Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart share the front row for today's Lenox Industrial Tools 301. David Reutimann and Penske Racing's Kurt Busch and Brad Keselowski round out the top-five. To see where your favorite driver starts as well as their pit selection for today's race, visit Jayski.com.
Here are some stories to watch in today's event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
Can Jeff Burton break his winless streak at a track he once owned? Burton starts sixth today, a rare solid starting spot for the veteran Richard Childress Racing driver. He leads all drivers with four victories at Loudon, but each of those wins came in a four-year stretch from 1997-2000. Those last two wins were most impressive, as he drove from 38th to win in July 1999, then led all 300 laps in September 2000. Burton is riding a two-and-a-half-year winless streak, dating back to Charlotte in October 2008.
Does Juan Pablo Montoya finally get his oval win? Loudon has been one of Montoya's best tracks since coming to stock cars full-time in 2007. It's flat layout lends itself to his road-racing background. He hasn't won an oval since September 2000, when he won a CART race at the defunct Gateway International Raceway.
Does Jimmie Johnson defend his triumph in this race? Johnson is a three-time winner at Loudon. He swept the races during his sophomore season of 2003. Last year, he bumped his way past rival Kurt Busch to pick up his fifth win of the 2010 season. He has just two victories since, and starts only 28th today, but his Chevrolet was fast in practice.
Tony Stewart has yet to go on his patented "summer hot streak," does it start today? Stewart rolls off second, but he has been critical of the performance of his cars this year especially on low-banked tracks like Loudon. He won in July 2000 and again in 2005 and was runner-up to Johnson last year.