2011 Quaker State 400

January 2026 NAS Quaker State 400 https://www.espn.com/racing/schedule/_/year/2011 Sprint Cup Series Schedule ESPN July 5, 2011 live https://web.archive.org/web/20120120034554/http://espn.go.com/racing/schedule/_/year/2011 January 20, 2012 Brown Brian The Quaker State 400 http://www.rotoworld.com/articles/nas/38228/229/the-quaker-state-400 July 5, 2011 Rotoworld.com July 8, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110715204958/http://rotoworld.com/articles/nas/38228/229/the-quaker-state-400 July 15, 2011 dead 2011 07 09 2011 18 36 2011_Quaker_State_400_program_cover.jpeg Kentucky Speedway, Sparta, Kentucky 1.5 2.4 267 400.5 644.5 Partly cloudy with a high of 88; wind out of the East at 5 mph. Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 29.540 (in practice, grid set by practice times) Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing 125 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Turner Network Television Adam Alexander, Wally Dallenbach Jr. and Kyle Petty 2011 Quaker State 400 program cover The 2011 Quaker State 400 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held on July 9, 2011, at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, Kentucky. Contested over 267 laps on the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) asphalt tri-oval, it was 18th race of the 2011 Sprint Cup Series season, and the first Sprint Cup Series event at Kentucky Speedway. The race was won by Kyle Busch for the Joe Gibbs Racing team. David Reutimann finished second, and Jimmie Johnson clinched third. Report Background Kentucky Speedway is one of ten intermediate tracks to hold NASCAR races.NASCAR Race Tracks http://www.nascar.com/races/tracks/ July 5, 2011 NASCAR https://web.archive.org/web/20110628180503/http://www.nascar.com/races/tracks/ June 28, 2011 dead The standard track at Kentucky Speedway is a four-turn tri-oval track that is 1.5 mi km long.NASCAR Tracks—The Kentucky Speedway http://www.nascar.com/races/tracks/ken/index.html NASCAR July 5, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110628175736/http://www.nascar.com/races/tracks/ken/index.html June 28, 2011 dead The track's turns are banked at 14 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is 8 degrees. The back stretch, opposite of the front, is at only 4 degrees. The racetrack has seats for 107,000 spectators.Track Fast Facts http://www.kentuckyspeedway.com/fans/fan-guide.aspx Kentucky Speedway July 5, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20120621064946/http://www.kentuckyspeedway.com/fans/fan-guide.aspx June 21, 2012 dead The track is also the most recent addition to the schedule since the 2001 season, when Chicagoland Speedway and Kansas Speedway were added to the schedule.https://www.espn.com/racing/nascar/cup/columns/story?columnist=blount_terry&id=6739189 Something new, finally, for NASCAR Terry Blount ESPN July 5, 2011 July 8, 2011 Before the race, Kevin Harvick led the Drivers' Championship with 586 points, and Carl Edwards stood in second with 581. Kyle Busch was third in the Drivers' Championship with 576 points, six ahead of Kurt Busch and twelve ahead of Matt Kenseth in fourth and fifth. Jimmie Johnson with 564 was 30 ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr., as Jeff Gordon with 519 points, was 14 ahead of Clint Bowyer, and 21 in front of Ryan Newman.Driver's Championship Classification http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2011/17/data/standings_official.html NASCAR July 5, 2011 In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 112 points, 10 ahead of Ford. Toyota, with 90 points, was 20 points ahead of Dodge in the battle for third.Manufactures' Championship Classification http://www.jayski.com/stats/2011/manu2011.htm Jayski.com July 5, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110713092519/http://www.jayski.com/stats/2011/manu2011.htm July 13, 2011 dead Practice and qualifying thumb|200px|right|Kyle Busch took fast time during the one official Sprint Cup practice (29.540 seconds). When qualifying is rained out after official practices, the grid is set by practice times. Four practice sessions were scheduled to be held before the Saturday race—two on both Thursday and Friday. The first session lasted 240 minutes, while the second session was 120 minutes long. The third session was scheduled to be 60 minutes, but was cancelled because of race, while the fourth was 90 minutes.THE RACE: