Qualifying
Hendrick Motorsports took the pole as Dale Earnhardt Jr's Chevy was fastest in qualifying. Carl Edwards was second quick in his Roush Fenway Ford.
Row number two saw two more manufacturers represented. Saturday's Nationwide Series winner Kyle Busch started third in his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Fourth spot went to Ryan Newman's Penske Dodge.
Jimmie Johnson's Hendrick Chevy rounded out the top five.
Drop Of The Green
Dale Earnhardt Jr. jumped out to the lead on lap one as the top three quickly settled into single-file racing. Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch settled into the top three during the early going.
After the first commercial break Kyle Busch moved up into the top spot over Carl Edwards. Pole-sitter Dale Earnhardt Jr. had fallen to fourth by the time the first caution flew on lap 29.
Storylines
Michael McDowell took an incredible ride during qualifying on Friday at Texas Motor Speedway. His car got loose, he corrected just a hair too much. The car then hooked and plowed into the outside wall head-on. The car flipped and skidded on his roof for quite some distance. Then he barrel-rolled down to the bottom of the track in flames. If you haven't seen it then check out the clip on YouTube.
Amazingly, he walked away with just some bumps and bruises and went on to race in today's race. This crash is a testament to NASCAR's safety advances since 2001. Softer walls, mandatory HANS device usage and the new COT platform all combined to keep McDowell safe so that he could race again.
Chasing The Checkers
The final round of pit stops for the leaders came when the caution flew with 40 laps to go. Carl Edwards was dominating the race over Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch. There were only ten cars on the lead lap as the race was winding down.
The yellow flew with five laps remaining. The top five drivers stayed out while the last five drivers on the lead lap pitted for fresh rubber.
Carl Edwards had a clean restart and claimed the inside line. Jimmie Johnson wasn't going to go down without a battle but he didn't have anything for Edwards at the end.
Johnson wasn't able to mount a serious challenge and Carl Edwards cruised to the easy win.
Top Ten
- Carl Edwards
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kyle Busch
- Ryan Newman
- Denny Hamlin
- Jeff Burton
- Tony Stewart
- Mark Martin
- Matt Kenseth
- Clint Bowyer
The Points
Point leader Jeff Burton managed to stay on the lead lap all day long. He ended up sixth and maintained the 2008 point lead over Kevin Harvick.
Jeff Gordon suffered only the second 43rd place finish of his career. This caused him to fall five spots in the points and out of the top twelve. He was replaced in the top twelve by race winner Carl Edwards.
The top twelve are now:
- Jeff Burton
- Kevin Harvick -59
- Kyle Busch -64
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. -87
- Tony Stewart -108
- Jimmie Johnson -144
- Denny Hamlin -152
- Ryan Newman -164
- Greg Biffle -164
- Carl Edwards -184
- Clint Bowyer -191
- Kasey Kahne -191
Next Week
Phoenix International Raceway will host the Sprint Cup stars in prime time on Saturday night. Last year Jeff Gordon picked up the win in the Spring and Jimmie Johnson claimed victory in the fall. Will Hendrick Motorsports finally find its way to Victory Lane in 2008?
