2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (Start Your Engines!)

Category:Start Your Engines!
The 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series was the 67th season of professional stock car racing in the United States and the 44th modern-era Cup series season.
The season marked the first season of a new television contract. During the season, races were televised in the United States on Fox, Fox Sports 1, NBC, NBCSN, and CBS. ESPN and Turner Sports, who televised races from 2007 to 2014, did not seek to renew their contracts with NASCAR following the completion of the 2014 season, though ESPN did renew the separate contract for the midweek races; this marked the end of a 31-year relationship between NASCAR and Turner's primary stations, TBS and TNT. In addition, it was the first season on the newly rebranded Fox Sports Racing in Canada and the Caribbean.
On January 22, 2015, Jeff Gordon announced that 2015 would be his final season as a full-time driver, but he did not rule out complete retirement. Chase Elliott replaced him in the No. 22 car for Bill Davis Racing in 2016.
2015 saw the entry of Honda into NASCAR, as well as the return of Pontiac factory support for the first time since 2003; Kennedy Racing continued fielding Pontiacs until 2012.
==Teams and drivers==
===Complete schedule===
Manufacturer	Team 	No.	Race driver 	Crew chief 	Model
Chevrolet 	Cale Yarborough Motorsports	98 	Shane Hmiel 	 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Earnhardt Childress Racing 	1 	Martin Truex Jr. 	Kevin Manion 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Earnhardt Childress Racing 	3 	Austin Dillon 	Slugger Labbe 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Earnhardt Childress Racing 	8 	Dale Earnhardt Jr. 	Tony Eury Jr. 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Earnhardt Childress Racing 	30 	Jeffrey Earnhardt 	Luke Lambert 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Earnhardt Childress Racing 	31 	Ty Dillon (R) 	Gil Martin 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Earnhardt Childress Racing 	48 	Jimmie Johnson 	Chad Knaus 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Furniture Row Racing 	78 	Kurt Busch 	Cole Pearn 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Hendrick Motorsports 	5 	Jerry Nadeau 	Keith Rodden 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Hendrick Motorsports 	25 	Ricky Hendrick 	Alan Gustafson 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Hendrick Motorsports 	35 	Landon Cassill 	 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Hendrick Motorsports 	50 	Brad Keselowski 	Greg Ives 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	HScott Motorsports 	51 	Justin Allgaier 	Steve Addington 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	HScott Motorsports 	146	Michael Annett 	Jay Guy 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	JTG Daugherty Racing 	47 	A. J. Allmendinger 	Brian Burns 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	PPI Motorsports 	32 	Boston Reid 	 	2015 SS
Chevrolet 	Tommy Baldwin Racing 	07 	Alex Bowman 	Tommy Baldwin Jr.	2015 SS
Dodge 	AK Racing 	7 	James Kulwicki 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Bill Davis Racing 	22 	Jeff Gordon 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Bill Davis Racing 	23 	Jason Leffler 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Bill Davis Racing 	24 	Scott Wimmer 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Chip Ganassi Racing 	40 	Jamie McMurray 	Matt McCall 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Chip Ganassi Racing 	41 	Bryan Clauson 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Chip Ganassi Racing 	52 	Kyle Larson 	Chris Heroy 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Evernham Motorsports 	9 	Kasey Kahne 	Kenny Francis 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Evernham Motorsports 	19 	Casey Elliott 	Ernie Elliott 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Evernham Motorsports 	91 	Casey Atwood 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	140	Kenny Irwin Jr. 	Mark Hillman 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	90 	Michael Annett 	Todd Parrott
Mike Chance
Pat Tryson
Paul Clapprood	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	90 	Alex Kennedy (R) 	Todd Parrott
Mike Chance
Pat Tryson
Paul Clapprood	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	90 	Derek White 	Todd Parrott
Mike Chance
Pat Tryson