Quaker State 400 http://www.jayski.com/news/races/2011/story?id=6457459#prac Jayski.com July 6, 2011 Thursday's sessions was also used to test fuel injection, which the Sprint Cup Series will switch to for the 2012 season.Hembree Mike CUP: Fuel Injection Testing Scheduled At Kentucky http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/cup-fuel-injection-testing-scheduled-at-kentucky July 6, 2011 Speedtv.com July 6, 2011 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20111004231748/http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/cup-fuel-injection-testing-scheduled-at-kentucky October 4, 2011 Johnson was quickest with a time of 30.703 seconds in the first session, five-hundredths of a second faster than Paul Menard.http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2011/18/data/practice1_speeds.html Practice One Timing and Scoring NASCAR July 7, 2011 Travis Kvapil was about one-tenth of a second slowing than Menard's pace, followed by Kyle Busch, Greg Biffle, and David Ragan. Gordon was seventh, still within a second of Johnson's time. In the second practice session, Kyle Busch was fastest with a time of 30.193 seconds, only 0.155 of a second quicker than second-placed Kurt Busch.http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2011/18/data/practice2_speeds.html Practice Two Timing and Scoring NASCAR July 7, 2011 Edwards took third place, ahead of Menard, Newman and Johnson. Mark Martin only managed 7th place. During both sessions, four drivers were added to the session for the fuel injection testing, one for each manufacturer. Of the four manufacturer and drivers, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was quickest in both sessions for Roush Fenway Racing and Ford.Menzer Joe All testing talk centers around fuel injection http://www.nascar.com/news/110707/fuel-injection-test-kentucky/index.html July 7, 2011 NASCAR July 8, 2011 The third practice session, the first practice only for the race and qualifying, was cancelled because of wet weather.Hembree Mike CUP: Cars Open Practice After Rains http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/nns-kentucky-nascar-nationwide-series-practice-delayed-by-rain/ July 8, 2011 Speedtv.com July 8, 2011 October 4, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20111004231906/http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/nns-kentucky-nascar-nationwide-series-practice-delayed-by-rain/ dead Kyle Busch was quickest during final practice with a time of 29.540 seconds. Juan Pablo Montoya following in second, ahead of Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne, and Johnson.Practice Four Timing and Scoring http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2011/18/data/practice3_speeds.html July 8, 2011 NASCAR July 8, 2011 Forty-eight cars were entered for qualifying, but only forty-three raced because of NASCAR's qualifying procedure.http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2011/18/data/qual_order.html Qualifying Entry List NASCAR July 8, 2011 However, after half of the cars qualified, wet weather soaked the track, therefore cancelling the session and making final practice times determine the qualifying grid.Kentucky Qualifying Rained Out http://www.motorracingnetwork.com/Race-Series/NASCAR-Sprint-Cup/News/Articles/2011/07/Kentucky-Qualifying-Rained-Out.aspx July 8, 2011 Motor Racing Network July 8, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20120614091324/http://www.motorracingnetwork.com/Race-Series/NASCAR-Sprint-Cup/News/Articles/2011/07/Kentucky-Qualifying-Rained-Out.aspx June 14, 2012 dead Kyle Busch, after finishing the final practice in first, won the pole position for Joe Gibbs Racinghttp://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2011/18/data/lineup.html Race Official Lineup NASCAR July 8, 2011 July 8, 2011 He was joined on the front row of the grid by Montoya. Kurt Busch was third, Kahne took fourth, and Johnson started fifth. Brad Keselowski, Edwards, Ragan, Tony Stewart, and Menard rounded out the first ten positions. The five drivers who failed to qualify for the race were David Stremme, Michael Waltrip, T. J. Bell, David Starr and Robby Gordon. Traffic issues To a large extent, the race was overshadowed by major traffic issues in the vicinity of the track. Owner Speedway Motorsports had more than doubled track capacity to 107,000, but did not make any other significant upgrades to the infrastructure in and around the track in