| |
Fight club
Fireworks erupt after Edwards beats Busch at Bristol
Complete results | Race chat | Starting lineup
Photos | Ask the Pros! | Around the Track
Carl Edwards isn't conceding anything to Kyle Busch.
Edwards saw Busch lead 415 consecutive laps Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, then used his bumper to nudge Busch in the first turn on lap 470. That move caused Busch's car to wiggle just enough so that Edwards could drive by for his second consecutive victory on the NASCAR Spring Cup Series.
"It's one of those deals where I couldn't get by him, I couldn't get by him, and I just had to ask myself, 'Would he do that to me?' Edwards said after doing his trademark backflip off the car in Victory Lane. "And he has before, so that's the way it goes."
The triumph was also the sixth of the season for the Roush Fenway Racing driver, allowing him to close the gap of bonus points he's likely to face when the 12-race Chase for the championship begins. Busch has eight wins, and each is worth 10 Chase bonus points.
After taking the checkered flag, Edwards was making his cool-down lap around the track when Busch drove up and bumped his car. Edwards clearly wasn't amused, and when he responded by driving the nose of his car into the right side of Busch's, the fans cheered wildly.
"They keep talking about rivalries," Edwards said. "We might have one now."
Busch, who still leads Edwards by 212 points in the standings with just two races left in the regular season, said it's unlikely his relationship with Edwards will improve soon.
"He hit me getting into Turn 1," Busch said. "Whatever. Carl's going to say he's sorry, that he didn't want to race that way, but he always does. We'll take it, we'll go on and we'll race him that way in the Chase if that's the way he wants to race."
Busch finished second, followed by Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick and Jeff Gordon, three drivers needing good nights to bolster their playoff prospects.
Ryan Newman was sixth and was the only car not in Chase contention in the top 10. Clint Bowyer was seventh, followed by Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth and rookie David Ragan.
Bowyer went from tied for 13th to 12th in the points race, Ragan remained 13th and Kasey Kahne was the only driver to move out of the top 12. He crashed before the midpoint of the race and finished 40th, dropping from 11th to 14th in the points standings.
Complete story
Race coverage
Cautions: 8 for 56 laps
Caution 1 / Laps 98-103: Here's the first incident of the day as Martin Truex Jr. and AJ Allmendinger tangle. Truex had a right front tire go out and he slid right into Allmendinger. Extremely bad luck for both drivers, particularly for Allmendinger who was looking to work his way back into the Top 35 in Owner Points. Kyle Busch retains the lead during the round of pit stops.
Free pass: Travis Kvapil (30th).
Caution 2 / Laps 197-206: Tempers seem to be rising as a multicar accident just took place. Jeff Burton, Joe Nemechek and Sterling Marlin got big damage in the mixup. Marlin got pushed out of the way by Tony Stewart to trigger the incident. Behind them, Burton was slowing down but Nemechek got into him and now all the cars have major damage.
Free pass: Kurt Busch (20th).
Caution 3 / Laps 217-222: Here's the big one and this one is going to have major title implications. The incident started when Michael Waltrip got into the left rear of Casey Mears. Cars started piling up shortly behind them, including Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Sam Hornish Jr., Robby Gordon and Reed Sorenson. Casey Mears took responsiblity for the wreck, but Clint Bowyer saw it a different way, telling his crew over the radio: "Michael Waltrip is the worst driver ever...I can't believe NAPA signed back up..."
Free pass: Matt Kenseth.
Red Flag: NASCAR immediately stops the race after that multicar crash. The stoppage lasted just over 12 minutes.
Red Flag Rescinded: The clean up process is complete and NASCAR puts the yellow flag out again.
Caution 4 / Laps 282-294: Dave Blaney just suffered a big crash. Looks nasty, but he seems to be okay. Regan Smith and Travis Kvapil made contact and Smith got out of control briefly, making contact with with Blaney who lost control and hit the inside wall hard.
Free pass: Paul Menard.
Caution 5 / Laps 344-348: The rear bumper of David Reutimann's car has come off to create a debris caution.
Free pass: Regan Smith (15th).
Caution 6 / Laps 365-369: Debris on the track.
Free pass: Paul Menard (16th).
Caution 7 / Lap 453-458: Debris. Kyle Busch just edges Carl Edwards off pit road to keep the lead
Free pass: Tony Raines (17th).
Caution 8 / Laps 462-466: Debris came off Kurt Busch's car on the backstretch.
Notes:
Lap 5: Dale Earnhardt Jr. is shown the black flag for passing before the green flag. He serves a pass-thru penalty and goes down a lap early at Bristol.
Lap 27: Bad news continues for the Hendrick Motorsports camp. Jimmie Johnson got a right rear flat tire after making contact with another vehicle and is forced to make an early pit stop. It takes the crew several laps to make repairs, as the front splitter also obtained damage and as a result Johnson is 13 laps down.
Lap 100: As we cross the 100 lap marker, here's the top five: Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman and Kevin Harvick.
Lap 200: Getting closer to the halfway point of tonight's race, here's the top five before the pit stops under caution: Kyle Busch, Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards, and Tony Stewart.
Lap 250: Halfway point, here's the top five: Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon.
Lap 288: How close is the Chase? Clint Bowyer recently overtook David Ragan for 11th place, and as a result he holds the 12th and final Chase position in the standings by three points. Keep an eye on the points throughout and after tonight's race for more details.
Lap 350: Here's the rundown of the top five with 150 laps to go: Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick.
Lap 400: 100 laps remain and the fight up front has been close, but Kyle Busch remains up front. Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick round out the top five.
