Robby Gordon made headlines this weekend with a controversial performance during the Busch race in Montreal. NASCAR suspended Gordon from today's Pennsylvania 500 for his actions.
Qualifying
NASCAR's most popular driver won a very popular pole position as Dale Earnhardt Jr. put his Budweiser Chevy on the pole for today's Pennsylvania 500. Kurt Busch started second in his Penske Dodge.
Row number two saw Kyle Busch in his Hendrick Chevrolet and Ryan Newman in another Penske Dodge rolling off third and fourth. Kasey Kahne rounded out the top five in his Ray Evernham Dodge.
Drop Of The Green
The outside line moved first and the Penske Dodges won the battle into turn one. Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman jumped out to the early lead. They had already taken a large lead when Jamie McMurray spun into the infield on lap three.
The field settled down after that early spin. The drivers settled in to make some laps, work on their cars and prepare for the dash to the finish. Patience and single-file racing was the order of the day at this point in the race.
Storylines
NASCAR put its foot down after Saturday's Busch Series race in Montreal. They suspended Robby Gordon for today's NEXTEL Cup series race in Pocono.
Robby Gordon was penalized for intentionally dumping Marcos Ambrose near the end of the Busch race. However, Gordon refused to accept the penalty and ignored numerous black flags.
Robby Gordon's side of the incident is that he was planning on disputing the penalty. He felt that the only way that NASCAR could know where he deserved to finish was to actually finish the race. Gordon crossed the finish line first. After the race Robby Gordon celebrated as if he had won doing doughnuts and celebrating.
In NASCAR's results Robby Gordon was credited with 18th based on laps completed when NASCAR stopped scoring him.
NASCAR felt that Gordon's behavior was disruptive to the event and would not be tolerated. Robby Gordon's open-wheel racing buddy P.J. Jones filled in during the Pennsylvania 500. Robby Gordon is expected to return to competition next week in Watkins Glen. However, we likely have not heard the last of this incident. I expect there to be additional penalties announced later this week.
Chasing The Checkers
Kurt Busch was out front after dominating most of the race. He had the best car all day and it was apparent that it would take something extraordinary to prevent him from winning this race.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. was in pursuit from second place with Denny Hamlin in third. However, nobody was in the same class as the Penske Dodge #2. Kurt Busch rolled it home to take the easy win in Pocono. This was a dominating performance as Busch lead 175 of the 200 laps.
Top Ten
- Kurt Busch
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Denny Hamlin
- Jeff Gordon
- Jimmie Johnson
- Tony Stewart
- Ryan Newman
- Clint Bowyer
- Mark Martin
- Casey Mears
The Points
Kurt Busch helped his battle in the Race to the Chase this week by winning the Pennsylvania 500. Kurt Busch moved past Dale Earnhardt Jr. into the final qualifying spot for the Chase.
There are just five races remaining until the cutoff and Kurt Busch is only seven points ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the twelfth and final Chase qualifying position.
The top twelve are now:
- Jeff Gordon -0
- Denny Hamlin -366
- Matt Kenseth -411
- Jeff Burton -473
- Tony Stewart -487
- Carl Edwards -554
- Jimmie Johnson -612
- Kyle Busch -625
- Kevin Harvick -636
- Clint Bowyer -684
- Martin Truex Jr. -802
- Kurt Busch -837
Next Week
The final road race of the NEXTEL Cup season is on tap for next weekend. The twisting road course in Watkins Glen, NY will host NASCAR's best. Juan Pablo Montoya picked up the win the last time that the NEXTEL Cup series went road racing. Will Montoya find his way to Victory Lane again this weekend?
