Hendrick Motorsports drivers qualify in the top 14

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.– All four Hendrick Motorsports drivers qualified in the top 14 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying session on Friday at Daytona (Florida) International Speedway. Due to rain, positions were set by the drivers' finishes in the round of qualifying. Jimmie Johnson led the team, qualifying fifth, while Dale Earnhardt Jr. will roll off the grid seventh tomorrow. Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kahne will start from the ninth and 14th positions, respectively. 

In 61 points-paying events (198 starts) at Daytona, Hendrick Motorsports has achieved 13 wins, 50 top-five results, 87 top-10s and has led 1,593 laps. The organization also has eight Daytona 500 crowns, with Earnhardt most recently collecting a win in The Great American race earlier this season.  Among drivers all-time at the restrictor-plate tracks of Daytona and Talladega, Gordon ranks first with 12 victories and Earnhardt is third with eight. Gordon’s six pole positions rank him tied for second all-time in that category at restrictor-plate tracks. With a pole this weekend, Gordon could move into a tie for first with Sterling Marlin, who has seven.

Here is a look at how the Hendrick Motorsports teams have fared at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 FARMERS INSURANCE CHEVROLET SS
QUALIFIED: 14th
KENTUCKY RECAP: Kasey Kahne drove his No. 5 Chevrolet SS to an eighth-place finish in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Kentucky Speedway on June 28. This marked his third consecutive top-10 finish and seventh of the season. With the top-10 result, Kahne now ranks 15th in the point standings.
G.I. JOBS:  In honor of Independence Day, Farmers Insurance is celebrating our nation's military with a special patriotic paint scheme on Kahne’s No. 5 Chevrolet SS for this weekend’s race at Daytona International Speedway: http://youtu.be/C__fDQVo1DM. Farmers Insurance is committed to hiring military veterans and has partnered with G.I. Jobs, a company that assists with military members’ transition to civilian jobs. As part of its initiative, Farmers will be launching a special sweepstakes on July 3 for current and former military members. A member from each military branch also will be randomly chosen for a VIP race experience at Phoenix International Raceway in November, which includes the opportunity to meet Kahne. For more information, please visit www.FarmersRacing.com.
SEASON-TO-DATE:  In 17 Sprint Cup Series races this season, Kahne is tied for fifth in closers (24 positions improved in the last 10 percent of each race) and ranks sixth in fastest speed in traffic (10.588). The driver of the No. 5 Farmers Insurance/G.I. Jobs Chevrolet SS also ranks seventh in fastest drivers late in a run (10.615), seventh in green-flag speed (10.692), eighth in quality passes (972), ninth in fastest laps run (141), ninth in fastest drivers early in a run (11.154) and ninth in driver rating (87.3).
KAHNE AT DAYTONA: In 21 Sprint Cup Series starts at Daytona International Speedway, Kahne has two top-five finishes and seven top-10s, including a runner-up result in the July 2010 race. Kahne reached Victory Lane at Daytona in 2010 when he won the second Duel 150 qualifying race.
DAYTONA LOOP DATA:   According to NASCAR loop data in the last 19 points-paying races at Daytona, Kahne ranks fourth in green-flag passes (3,894). He also ranks ninth in laps in top 15 (1,736), 10th in fastest laps run (71) and 10th in average running position (17.267).
DAYTONA CHASSIS CHOICE: Crew chief Kenny Francis selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-856 for Saturday night’s race at Daytona. Kahne last drove this car to an eighth-place finish at Talladega in May.

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 PEPSI REAL. BIG. SUMMER. CHEVROLET SS
QUALIFIED: Ninth
24 AHEAD IN STANDINGS: On Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway, Jeff Gordon finished sixth to remain atop the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings. He holds a 24-point lead on Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
TOP-10 AVERAGE FINISH: Gordon’s 13 top-10s in 2014 are a series-best and he is the only driver to have a top-10 average finishing position (8.5) through the first 17 races. Only twice during his 22-year career has Gordon completed a season with a better average finish (5.7 in 1998 and 7.3 in 2007).
REAL. BIG. SUMMER. STARTS AT DAYTONA: This Saturday night at Daytona, Gordon will drive the No. 24 Pepsi REAL. BIG. SUMMER. Chevrolet SS. Pepsi will be listening on Twitter to #RealBigSummer, surprising lucky fans with VIP access and experiences. Fans will have a chance to win more than 400 unique prizes taking them to the biggest ballparks, concert venues, festivals and more throughout the season. Pepsi will be exceeding fans’ wildest expectations of summer and instigating spontaneous fun. Real. Big. Summer. is all about taking ordinary summer pastimes and transforming them into truly epic experiences in ways that are only possible with Pepsi.
Real. Big. Summer. is also celebrating the launch of Pepsi's newest products; Pepsi-Cola Made With Real Sugar and two Made With Real Sugar flavors available for a limited time – Pepsi Vanilla and Pepsi Wild Cherry. Pepsi Made With Real Sugar is available now across the United States and is also being supported by national ads.
AT DAYTONA: Gordon is the active leader in victories at Daytona International Speedway with six. Three of those wins occurred in the annual 400-miler (1995, 1998 and 2004). The driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet SS also has three poles, 13 top-five finishes and 20 top-10s in 43 Cup starts at Daytona.
SUPERSPEEDWAY VICTOR: Gordon is the all-time leader in restrictor-plate wins with 12. NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Sr. ranks second with 11 while teammate Earnhardt is third with eight.
DAYTONA CHASSIS:  No. 24 crew chief Alan Gustafson selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 24-887 for this Saturday night’s race. This chassis is new and has never been raced.