order to accommodate the sheer number of fans attending the race. According to Sports Illustrated NASCAR writer Brant James, Kentucky Speedway's reputation as an epicenter of traffic mayhem preceded it. An increase in seating capacity to 107,000 and an inaugural Sprint Cup race guaranteed that the already troublesome venue would become one of the most inaccessible in all of NASCAR. Fatal vision fulfilled.http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/brant_james/07/10/five.things.kentucky/ Five things we learned at Kentucky Brant James Inside NASCAR SportsIllustrated.com July 10, 2011 July 10, 2011 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20121104124022/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/brant_james/07/10/five.things.kentucky/ November 4, 2012 Backups on Interstate 71 began more than eight hours before the start of the race. By 3:30 pm, I-71 was backed up for more than 15 mi to the north of the speedway.https://www.espn.com/racing/nascar/cup/columns/story?columnist=blount_terry&id=6753479 Traffic nightmare spoils NASCAR's party Terry Blount ESPN July 10, 2011 July 10, 2011 At 6:00 pm, the Kentucky State Police (KSP) reported backups of more than 20 mi in both directions on I-71, and backups of 10 mi on side roads in the area.http://cincinnati.com/blogs/shiftinggears/2011/07/09/theres-traffic-and-then-there-was-saturday/?odyssey=obinsite There's traffic and then there was Saturday Shifting Gears Cincinnati.com July 9, 2011 July 10, 2011 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20121005024359/http://cincinnati.com/blogs/shiftinggears/2011/07/09/theres-traffic-and-then-there-was-saturday/?odyssey=obinsite October 5, 2012 The KSP added that traffic was still backed up for miles at about 8:55 pm, halfway through the race. Some fans were reported to have parked their cars on the highway and leave them to catch a glimpse at the race.The WORST Fan Experience In NASCAR History! June 24, 2021 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pEBNRoAsJI en July 2, 2021 Others would try back roads, with some taking Kentucky Route 35, with more successful results at getting into the track.Kentucky Speedway Inaugural Nascar Sprint Cup Race Traffic Detour. (Fucked Up) July 11, 2011 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kV-Ci2LSku4 en July 2, 2021 At 9:30 pm, traffic patterns were switched to outbound, and many fans who were still trying to get to the track were turned away.http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110709/SPT0601/307090053/Exhausting-day-motorists?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7C Exhausting day for motorists Kevin Kelly Cincinnati.com July 10, 2011 July 11, 2011 Several fans who managed to make it to the race were turned away because there wasn't enough available parking.Jensen, Tom. What now, Kentucky? https://web.archive.org/web/20120512172035/http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/jensen-what-now-kentucky May 12, 2012 . Speed, July 10, 2011. Those who made it to the race were only reported having to wait half an hour or more to use the restroom due to a shortage of port-a-johns. Others reported shortages at the concession stands.Kentucky Speedway apologizes to fans https://web.archive.org/web/20120512172157/http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/cup-kentucky-speedway-apologizes-to-fans May 12, 2012 . Speedway Motorsports, July 11, 2011.Blount, Terry. Kentucky Speedway gets a mulligan. ESPN, July 12, 2011. Bruton Smith, CEO of Speedway Motorsports, had joked on the day before the race that "we expect everyone to be home by Tuesday." Smith was in a much less cheerful mood during the race, telling reporters: There's 15 to 20,000 people that won't get in here today. Traffic is horrendous. Interstate 71 is a disaster. It may have been OK in 1955, but somebody should have rebuilt that thing 20 years ago.http://cincinnati.com/blogs/shiftinggears/2011/07/10/bruton-smith-race-great-traffic-not/ Bruton Smith: Race great, traffic not Tom Groeschen Shifting Gears Cincinnati.com July 10, 2011 July 10, 2011 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20110712102426/http://cincinnati.com/blogs/shiftinggears/2011/07/10/bruton-smith-race-great-traffic-not/ July 12, 2011 One of the thousands who never made it to the track was Kentucky Senate President and gubernatorial candidate David L. Williams, who left the state capital of Frankfort, 45 mi away, at 2:00 