02-22-2006 | TruckSeries.com Report
NASCAR's new statistical package using data from NASCAR's scoring loops, in partnership with sports statistics experts from STATS LLC, provides in-depth insight detailing much more than just who won the race. Each week, usually on Monday, NASCAR will offer specific insight into the previous weekend's races using this new data. Here are some observations from the action at Daytona International Speedway: NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series - GM FlexFuel 250 Mark Martin's dominant run to victory is demonstrated by a close look at his loop data statistics. An examination of the box score shows that Martin never fell lower than 10th during the race and Martin needed only 58 green flag passes en route to victory, primarily because he led 42 laps. All of Martin's passes were quality passes, which denotes each time a driver passes a competitor in the top 15. Martin scored the highest driver rating of any NASCAR driver during the weekend, achieving an impressive 138.7. Other indicators of Martin's solid performance are finishing second among fastest drivers early in a run, first among fastest drivers in turn one, second among fastest drivers in turn three and third among fastest drivers in turn four. However, Martin was just 11th fastest in the frontstretch and just 18th fastest in the backstretch. Martin's solid performance in the turns and number one ranking in speed in traffic may give credence to those who say that Daytona is not all about horsepower, but is also about how well a car or truck handles. NASCAR Loop Data Statistics - Glossary & Definitions Average Running Position Box Score Closers Consecutive Laps with a Pass Consecutive Passes without Being Passed Fastest Drivers by Straightaway Fastest Drivers by Turn Fastest Drivers Early in Run Fastest Drivers Late in Run Fastest on Restarts Halfway Home Laps Driver Improved Position Passing Breakdowns Quality Passes Speed in Traffic Time Trailing at Finish Top 5 Drivers Performance Graph
Sum of driver position on each lap - divided by the laps run in the race.
A summary which shows key statistics to give a complete picture of the drivers' performance throughout the race.
The number of positions that a driver improves over the last 10 percent of the race.
Number of consecutive laps with at least one pass.
Number of consecutive passes without being passed.
Ranks each driver by average speed on each straightaway.
Ranks each driver by average speed in each turn.
Ranks each driver during the first 25 percent of laps run in a typical full green flag segment.
Ranks each driver during the final 25 percent of laps run in a typical full green flag segment.
Shows average speed on the first two laps under green flag conditions.
Compares the race standings at the halfway point of the race with the final results.
The total number of laps during a race where a driver improved his position.
For each driver, shows how many and what percentage of passes were made by each turn and each straightaway, including the total number of passes for each driver.
The number of times a driver passes another car that is running in the top 15 while under green flag conditions.
The speed when there is another vehicle within one car length under green flag conditions.
The time behind the leader that each driver finished behind the race winner. Average green flag lap time is used to calculate cumulative time for drivers not on the lead lap.
A graphic which demonstrates the progressive performance of the top five finishers at different intervals throughout the race.