NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Top Story News Schedule Race Update/Results Statistics Point Standings Starting Grid Race Preview Driver Info Team Info Track Info Season Chart All-Time Wins Odds Weather NASCAR - Sprint Cup - Capital City 400 Preview From The Sports Network   DATE: Saturday, April 28th SITE: Richmond International Raceway (1946) -- Richmond, Virginia TRACK: 0.75-mile oval - 1,290 feet (Frontstretch); 860 feet (Backstretch) CAPACITY: 112,029 (Seating Capacity) ANNUAL: 57th TELEVISION: FOX ANNOUNCERS: Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, Larry McReynolds RADIO: Motor Racing Network (MRN)/SIRIUS NASCAR Radio START TIME: 7:30 p.m. (ET)/Green Flag: 7:43 p.m. (ET) DEFENDING CHAMPION: Kyle Busch RUNNER-UP: Denny Hamlin POLE WINNER: Juan Pablo Montoya (Finished 29th) LAPS: 400 MILES: 300 QUALIFYING RECORD: Brian Vickers, 2004 (129.983 m.p.h.) RACE RECORD: Dale Jarrett, 1997 (109.047 m.p.h.) TOTAL PURSE: $4,991,887 (2011 figures) PAYOUTS: 1st Place - $239,316; 2nd Place - $202,500; 3rd Place - $154,683 2011 Finish Finish Driver Start Finish Driver Start 1 Kyle Busch 20 6 Clint Bowyer 3 2 Denny Hamlin 11 7 A.J. Allmendinger 18 3 Kasey Kahne 4 8 Jimmie Johnson 30 4 David Ragan 27 9 Tony Stewart 31 5 Carl Edwards 8 10 Brian Vickers 37 2011 Capital City 400 Facts and Figures AVERAGE SPEED: 95.280 m.p.h. TIME OF RACE: 3 hours, 8 minutes, 55 seconds MARGIN OF VICTORY: 1.805 seconds CAUTION FLAGS: 8 for 60 laps LEAD CHANGES: 14 among 10 drivers POLE WINNER: Juan Pablo Montoya (128.639 m.p.h.) Past Capital City 400 Winners (Starting Position) Car -- Speed 2011 -- Kyle Busch (20th) -- Toyota -- 95.280 m.p.h. 2010 -- Kyle Busch (1st) -- Toyota -- 99.567 m.p.h. 2009 -- Kyle Busch (14th) -- Toyota -- 90.627 m.p.h. 2008 -- Clint Bowyer (31st) -- Chevrolet -- 95.786 m.p.h. 2007 -- Jimmie Johnson (4th) -- Chevrolet -- 91.270 m.p.h. 2006 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr (10th) -- Chevrolet -- 97.061 m.p.h. 2005 -- Kasey Kahne (1st) -- Dodge -- 100.316 m.p.h. 2004 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr (4th) -- (Chevrolet -- 98.253 m.p.h. 2003 -- Joe Nemechek (2nd) -- Chevrolet -- 86.783 m.p.h. 2002 -- Tony Stewart (3rd) -- Pontiac -- 86.824 m.p.h. 2001 -- Tony Stewart (7th) -- Pontiac -- 95.872 m.p.h. 2000 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr (5th) -- Chevrolet -- 99.374 m.p.h. 1999 -- Dale Jarrett (21st) -- Ford -- 100.102 m.p.h. 1998 -- Terry Labonte (16th) -- Chevrolet -- 97.044 m.p.h. 1997 -- Rusty Wallace (7th) -- Ford -- 108.499 m.p.h. 1996 -- Jeff Gordon (2nd) -- Chevrolet -- 102.750 m.p.h. 1995 -- Terry Labonte (24th) -- Chevrolet -- 106.425 m.p.h. 1994 -- Ernie Irvan (7th) -- Ford -- 98.334 m.p.h. 1993 -- Davey Allison (14th) -- Ford -- 107.709 m.p.h. 1992 -- Bill Elliott (1st) -- Ford -- 104.378 m.p.h. 1991 -- Dale Earnhardt (19th) -- Chevrolet -- 105.397 m.p.h. 1990 -- Mark Martin (6th) -- Ford -- 92.158 m.p.h. 1989 -- Rusty Wallace (2nd) -- Pontiac -- 89.619 