pm. Also stuck in the jam was Denny Hamlin, who live-tweeted updates on his status while waiting to enter the track. Hamlin would, however, make the prerace drivers' meeting and start the race. ESPN.com NASCAR writer Terry Blount commented after the race, This should have been a great day for NASCAR, a new Cup event for the first time in 10 years and a sellout crowd at Kentucky Speedway. Instead, the entire day was a horrible black eye for the sport at a facility that was completely unprepared for an event of this size and stature. Traffic jams are normal for a Sprint Cup race. This was not a traffic jam. It was a traffic catastrophe. On the Monday after the race, the track announced that unscanned tickets for the Quaker State 400 would be valid for any of the remaining six 2011 Sprint Cup races to be held at tracks owned by Speedway Motorsports, or for the 2012 Kentucky Sprint Cup race. In addition to the ticket exchange, fans with unscanned tickets would also receive an equal number of tickets to either of the two remaining major events at the track in 2011—the Kentucky 225 in the Camping World Truck Series on October 1, or the Kentucky Indy 300 in the IndyCar Series on October 2.https://www.espn.com/racing/nascar/cup/news/story?id=6758937 Kentucky track offers ticket exchange Terry Blount ESPN July 12, 2011 July 13, 2011 Race The race, the 18th in the season, began at 7:30 pm EDT and was televised live in the United States on TNT. The conditions on the grid were dry before the race with the air temperature at 81 °F °C.Race Summary http://www.nascar.com/lap-by-lap/110709/lblkentucky/index.html NASCAR July 9, 2011 Raceway Ministries pastor John Roberts began pre-race ceremonies, by giving the invocation. Next, Nick Lachey performed the national anthem, and Steve Beshear, Kentucky's Governor, gave the command for drivers to start their engines. Two drivers had to start at the end of the grid because of changes that were not approved during practice; they were Hamlin and Dave Blaney. Results Qualifying Grid No. Car number Driver Team Manufacturer1 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 2 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 3 22 Kurt Busch Penske Racing Dodge 4 4 Kasey Kahne Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 5 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 6 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 7 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 8 6 David Ragan Roush Fenway Racing Ford 9 14 Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Racing Chevrolet 10 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 11 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 12 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 13 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 14 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 15 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 16 56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 17 00 David Reutimann Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 18 39 Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Racing Chevrolet 19 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 20 33 Clint Bowyer Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 21 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 22 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 23 43 A. J. Allmendinger Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 24 47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 25 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Toyota 26 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 27 83 Brian Vickers Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 28 5 Mark Martin Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 30 51 Landon Cassill Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 31 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 32 36 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 33 60 Mike Skinner Germain Racing Toyota 34 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 35 34 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 36 46 J. J. Yeley Whitney Motorsports Chevrolet 37 38 Travis Kvapil Front Row Motorsports Ford 38 66 Michael McDowell HP Racing Toyota 39 71 Andy Lally TRG Motorsports Ford 40 81 Scott Riggs Whitney Motorsports Chevrolet 41 37 Tony Raines Front Row Motorsports Ford 42 32 Mike Bliss FAS Lane Racing Ford 43 7 Scott Wimmer Robby Gordon Motorsports Dodge