CONCORD, N.C. – This weekend, Hendrick Motorsports returns to Texas Motor Speedway for the second race in the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
Earlier this season, Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 Chevrolet SS team found Victory Lane for a second consecutive time, bringing his Texas win total to a record five in his career.
Review these key notes before the engines are fired in Fort Worth, Texas, this Sunday.
BROADCAST INFORMATION: Sunday's race will air live on NBC at 2 p.m. ET. Can’t make it to a television? Tune into PRN or SiriusXM to catch the Texas radio coverage. This weekend’s qualifying session will take place Friday afternoon on NBC Sports Network. Tune in to this weekend’s practice sessions this Friday and Saturday. Here is the full broadcast schedule:
Friday, November 6:
12:30 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Practice, NBC Sports Network
6:45 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Qualifying, NBC Sports Network
Saturday, November 7:
11 a.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Practice, CNBC
2 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Final Practice, NBC Sports Network
Sunday, November 8:
2 p.m. ET, Sprint Cup Series Race, NBC/PRN/SiriusXM (2:16 p.m. ET green flag)
THIS WEEK’S PAINT SCHEMES: Kasey Kahne will pilot the No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet SS this weekend at Texas, while Gordon drives the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS. Teammates Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. will compete in the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS and the No. 88 Kelley Blue Book Chevrolet SS, respectively, at the Fort Worth speedway.
HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AT TEXAS: Hendrick Motorsports drivers have earned seven wins, 30 top-five finishes, 53 top-10 finishes, six pole positions and 2,245 laps led at Texas Motor Speedway. Johnson has reached Victory Lane for the organization in each of the past two races at the track.
KAHNE AT TEXAS: According to NASCAR loop data, in the last 10 years at Texas Motor Speedway, Kahne ranks seventh in quality passes (36.2 percent, 761 passes), eighth in fastest laps run (3.9 percent, 271 laps), eighth in green flag passes (1,531 passes), ninth in green flag speed (173.405 miles per hour), ninth in laps in the top 15 (63.9 percent, 4,494 laps) and 10th in average speed late in a run (171.249 miles per hour).
NEARING 25K: Gordon is 84 shy of 25,000 career laps led.
GORDON AT TEXAS: Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS, is the only individual to compete in all 29 Sprint Cup events at Texas Motor Speedway. On April 5, 2009, Gordon secured his lone victory in the Lone Star State. That win was his 82nd career victory in NASCAR’s premier division.
JOHNSON AT TEXAS: Johnson leads all active drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in average starting position at Texas Motor Speedway with an 8.417 and is the only active driver with an average starting position at Texas inside the top 10. Johnson has also won the last three consecutive “Chase” races at Texas Motor Speedway (2012, 2013 and 2014).
EARNHARDT AT TEXAS: According to NASCAR's loop data statistics, Earnhardt has the ninth-best driver rating during the last 10 years among active drivers with a 91.9. The No. 88 Kelley Blue Book Chevrolet SS driver ranks third in the number of laps in the top 15 with 5,229 and he holds a solid ranking in many of the speed categories: average speed early in a run (eighth – 177.164), average speed late in a run (third – 171.558), fastest laps run (ninth – 256) and green-flag speed (fifth – 173.74).