m.p.h. 1988 -- Neil Bonnett (3rd) -- Chevrolet -- 66.401 m.p.h. 1987 -- Dale Earnhardt (3rd) -- Chevrolet -- 81.520 m.p.h. 1986 -- Kyle Petty (12th) -- Ford -- 71.078 m.p.h. 1985 -- Dale Earnhardt (4th) -- Chevrolet -- 67.945 m.p.h. 1984 -- Ricky Rudd (4th) -- Ford -- 76.736 m.p.h. 1983 -- Bobby Allison (6th) -- Buick -- 79.584 m.p.h. 1982 -- Dave Marcis (6th) -- Chevrolet -- 72.914 m.p.h. 1981 -- Darrell Waltrip (7th) -- Buick -- 76.570 m.p.h. 1980 -- Darrell Waltrip (1st) -- Chevrolet -- 67.703 m.p.h. 1979 -- Cale Yarborough (9th) -- Oldsmobile -- 83.608 m.p.h. 1978 -- Benny Parsons (3rd) -- Chevrolet -- 80.304 m.p.h. 1977 -- Cale Yarborough (7th) -- Chevrolet -- 73.084 m.p.h. 1976 -- Dave Marcis (2nd) -- Dodge -- 72.792 m.p.h. 1975 -- Richard Petty (1st) -- Dodge -- 74.913 m.p.h. 1974 -- Bobby Allison (1st) -- Chevrolet -- 80.095 m.p.h. 1973 -- Richard Petty (8th) -- Dodge -- 74.764 m.p.h. 1972 -- Richard Petty (3rd) -- Plymouth -- 76.258 m.p.h. 1971 -- Richard Petty (28th) -- Plymouth -- 79.836 m.p.h. 1970 -- James Hylton (3rd) -- Ford -- 82.044 m.p.h. 1969 -- David Pearson (1st) -- Ford -- 73.752 m.p.h. 1968 -- David Pearson (16th) -- Ford -- 65.217 m.p.h. 1967 -- Richard Petty (1st) -- Plymouth -- 65.982 m.p.h. 1966 -- David Pearson (4th) -- Dodge -- 66.539 m.p.h. 1965 -- Junior Johnson (1st) -- Ford -- 61.416 m.p.h. 1964 -- David Pearson (10th) -- Dodge -- 58.660 m.p.h. 1963 -- Joe Weatherly (3rd) -- Pontiac -- 58.624 m.p.h. 1962 -- Rex White (20th) -- Chevrolet -- 51.360 m.p.h. 1961 -- Richard Petty (1st) -- Plymouth -- 62.460 m.p.h. 1960 -- Lee Petty (10th) -- Plymouth -- 62.250 m.p.h. 1959 -- Tom Pistone (12th) -- Ford -- 56.860 m.p.h. 1958 -- Not held 1957 -- Paul Goldsmith (7th) -- Ford -- 62.445 m.p.h. 1956 -- Buck Baker (1st) -- Dodge -- 56.232 m.p.h. 1955 -- Tim Flock (22nd) -- Chrysler -- 54.298 m.p.h. 1954 -- Not held 1953 -- Lee Petty (2nd) -- Dodge -- 45.535 m.p.h. NOTE: Formerly called Richmond 200 (1953-75), Richmond 400 (1976-83), Miller High Life 400 (1984-87), Pontiac Excitement 400 (1988-2003), Chevy American Revolution 400 (2004-05), Crown Royal 400 (2006), Crown Royal Presents the Jim Stewart 400 (2007), Crown Royal Presents the Dan Lowry 400 (2008), Crown Royal presents the Russ Friedman 400 (2009), Crown Royal presents the Heath Calhoun 400 (2010), Crown Royal presents the Matthew and Daniel Hansen 400 (2011). Race changed from 500 to 400 laps in 1976. Past Capital City 400 Pole Winners (Finish) 2011 -- Juan Pablo Montoya -- 29th 2010 -- Kyle Busch -- 1st 2009 -- Brian Vickers -- 15th 2008 -- Denny Hamlin -- 24th 2007 -- Jeff Gordon -- 4th 2006 -- Greg Biffle -- 4th 2005 -- Kasey Kahne -- 1st 2004 -- Brian Vickers -- 8th 2003 -- Terry Labonte -- 21st 2002 -- Ward Burton -- 30th 2001 -- Mark Martin -- 13th 2000 -- Rusty Wallace -- 5th 1999 -- Jeff Gordon -- 31st 1998 -- Jeff Gordon -- 37th 1997 -- None -- Weather 1996 -- Terry Labonte -- 8th 1995 -- Jeff Gordon -- 36th 1994 -- Ted Musgrave -- 13th 1993 -- Ken Schrader -- 