The last time Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn was paved, the late Dale Earnhardt had yet to win the Daytona 500, Jeff Gordon had yet to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title, the most well-known “Jimmy” Johnson was the former Dallas Cowboys football coach, and Tony Stewart had yet to drive an IZOD IndyCar Series car, let alone a Sprint Cup Series machine.
In short, a lot has happened since the 2-mile D-shaped oval in the Irish Hills of Southern Michigan last received a fresh layer of asphalt. And the track has always been a favorite of Sprint Cup drivers because of its width, which allows for four and sometimes five lanes of racing depending on the handling of one’s car.
But for Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), and his fellow Sprint Cup Series competitors, Michigan just became the great unknown. With the new pavement, no one knows what exactly to expect in the Quicken Loans 400 Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday, given that the increased grip may alter the racing line or even make it much less “lane-changing friendly.”
One certainty is that speeds will be high, as evidenced at the recent Sprint Cup test at Michigan, when drivers far exceeded the magic 200-mph mark in certain portions of the 2-mile oval. But speed is nothing new to Stewart, as he qualified for the 1996 Indianapolis 500 with a four-lap average of 233.100 mph.
In addition to having gone fast in the past, another advantage for Stewart and the Office Depot/Mobil 1 team is a strong performance at another “great unknown” last week at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. That 2.5-mile triangle also was repaved for 2012, but Stewart and crew chief Steve Addington adapted nicely by scoring a third-place result in the Pocono 400 on Sunday.
Stewart has acquitted himself well at Michigan, as he won the June 2000 Sprint Cup race after starting 28th. It was the second-longest advance to victory in a Sprint Cup race at Michigan.
He holds the record for greatest improvement from a starting position at the 2-mile oval. The three-time and reigning Sprint Cup champion started 41st in the 2007 Citizens Bank 400 and advanced 38 positions to finish third, besting the previous mark of 36 places earned by Jimmy Spencer (40th to fourth) in the June 1996 race.
Stewart earned his best starting spot at Michigan in June 2003, when he qualified second to then-Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Bobby Labonte, marking the first time both front-row starting spots were occupied by Joe Gibbs Racing cars for a points-paying Sprint Cup race.
Throw in Stewart’s victory in round three of IROC XXV at Michigan in 2001 – his first IROC win – and Stewart’s body of work at the D-shaped oval is impressive.
TSC
- The First of Three May Races for Eddie Tafoya Jr. This Saturday at Kern - May 3, 2024
- Camp Out for Your Crocs - May 3, 2024
- RFK, Chris Buescher Participate in Annual Fifth Third Day - May 3, 2024