Paul Clapprood	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	90 	Travis Kvapil 	Todd Parrott
Mike Chance
Pat Tryson
Paul Clapprood	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	90 	Mike Bliss 	Todd Parrott
Mike Chance
Pat Tryson
Paul Clapprood	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	90 	B. J. McLeod 	Todd Parrott
Mike Chance
Pat Tryson
Paul Clapprood	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Hillman-Circle Sport LLC 	90 	Ryan Ellis 	Todd Parrott
Mike Chance
Pat Tryson
Paul Clapprood	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Kelman Racing 	86 	Ryan Kelman 	Wally Rogers 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	McDuffie Racing 	170	Crissy Hillsworth 	 	2015 Dart
Dodge 	Moroso-Rudd Racing 	82 	Rob Moroso 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Moroso-Rudd Racing 	83 	Brendan Gaughan 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Pacific Coast Racing 	60 	Chloe Johnson 	Jed Luke 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Pacific Coast Racing 	69 	Jenny Smith 	Barry Baker 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Pacific Coast Racing 	80 	Tim Johnson 	Charlie Davis 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Pacific Coast Racing 	85 	Belle Armstrong 	Scott Smith 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Petty Enterprises 	42 	Aric Almirola 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Petty Enterprises 	43 	Michael Annett 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Petty Enterprises 	44 	Chad McCumbee 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Petty Enterprises 	45 	Adam Petty 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Team Penske 	02 	Joey Logano 	Todd Gordon 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Team Penske 	2 	Blaise Alexander 	Paul Wolfe 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Team Penske 	12 	Paul Menard 	 	2015 Charger
Ford 	Brett Favre Racing 	15 	Tim Steele 	 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Brett Favre Racing 	90 	Parker Kligerman 	 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Front Row Motorsports 	34 	Chris Buescher 	Derrick Finley 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Front Row Motorsports 	34 	Joe Nemechek 	Derrick Finley 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Front Row Motorsports 	34 	Reed Sorenson 	Derrick Finley 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Front Row Motorsports 	34 	Justin Marks 	Derrick Finley 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Front Row Motorsports 	34 	Josh Wise 	Derrick Finley 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Front Row Motorsports 	35 	Cole Whitt 	Randy Cox 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Front Row Motorsports 	38 	David Gilliland 	Donnie Wingo 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Bobby Labonte 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Mike Bliss 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Joey Gase 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Travis Kvapil 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Boris Said 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Will Kimmel 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Eddie MacDonald 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Josh Wise 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Go FAS Racing 	65 	Kyle Fowler 	Clinton Cram 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Medallion Racing 	09 	Sam Hornish Jr. 	 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Orr Motorsports 	37 	Regan Smith 	 	
Ford 	Roush Racing 	6 	David Ragan 	Bob Osborne 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Roush Racing 	16 	Greg Biffle 	Matt Puccia 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Roush Racing 	66 	Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 	Nick Sandler 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Wood Brothers Racing 	21 	Trevor Bayne 	Jeremy Bullins 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Yates Racing 	28 	Clifford Allison 	 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Yates Racing 	88 	Jeremy Mayfield 	 	2015 Fusion
Ford 	Yates Racing 	96 	J. J. Yeley 	 	2015 Fusion
Honda 	German Racing 	13 	Casey Mears 	Bootie Barker 	2015 Accord
Honda 	Michael Waltrip Racing 	17 	Clint Bowyer 	Brian Pattie 	2015 Accord
Honda 	Michael Waltrip Racing 	55 	Brian Vickers 	Billy Scott 	2015 Accord
Honda 	Michael Waltrip Racing 	56 	Brett Moffitt (R) 	Dax Gerringer 	2015 Accord