Failed to Qualify 30 David Stremme Inception Motorsports Chevrolet 15 Michael Waltrip Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 50 T. J. Bell LTD Powersports Toyota 95 David Starr Leavine Family Racing Ford 77 Robby Gordon Robby Gordon Motorsports Dodge Source:http://www.motorracingnetwork.com/Race-Series/NASCAR-Sprint-Cup/Statistics/Season-Stats/Statistics.aspx?SubSeriesID=1&YearID=1&RaceID=5280&StatType=Starting+Lineup Lineup Statistics MotorRacingNetwork.com July 8, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20120614091442/http://www.motorracingnetwork.com/Race-Series/NASCAR-Sprint-Cup/Statistics/Season-Stats/Statistics.aspx?SubSeriesID=1&YearID=1&RaceID=5280&StatType=Starting+Lineup June 14, 2012 deadhttp://www.jayski.com/stats/2011/grids/18ken2011grid.htm#lineup Jayski's® NASCAR Silly Season Site — Kentucky Sprint Cup Qualifying Order/Results, Lineup Jayski.com July 8, 2011 Race results Pos Grid Car Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Run Points 11 18 Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 267 48 217 00 David Reutimann Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 267 43 35 48 Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 267 41 418 39 Ryan Newman Stewart Haas Racing Chevrolet 267 40 57 99 Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Racing Ford 267 39 613 17 Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Racing Ford 267 38 76 2 Brad Keselowski Penske Racing Dodge 267 38 88 6 David Ragan Roush Fenway Racing Ford 267 37 93 22 Kurt Busch Penske Racing Dodge 267 36 1014 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 267 34 1126 11 Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 267 34 129 14 Tony Stewart Stewart Haas Racing Chevrolet 267 33 134 4 Kasey Kahne Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 267 32 1415 20 Joey Logano Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota 267 30 152 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 267 29 1619 29 Kevin Harvick Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 267 28 1712 78 Regan Smith Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet 267 27 1816 56 Martin Truex Jr. Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota 267 27 1922 31 Jeff Burton Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 267 25 2011 9 Marcos Ambrose Richard Petty Motorsports Toyota 267 24 2121 16 Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Racing Ford 267 23 2228 5 Mark Martin Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 267 22 2330 51 Landon Cassill Phoenix Racing Chevrolet 267 0 2410 27 Paul Menard Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 267 20 2525 13 Casey Mears Germain Racing Toyota 267 19 2624 47 Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Racing Toyota 267 18 2727 83 Brian Vickers Red Bull Racing Team Toyota 265 17 2823 43 A. J. Allmendinger Richard Petty Motorsports Ford 265 16 2937 38 Travis Kvapil Front Row Motorsports Ford 265 0 3029 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 265 14 3135 34 David Gilliland Front Row Motorsports Ford 264 13 3239 71 Andy Lally TRG Motorsports Ford 264 12 3332 36 Dave Blaney Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet 264 11 3442 32 Mike Bliss FAS Lane Racing Ford 264 0 3520 33 Clint Bowyer Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 259 9 3634 1 Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet 198 8 3743 7 Scott Wimmer Robby Gordon Motorsports Dodge 90 0 3841 37 Tony Raines Front Row Motorsports Ford 38 6 3931 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Toyota 37 0 4036 46 J. J. Yeley Whitney Motorsports Chevrolet 35 5 4138 66 Michael McDowellHP Racing Toyota 32 3 4240 81 Scott Riggs Whitney Motorsports Chevrolet 28 0 4333 60 Mike Skinner Germain Racing Toyota 17 0Source:https://www.racing-reference.info/race/2011_Quaker_State_400/W Race Results Standings after the race Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Kyle Busch 624 2 Carl Edwards 620 3 Kevin Harvick 614 4 Kurt Busch 606 5 Jimmie Johnson 605 Manufacturers' Championship standings Pos Manufacturer Points 1 Chevrolet 118 2 Ford 106 3 Toyota 99 4 Dodge 73 Note: Only the top five positions are included for the driver standings. References 30em 2011 Sprint Cup Series 2011 Coke Zero 400 2011 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 collapsed Quaker State 400 Quaker State 400 2011 Quaker State 400 Quaker State 400 Category:NASCAR controversies