HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The 2012 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 was a
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
Sprint Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States. The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, ...
stock car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses. It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It originated in the southe ...
race held on July 15, 2012 at
New Hampshire Motor Speedway New Hampshire Motor Speedway (formerly known as the New Hampshire International Speedway from 1989 to 2007, the Bryar Motorsports Park from 1965 to 1989, and as the 106 Midway Raceway from 1961 to 1964) is a oval track in Loudon, New Hampshir ...
in
Loudon, New Hampshire Loudon is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,576 at the 2020 census. Loudon is the home of New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The main village in town, where 711 people lived at the 2020 census, is define ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Contested over 301 laps, it was the nineteenth race of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.
Kasey Kahne Kasey Kenneth Kahne (; born April 10, 1980) is an American professional dirt track racing and stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 33 Chevrolet SS for Richard Childress Racing. Currently, K ...
of
Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All-Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 316 Cup Series ra ...
took his second win of the season, while
Denny Hamlin James Dennis Alan Hamlin (born November 18, 1980) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 11 Toyota Camry XSE for Joe Gibbs Racing. He also co-owns and op ...
finished second and
Clint Bowyer Clinton Aaron Bowyer (born May 30, 1979) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and commentator for ''NASCAR on Fox''. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado ...
finished third.


Report


Background

New Hampshire Motor Speedway New Hampshire Motor Speedway (formerly known as the New Hampshire International Speedway from 1989 to 2007, the Bryar Motorsports Park from 1965 to 1989, and as the 106 Midway Raceway from 1961 to 1964) is a oval track in Loudon, New Hampshir ...
is one of ten intermediate tracks to hold
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
races; the others are
Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (currently known as EchoPark Speedway for sponsorship reasons, formerly known as the Atlanta International Raceway from 1960 to 1990) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Hampton, Georg ...
,
Charlotte Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009 due to sponsorship reasons) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Concord, North Carolina. It has hosted various major races since it ...
,
Chicagoland Speedway Chicagoland Speedway is an inactive tri-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Joliet, Illinois. It has hosted various major races throughout its existence, including NASCAR and IndyCar races. The track is currently own ...
, and
Darlington Raceway Darlington Raceway is a egg-shaped oval track in Darlington, South Carolina. The track has hosted a variety of racing events since its inaugural season of racing in 1950; primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The venue has a capacity of 47,00 ...
as well as Homestead Miami Speedway,
Kansas Speedway Kansas Speedway (formerly known as Kansas International Speedway in initial planning and construction stages) is a tri-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Kansas City, Kansas. The track, since its inaugural season of ...
,
Kentucky Speedway Kentucky Speedway is an inactive tri-oval intermediate speedway in Sparta, Kentucky. It has hosted various major races throughout its existence, including NASCAR and IndyCar races. The track is owned by Speedway Motorsports, LLC (SMI) and ...
,
Las Vegas Motor Speedway Las Vegas Motor Speedway (track complex formerly known as Las Vegas Speedway Park from 1993 to 1996, Las Vegas Speedway in 1992, Las Vegas International Speedway from 1990 to 1992, as the Las Vegas International Speedrome from 1972 to 1990) is a ...
, and
Texas Motor Speedway Texas Motor Speedway (formerly known as Texas International Raceway from September to December 1996) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. It has hosted various major races since its inaugura ...
. The standard track at New Hampshire Motor Speedway is a four-turn
oval An oval () is a closed curve in a plane which resembles the outline of an egg. The term is not very specific, but in some areas of mathematics (projective geometry, technical drawing, etc.), it is given a more precise definition, which may inc ...
track, long. The track's turns are banked from two to seven degrees, while the front stretch, the finish line, and the back stretch are banked at one degree. Before the race,
Matt Kenseth Matthew Roy Kenseth (born March 10, 1972) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and the current competition advisor for Legacy Motor Club in the NASCAR Cup Series. Most recently, he raced part-time in the Superstar Racing Exper ...
led the Drivers' Championship with 676 points, and
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr. (born October 10, 1974) is an American professional stock car racing driver, team owner, and broadcaster. A third-generation driver, he is the son of the late 7-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Dale Earnhardt and relative ...
stood in second with 651.
Greg Biffle Gregory Jack Biffle (born December 23, 1969), nicknamed "the Biff", is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver. After racing in the NASCAR Winter Heat Series in the mid-1990s, he was recommended to Jack Roush by former race ...
was third in the Drivers' Championship with 632, fourteen points ahead of
Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American professional auto racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 84 Toyota Camry XSE for Legacy Motor Club. Johnson has won seven Cup ch ...
and forty ahead of
Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed "Smoke", is an American semi-retired professional auto racing driver, and former NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing. He currently competes in the NHRA Top Fuel class. He is a four-t ...
in fourth and fifth.
Kevin Harvick Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and commentator for '' NASCAR on Fox''. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewa ...
, with 586, was two points ahead of
Denny Hamlin James Dennis Alan Hamlin (born November 18, 1980) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 11 Toyota Camry XSE for Joe Gibbs Racing. He also co-owns and op ...
, as Martin Truex Jr. with 584 points, was eleven ahead of
Brad Keselowski Bradley Aaron Keselowski (; born February 12, 1984) is an American professional stock car racing driver, team owner, and entrepreneur. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 6 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for RFK Racing, a te ...
and twelve in front of
Clint Bowyer Clinton Aaron Bowyer (born May 30, 1979) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and commentator for ''NASCAR on Fox''. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado ...
. In the Manufacturers' Championship,
Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...
was leading with 126 points, twenty-two points ahead of
Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
. Ford, with 90 points, was fourteen points ahead of
Dodge Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence, Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...
in the battle for third. Ryan Newman is the defending race winner after winning the event in
2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
. Shortly before the 2012 Coke Zero 400, held one week earlier, NASCAR announced that
A. J. Allmendinger Anthony James Allmendinger (born December 16, 1981), nicknamed "the Dinger,” is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet ZL1 for Kaulig Racing. Allmendinger ...
failed a random drug test held on June 29, 2012, and that he was suspended temporarily, depending on the result of his second test. Afterward, Penske Racing announced that Sam Hornish Jr., who replaced him in the Coke Zero 400, would also replace him for a second consecutive week.