20th 1992 -- Bill Elliott -- 1st 1991 -- Davey Allison -- 12th 1990 -- Ricky Rudd -- 3rd 1989 -- Geoffrey Bodine -- 18th 1988 -- Morgan Shepherd -- 16th 1987 -- Alan Kulwicki -- 6th 1986 -- None -- Weather 1985 -- Darrell Waltrip -- 3rd 1984 -- Darrell Waltrip -- 2nd 1983 -- Ricky Rudd -- 28th 1982 -- Darrell Waltrip -- 27th 1981 -- Morgan Shepherd -- 4th 1980 -- Darrell Waltrip -- 1st 1979 -- Bobby Allison -- 2nd 1978 -- Neil Bonnett -- 9th 1977 -- Neil Bonnett -- 7th 1976 -- Bobby Allison -- 3rd 1975 -- Richard Petty -- 1st 1974 -- Bobby Allison -- 1st 1973 -- Bobby Allison -- 15th 1972 -- Bobby Allison -- 2nd 1971 -- Dave Marcis -- 5th 1970 -- Richard Petty -- 2nd 1969 -- David Pearson -- 1st 1968 -- Bobby Isaac -- 13th 1967 -- Richard Petty -- 1st 1966 -- Tom Pistone -- 16th 1965 -- Junior Johnson -- 1st 1964 -- Ned Jarrett -- 13th 1963 -- Rex White -- 3rd 1962 -- None -- Weather 1961 -- Richard Petty -- 1st 1960 -- Ned Jarrett -- 3rd 1959 -- Buck Baker -- 3rd 1958 -- None -- Weather 1957 -- Russ Hepler -- 18th 1956 -- Buck Baker -- 1st 1955 -- Arden Mounts -- 15th 1954 -- None -- Weather 1953 -- Buck Baker -- 3rd Last Race Results RACE: STP 400 (April 22nd) SITE: Kansas Speedway -- Kansas City, Kansas MILES: 400.5 LAPS: 267 WINNER: Denny Hamlin RUNNER-UP: Martin Truex Jr THIRD: Jimmie Johnson FOURTH: Matt Kenseth FIFTH: Greg Biffle POLE WINNER: A.J. Allmendinger (Finished 32nd) TIME OF RACE: 2 hours, 46 minutes, 44 seconds AVERAGE SPEED: 144.122 m.p.h. MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.700 second CAUTION FLAGS: 3 for 18 laps LEAD CHANGES: 14 among 9 drivers LAP LEADERS: A. Allmendinger 1-44; D. Hamlin 45; C. Edwards 46; M. Truex Jr. 47-91; J. Johnson 92-93; M. Kenseth 94; J. Montoya 95-96; M. Truex Jr. 97-177; M. Kenseth 178; B. Keselowski 179-180; M. Truex Jr. 181-223; J. Montoya 224-225; S. Hornish Jr. 226-232; M. Truex Jr. 233-236; D. Hamlin 237-267. Capital City 400 Entry List Car Driver, Hometown Car/Name 1 Jamie McMurray (Joplin, MO) Chevrolet/McDonald's 2 Brad Keselowski (Rochester Hills, MI) Dodge/Miller Lite 5 Kasey Kahne (Enumclaw, WA) Chevrolet/Farmers Insurance 9 Marcos Ambrose (Launceston, Australia) Ford/Stanley 10 David Reutimann (Zephyrhills, FL) Chevrolet/Tommy Baldwin Racing 11 Denny Hamlin (Chesterfield, VA) Toyota/FedEx Freight 13 Casey Mears (Bakersfield, CA) Ford/GEICO 14 Tony Stewart (Columbus, IN) Chevrolet/Office Depot/Mobil 1 15 Clint Bowyer (Emporia, KS) Toyota/5-Hour Energy 16 Greg Biffle (Vancouver, WA) Ford/3M/GKAS 17 Matt Kenseth (Cambridge, WI) Ford/Roush Fenway Racing 18 * Kyle Busch (Las Vegas, NV) Toyota/M&M's 19 Mike Bliss (Milwaukie, OR) Toyota/Humphrey Smith Racing 20 Joey Logano (Middletown, CT) Toyota/Home Depot 22 A.J. Allmendinger (Los Gatos, CA) Dodge/Shell/Pennzoil 23 Scott Riggs (Bahama, NC) Chevrolet/North Texas Pipe 24 Jeff Gordon (Vallejo, CA) Chevrolet/DuPont 26 Josh Wise (Riverside, CA) Ford/Morristown Driver's Service 27 Paul Menard (Eau Claire, WI) Chevrolet/Menards/Nibco 29 