The 2011 Sprint Cup Series was the 63rd season of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The season began with the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 20 and ended with the Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 20.
The 2011 season is considered to be one of the most exciting seasons in Cup Series history. There were 18 different winners over the course of the season, including several drivers winning their first races in the biggest and most prestigious races in the schedule. A number of drivers swapped the points lead through the regular season, and only 12 points separated first through twelfth when the Chase began, due to the low number of wins Chase drivers had during the regular season.
In a press conference at Michigan in August following a ninth place finish, when asked about qualifying for the Chase, Tony Stewart claimed that he would only be taking up a slot that should go to a more deserving driver and team. He entered Richmond just 23 points ahead of eleventh place, and needed an 18th place points finish to clinch a spot in the Chase. He did so with a seventh place finish. He was thus seeded last on account of his lack of wins in the season.
He then won at Chicagoland and New Hampshire, vaulting him to first in the standings. Finishes of 25th and 15th dropped him back down to 7th following Kansas, while decent finishes at Charlotte and Talladega, followed by wins at Martinsville and Texas led him to be second in the standings, 3 points behind Carl Edwards. Edwards and Stewart would finish second and third at Phoenix, but earned the same amount of points for that race. In the final race of the season, Edwards would lead the most laps but finish second to Stewart, who won the race. Stewart thus earned the 3 points he needed to be tied with Edwards for the Championship, and thus the Championship came down to a tiebreaker for the first time in Cup Series history- Stewart’s five wins versus Edwards’ one. Thus, Stewart won his third championship and first as an owner. It was the first time since 1992 that an owner-driver had won the championship.
There were several rules changes announced at the start of the season. Due to the development and implementation of the self-venting fuel can, the catch-can man was eliminated on pit crews. Drivers across NASCAR’s top three series could only compete for a championship in a chosen series, meaning that drivers who participated in series outside of their chosen series could compete in races but not earn points. The points system was modified, with the winner of the race earning 43 points, second place earning 42, and so on through the rest of the field. If a driver led a lap, they would earn 1 bonus point, 1 more for leading the most laps, and 3 bonus points for winning the race. Finally, The Chase was modified so that the eleventh and twelfth positions would be awarded to whoever had the most victories among drivers ranked 11th through 20th in driver’s points, effectively creating two ‘Wild Card’ slots. These drivers would not get bonus points for wins, ensuring they would begin the Chase in 11th and 12th.
The Car of Tomorrow was modified so that the splitter braces were removed, and the front end became a single molded piece, while an ethanol fuel mixture began to be used during the season.
Full Time Teams[]
Major Part Time Teams[]
Manufacturer | Team | Number | Driver | Sponsor |
---|---|---|---|---|
Inception Motorsports | 30 | David Stremme | ||
Wood Brothers Racing | 21 | Trevor Bayne (17) Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. (1) |
Motorcraft | |
Front Row Motorsports | 55 | J.J. Yeley (11) Travis Kvapil (6) Jeff Green (1) |
||
[[Toyota| | Germain Racing | 60 | Mike Skinner (23) Landon Cassill (3) Todd Bodine (2) Dave Blaney (1) |
Big Red |
Schedule[]
Round | Date | Race Name | Track | TV |
---|---|---|---|---|
February 12, 2011 | Budweiser Shootout | Daytona International Speedway | FOX | |
February 17, 2011 | Gatorade Duel 150s | Daytona International Speedway | SPEED Channel | |
1 | February 20, 2011 | Daytona 500 | Daytona International Speedway | FOX |