Practice and qualifying

Three practice sessions were held before the Sunday race—one on Friday, July 13, and two on Saturday, July 14. The first session lasted 90 minutes, and the second was 55 minutes. The third and final session was 60 minutes.
Kyle Busch Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation)#ZL1, Chevrolet ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and par ...
was quickest with a time of 28.555 seconds in the first session, less than one tenth of a second faster than Biffle.
Kurt Busch Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American auto racing driver. He is best known for competing in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2000–2022, last driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. Busch is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series ch ...
was just off Biffle's pace, followed by
Kasey Kahne Kasey Kenneth Kahne (; born April 10, 1980) is an American professional dirt track racing and stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 33 Chevrolet SS for Richard Childress Racing. Currently, K ...
,
Paul Menard John Paul Christian Menard (born August 21, 1980) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver who currently competes full-time in the Trans-Am Series, driving the No. 3 Ford Mustang for 3GT Racing. Menard is the 2024 Trans-Am ...
, and Truex Jr..
Brian Vickers Brian Lee Vickers (born October 24, 1983) is an American former professional stock car and sports car racing driver. He last drove the No. 14 Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing as an interim driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for the i ...
was seventh, still within two tenths of a second of Kyle Busch's time. Forty-four cars were entered for qualifying, but only forty-three could qualify for the race because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure. Kyle Busch clinched the ninth
pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the ra ...
of his career, with a time of 28.548 seconds. He was joined on the front row of the
grid Grid, The Grid, or GRID may refer to: Space partitioning * Regular grid, a tessellation of space with translational symmetry, typically formed from parallelograms or higher-dimensional analogs ** Grid graph, a graph structure with nodes connec ...
by Kahne. Hamlin qualified third, Truex Jr. took fourth, and Bowyer started fifth. Newman, Johnson,
Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American stock car racing executive and former professional stock car racing driver who currently serves as the vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, d ...
, Earnhardt Jr. and Stewart rounded out the top ten. The driver that failed to qualify for the race was
Mike Bliss Michael Duane Bliss (born April 5, 1965) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. A journeyman NASCAR competitor and the 2002 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion, he has run in all three national series. Racing career Bliss ...
. Once the qualifying session concluded, Kyle Busch expressed his happiness with qualifying: "Excellent lap, just tried to hit the same marks in practice. Haven't found the magic way to get around the Magic Mile but today we did." In the second practice session, Hamlin was quickest with a time of 28.969 seconds. Gordon, with a time of 28.993, was second-quickest, ahead of Truex Jr., Aric Almirola, and Bowyer. Kahne, Johnson, Kyle Busch, Vickers, and
Jeff Burton Jeffrey Tyler Burton (born June 29, 1967), nicknamed "the Mayor", is an American former professional stock car racing driver and current racing commentator. He is a member of the Burton racing family. He scored 23 career victories in the NASCAR ...
completed the first ten positions. Hamlin continued to be quickest through the third practice session with a time of 28.990, 0.009 seconds faster than his fastest lap during the second session. Kyle Busch was second-quickest in the session, while Keselowski was scored third. Bowyer followed in the fourth position ahead of Johnson, Vickers and Truex Jr. Kahne, Logano and
Carl Edwards Carl Michael Edwards Jr. (born August 15, 1979) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and a current analyst for ''NASCAR on Prime Video''. He last competed in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, driving the No ...
rounded out the first ten positions in eighth, ninth and tenth, respectively.


Race

The race, the nineteenth in the
season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...
, began with Kyle Busch on the Pole and Kasey Kahne starting second, not much happened here but three cautions, two for debris and one for David Reutimann's blown engine, Kyle Busch, the races polesitter had a speeding penalty which would cause him to finish 16th, Kasey Kahne won the race on lap 301 of a scheduled 301.


Results


Qualifying


Race results


Standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings ;Manufacturers' Championship standings *Note: Only the top five positions are included for the driver standings.


References

{{2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup , state=collapsed NASCAR races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Lenox Industrial Tools 301 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 Lenox Industrial Tools 301