Kevin Harvick (Bakersfield, CA) Chevrolet/Jimmy Johns 30 David Stremme (South Bend, IN) Toyota/Inception Motorsports 31 Jeff Burton (South Boston, VA) Chevrolet/BB&T 32 Reed Sorenson (Peachtree City, GA) Ford/TBA 33 Stephen Leicht (Asheville, NC) Chevrolet/littlejoesautos.com 34 David Ragan (Unadilla, GA) Ford/TBA 36 Dave Blaney (Hartford, OH) Chevrolet/Seal Wrap 38 David Gilliland (Riverside, CA) Ford/Long John Silver's 39 Ryan Newman (South Bend, IN) Chevrolet/U.S. Army 42 Juan Pablo Montoya (Bogota, Colombia) Chevrolet/Target 43 Aric Almirola (Tampa, FL) Ford/Smithfield Helping Hungry 47 Bobby Labonte (Corpus Christi, TX) Toyota/Bush's Beans 48 Jimmie Johnson (El Cajon, CA) Chevrolet/Lowe's 49 J.J. Yeley (Phoenix, AZ) Toyota/JPO Absorbents 51 Kurt Busch (Las Vegas, NV) Chevrolet/Phoenix Construction 52 To Be Announced Toyota/crusaderstaffing.com 55 Mark Martin (Batesville, AR) Toyota/Aaron's Dream Machine 56 Martin Truex Jr. (Mayetta, NJ) Toyota/NAPA Brakes 74 Stacy Compton (Hurt, VA) Chevrolet/Turn One Racing 78 Regan Smith (Cato, NY) Chevrolet/Furniture Row 83 Landon Cassill (Cedar Rapids, IA) Toyota/Burger King/Dr. Pepper 87 Joe Nemechek (Lakeland, FL) Toyota/AM FM Energy Wood Pellet 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Kannapolis, NC) Chevrolet/Diet Mt. Dew/Nat Guard 93 Travis Kvapil (Janesville, WI) Toyota/Burger King/Dr. Pepper 95 Scott Speed (Manteca, CA) Ford/TWD Drywall 98 Michael McDowell (Glendale, AZ) Ford/Curb Records 99 Carl Edwards (Columbia, MO) Ford/Roush Fenway Racing * - Defending champion Leading Contenders (Finish the last nine years) Driver 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Kyle Busch --- --- 4th 5th 2nd 2nd Won Won Won Denny Hamlin --- --- --- 2nd 3rd 24th 14th 11th 2nd Kasey Kahne --- 28th Won 34th 40th 10th 29th 21st 3rd David Ragan --- --- --- --- 20th 17th 23rd 24th 4th Carl Edwards --- --- 21st 7th 12th 7th 26th 5th 5th Clint Bowyer --- --- --- 10th 9th Won 18th 12th 6th A.J. Allmendinger --- --- --- --- 32nd 39th 21st 17th 7th Jimmie Johnson 19th 2nd 40th 12th Won 30th 36th 10th 8th Tony Stewart 41st 4th 2nd 6th 8th 4th 2nd 23rd 9th Joey Logano --- --- --- --- --- --- 19th 16th 11th Kevin Harvick 6th 25th 5th 3rd 7th 8th 34th 3rd 12th Mark Martin 5th 7th 15th 11th 17th 3rd 5th 25th 14th Greg Biffle 17th 21st 6th 4th 19th 14th 17th 22nd 15th Jeff Burton 9th 14th 16th 15th 43rd 11th 3rd 4th 16th Jamie McMurray 22nd 38th 10th 19th 41st 35th 7th 19th 18th Dale Earnhardt Jr 3rd Won 14th Won 13th 15th 27th 32nd 19th Ryan Newman 39th 9th 3rd 8th 6th 6th 4th 8th 20th Matt Kenseth 7th 5th 12th 38th 10th 38th 13th 13th 21st Kurt Busch 8th 31st 17th 29th 5th 42nd 12th 18th 22nd Marcos Ambrose --- --- --- --- --- --- 11th 9th 23rd Martin Truex Jr --- --- --- 41st 28th 5th 22nd 7th 27th Juan Pablo Montoya --- --- --- --- 26th 32nd 10th 6th 29th Brad Keselowski --- --- --- --- --- --- --- 14th 36th Paul Menard --- --- --- --- 16th 31st 30th 27th 37th Jeff Gordon 16th 6th 39th 40th 4th 9th 8th 2nd 39th