2014 Pocono 400
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 14 of 36 in the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | June 8, 2014 | ||
| Location | Pocono Raceway, Long Pond, Pennsylvania | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.5 miles (4 km) | ||
| Distance | 160 laps, 400 mi (643.737 km) | ||
| Weather | Sunny with a temperature around 76 °F (24 °C); wind out of the south at 8 miles per hour (13 km/h). | ||
| Average speed | 139.440 mph (224.407 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||
| Time | 49.610 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | |
| Laps | 95 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TNT & MRN | ||
| Announcers |
Adam Alexander, Wally Dallenbach Jr. and Kyle Petty (Television) Joe Moore, Barney Hall and Jeff Striegle (Booth) Dave Moody (1), Mike Bagley (2) and Buddy Long (3) (Turns) (Radio) | ||
| Nielsen ratings |
3.0/8 4.5 Million viewers[12] | ||
The 2014 Pocono 400 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on June 8, 2014, at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Contested over 160 laps on the 2.5 miles (4.0 km) triangular superspeedway, it was the 14th race of the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the race, his second of the season and his first at Pocono. Brad Keselowski finished second, while Kurt Busch, Denny Hamlin, and Kyle Larson (who placed as the highest finishing rookie) rounded out the Top 5. Behind Larson, the other top rookies in the race were Austin Dillon (17th) and Michael Annett (20th).
Earnhardt Jr. was the fourth straight different driver from Hendrick Motorsports to win at Pocono, following Jeff Gordon's rain-shortened win in August 2012 and Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne in the June and August 2013 (respectively) races.
Entry list
The entry list for the Pocono 400 was released on Tuesday, June 3, 2014, at 11:09 a.m. Eastern time. Forty-three drivers were entered for the race which meant no one failed to make the race.
Practice
First practice
Brian Vickers was the fastest in first practice with a time of 49.764 and a speed of 180.854 mph (291.056 km/h).
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 55 | Brian Vickers | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 49.764 | 180.854 |
| 2 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 49.938 | 180.223 |
| 3 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 50.052 | 179.813 |
| Official first practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Denny Hamlin won the pole for the race with a time of 49.610 – a new track record – and a speed of 181.415 mph (291.959 km/h). "It's a tough balance, but we really just made the car a lot better," Hamlin said. "Each session our balance got a little bit better and we were able to get a little bit more speed out of it. That's kind of what you want to do, play it enough in the first few rounds to get to the final round where you go all out. Good job by our FedEx Ground Toyota team. We didn't test up here, we're one of the only teams that didn't test, but it's good to at least have a good Friday."[13]
Qualifying results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | R1 | R2 | R3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 50.360 | 50.010 | 49.610 |
| 2 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 50.104 | 49.700 | 49.612 |
| 3 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 50.430 | 49.798 | 49.637 |
| 4 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 50.193 | 50.001 | 49.770 |
| 5 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.123 | 50.085 | 49.858 |
| 6 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 50.418 | 49.904 | 49.873 |
| 7 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 50.255 | 50.089 | 50.048 |
| 8 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.507 | 50.174 | 50.121 |
| 9 | 55 | Brian Vickers | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 49.992 | 49.999 | 50.126 |
| 10 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 50.481 | 50.110 | 50.172 |
| 11 | 3 | Austin Dillon (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 50.428 | 50.201 | 50.188 |
| 12 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart–Haas Racing | Toyota | 50.209 | 50.014 | 50.244 |
| 13 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 50.370 | 50.207 | — |
| 14 | 42 | Kyle Larson (R) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 50.536 | 50.215 | — |
| 15 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 50.294 | 50.259 | — |
| 16 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 50.233 | 50.265 | — |
| 17 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 50.485 | 50.286 | — |
| 18 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 50.348 | 50.302 | — |
| 19 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 50.479 | 50.342 | — |
| 20 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.158 | 50.370 | — |
| 21 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 50.279 | 50.480 | — |
| 22 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 50.494 | 50.521 | — |
| 23 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 50.521 | 50.553 | — |
| 24 | 51 | Justin Allgaier (R) | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.529 | 50.765 | — |
| 25 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 50.549 | — | — |
| 26 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 50.571 | — | — |
| 27 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.588 | — | — |
| 28 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 50.610 | — | — |
| 29 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 50.801 | — | — |
| 30 | 7 | Michael Annett (R) | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 51.047 | — | — |
| 31 | 40 | Landon Cassill | Circle Sport | Chevrolet | 51.129 | — | — |
| 32 | 34 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 51.159 | — | — |
| 33 | 32 | Travis Kvapil | Go FAS Racing | Ford | 51.175 | — | — |
| 34 | 23 | Alex Bowman (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 51.231 | — | — |
| 35 | 38 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 51.249 | — | — |
| 36 | 36 | Reed Sorenson | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 51.441 | — | — |
| 37 | 98 | Josh Wise | Phil Parsons Racing | Ford | 51.503 | — | — |
| 38 | 44 | J. J. Yeley | Xxxtreme Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.733 | — | — |
| 39 | 66 | Timmy Hill | Identity Ventures Racing | Toyota | 51.945 | — | — |
| 40 | 26 | Cole Whitt (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 52.081 | — | — |
| 41 | 83 | Ryan Truex (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 52.188 | — | — |
| 42 | 33 | Alex Kennedy | Circle Sport | Chevrolet | 53.037 | — | — |
| 43 | 77 | Dave Blaney | Randy Humphrey Racing | Ford | 0.000 | — | — |
| Qualifying Results | |||||||
Practice (post-qualifying)
Second practice
Kevin Harvick was the fastest in the second practice session with a time of 50.764 and a speed of 177.291 mph (285.322 km/h).
