Thoughts on a Bump in the Night
If Tony Stewart feels the need to apologize for what transpired at the end of the Coke Zero 400 Saturday night, and if Kyle Busch feels that Stewart owes him some sort of apology, than I suggest that both take a look at the tape and I'm sure both will quickly realize that their wasn’t much either could do in the position that they were in. Yes, Stewart bumped Busch coming off of turn-four heading to the checkers, but that wasn’t what sent Busch spinning and propelled Stewart to his second win of the year. What cost Busch at the very least a runner-up finish, was the fact that he attempted to cut Stewart off not once, but twice. And don’t think that I’m trying to place the blame on Busch, because when your racing at 190 mph there’s not a whole lot of time to think, all you’re really doing at that point is reacting. The ingredients involved when NASCAR races at either Daytona or Talladega with restrictor-plates, the new car, and now double-file restarts almost guarantee exactly what we saw. So if you're looking to place blame, you're going to have to look elsewhere then at Stewart or Busch.
 
What had to make the events on Saturday night an even tougher pill for Busch to swallow is the fact that this was just another victory in a long line of them that Busch has seen slip away this year. Between the three NASCAR national touring series ,Busch by my count, is closing in on double digits in terms of victories that have gone poof in the night. Or I guess in some cases, victories that have gone poof during the day.

Here’s the real reason Tony Stewart won Saturday. Seven times he pitted for fuel and tires, and seven times he was the first car off of pit road. Great Driver + Fast Car + Quick Pit Stops = Win Number Two.

Dale Earnhardt chances of making this year’s Chase for the Championship went from being on life support entering the weekend to a full-fledged flat-line after a 39th-place finish.

Mark Martin now finds himself on the outside looking in when it comes to the Chase for the Championship. Martin dropped two spots in the standings thanks to a 38th-place finish Saturday, and now sits 65 points behind Kasey Kahne for 12th. Though Martin may have three victories on the year, tied for a series best with Kyle Busch, and he may very well add to that total before the year is out, those three wins may not be enough for Martin to make the Chase unless he finds some consistency. Two finishes of 35th or worse in the last three races, and six finishes of 30th or worse on the year isn't going to cut it.

Speaking of points, Tony Stewart may be leading the standings by a healthy margin, but Jimmie Johnson looks more than ready to challenge the 14 car when Chase for the Championship begins in just eight races. In his last six starts, Johnson has five top-10s, and the one race where he failed to post a top-10 finish was at Michigan, where all Johnson did was lead 146 laps before running out of fuel on the last lap while leading.
Posted: 7/7/2009 11:15:16 AM
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