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Home > Track Information / Schedules > Old Tracks and Race Schedules > Chicagoland Speedway
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closeTire blows up Jimmie Johnson’s day
DAVID POOLE, dpoole@charlotteobserver.com
Sunday, Jul. 15, 2007
JOLIET, Ill. -- Jimmie Johnson led 82 laps in Sunday’s race and it looked as if he and Tony Stewart might well wind up battling for the victory until Lap 223.
That’s when Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet snapped around and slammed the wall after losing a right-rear tire. “It knocked the wind out of me and I hit my elbow on the seat,” Johnson said after leaving the infield care center. “But I am just disappointed. We had such a great race car and I was trying to have something for the No. 20 (Stewart).”
Johnson said the jolt when his tire blew was violent.
“I thought the drive shaft came out of the car,” he said. “Just going down the back straightaway that sucker exploded.”
Johnson has never won at Chicagoland, but until Sunday he’d never finished worse than sixth here.
| TRACK FACTS Date Opened: 2001 First NWCS Race: July 15, 2001 Qualifying Record: Jeff Gordon, 186.942 mph, (28.886 sec.), 7/9/04 Race Record: Kevin Harvick, 136.832 mph, 7/14/02 Owner: Raceway Associates, LLC General Manager: Matthew T. Alexander Phone: (815) 722-5500 Tickets: (815) 727-7223 Shipping Address: 3200 South Chicago St. Joliet, IL 60434 Mailing Address: PO Box 3339 Joliet, IL 60434-3339 |
TRACK CONFIGURATION Distance: 1.5 Mile Tri-oval Banking in Turns 1-4: 18° Banking on Tri-oval: 11° Banking on Backstretch: 5° Length of Frontstretch: 2,400 ft. Length of Backstretch: 1,700 ft. Grandstand Seating: 75,000 Miles/Laps: 400.5 mi. = 267 laps |