Honda 	Phil Parsons Racing
Premium Motorsports	89 	Josh Wise 	Gene Nead
Jay Robinson
Scott Eggleston
Zach McGowan	2015 Accord
Honda 	Phil Parsons Racing
Premium Motorsports	89 	Timmy Hill 	Gene Nead
Jay Robinson
Scott Eggleston
Zach McGowan	2015 Accord
Honda 	Phil Parsons Racing
Premium Motorsports	89 	Reed Sorenson 	Gene Nead
Jay Robinson
Scott Eggleston
Zach McGowan	2015 Accord
Honda 	Phil Parsons Racing
Premium Motorsports	89 	T. J. Bell 	Gene Nead
Jay Robinson
Scott Eggleston
Zach McGowan	2015 Accord
Honda 	Phil Parsons Racing
Premium Motorsports	89 	Ryan Preece 	Gene Nead
Jay Robinson
Scott Eggleston
Zach McGowan	2015 Accord
Honda 	Premium Motorsports 	62 	Brian Scott 	Zach McGowan
Scott Eggleston
Wayne Carroll	2015 Accord
Honda 	Premium Motorsports 	62 	Reed Sorenson 	Zach McGowan
Scott Eggleston
Wayne Carroll	2015 Accord
Honda 	Premium Motorsports 	62 	Timmy Hill 	Zach McGowan
Scott Eggleston
Wayne Carroll	2015 Accord
Honda 	Premium Motorsports 	62 	T. J. Bell 	Zach McGowan
Scott Eggleston
Wayne Carroll	2015 Accord
Honda 	Vance Racing 	01 	Cody Laine (R) 	 	2015 Accord
Pontiac 	Combos Racing 	73 	Luke Combos (R) 	 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Kennedy Racing 	03 	Melvin Kennedy 	Mark Cutter 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Kennedy Racing 	04 	Louise Kennedy 	 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Stewart-Haas Racing 	00 	Ryan Truex 	Tony Gibson 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Stewart-Haas Racing 	4 	Kevin Harvick 	Rodney Childers 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Stewart-Haas Racing 	10 	Danica Patrick 	Daniel Knost 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Stewart-Haas Racing 	14 	Tony Stewart 	Greg Zipadelli 	2015 G8
Toyota 	BK Racing 	26 	Jeb Burton (R) 	Joe Williams
Patrick Donahue	2015 Camry
Toyota 	BK Racing 	126	Josh Wise 	Patrick Donahue35
Joe Williams 1	2015 Camry
Toyota 	BK Racing 	185	Matt DiBenedetto (R)	Doug Richert
Gene Nead	2015 Camry
Toyota 	Joe Gibbs Racing 	11 	Denny Hamlin 	Dave Rogers 	2015 Camry
Toyota 	Joe Gibbs Racing 	18 	Kyle Busch 	Adam Stevens 	2015 Camry
Toyota 	Joe Gibbs Racing 	20 	Matt Kenseth 	Jason Ratcliff 	2015 Camry
Toyota 	Joe Gibbs Racing 	54 	Carl Edwards 	Darian Grubb 	2015 Camry
=== Limited schedule ===
Manufacturer	Team 	No.	Race driver 	Crew chief 	Model
Chevrolet 	Team XTREME Racing 	144	Reed Sorenson 	Peter Sospenzo 	2014 SS
Chevrolet 	Team XTREME Racing 	144	Travis Kvapil 	Peter Sospenzo 	2014 SS
Dodge 	Leavine Family Racing 	95 	Michael McDowell	Wally Rogers
Kevin Walter	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Pacific Coast Racing 	70 	Ace Johnson 	 	2015 Charger
Dodge 	Premium Motorsports 	66 	Mike Wallace 	Scott Eggleston	2014 Dart
Dodge 	Premium Motorsports 	66 	Tanner Berryhill	Scott Eggleston	2014 Dart
Honda 	Rahal Letterman Lannigan Racing	15 	Graham Rahal 	 	2015 Accord
Honda 	Timmins Racing 	81 	Tom Timmins 	 	2015 Accord
Pontiac 	Gallagher Racing 	70 	Ryan Gallagher 	 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Gallagher Racing 	72 	Hannah Gallagher	 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	RAB Racing 	29 	Justin Marks 	Matthew Lucas 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	RAB Racing 	29 	Reed Sorenson 	Matthew Lucas 	2015 G8
Pontiac 	Tabdar Racing 	71 	Asad Tabdar 	 	2015 G8
== Schedule ==
The final calendar was released on August 26, 2014, comprising 36 races, as well as two exhibition races. The schedule also includes two Budweiser Duels, which are the qualifying races for the Daytona 500.
Key changes from 2014 include:
* The Auto Club 400 was removed from the schedule entirely. This came following complaints that there were too many races in California (besides Auto Club, NASCAR also raced at Riverside International Raceway, Ontario Motor Speedway, Sonoma Raceway, and San Jose Motorplex). The decision to remove Auto Club Speedway from the schedule came from a study that found it was the least-popular of the California tracks due to its "cookie-cutter" design that mimicked Michigan and Texas World (Ontario is also considered a "cookie-cutter" track due to mimicking Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but the track has seen consistent sellouts since it was added back to the schedule in 1990). In 2020, a project commenced to rebuild the track into a short track in hopes of getting its Cup Series date back. In the meantime, Auto Club became a very popular stop on the IndyCar schedule.