Mover of the Week Juan Pablo Montoya - Started in the 39th position and finished 12th Sports Network Selections Pick to Win - Kyle Busch Darkhorse - Jeff Burton Last Week's Pick to Win (Jimmie Johnson) - Finished 3rd Last Week's Darkhorse (Greg Biffle) - Finished 5th NOTES: Last year, Kyle Busch equaled the great Richard Petty with his third win in a row at the Richmond spring race. This year, he's shooting to join Jeff Gordon and Darrell Waltrip as the only drivers to win the same Sprint Cup race four straight seasons. The Sprint Cup Series returns to the short track for the third and final time this spring, as NASCAR's best battle it out at Richmond International Raceway. Gordon accomplished the feat twice, at Bristol in the spring and Darlington, while Waltrip won four straight at Bristol, also in the spring. In 2011, Busch tied The King with his third consecutive win at RIR, as he outlasted Denny Hamlin by 1.805 seconds. Petty had won three straight at Richmond from 1971-73. Busch put on a dominating performance, leading 235 of the 400 laps, as he easily held off teammate Hamlin. The victory came just two days before his 26th birthday. Busch is off to a relatively show start in 2012. After winning the unofficial Budweiser Shootout, Busch has just four top-10 finishes in eight starts and ranks 13th on the points list. He has failed to lead a lap in the month of April. When he won in 2010, it was a tale of two halves, as Busch, who started on the pole, led 221 of the first 229 laps before he experienced an ill-handling car. His team, led by crew chief Dave Rogers, made several key adjustments on the car late in the race to put him back in winning contention. Jeff Gordon had dominated the second half and appeared to be on the way to ending his 38-race winless streak in the Sprint Cup Series. But an incident involving Sam Hornish Jr set up a five-lap dash to the finish. Gordon led the way, with Busch on the outside of him for the final restart. Busch passed Gordon on the outside and then led the last five laps for his first Sprint Cup win since last August at Bristol -- 21 races ago. Back in 2009, Busch defeated Tony Stewart by almost three seconds for his 15th career Sprint Cup title on his 24th birthday. Celebrating his special day in style, Busch, following a restart, made a daring four-wide pass on the outside to take the second position from Carl Edwards and then moved around Jeff Gordon to grab the lead for good with 49 laps remaining. The win highlighted a weekend sweep at Richmond as he won Friday night's Nationwide Series race. He joined Harry Gant (1991) and Kevin Harvick (2005) as those drivers to win both races on the same weekend at the three-quarter- mile track. When Clint Bowyer captured the checkered flag in 2008, he edged out Kyle Busch by less than a second for his second career Sprint Cup title. Pole sitter Denny Hamlin dominated most of the race, leading a whopping 381 laps, however he faded to finish 24th. Bowyer led the final 13 laps