Qualifying
Three Chasers started in the first five spots as NASCAR legends Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin were on the front row today. Denny Hamlin and Kurt Busch combined to make up row number two while Greg Biffle rounded out the top five.
Point leaders Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards qualified in the middle of the pack 20th and 22nd respectively.
Drop Of The Green
Jeff Gordon got a great start and lead the field into turn one with Denny Hamlin on his heels. Gordon picked up five bonus points for leading a lap and held the lead through the first caution.
Kurt Busch was running fifth at the end of the first lap when David Gilliland washed up the track and took Busch into the turn one wall. This is too bad for Kurt who could use a good finish having posted only three top five finishes so far in 2008.
Roush-Fenway drivers Jamie McMurray and Matt Kenseth combined to dominate the first 100 laps. This was not a surprise as Roush-Fenway drivers swept three of the top four spots at Dover in the Spring.
Storylines
Some top Chasers had bad luck around lap 142. After having mechanical problems last week Kyle Busch announced on his radio that the engine was "blowing up." About that same time Dale Earnhardt Jr. blew his right rear tire losing a lap and bringing out the caution.
Kyle Busch himself conceded the Chase. He compared his miserable start to the Chase to two years ago when he finished last in points among Chasers. After two bad finishes Kyle is currently last in points and out of the 2008 Championship hunt.
Chasing The Checkers
With thirty laps to go Roush-Fenway teammates Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth were nose to tail for the lead. A third Roush-Fenway driver, Greg Biffle, was running a close third.
Biffle got a run of the high side and pulled up beside Kenseth for second as those two haunted Edwards for the lead. Finally Edwards slipped up the hill and fell to third as Kenseth took over the lead.
Biffle worked the bottom lap after lap. He'd get beside Kenseth in the corner but Matt would get a run off the top and maintain the lead.
Biffle seemed to be quicker but he couldn't make it stick on the bottom. The laps were winding down quickly. They touched with 14 to go. The two weaved through lapped traffic. Then with ten laps to go Edwards got under Biffle for second and Biffle got the outside lane on Kenseth.
They touched again as Biffle finally took over the lead with 8 to go. He was able to pull away a little and claim his second Chase win in-a-row and move further up to second the Chase standings.
Top Ten
- Greg Biffle
- Matt Kenseth
- Carl Edwards
- Mark Martin
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kevin Harvick
- Jeff Gordon
- Clint Bowyer
- Jeff Burton
- Michael Waltrip
The Points
Greg Biffle's second win in a row moves him up to a tie for second with Jimmie Johnson. Those two are ten points behind Carl Edwards who is now in sole possession of the top spot.
At the bottom of the Chase Kyle Busch's second bad finish in a row puts the final nail in his Chase dreams. At this point Kenseth, Hamlin and Busch are all essentially finished for 2008.
- Carl Edwards -0
- Jimmie Johnson -10
- Greg Biffle -10
- Jeff Burton -82
- Kevin Harvick -101
- Clint Bowyer -106
- Tony Stewart -113
- Jeff Gordon -118
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. -129
- Matt Kenseth -167
- Denny Hamlin -193
- Kyle Busch -210