* The race at Atlanta Motor Speedway moved from October to March, while the spring race at Bristol Motor Speedway (often plagued by bad weather) moved from March to April. This created a three-race "west coast swing" for the third through fifth races of the season, wherein the events at Las Vegas, Phoenix and Auto Club (Fontana) now happened consecutively (as opposed to being broken up by a trip back east to Bristol).
* The Coors 400 at Pike's Peak International Speedway was reinstated between the Irwin Tools Night Race and Bojangles' Southern 500.
* Charlotte and Kansas swap fall race dates.
* The mandate of standardized start times was quietly abolished, with some races (especially in the second half of the season) occurring later in the afternoon than normal.
No.	Race title 	Track 	Date 	TV
1 	Honda/Save Mart 350 	Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma 	January 25 	FS1
 	Sprint Unlimited 	Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach	February 7 	CBS
 	Budweiser Duels 	Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach	February 12 	CBS
2 	Daytona 500 by Pontiac 	Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach	February 15 	CBS
3 	Subway Fresh Fit 400 	Rockingham Speedway, Rockingham 	February 22 	Fox
4 	San Jose 500 	San Jose Motorplex, Gilroy 	March 1 	Fox
5 	Kobalt 400 	Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas 	March 8 	Fox
6 	Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 	Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton 	March 15 	Fox
7 	TranSouth Financial 400 	Darlington Raceway, Darlington 	March 22 	Fox
8 	STP 500 	Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway 	March 29 	FS1
9 	Diet Coke 500 	Coca-Cola Superspeedway, Denver 	April 5 	Fox
10 	Duck Commander 500 	Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth 	April 12 	Fox
11 	Food City 500 	Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol 	April 19 	Fox
FS1
12 	Pontiac Excitement 400 	Richmond International Raceway, Richmond 	April 26 	Fox
13 	GEICO 500 	Talladega Superspeedway, Lincoln 	May 3 	Fox
14 	First Union 400 	North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro 	May 10 	FS1
 	Sprint Showdown 	Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord 	May 15 	FS1
 	NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race 	Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord 	May 16 	FS1
15 	Coca-Cola 600 	Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord 	May 24 	CBS
16 	FedEx 400 	Dover International Speedway, Dover 	May 31 	FS1
17 	Pabst Blue Ribbon 400 	The Milwaukee Mile, West Allis 	June 7 	CBS
18 	Motorcraft 400 	Nazareth Speedway, Nazareth 	June 14 	CBS
19 	Budweiser 400 	Riverside International Raceway, Riverside 	June 21 	CBS
20 	Music City USA 420 	Fairgrounds Speedway, Nashville 	June 28 	CBS
21 	Coke Zero 400 	Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach	July 5 	CBS
22 	Quaker State 400 	Kentucky Speedway, Sparta 	July 11 	CBS
23 	5-hour Energy 400 	New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Loudon 	July 19 	CBS
24 	Crown Royal Presents the Jeff Kyle 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway 	July 26 	NBC
25 	Windows 10 400 	Pocono Raceway, Long Pond 	August 2 	NBCSN
26 	Cheez-It 355 at The Glen 	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen 	August 9 	NBCSN
27 	Pure Michigan 400 	Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn 	August 16 	NBCSN
28 	Irwin Tools Night Race 	Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol 	August 22 	NBC
29 	Denver Post 400 	Pike's Peak International Speedway, Fountain 	August 30 	NBCSN
30 	Bojangles' Southern 500 	Darlington Raceway, Darlington 	September 6 	NBC
31 	Federated Auto Parts 400 	Richmond International Raceway, Richmond 	September 12	NBC
32 	myAFibRisk.com 400 	Chicagoland Speedway, Joliet 	September 20	NBCSN
33 	Tyson Holly Farms 400 	North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro 	September 27	NBCSN
34 	AAA 400 	Dover International Speedway, Dover 	October 4 	NBCSN
35 	Bank of America 500 	Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord 	October 11 	NBC
NBCSN
36 	Hollywood Casino 400 	Kansas Speedway, Kansas City 	October 18 	NBC
37 	CampingWorld.com 500 	Talladega Superspeedway, Lincoln 	October 25 	NBC
38 	Iowa Corn 400 	Iowa Speedway, Newton 	November 1 	NBCSN
39 	ACDelco 400 	Rockingham Speedway, Rockingham 	November 8 	NBC
40 	Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 	"Jeff Gordon Raceway", Avondale 	November 15 	NBC
NBCSN
41 	Ford EcoBoost 400 	Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead 	November 22 	NBC
42 	Apple Watch 500 	San Jose Motorplex, Gilroy 	November 29 	NBC
43 	Sprite 500 	Coca-Cola Superspeedway, Denver 	December 6 	NBC
44 	Los Angeles Times 500 	Ontario Motor Speedway, Ontario 	December 13 	NBC
==Technical changes==
2015 saw the replacement of the SC-13 body with the SC-15 body. Major changes from the SC-13 were to the front nose, which was slimmed considerably for better aero efficiency.