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 50.764 | 177.291 |
| 2 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 50.787 | 177.211 |
| 3 | 55 | Brian Vickers | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 50.823 | 177.085 |
| Official second practice results | ||||||
Final practice
Harvick was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 51.251 and a speed of 175.606 mph (282.610 km/h). Aric Almirola had to change his transmission after fluid started leaking out of it with 15 minutes left in practice. It was initially thought that he lost an engine.[14]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 51.251 | 175.606 |
| 2 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 51.269 | 175.545 |
| 3 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.296 | 175.452 |
| Official final practice results | ||||||
Race
First half
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Start
Denny Hamlin led the field to the green flag at 1:20 p.m. but Brad Keselowski took the lead from him to lead lap one. The first caution of the day came out at lap 32 for a fire in the inside wall in turn 3. The fire apparently was in the area where pyrotechnics were launched during the pre-race ceremonies. After getting into the rear of Jamie McMurray and damaging the front of the car on the ensuing restart, points leader Matt Kenseth wound up going a lap down on lap 50. Keselowski led the first 56 laps until he came in to pit and Jeff Gordon took the lead for one lap before handing it to Tony Stewart.
The second caution of the race came out on lap 60 for debris in turn three in the middle of green flag stops. Debris on the back stretch, from J. J. Yeley's car, brought out the third caution of the race on lap 72. Stewart took the lead from Keselowski on the restart. A spin in turn 1 by Dave Blaney brought out the fourth caution on lap 80. Kurt Busch took the lead from Stewart on lap 84, before Stewart regained the lead from Busch five laps later. Rookie Kyle Larson led his first ever lap in Sprint Cup competition on lap 102, before Jimmie Johnson found his way to the lead for the first time at lap 109; he pitted not long after, ceding the lead to another rookie, Michael Annett.
Second half
Stewart re-took the lead on lap 112 after the green flag stops cycled through, while team-mate Kevin Harvick had a flat tire four laps later. The fifth caution of the race came out on lap 118 for fluid on the race track. Stewart was too fast entering pit road and had to serve a drive-through penalty, handing the lead to Keselowski. Justin Allgaier led his first ever lap on lap 134, before Danica Patrick brought out the sixth caution, by crashing at turn three. The seventh caution of the race came out with 18 laps to go. Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle were involved.
Finish
Dale Earnhardt Jr. took the lead from Brad Keselowski with five laps to go and took the checkered flag.[15] He inherited the lead after Keselowski dropped back to try to remove the piece of trash on his grill. "That's unfortunate for him," Earnhardt said. "He had me beat. I couldn't get to him. It's real hard to pass here. I've lost some in strange ways. It feels good to win one like that. Brad definitely had the better car. I'll own up to that, but we won the race." Keselowski stated that his car "was running really hot" and that he thought it "was going to blow up".[16]
Race results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 47 |
| 2 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 160 | 44 |
| 3 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 42 |
| 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 160 | 41 |
| 5 | 42 | Kyle Larson (R) | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 40 |
| 6 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 39 |
| 7 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 37 |
| 8 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 37 |
| 9 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 35 |
| 10 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 34 |
| 11 | 15 | Clint Bowyer | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 160 | 33 |
| 12 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 160 | 32 |
| 13 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 32 |
| 14 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 30 |
| 15 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 160 | 29 |
| 16 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 160 | 28 |
| 17 | 3 | Austin Dillon (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 27 |
| 18 | 34 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 160 | 26 |
| 19 | 55 | Brian Vickers | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 160 | 26 |
| 20 | 7 | Michael Annett (R) | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 24 |
| 21 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 23 |
| 22 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 160 | 22 |
| 23 | 13 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 21 |
| 24 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 160 | 20 |
| 25 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 160 | 19 |
| 26 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 160 | 18 |
| 27 | 51 | Justin Allgaier (R) | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | 160 | 18 |
| 28 | 38 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 160 | 16 |
| 29 | 32 | Travis Kvapil | Go FAS Racing | Ford | 160 | 15 |
| 30 | 26 | Cole Whitt (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 159 | 14 |
| 31 | 23 | Alex Bowman (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 159 | 13 |
| 32 | 83 | Ryan Truex (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 159 | 12 |
| 33 | 40 | Landon Cassill | Circle Sport | Chevrolet | 158 | 0 |
| 34 | 36 | Reed Sorenson | Circle Sport | Chevrolet | 158 | 10 |
| 35 | 98 | Josh Wise | Phil Parsons Racing | Ford | 158 | 9 |
| 36 | 66 | Timmy Hill | Identity Ventures Racing | Toyota | 158 | 8 |
| 37 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 158 | 7 |
| 38 | 44 | J. J. Yeley | Xxxtreme Motorsports | Chevrolet | 157 | 0 |
| 39 | 33 | Alex Kennedy | Circle Sport | Chevrolet | 156 | 5 |
| 40 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 150 | 4 |
| 41 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 143 | 3 |
| 42 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 142 | 2 |
| 43 | 77 | Dave Blaney | Randy Humphrey Racing | Ford | 142 | 1 |
| Race Results | ||||||
Race statistics
- Lead changes: 21 among different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 7 for 26
- Red flags: 0
- Time of race: 2 hours, 52 minutes and 7 seconds
- Average speed: 139.440 miles per hour (224.407 km/h)
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. took home $198.965 in winnings
