The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Pocono Raceway for a Sunday afternoon race. These are some odd NASCAR stats to watch for this weekend as drivers battle for one of the six remaining playoff spots.
No. 1 - Early cautions cause problems
CAUTION 🟨@NoahGragson takes a hard hit into the outside wall in Turn 1 and is done for the day.#NASCAR pic.twitter.com/CMHEyCrSdC
— NASCAR on TSN (@NASCARonTSN) July 14, 2024
For some reason, each of the last seven races at Pocono Raceway have featured early breaks in the action. They all had a caution in the first 15 laps.
The first race at Pocono in 2020 was a little bit of an outlier, but only by a few laps. NASCAR held a competition caution after 13 laps. The race went green on Lap 17, but the caution flew one lap later for Quin Houff crashing. The second race in 2020 had two cautions in the first 15 laps. The first was for rain. The second was for Michael McDowell crashing.
The trend continued with the 2021 doubleheader. The first race had two cautions in 15 laps, one for a two-car incident. The second race had a caution for a single-car incident. The 2022, '23, and '24 races each had early cautions for incidents on the track involving single cars.
This will be something to watch on Sunday. Will another early incident send at least one car to the garage, or will the drivers complete more than 15 laps without a caution?
No. 2 - Don't win stage 2
NASCAR first introduced stages to the Cup Series in 2017. This kicked off an interesting trend at Pocono Raceway. Notably, no stage 2 winner at the 2.5-mile track has gone on to win the race.
Kyle Larson and Clint Bowyer split the stage 2 wins in 2017. Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch won the races. Kevin Harvick won the second stage in both 2018 races at Pocono. Busch and Martin Truex Jr. split the race wins.
This trend continued with doubleheaders in 2019, '20, and '21. It has continued with the races in 2022, '23, and '24. The race winner has not won the second stage at the Tricky Triangle.
No. 3 - Four organizations delivered recent wins
The NASCAR Cup Series has competed at Pocono Raceway 91 previous times. Numerous drivers and teams have celebrated wins at the 2.5-mile track, but only four organizations have won in the past 10 trips to Pennsylvania.
Joe Gibbs Racing has six wins in this stretch, split between two drivers. Hendrick Motorsports has two wins with two drivers. Stewart-Haas Racing and Team Penske have one win each.
Only three of these organizations still compete in the Cup Series. Stewart-Haas Racing sold three of its charters and returned as Haas Factory Team after Tony Stewart's exit.
No. 4 - The cutline has mattered more at Pocono
Photo credit: Nigel Kinrade Photography
The playoffs are on the mind of every driver seeking their first win this season. They all want to win at Pocono Raceway and take one of the remaining six spots.
Unfortunately for those below the cutline, this has only happened once at Pocono Raceway in the stage racing era (2017-present). Ryan Blaney won from below the cutline in 2017 while driving for Wood Brothers Racing. This was his first Cup Series victory.
No. 5 - You never forget your first (win)
Blaney is not the only driver to celebrate his first Cup Series win at Pocono Raceway. He is one of four drivers to accomplish this.
Jeremy Mayfield was the first. He scored his first Cup win at Pocono in 1998. He went on to win four more races before his NASCAR career ended, which included a second Pocono win.
Denny Hamlin was next. He swept the races at Pocono in his rookie season (2006). Hamlin has won 57 races at NASCAR's top level, which includes a historic seven trips to victory lane at the 2.5-mile track.
Chris Buescher is the other driver who won for the first time at Pocono. He led 12 laps and captured the Aug. 1, 2016, race after fog shortened the event by 22 laps. Buescher has won five Cup races since the 2016 season.