2 | February 27, 2011 | Subway Fresh Fit 500 | Phoenix International Raceway | FOX |
3 | March 6, 2011 | Kobalt Tools 400 | Las Vegas Motor Speedway | FOX |
4 | March 20, 2011 | Jeff Byrd 500 Presented by Food City | Bristol Motor Speedway | FOX |
5 | March 27, 2011 | Auto Club 400 | Auto Club Speedway | FOX |
6 | April 3, 2011 | Goody's Fast Relief 500 | Martinsville Speedway | FOX |
7 | April 9, 2011 | Samsung Mobile 500 | Texas Motor Speedway | FOX |
8 | April 17, 2011 | Aaron's 499 | Talladega Superspeedway | FOX |
9 | April 30, 2011 | Crown Royal Presents the Matthew & Daniel Hansen 400 | Richmond International Raceway | FOX |
10 | May 7, 2011 | Showtime Southern 500 | Darlington Raceway | FOX |
11 | May 15, 2011 | FedEx 400 Benefitting Autism Speaks | Dover International Speedway | FOX |
May 21, 2011 | Sprint All-Star Challenge | Charlotte Motor Speedway | SPEED Channel | |
12 | May 29, 2011 | Coca-Cola 600 | Charlotte Motor Speedway | FOX |
13 | June 5, 2011 | STP 400 | Kansas Speedway | FOX |
14 | June 12, 2011 | 5-Hour Energy 500 | Pocono Raceway | TNT |
15 | June 19, 2011 | Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 | Michigan International Speedway | TNT |
16 | June 26, 2011 | Toyota / Save Mart 350 | Infineon Raceway | TNT |
17 | July 2, 2011 | Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola | Daytona International Speedway | TNT |
18 | July 9, 2011 | Quaker State 400 | Kentucky Speedway | TNT |
19 | July 17, 2011 | Lenox Industrial Tools 301 | New Hampshire Motor Speedway | TNT |
20 | July 31, 2011 | Brickyard 400 | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | ESPN |
21 | August 7, 2011 | Good Sam RV Insurance 500 | Pocono Raceway | ESPN |
22 | August 14, 2011 | Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen | Watkins Glen International | ESPN |
23 | August 21, 2011 | Pure Michigan 400 | Michigan International Speedway | ESPN |
24 | August 27, 2011 | Irwin Tools Night Race | Bristol Motor Speedway | ABC |
25 | September 4, 2011 | AdvoCare 500 | Atlanta Motor Speedway | ESPN |
26 | September 10, 2011 | Wonderful Pistachios 400 | Richmond International Raceway | ABC |
Chase for the Sprint Cup | ||||
27 | September 18, 2011 | GEICO 400 | Chicagoland Speedway | ESPN |
28 | September 25, 2011 | Sylvania 300 | New Hampshire Motor Speedway | ESPN |
29 | October 2, 2011 | AAA 400 | Dover International Speedway | ESPN |
30 | October 9, 2011 | Hollywood Casino 400 | Kansas Speedway | ESPN |
31 | October 15, 2011 | Bank of America 500 | Charlotte Motor Speedway | ABC |
32 | October 23, 2011 | Good Sam Club 500 | Talladega Superspeedway | ESPN |
33 | October 30, 2011 | Tums Fast Relief 500 | Martinsville Speedway | ESPN |
34 | November 6, 2011 | AAA Texas 500 | Texas Motor Speedway | ESPN |
35 | November 13, 2011 | Kobalt Tools 500 | Phoenix International Raceway | ESPN |
36 | November 20, 2011 | Ford 400 | Homestead-Miami Speedway | ESPN |
Results[]
Round | Race | Pole Winner | Winner | Make | Cautions | Caution Laps | Average Speed | Number of Lead Changes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2011 Budweiser Shootout | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | Kurt Busch | 4 | 12 | 153.584 | 28 | ||
2011 Gatorade Duel 150 (Race #1) | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | Kurt Busch | 2 | 7 | 159.794 | 20 | ||
2011 Gatorade Duel 150 (Race #2) | Jeff Gordon | Jeff Burton | 5 | 14 | 136.571 | 22 | ||
1 | 2011 Daytona 500 | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | Trevor Bayne | 16 | 60 | 130.326 | 74 | |
2 | 2011 Subway Fresh Fit 500 | Carl Edwards | Jeff Gordon | 8 | 43 | 102.961 | 28 | |
3 | 2011 Kobalt Tools 400 | Matt Kenseth | Carl Edwards | 7 | 35 | 135.508 | 21 | |
4 | 2011 Jeff Byrd 500 Presented by Food City | Carl Edwards | Kyle Busch | 10 | 57 | 91.941 | 17 | |
5 | 2011 Auto Club 400 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Kevin Harvick | 4 | 16 | 150.849 | 18 | |
6 | 2011 Goody's Fast Relief 500 | Jamie McMurray | Kevin Harvick | 11 | 72 | 74.195 | 31 | |
7 | 2011 Samsung Mobile 500 | David Ragan | Matt Kenseth | 5 | 24 | 149.231 | 31 | |
