Kurt Busch Wins Rain Delayed 3M Performance 400 in Michigan

The 3M Performance 400 saw an unprecedented rain delay. The race ran almost 48 hours after its scheduled start time. NASCAR finally got all 400 miles in on a rare Tuesday race as Kurt Busch won it easily after dominating much of the day.

Qualifying

Qualifying went off on Saturday as scheduled. Jeff Gordon was the quickest and sat on the pole for today's race. Roush Fenway driver Greg Biffle was second in his Ford. Kasey Kahne, Bobby Labonte and Elliott Sadler rounded out the top five.

Drop Of The Green

NASCAR started the race with a green/yellow start to allow drivers to put some heat into the track and burn off some heavy fog. The fog was stubbornly refusing to part so NASCAR again threw the red flag to wait out the fog. After another short delay the green flag flew for real. Greg Biffle took the early lead over Jeff Gordon and Bobby Labonte.

There was an early caution as Juan Pablo Montoya spun and drivers scrambled behind him to avoid the crash. Everyone was able to change tires and continue.

Storylines

This was the first time that I can ever remember NASCAR racing on a Tuesday. There have been a number of Monday races due to rain but in the past NASCAR was either able to get the race in on Monday or reschedule for a different weekend.

This week NASCAR couldn't move the race to a different weekend without changing the entire dynamic of the Chase. The next available weekend would have been after the season ended.

This would have had a big impact on the Chase. Michigan would then become one of the last ten races of the year. Richmond would no longer be the cutoff race. New Hampshire would not be a Chase race at all. This would have been a nightmare for everyone involved.

I think NASCAR needs to look at adding an open weekend between the end of the regular season and the start of The Chase. If needed it would rescue race fans who need to get back to their jobs on Tuesday. If not needed it would make a good "hype" week to kick off the start of the Chase.

Chasing The Checkers

Kurt Busch had the best car for most of the day. Busch dominated the second half of the race.

There was some drama as his team gambled late in the race, staying out on older tires when some other pitted. However, Kurt Busch was able to survive a green-white-checkers finish and hold out for the win over Martin Truex Jr.. Truex had fresher tires but couldn't pull off the pass.

Top Ten

1. Kurt Busch
2. Martin Truex Jr.
3. Jimmie Johnson
4. Matt Kenseth
5. Denny Hamlin
6. Dave Blaney
7. Carl Edwards
8. Brian Vickers
9. Bobby Labonte
10. Tony Stewart

The Points

With three races remaining until the cutoff Kurt Busch has made a strong move in the standings. Busch has won two of the last three races and now holds down the twelfth and final Chase spot.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Ryan Newman are losing ground in the Race to the Chase. Kurt Busch now has a 163 point cushion over Junior with only three races to go.

The top twelve are now:

1. Jeff Gordon -0
2. Denny Hamlin -276
3. Matt Kenseth -354
4. Tony Stewart -398
5. Carl Edwards -501
6. Jimmie Johnson -512
7. Jeff Burton -544
8. Kyle Busch -590
9. Clint Bowyer -692
10. Kevin Harvick -698
11. Martin Truex Jr. -714
12. Kurt Busch -747

Next Week

Next week the NEXTEL Cup series rolls into Bristol Motor Speedway for my favorite race of the year. The August night race in Bristol is one of the toughest tickets in NASCAR.

The track has been rebuilt since we were there in the spring and now they say side-by-side racing is possible. This will be a Bristol race like nothing else we have seen before. Don't miss this one!