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE'S PATRIOTIC CHEVROLET SS
QUALIFIED: Fifth
KENTUCKY RECAP:  Jimmie Johnson overcame a 25th-place starting position and a tough pit road situation to collect his 12th top-10 effort of the season. He recorded a series-high 34 quality passes during the 400-mile event and remains second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings behind leader and teammate Jeff Gordon.
SEASON-TO-DATE: After 17 NASCAR Sprint Cup races this season, Johnson owns the highest driver rating with a score of 108.8. The driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Patriotic Chevrolet SS has led the most laps with 1,008, which accounts for 19.8 percent of all laps run this season.
AT DATYONA: In 25 starts at Daytona, Johnson has three wins, nine top-five finishes, 12 top-10s and two poles.  In 2013, he swept both races at the restrictor plate track, which makes him the reigning champion of the summer’s 400-mile event. He most recently finished fifth in the season-opening Daytona 500 race.
PATRIOTIC SCHEME: For the third time this season, Johnson will run a patriotic-themed Chevrolet SS. Each year since 2001, Lowe’s has designed a patriotic-themed car for Johnson to drive in an event. The No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS scheme for this weekend is a throwback to the 2010 Memorial Day car, which was heralded as a fan-favorite through a recent social media poll.
DAYTONA TICKET PACKAGE: Johnson, six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, has partnered up with Daytona International Speedway to provide fans with “The 48 Family Experience;” the ultimate race fan package for the upcoming NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Saturday, July 5. To secure tickets, call 1-800-PITSHOP or visit www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com.
DRIVER RATING AT DAYTONA: Johnson has the fifth-highest driver rating at Daytona with a score of 89.0 in the last 19 races. The driver rating is a formula that combines wins, top-15 finishes, and average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps led and lead-lap finishes. The maximum a driver can earn in each race is 150 points. The driver rating number is used pre-race as a prediction tool and post-race as a performance evaluator.
CHASSIS CHOICE: Crew chief Chad Knaus selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 48-871 for this weekend’s race, which Johnson most recently raced at Talladega in May. The backup car is Chassis No. 48-853, which Johnson cruised to a fifth-place finish in the Daytona 500 in February.

DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS
QUALIFIED: Seventh
POINTS AFTER KENTUCKY: Last weekend at Kentucky Speedway, Dale Earnhardt Jr. rallied from a 29th starting position to finish fifth in the 400-mile event. With the result, Earnhardt remains the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series leader in top-five finishes this season with nine and retains his third-place ranking in the Cup points standings, behind leader and teammate Jeff Gordon.
AT DAYTONA: In 29 Sprint Cup starts at Daytona, Earnhardt has recorded three wins, 11 top-five finishes, 17 top-10s and has led 450 laps. Earnhardt notched his first pole position at the 2.5-mile superspeedway during 2011 Daytona 500 qualifying. The reigning Daytona 500 champion also averages a starting position of 11.2 and an average finish of 13.4 in points-paying events at the Florida track, finishing all but three Cup events.
IN THE 400: Earnhardt has scored one win, four top-five finishes and eight top-10s during 14 appearances in the annual July event at Daytona. The driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet SS this weekend has led a combined 243 laps during the summer race, including 116 during his win on July 7, 2001.
DAYTONA DOMINANCE: Earnhardt has 14 NASCAR wins at Daytona – three in the Sprint Cup Series, six in the Nationwide Series, three during qualifying events and two during exhibition events. He has won the 2004 and 2014 Daytona 500s and the 2001 Pepsi 400, as well as two Sprint Unlimiteds (2003 and 2008) and three Budweiser Duel qualifying races (2003, 2004 and 2008). Earnhardt won the four straight Nationwide events that he entered at Daytona between 2002 and 2004.
STRONG ON SUPERSPEEDWAYS: In 58 combined Cup starts on Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway, Earnhardt has recorded eight wins, 21 top-five finishes and 31 top-10s. He currently ranks second among active Cup drivers for most laps led at restrictor plate tracks (1,251), trailing only leader and teammate Gordon.
CHASSIS CHOICE: Crew chief Steve Letarte chose Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-872 for Saturday’s race. Earnhardt first raced this chassis at Talladega Superspeedway in May. Earnhardt’s winning 2014 Daytona 500 chassis currently resides in the Daytona Experience on the track property.