In terms of manufacturers, 2015 saw the number go from four to six. After years of speculation, Honda announced it would be throwing its hat into the NASCAR ring with the Accord. In a surprise announcement the day after the 2014 Los Angeles Times 500, Pontiac announced it would be returning to NASCAR full-time in 2015 with the G8.
There was much controversy regarding the rollout of the new body. Prices on many parts were raised by nearly 60%, causing many part-time operations to fold. This was referred to as the "Great Field-Filler Depression". For the first time, no part-time Ford or Toyota teams ran. This was rectified in 2016 when NASCAR ordered that prices be slashed by 80%, which nearly caused suppliers to go on strike before NASCAR began talking to Five-Star Race Cars to provide body panels and parts for the SC-15.
==Rule changes==
===Pre-season===
*At road courses, it is now permissible to run qualifying and race sessions under wet-weather conditions. Goodyear will supply wet-weather tires for use in Sprint Cup competition and teams will be required to bring cars with windshield wipers, defoggers, and wet-weather racing capabilities.
*Flat valve lifters will be replaced with roller valve lifters.
*Rear spoiler height will be reduced from 8 inches to 6 inches.
*Teams will have the option of installing a driver adjustable track bar.
*The radiator pan will be decreased from 43 inches to 38 inches.
*The minimum weight of the car has been reduced by 50 lb to 3,250 lb.
*NASCAR has approved a new brake caliper system for 2015 and issued a new parts approval process.
*Teams are not allowed to alter the side skirts of their cars during the race. At tracks where aerodynamics were important in 2014, many teams would pull the side bodywork of the car during early pit stops. The practice, officially known as vertical rocker panel extensions, was used to limit airflow underneath the vehicle.
*An automated electronic pit road officiating system will be implemented after extensive testing during the 2014 season, eliminating the need for human officials to stand in the pit lane.
*If a vehicle has to pit outside its assigned pit box and the crew starts removing tire(s), the team can reinstall the tire(s) before moving the car back into its assigned pit stall to avoid penalties.
*Additional crew member(s) assisting from an adjacent pit box may be counted towards the limit of seven over the wall.
*Crew member interference with other teams' pit stops may lead to a penalty.
*Rules with refueling have been clarified. Refueling can begin once the car comes to a complete stop and can continue when it starts leaving provided equipment and/or the fueler does not leave the pit box. Further, no equipment may be tossed or thrown over the wall at any time.
*Weight ballasts must be in block form with a five-pound minimum for each block.
*NASCAR no longer will penalize or monitor missing lug nuts during pit stops, leaving the teams to self-police lug nuts.
*NASCAR will use an electronic data log and capture system to increase efficiency of pre-race inspections.
===In-season changes===
*Starting at Watkins Glen, teams have the option of using a digital dashboard. The dashboards will be heavily regulated by NASCAR as to what can and cannot be displayed. The first team to use the digital dashboard was Kurt Busch at Darlington. The digital dashboards will be mandated in 2016.
*Starting at the fall Richmond race, NASCAR began to closely review restarts due to drivers jumping the restart.