8 | 2011 Aaron's 499 | Jeff Gordon | Jimmie Johnson | 6 | 24 | 156.261 | 88 | |
9 | 2011 Crown Royal Presents the Matthew & Daniel Hansen 400 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Kyle Busch | 8 | 60 | 95.280 | 14 | |
10 | 2011 Showtime Southern 500 | Kasey Kahne | Regan Smith | 11 | 46 | 129.678 | 21 | |
11 | 2011 FedEx 400 Benefitting Autism Speaks | N/A | Matt Kenseth | 6 | 28 | 125.578 | 23 | |
2011 Sprint All-Star Challenge | Kyle Busch | Carl Edwards | 5 | 6 | 127.841 | 8 | ||
12 | 2011 Coca-Cola 600 | Brad Keselowski | Kevin Harvick | 14 | 64 | 132.414 | 38 | |
13 | 2011 STP 400 | Kurt Busch | Brad Keselowski | 5 | 22 | 137.184 | 17 | |
14 | 2011 5-Hour Energy 500 | Kurt Busch | Jeff Gordon | 4 | 14 | 145.384 | 18 | |
15 | 2011 Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 | Kurt Busch | Denny Hamlin | 5 | 18 | 153.029 | 21 | |
16 | 2011 Toyota / Save Mart 350 | Joey Logano | Kurt Busch | 5 | 17 | 75.411 | 12 | |
17 | 2011 Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola | Mark Martin | David Ragan | 6 | 21 | 159.491 | 57 | |
18 | 2011 Quaker State 400 | N/A | Kyle Busch | 6 | 32 | 137.314 | 20 | |
19 | 2011 Lenox Industrial Tools 301 | Ryan Newman | Ryan Newman | 10 | 44 | 104.100 | 21 | |
20 | 2011 Brickyard 400 | David Ragan | Paul Menard | 5 | 22 | 140.762 | 22 | |
21 | 2011 Good Sam RV Insurance 500 | Joey Logano | Brad Keselowski | 5 | 21 | 137.878 | 23 | |
22 | 2011 Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen | Kyle Busch | Marcos Ambrose | 5 | 14 | 99.417 | 14 | |
23 | 2011 Pure Michigan 400 | Greg Biffle | Kyle Busch | 5 | 21 | 150.898 | 20 | |
24 | 2011 Irwin Tools Night Race | Ryan Newman | Brad Keselowski | 6 | 42 | 96.753 | 22 | |
25 | 2011 AdvoCare 500 | Kasey Kahne | Jeff Gordon | 9 | 64 | 124.623 | 35 | |
26 | 2011 Wonderful Pistachios 400 | David Reutimann | Kevin Harvick | 15 | 85 | 89.910 | 11 | |
27 | 2011 GEICO 400 | Matt Kenseth | Tony Stewart | 6 | 25 | 143.306 | 22 | |
28 | 2011 Sylvania 300 | Ryan Newman | Tony Stewart | 3 | 14 | 116.679 | 19 | |
29 | 2011 AAA 400 | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kurt Busch | 10 | 44 | 119.413 | 24 | |
30 | 2011 Hollywood Casino 400 | Greg Biffle | Jimmie Johnson | 6 | 25 | 137.181 | 19 | |
31 | 2011 Bank of America 500 | Tony Stewart | Matt Kenseth | 8 | 34 | 146.194 | 16 | |
32 | 2011 Good Sam Club 500 | Mark Martin | Clint Bowyer | 9 | 37 | 143.404 | 72 | |
33 | 2011 Tums Fast Relief 500 | N/A | Tony Stewart | 18 | 108 | 68.648 | 23 | |
34 | 2011 AAA Texas 500 | Greg Biffle | Tony Stewart | 5 | 21 | 152.705 | 23 | |
35 | 2011 Kobalt Tools 500 | Matt Kenseth | Kasey Kahne | 8 | 30 | 112.918 | 14 | |
36 | 2011 Ford 400 | Carl Edwards | Tony Stewart | 8 | 54 | 114.976 | 26 |
Final Points Standings[]
Pos. | Driver | Races | Wins | Top 5s | Top 10s | Poles | Points | Difference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tony Stewart | 36 | 5 | 9 | 19 | 1 | 2403 | |
2 | Carl Edwards | 36 | 1 | 19 | 26 | 3 | 2403 | 0 |
3 | Kevin Harvick | 36 | 4 | 9 | 19 | 0 | 2345 | -58 |
4 | Matt Kenseth | 36 | 3 | 12 | 20 | 3 | 2330 | -73 |
5 | Brad Keselowski | 36 | 3 | 10 | 14 | 1 | 2319 | -84 |
6 | Jimmie Johnson | 36 | 2 | 14 | 21 | 0 | 2304 | -99 |
7 | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | 36 | 0 | 4 | 12 | 1 | 2290 | -113 |
8 | Jeff Gordon | 36 | 3 | 13 | 18 | 1 | 2287 | -116 |
9 | Denny Hamlin | 36 | 1 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 2284 | -119 |
10 | Ryan Newman | 36 | 1 | 9 | 17 | 3 | 2284 | -119 |
11 | Kurt Busch | 36 | 2 | 8 | 16 | 3 | 2262 | -141 |
12 | Kyle Busch | 35 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 1 | 2246 | -157 |
13 | Clint Bowyer | 36 | 1 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 1047 | -1,356 |
14 | Kasey Kahne | 36 | 1 | 8 | 15 | 2 | 1041 | -1,362 |
15 | A.J. Allmendinger | 36 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 1013 | -1,390 |
16 | Greg Biffle | 36 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 997 | -1,406 |
17 | Paul Menard | 36 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 947 | -1,456 |
