Track Description:
The nickname folks use for DIS IS “The Montster Mile” and with good reason, as the high-banked concrete oval is one of the most challenging and demanding in all of NASCAR. With 24 degrees of banking in the corners, some have likened Dover to a Bristol Motor Speedway on steroids. Hard to believe, but the track record qualifying lap is 161.522 mph, astonishingly fast for a track that’s just one mile in length. The major trouble area at Dover is the exit of Turn 2 and then onto the backstretch. Cars tend to drift high in Turn 2 and bounce off the outside of the exit and then down the hill and into the inside retaining wall of the backstretch. Things can get messy in a hurry back on the track. Despite the challenges, many drivers enjoy racing at Dover. The most successful is Jimmie Johnson, who has six Dover victories, including triumphs in three of the last four races. His average finish here is 9.67, second in the field. The best average finish here belongs to Carl Edwards, the Roush Fenway Racing driver, at 7.69. His teammates Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle are also very good here, as are Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin, both four-time Dover winners. One surprise is Ryan Newman, a three-time Daytona winner who has an excellent average Dover finish of 10.33. Dover has proven to be a difficult track for Denny Hamlin, who regards it as his weakest link on the schedule. His average finish in 10 Dover starts is 21.40. Other drivers who struggle with finishing strong here are Kasey Kahne, 22.92, and Juan Pablo Montoya, 21.88.