Average Practice Speeds: New Hampshire 2 – Sylvania 300 (2012 Chase Race #2)
Despite us not being able to see the cars on the track that much this weekend, there were three practice sessions and a bunch of numbers that we now have to decipher. With New Hampshire Motor Speedway being only a 1-mile race track, the teams put a bunch of laps on in practice, so don’t be disturbed if you see a high number in the “Laps Ran” below. Qualifying was on Friday and Jeff Gordon won the pole. The full starting lineup for the Sylvania 300 can be found by clicking here.
Important Practice Notes: 1st practice on Saturday notes (click here). Happy Hour notes (click here).
Average Practice Speeds:
Average practice speeds are calculated by taking the average speed of each driver in each practice and multiplying it by the number of laps ran. When you do this for each practice and add the totals together, and then divide by the total number of laps ran, you get an average of their practice speed, instead of just the one lap statistic you see when you look at practice sheets. I have found over the years that this is much more accurate as to whether or not someone has a car that is good for one lap or one that can consistently be fast. These numbers, however, can be skewed if a team puts new tires on frequently or rarely changes the tires. Note: The chart below includes the speeds from the 2nd and final practice sessions of the weekend. The speeds from the first practice session on Friday included qualifying runs.
| Rank | Driver | Laps Ran | Avg Speed (MPH) |
| 1. | Denny Hamlin | 81 | 130.745 |
| 2. | Brian Vickers | 78 | 129.783 |
| 3. | Kevin Harvick | 85 | 129.775 |
| 4. | Joey Logano | 85 | 129.621 |
| 5. | Kyle Busch | 86 | 129.447 |
| 6. | Clint Bowyer | 84 | 129.381 |
| 7. | Brad Keselowski | 78 | 129.307 |
| 8. | Tony Stewart | 84 | 129.265 |
| 9. | Jeff Burton | 80 | 129.255 |
| 10. | Ryan Newman | 103 | 129.245 |
| 11. | Regan Smith | 70 | 129.230 |
| 12. | Paul Menard | 75 | 129.135 |
| 13. | Jeff Gordon | 73 | 129.094 |
| 14. | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 91 | 129.090 |
| 15. | Martin Truex Jr. | 70 | 129.058 |
| 16. | Aric Almirola | 79 | 129.003 |
| 17. | Carl Edwards | 61 | 128.986 |
| 18. | Jimmie Johnson | 74 | 128.758 |
| 19. | Kasey Kahne | 54 | 128.685 |
| 20. | Dave Blaney | 79 | 128.562 |
| 21. | Michael McDowell | 16 | 128.553 |
| 22. | Marcos Ambrose | 69 | 128.459 |
| 23. | Kurt Busch | 68 | 128.452 |
| 24. | Jamie McMurray | 67 | 128.421 |
| 25. | Matt Kenseth | 64 | 128.408 |
| 26. | Juan Pablo Montoya | 54 | 128.199 |
| 27. | Greg Biffle | 69 | 128.156 |
| 28. | Bobby Labonte | 69 | 128.033 |
| 29. | Landon Cassill | 87 | 128.007 |
| 30. | David Ragan | 66 | 127.921 |
| 31. | Scott Speed | 45 | 127.553 |
| 32. | Travis Kvapil | 77 | 127.357 |
| 33. | J.J. Yeley | 23 | 127.287 |
| 34. | David Gilliland | 66 | 126.918 |
| 35. | Reed Sorenson | 24 | 126.724 |
| 36. | David Reutimann | 44 | 126.648 |
| 37. | Casey Mears | 41 | 126.627 |
| 38. | Stephen Leicht | 23 | 126.581 |
| 39. | David Stremme | 18 | 126.059 |
| 40. | Kelly Bires | 13 | 126.052 |
| 41. | Joe Nemechek | 13 | 125.726 |
| 42. | Mike Olsen | 86 | 124.829 |
| 43. | Tony Raines | 4 | 124.149 |
In the first practice session (Friday), the five fastest drivers were:
1. Denny Hamlin – 134.820 mph
2. Jeff Gordon – 134.174 mph
3. Regan Smith – 134.009 mph
4. Tony Stewart – 133.891 mph
5. Kevin Harvick – 133.872 mph
Click here for the complete results from this practice.
In the second practice session (first on Saturday), the quickest cars were:
1. Denny Hamlin – 131.656 mph
2. Joey Logano – 131.442 mph
3. Jimmie Johnson – 131.370 mph
4. Martin Truex, Jr. – 131.338 mph
5. Kyle Busch – 131.266 mph
Click here for the complete results from this practice.
In terms of ten-lap average, the top five for the second practice were:
1. Jeff Gordon – 130.373 mph
2. Clint Bowyer – 130.135 mph
3. Joey Logano – 130.079 mph
4. Paul Menard – 130.024 mph
5. Kevin Harvick – 130.014 mph
Click here for the complete ten-lap average chart for the second practice.
In “Happy Hour”, the fast five were:
1. Denny Hamlin – 132.053 mph
2. Joey Logano – 131.683 mph
3. Brian Vickers – 131.551 mph
4. Kyle Busch – 131.207 mph
5. Martin Truex, Jr. – 131.157 mph
Click here for the complete results from this practice.
When it came to ten-lap average, the best for Happy Hour were:
1. Denny Hamlin – 130.879 mph
2. Kyle Busch – 130.454 mph
3. Clint Bowyer – 130.306 mph
4. Joey Logano – 130.295 mph
5. Matt Kenseth – 130.152 mph
Click here for the complete ten-lap average chart for Happy Hour.