Lead changes: Carl Edwards (pole,1-47), Jeff Gordon (48), Carl Edwards (49-54), Kyle Busch (55-469), Carl Edwards (470-500)
Off the track: Sterling Marlin (accident), Jeff Burton (accident), Casey Mears (accident), Kasey Kahne (accident), Robby Gordon (accident), Dave Blaney (accident), Sam Hornish Jr. (accident)
Starting in the back: David Ragan (switched to backup car)
|
|
Raising Kahne
Kasey Kahne tops Friday practices
Practice Speeds: First | Final
No matter whether it is day or night, Kasey Kahne is fast this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Kahne completed the Friday practice sweep by leading both the first and second practice sessions at the .533-mile oval, setting a best lap of 119.828 mph in the evening session.
Earlier in the day, Kahne ran a 121.474 mph lap to lead the opening practice.
A quartet of Chevrolet drivers rounded out the top five: Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Saturday's Sharpie 500 is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start time.
Practice 1 recap: Kahne starts fast
The action has gotten underway at Bristol Motor Speedway, and Kasey Kahne is leading the way.
The driver of the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge topped the first practice session of the weekend at the half-mile oval, setting a lap of record of 121.474 mph. A fast start like that is a huge boost for Kahne, who currently sits 47 points ahead of 13th place Clint Bowyer in the championship standings.
"I have a real legitimate shot at making the Chase and a great shot at running well this weekend," Kahne said prior to practice.
Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle and Elliott Sadler round out the top five.
Jimmie Johnson, David Ragan, Robby Gordon, Kevin Harvick and Regan Smith completed the top 10 in the 90-minute session.
All but one of 47 drivers entered for this weekend's race ran practice laps Friday afternoon.
|
|
Nobody's faster
Edwards claims Bristol pole
Qualifying results | Lineup
Carl Edwards is doing his best to slow Kyle Busch's momentum.
Edwards won his first pole position of the season Friday, turning a lap at 121.860 mph in qualifying for Saturday night's Sprint Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Edwards, who trails only the dominating Busch in the point standings, is 222 points behind, but followed up his victory last weekend in Michigan with his fourth career pole.
"That's as fast as I could go," Edwards said. "The pole is huge for us. This track, obviously track position, pit stall selection, those things are really important."
Busch, with eight wins and two poles this season, will start ninth.
David Reutimann put his Toyota on the outside of Edwards' Ford on the front row, turning a lap at 121.175 mph, with the Chevrolets of Jeff Gordon and rookie Regan Smith in Row 2.
Reutimann's effort was the best of his Cup career.
"I had to pedal it pretty hard coming off of turn two because I got back to the gas pretty quick and it shoved the front end a little bit," he said. "All in all, it ended up being a pretty good lap. It gave us a good pit selection and good starting position."
Gordon, a four-time series champion but non-winner through 23 races this season, is among the nine drivers battling for the final seven spots in the Chase for the championship.
Other drivers battling to stay in, or move into, the 12-driver playoff included Kevin Harvick (8th), who will start sixth; Kasey Kahne (11th), who qualified 13th; Greg Biffle (7th), who will start 14th; and Denny Hamlin (12th), who will start 21st.
Matt Kenseth (10th) starts 25th.
Clint Bowyer and David Ragan, the drivers tied for 13th and only 26 points behind the struggling Hamlin for the final spot, qualified 22nd and 27th, respectively, but Ragan will have to start at the back of the field after trying too hard and crashing during his lap.
Complete story
|
|
|
|
| |
Darrell Waltrip
Saying thanks
Times are tough in America, especially in the auto industry. But there are still things to be grateful for this Thanksgiving, DW says.
Jeff Hammond
Hangin' Chad
If NASCAR is a team sport, Jeff Hammond wonders why the champions banquet doesn't let crew chiefs like Chad Knaus speak.
Larry McReynolds
Group think
The drivers may get all the glory, but Larry McReynolds says it's really the team that makes the difference.
Steve Byrnes
Reign maker
The layout of Homestead-Miami Speedway makes it a great place to race — and a great place to crown a champion, Steve Byrnes says.
Mike Joy
Built for excitement
Richmond has a rich racing history, one that included thrilling action even before NASCAR's time, says NASCAR on FOX's Mike Joy.
|
|
|
|
|
| OWNER POINT STANDINGS |
| Pos |
+/- |
Driver |
Car |
Points |
| 31 |
+177 |
Dave Blaney |
Toyota |
2882 |
| 32 |
+167 |
Regan Smith |
Chevrolet |
2872 |
| 33 |
+139 |
Reed Sorenson |
Dodge |
2844 |
| 34 |
+65 |
Robby Gordon |
Dodge |
2770 |
| 35 |
-- |
Brian Vickers |
Toyota |
2705 |
| 36 |
-13 |
Marcos Ambrose |
Toyota |
2692 |
| 37 |
-80 |
AJ Allmendinger |
Dodge |
2625 |
| 38 |
-126 |
Sam Hornish Jr. |
Dodge |
2579 |
| 39 |
-337 |
Ken Schrader |
Toyota |
2368 |
| 40 |
-409 |
Bill Elliott |
Ford |
2296 |
| Complete Owner Standings |
| Track Information |
| On Track With Larry Mac |
 |
Larry McReynolds, NASCAR on FOX analyst, scouts the track
Read his full analysis. |
| Track Vitals |
Location:
Bristol, TN |
Distance/Track Type:
.533 Mile Oval 36-degree bank |
Nextel Cup Top Race Speed:
100.989 by Cale Yarborough on 4/17/1977 |
Nextel Cup Top Qualifying Speed:
128.709 by Ryan Newman on 3/21/2003 |
|
