2.8: Joey Logano’s average finish in the first five races of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Logano has two victories and three fourth-place results and is already assured of advancing to the Chase’s Eliminator Round by virtue of his victory Oct. 5 at Kansas Speedway.
15.4: Jimmie Johnson’s average finish in the first five races of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, one reason why Johnson is tied for 11th in the standings with only one more race left in the Contender Round. Realistically, Johnson needs a win on Sunday at Talladega to keep his hopes for a record-tying seventh title alive.
3: The current number of consecutive top 10s Ryan Newman has posted in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races. Newman has been the quiet man in the Chase, but he stands an excellent chance of advancing to the Eliminator Round, if he can only get past Talladega without a catastrophe.
162: The number of laps led by Kevin Harvick in Saturday night’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte, bringing his season total to 1,815, far and away a career best. For once, Harvick and his team weren’t subject to Murphy’s Law and won the race the way they ran it-in dominating fashion.
5: The number of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victories recorded by Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Talladega Superspeedway, the site of Sunday’s final race in the Chase’s Contender Round. Earnhardt hasn’t won at Talladega since 2004, but he’s looking to end his decade-long drought with a win that would propel the #88 team into the next round of the Chase.(NASCAR Wire Service)(10-14-2014)
