CONCORD, N.C. -- Hendrick Motorsports will do what it can to cap of a historic 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season with a championship win at Phoenix Raceway. Luckily for the organization, its drivers have posted impressive stats at the 1-mile venue.
For the first time in its history, Hendrick Motorsports will have two drivers competing for a championship in the modern playoff format. Chase Elliott looks to defend his 2020 title while Kyle Larson aims to cap off a nine-win season with his first championship.
Hendrick Motorsports holds the all-time records for Cup Series championships (13) and different drivers to win a title (four). Jimmie Johnson (seven championships), Jeff Gordon (four), Elliott (2020) and Terry Labonte (1996) have all won Cup trophies for the organization.
Check out the success Hendrick Motorsports has had at Phoenix and tune in this Sunday, Nov. 7 at 3 p.m. ET on NBC to see the organization in action as it looks to bring home its 14th title.
- Entering Sunday’s Cup Series season finale at Phoenix Raceway, Hendrick Motorsports holds the track records for wins (11), pole positions (12), top-five finishes (50), top-10s (92) and laps led (2,904). Elliott clinched the 2020 Cup Series championship with his win there last November.
- Hendrick Motorsports has won five of the nine 2021 Cup Series playoff races – including each of the last four – and eight of 14 dating back to last year. It has recorded at least one playoff win in 17 straight seasons (since the playoffs began in 2004) and notched 52 combined wins in playoff races, which is the most. A Hendrick Motorsports driver has won in each of the last six playoff elimination races, including Elliott’s title-clinching performance at Phoenix in 2020.
- With one race remaining, Hendrick Motorsports has recorded 32 top-two finishes in 2021, which is tied with Joe Gibbs Racing (2019) for the most in a single season in NASCAR’s modern era (since 1972). Hendrick Motorsports has swept the first and second positions in seven races this year, including a string of four straight 1-2 finishes.
- The 2021 season has been one of the most memorable in the history of Hendrick Motorsports. In May, the team finished 1-2-3-4 at Dover International Speedway, won Chevrolet’s milestone 800th race at Circuit of the Americas and at Charlotte Motor Speedway broke Petty Enterprises’ long-standing record for Cup Series wins. With one event remaining on the calendar, Hendrick Motorsports has recorded 16 points-paying victories, which is its second-most in a single season (18 in 2007). It became the only team since 1972 to win six consecutive points races – and seven overall including Larson’s non-points NASCAR All-Star Race victory. With its entire four-car stable contributing to the 2021 total, Hendrick Motorsports is the first team in Cup Series history with four race winners under the age of 30 in a single season.
- After starting from the rear of the field due to inspection issues at Phoenix in March, Larson rallied back from two pit road speeding penalties to finish seventh in the 312-lap event. Overall, the 29-year-old driver has five top-five finishes and eight top-10s, including the last five he has entered.
- This Sunday, Elliott will make his 12th Cup Series start at Phoenix. In his previous 11 starts at the 1-mile oval, the driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE has led a total of 402 laps – the third-most laps led at a track for Elliott. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native has collected one win, four top-five finishes and seven top-10s. He could become the 11th driver in Cup history to bring home back-to-back titles.
- Across William Byron's seven Cup Series starts at the 1-mile oval, he has a track-best finish of eighth from March of this season. In fact, Byron currently holds a three-race top-10 streak at Phoenix. This year, Byron has collected one win (Homestead-Miami Speedway), two pole awards (Road America and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course – most by a driver this season), four top-two finishes, 12 top-fives and 20 top-10s all while leading 425 laps and collecting four stage wins.
- Alex Bowman heads to his home state to take on Phoenix Raceway for the 13th time in his NASCAR Cup Series career. The Tucson, Arizona, native has one top-10 finish at the 1-mile facility, which came in 2016 after he started from the pole position, led a race-high 194 laps and spent 272 laps inside the top two for an average running position of 1.9. This year, the 28-year-old driver has four wins, eight top-five results and 16 top-10s, all personal season highs.