18 | Martin Truex Jr | 36 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 1 | 937 | -1,466 |
19 | Marcos Ambrose | 36 | 1 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 936 | -1,467 |
20 | Jeff Burton | 36 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 935 | -1,468 |
21 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 36 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 932 | -1,471 |
22 | Mark Martin | 36 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 2 | 930 | -1,473 |
23 | David Ragan | 36 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 906 | -1,497 |
24 | Joey Logano | 36 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 902 | -1,501 |
25 | Brian Vickers | 36 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 846 | -1,557 |
26 | Regan Smith | 36 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 820 | -1,583 |
27 | Jamie McMurray | 36 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 795 | -1,608 |
28 | David Reutimann | 36 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 757 | -1,646 |
29 | Bobby Labonte | 36 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 670 | -1,733 |
30 | David Gilliland | 36 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 572 | -1,831 |
31 | Casey Mears | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 541 | -1,862 |
32 | Dave Blaney | 35 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 508 | -1,895 |
33 | Andy Lally | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 398 | -2,005 |
34 | Robby Gordon | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 268 | -2,135 |
35 | J.J. Yeley | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 192 | -2,211 |
36 | Michael McDowell | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 139 | -2,264 |
37 | Tony Raines | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 129 | -2,274 |
38 | Ken Schrader | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 110 | -2,293 |
39 | Terry Labonte | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 102 | -2,301 |
40 | Bill Elliott | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 | -2,303 |
41 | David Stremme | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 80 | -2,323 |
42 | Michael Waltrip | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 56 | -2,347 |
43 | Boris Said | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | -2,365 |
44 | Geoffrey Bodine | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | -2,370 |
45 | T.J. Bell | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | -2,374 |
46 | Stephen Leicht | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | -2,383 |
47 | Andy Pilgrim | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | -2,385 |
48 | Chris Cook | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | -2,386 |
49 | Brian Simo | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | -2,392 |
50 | Brian Keselowski | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -2,400 |
51 | Erik Darnell | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -2,401 |
52 | Steve Park | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -2,401 |
Only Cup Series points-eligible drivers shown. Drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup are highlighted in yellow.
Complete statistics can be found at Racing-Reference.info.
Rookie of the Year[]
Andy Lally was the only driver eligible and thus won the Rookie of the Year Award for 2011.[1]
Position | Driver | Points | Wins |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Andy Lally | 229 | 0 |
Manufacturer Standings[]
With 18 wins, Chevrolet won the Manufacturer's Championship for 2011.[2]
Position | Make | Points | Race Wins |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 248 | 18 | |
2 | 195 | 7 | |
3 | 187 | 6 | |
4 | 162 | 5 |
References[]
NASCAR Cup Series seasons |
---|
1949 |
1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 |
1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 |
1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 |
1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 |
1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 |
2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |