RACE INFO:
Event: Party in the Poconos 400
Date/Time: June 9/1 p.m. ET
2012 winner: Joey Logano
2012 polesitter: Joey Logano
Distance: 160 laps/400 miles
Track Length: 2.5 miles
Banking: 14/8/6 degrees
Track Shape: Oval
EXPRESS NOTES:
FedEx 400 Recap: Denny Hamlin started from the pole, led three times for 41 laps and was running among the top-five with less than 25 laps remaining in Sunday’s FedEx 400 benefitting Autism Speaks NASCAR race at Dover (Del.) International Speedway when a flat right-front tire on the #11 FedEx Freight/Autism Speaks Toyota sent Hamlin hard into the outside wall in Turn 1 and delivered the FedEx Racing team a disappointing 34th-place finish. Tony Stewart was victorious in the race, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski. Hamlin was in contention for his first Cup Series win at the ‘Monster Mile’ throughout the 400-lap event on the one-mile concrete oval. Battling a tight condition for the first half of the race, the #11 machine came to life just past the halfway mark, and was the fastest car on the track. Hamlin was leading with less than 100 laps remaining and stayed out front until the second-to-last caution on Lap 318. He pitted for right-side tires and fuel, setting into fifth after the restart before the impact with the wall on Lap 378. The finish dropped Hamlin two spots to 26th in the NASCAR standings following Dover, 73 points behind 20th position after 13 of 26 regular season races.
Pocono Preview: The Series shifts to Pocono Raceway for Sunday’s 400-mile event on the 2.5-mile triangular track. Hamlin has four wins and eight top-five finishes in 14 career starts at the ‘Tricky Triangle,’ and is one of his best tracks on the circuit. Adapting quickly to the three unique turns, Hamlin swept both Pocono races from the pole in his 2006 rookie season, and won back-to-back races at the track in the summer of 2009 and spring 2010. The 32-year-old Virginia native has started inside the top-seven in 12 of his 14 Pocono starts, including the last eight in a row, boasting a 5.6 average starting position. He has led at least one lap in all but three Pocono starts, leading 663 of 2,568 total laps at the track (25.8 percent). In the race one year ago, Hamlin qualified third and finished fifth in the #11 FedEx Toyota.
Race Series Date Start Finish Laps Led
Pennsylvania 400 Sprint Cup Aug. 2, 2012 2 29 90/98 3
Pocono 400 Sprint Cup June 10, 2012 3 5 160/160 21
Good Sam 500 Sprint Cup Aug. 7, 2011 6 15 200/200 65
5-Hour Energy 500 Sprint Cup June 12, 2011 4 19 200/200 76
Sunoco Red Cross 500 Sprint Cup Aug. 1, 2010 3 5 200/200 19
Gillette Fusion ProGlide 500 Sprint Cup June 6, 2010 5 1 204/204 88
Pennsylvania 500 Sprint Cup Aug. 3, 2009 6 1 200/200 91
Pocono 500 Sprint Cup June 7, 2009 7 38 178/200
Pennsylvania 500 Sprint Cup Aug. 3, 2008 14 23 200/200
Pocono 500 Sprint Cup June 8, 2008 16 3 200/200 17
Pennsylvania 500 Nextel Cup Aug. 5, 2007 6 3 200/200
Pocono 500 Nextel Cup June 10, 2007 2 6 106/106 49
Pennsylvania 500 Nextel Cup July 23, 2006 1 1 200/200 151
Pocono 500 Nextel Cup June 11, 2006 1 1 201/201 83
Averages/Totals 5.6 10.7 98.8% 663
FedEx Office – Closest to Pocono Raceway: 940 Schecter Drive, Ste 1, Wilkes Barre, PA 18702, (570) 819-0813
Great Plains Team Along for the Ride in Pocono: The FedEx Ground Great Plains district will be recognized for outstanding service quality with its district code “GPLS” on the b-post of the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota this weekend at Pocono Raceway. The Great Plains district, based out of the St. Paul hub, includes all of Minnesota and the Dakotas, and northern areas of Wisconsin and Iowa.
2013 FedEx Racing Press Kit – Available for Download: Please visit www.fedexracing.com/presskit for the 2013 FedEx Racing press materials, including bios for Denny Hamlin, Darian Grubb and Joe Gibbs Racing leadership, program highlights, program statistics and the 2013 crew roster
FEDEX RACING CONVERSATION — DENNY HAMLIN:
What is the key to success at Pocono?
“Since the track was repaved, it has changed a little bit, but you really have to get your car working in all three corners to make speed at Pocono. The front straightaway is long, so your car really has to be setup well for Turn 3. It’s going to be really fast in these new cars, and I’m looking forward to going out there Sunday to put on a good show for the fans. We were certainly disappointed with the way Dover ended for us, and now it’s up to our FedEx team to dig down and capitalize on some of our better tracks coming up.”
2013 FEDEX RACING – TEAM ROSTER
Crew Chief: Darian Grubb – Floyd, Va. Front Tire Changer: Dustin Necaise – Gulfport, Miss.
Car Chief: Chris “Spider” Gillin – Smithtown, N.Y. Front Tire Carrier: Brandon Pegram – Statesville, N.C.
Engineer: Mike Wheeler – Southold, N.Y. Rear Tire Changer: Mike Hicks – Salisbury, N.C.
Engineer: Ross Kippenbrock – Indianapolis, Ind. Rear Tire Carrier: Heath Cherry – Belmont, N.C.
Shocks: Drew Bible – Coldwater, Mich. Jackman: Nate Bolling – Swanton, Ohio
Tire Specialist: Kerry Ferris – Perry, N.Y. Gas Man: Scott Wood – Liberty, S.C.
Mechanic: Nick Fuller – Casa Grande, Ariz. Pit Crew Coordinator: Paul Alepa – Vienna, Va.
Mechanic: John Furino – Long Island, N.Y. JGR Athletic Director: Michael Lepp – Charlotte, N.C.
Spotter: Chris Lambert – Kannapolis, N.C. Hauler Driver: Jerry Hess – Lancaster, Pa.
Hauler Driver: Frank Hodel – Blythe, Calif.