to win for the first time since capturing the Dodge Avenger 500 in 2007. In 2007, Jimmie Johnson won this race for the first time, as he clipped Kyle Busch by less than a second for his fourth win of that season. Johnson, who now totals 55 Sprint Cup titles, took the checkered flag 0.724 of a second ahead of Busch. Johnson swept both races at Richmond International Raceway in 2007. Dale Earnhardt Jr reclaimed the lead for the third time on lap 356 and held on the rest of the way to capture this race for the third time in his career in 2006. With the win, his 17th Sprint Cup title at the time, he joined his father as a three-time champion of this race. Earnhardt, who led the race for a total of 47 laps, edged Denny Hamlin by less than a second. Kevin Harvick led four times for a race-high 272 laps, while pole sitter Greg Biffle, who finished fourth, led for 54 laps. "King" Richard was a six-time winner of this race and had 13 victories at Richmond, the most of all drivers. Petty was also an eight-time pole-winner at Richmond. In 63 races at RIR, Petty posted 34 top-5s and 41 top-10 finishes. Tony Stewart has enjoyed amazing success at Richmond International Raceway. Since he began racing at RIR in 1999 on the Sprint Cup circuit, Stewart owns three wins, four seconds and 17 top-10 finishes in 26 races. Prior to Busch the past three season, Stewart was the last driver to win this race in back- to-back years (2001-02). Richmond International Raceway has hosted the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series since 1953. Lee Petty won the first race that year. Formerly a half-mile oval, it was redesigned in 1988 between the spring and fall races. Recent renovations have made it one of the most modern speedways on the tour. Richmond offers fans a unique blend of short-track intimacy and superspeedway-style racing. The new Commonwealth Grandstand, located in Turn 1, has 7,843 new seats, bringing the track's capacity to 112,029. It is also 180 feet high - two feet higher than the control tower at Richmond International Airport and the tallest structure in surrounding Henrico County. The track itself is wide and smooth, giving the drivers plenty of room to race. Owned and operated by Paul Sawyer and his family, Richmond International Raceway has received numerous national and local honors, including the prestigious Myers Brothers Award. A driver has won a race at RIR from the pole 22 times (most recently Kyle Busch in the spring race of 2010) and the deepest in the field that a race winner has started is 31st, a mark set by Clint Bowyer in 2008. Overall, there have been 111 Sprint Cup races at Richmond and 63 have been won from the top five starting positions. Busch (5.0) and Hamlin (7.5) are the only active drivers with an average finish in the top-10. The next Sprint Cup Series race is the May 6 Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. Jimmie Johnson won last year's race there. 04/25 09:30:17 ET As of April 25, 2012, at 09:30 AM ET