
Race 2 of 36 on Sprint Cup circuit
Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, AZ
March 4, 2012 3:14 pm EST
312
1. miles
312.00 miles
$5,040,864
| Mark Martin | 10th, just 12 points behind series points leader Matt Kenseth. |
| Tony Stewart | 16th, six points out of the top 10. |
| Jimmie Johnson | 49th, 58 points out of the top 10. |
| Ryan Newman | 20th, 12 points out of the top 10. |
| Greg Biffle | Is technically tied with Earnhardt and Denny Hamlin with 42 points each, all three drivers 5 points behind series leader Matt Kenseth. However, because he finished third at Daytona, Kenseth is statistically ranked No. 3 after the first race. |
| Kevin Harvick | Harvick got off to a great start to 2012, finishing seventh in the season-opening Daytona 500. He enters Phoenix seventh in the Sprint Cup standings seventh in the standings, 10 points behind series leader Matt Kenseth. |
| Joey Logano | 9th, 11 points behind series leader Matt Kenseth. Is technically tied with Carl Edwards, both drivers with 11 points, but the key difference is Edwards finished eighth to Logano's ninth in the Daytona 500. |
| Kasey Kahne | 26th, 20 points out of the top 10. |
| Jeff Burton | 5th, 7 points behind series leader Matt Kenseth and 2 points behind Earnhardt, Biffle and Hamlin. |
| Kyle Busch | 17th, eight points out of the top 10. |
| Denny Hamlin | 4th, 5 points behind series leader Matt Kenseth. Hamlin has the same number of points as Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Greg Biffle but is ranked fourth in the standings based upon his fourth-place finish in the Daytona 500. |
| Marcos Ambrose | 13th, four points out of the top 10. |
| Clint Bowyer | 11th, only two points out of the top 10. |
| Bobby Labonte | 14th, five points out of the top 10. |
| Kurt Busch | 34th, 30 points out of the top 10. |
| Paul Menard | 6th, courtesy of his sixth-place finish in the season-opening Daytona 500, eight points behind series leader Matt Kenseth and one point out of fifth place. |
| Dave Blaney | 15th, five points out of the top 10. |
| Carl Edwards | 8th, 11 points behind frontrunner Matt Kenseth. Edwards is technically tied with Joey Logano, who is also 11 points back, but is ranked one position behind Edwards because Edwards finished eighth in the Daytona 500 while Logano finished ninth. |
| Martin Truex Jr. | 12th, only two points out of the top 10. |
| Matt Kenseth | Kenseth is coming off a grueling win in the season-opening Daytona 500 and is first in the Sprint Cup standings with 47 points, five points ahead of second-ranked Dale Earnhardt Jr., third-ranked Greg Biffle and fourth-ranked Denny Hamlin. |
| Brad Keselowski | 29th, 23 points out of the top 10. |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 2nd, five points behind points leader Matt Kenseth. Best overall finish for NASCAR's Most Popular Driver since second at Kansas and third at Chicago, both last season. |
| Jeff Gordon | 35th, 33 points out of the top 10. |