30, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  8. "Manufacturer Standings" (PDF). jayski.com. NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications. March 30, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  9. Paulsen (April 4, 2014). "Nielsen Ratings". SportsMediaWatch.com. Sports Media Watch. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  10. 1 2 3 Pistone, Pete (March 23, 2014). "Kyle Busch Charges to the Win". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "About the Track". Retrieved April 1, 2013.
  12. 1 2 3 Long, Dustin (March 28, 2014). "Kyle Busch Wins Martinsville Pole". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Long, Dustin (March 30, 2014). "Emotions High for Ex-Teammates". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  14. 1 2 3 Pistone, Pete (March 30, 2014). "Kurt Busch Back in Victory Lane". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
Previous race:
2014 Auto Club 400
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
2014 season
Next race:
2014 Duck Commander 500
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