Brad Keselowski Wins 2011 Bristol Night Race

The 2011 Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway was unusual in the lack of beating, banging and hot tempers. Brad Keselowski lead the final eighty laps under green making it look easy, or as easy as 500 laps at Bristol ever is.

Qualifying

Qualifying was tight at Bristol as the top ten positions were separated by .075 seconds and the gap from first all the way back to twentieth was just .136 seconds.

Ryan Newman topped them all to take the Bristol pole with Carl Edwards along side in second. Matt Kenseth rolled off third with Jeff Gordon starting fourth. Mark Martin rounded out the top five.

Drop Of The Green

Ryan Newman started on the outside and lead the field as they tiptoed into turn one. Jeff Gordon worked his way up to second and quickly moved past Newman for the lead on lap five as Newman fell back.

Gordon lead to the first caution on lap 32 when NASCAR paused the action for debris. Some, like leader Jeff Gordon, hit pit road while others stayed out putting some early pit strategy in play.

When racing resumed Brad Keselowski and Matt Kenseth battled for the lead while Jeff Gordon restarted in fourteenth. At the front of the pack Keslowski bobbled and Matt Kenseth went on to lead the rest of the early going.

Storylines

With Bristol in the books only two races remain in the 2011 Race to the Chase and Brad Keselowski picked up his third win of 2011 which guarantees him a 2011 Chase wild card spot.

With his third win Keselowski is guaranteed at least one of the two wild card spots in the Chase. It is not possible for two other drivers to score more wins than Keselowski.

Three more drivers joined Kyle Busch as drivers that clinched a place in the 2011 Chase for the Cup. Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards are guaranteed a shot at the 2011 Sprint Cup Championship.

Chasing The Checkers

Brad Keselowski beat Martin Truex when the green flag flew for the final restart with eighty laps to go. The intensity meter was inching up as the laps were ticking away steadily but the flagman was able to keep the yellow flag in his pocket.

Amazingly we saw a very clean Bristol race tonight and the expected late-race caution never came.

Keselowski had enough of a lead to take it to the checkers and clinched a 2011 Chase wild card spot.

Top Ten

1. Brad Keselowski
2. Martin Truex Jr.
3. Jeff Gordon
4. Jimmie Johnson
5. Jamie McMurray
6. Matt Kenseth
7. Denny Hamlin
8. Ryan Newman
9. Carl Edwards
10. Marcos Ambrose

The Points

Kyle Busch's fourteenth place effert caused him to give up sole posession of the point lead since Jimmie Johnson's strong fourth place finish was enough to move him up into a tie for the lead.

No new drivers cracked the top ten but Keselowski is knocking on the door. If Keselowski can make up the eleven point deficit on tenth place Tony Stewart Tony could find himself on the outside of the Chase looking in. Tony has zero wins so far in 2011 and would not get a wild card spot.

The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Standings:

1. Kyle Busch 0
2. Jimmie Johnson - 0
3. Matt Kenseth -32
4. Carl Edwards 35
5. Kevin Harvick - 48
6. Jeff Gordon -48
7. Ryan Newman - 68
8. Kurt Busch -81
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. -102
10. Tony Stewart - 120