Race Review

Allstate 400 At The Brickyard

Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Welcome race fans! This is the twentieth race of the season. We are racing on the hallowed grounds of the Brickyard at Indy, home of the Indy 500. One of the biggest races of the season. 48 Jimmy Johnson is on the pole with a speed of 181.393. 8 Mark Martin starts second and predicts he will win this race. 70 today is Jason Leffler from the Nationwide Series. 47 is Marcos Ambrose, also from the Nationwide Series. This is a brand new team car with commentator Brad Daughterty as half owner. Terry Labonte is in the 45 and had to take a past Champion provisional. Those going home are 21 Bill Elliott. He is a past Champion, but Labonte is a more recent one. 08 Johnny Sauter, 34 Tony Raines and 50 Stanton Barrett will also go home. 20 Tony Stewart is the in-car reporter.
They are having tire troubles. The tire is wearing out quickly and the tires aren’t putting rubber onto the track. For safety’s  sake there will be a competition caution on lap ten. So, here we go.
They fan out after turn two, down the straight away. 48 leads from the pole. They are four-wide with one car on the apron. 24 Jeff Gordon gets by 8 for second. The first caution comes out on lap four when 55 Michael Waltrip gets under 77 Sam Hornish, Jr. and gets loose. 96 J. J. Yeley gets by, by going onto the grass. But 15 Paul Menard can’t get by and gets into 55 spinning him into the wall. 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. leads those in the rear of the field down pit road. He had contact with 99 Carl Edwards earlier when they were four-wide. 99 gets by 9 Kasey Kahne. 44 David Reutimann bounces off the wall.
The second caution is on lap 14. 2 Kurt Busch gets loose and is sideways into 29 Kevin Harvick. 88 and 70 stay out, since they just pitted. 48 comes out of the pits first and will restart third. 48 gets by 70. 24 gets by 48 for second. 70 is falling back. 9, 12 Ryan Newman and 8 get by 99. 99 gets back by 8. 99 and 9 battle. 99 gets back by 9. 88 has a tire going down. 24 takes the lead.
The third caution comes out on lap thirty when 42 Juan Pablo Montoya blows a tire. 8 pitted under green after NASCAR moves the competition caution from 32 laps to 30 laps. 88 and 70 are a lap down. Looks like they’ll have to change tires at every caution. 18 Kyle Busch comes out of the pits first. 24 catches 18. 24 takes the lead. 48 gets by 18. 48 takes the lead. 18 gets back by 24. 99 gets by 18 for second. 8 is pitting. 99 is having tire issues.
The fourth caution comes out when 17 Matt Kenseth blows a tire and spins. 31 Jeff Burton has a battery problem. 29 and 2 are back on the track, many laps down. Out of the pits, it’s 18, 84 A. J. Allmendinger, 31, 19 Elliott Sadler, 1 Martin Truex, Jr., 26 Jamie McMurray, 48, 11 Denny Hamlin, 43 Bobby Labonte. 24 gets by 1. 77 Sam Hornish, Jr. pitted before the caution and got the Lucky Dog instead of 88 who was next in line for it. 48 gets by 84 for second. 48 takes the lead. 18 and 84 only took two tires. 84 gets by 18. 26, 1, and 41 Reed Sorenson get by 18.
The fifth caution is a competition caution.18 drops to thirteenth. 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is the Lucky Dog. Out of the pits, it’s 84, 19, 16 Greg Biffle, 48, 6 David Ragan, 24, 11, 31, 1. 48 takes the lead. 24 gets by 84 for second. 83 Brian Vickers is pitting with an engine issue. 11 gets by 84 for third. 48 brushes the wall. 1 is pitting. The sixth caution is another competition caution. On lap 82. 70 Jason Leffler is the Lucky Dog. 1 pitted prior to the caution and stays out to lead.
99 takes the lead. 48 and 24 get by 26 who only took two tires. 48 takes the lead. 24 gets by 99 for second. NASCAR is closing pit road prior to the competition caution, so cars can’t short pit and get an advantage. It only took five cautions to figure that out. The seventh caution is another competition caution. On lap 72. This one will be a “quickie” caution where everyone can pit at the same time, instead of lead lap cars first, followed by those not on the lead lap. 19 comes out of the pits first to lead. 31 takes the lead.
The eighth caution comes out when 83 blows up. A bird hits 31 on the restart. They are three wide behind the leader. 24, 99, 6, 18, and 26 get by 16. 20 Tony Stewart makes it three wide for position. 48 takes the lead. 24 gets by 31 for second. 99 gets by 31 for third. 24 and 99 battle. 99 takes second from 24. The ninth caution is a competition caution with 38 to go. 29 who is fifteen laps down is the Lucky Dog and gets one of them back. Out of the pits, it’s 11, 48, 99, 31, 18, 6, 24, 96, 84, 26.
84 gets by 96. 18 gets by 31. 16 gets by 1. 43, 41 and 77 get by 1. 48 and 99 battle. 99 gets by 48 for second. The tenth caution is a competition caution, with 22 laps to go. 11 leads them out of the pits, followed by 31, 84, 20, 19, 9, 26, 48, 99.  They go Green with nineteen to go. 48 and 99 get by 20. 88 gets by 18. 48 and 99 get by 12. 31 and 19 battle and 19 finally takes second from 31. 11 has a can on his grill! 12 and 24 battle. 9 gets by 12. 48 and 99 get by 31. And we have the eleventh and final caution. A competition caution. 99 didn’t get by 31 before the caution and falls behind 31. The can flies off 11.
Out of the pits, it’s 48, 99, 11, 19, 26, 24, 31, 9, 16, 84. We restart with eight to go. Cars are snaking down the straight away to break the draft. 9 and 16 get by 31. And 48 Jimmy Johnson wins the Allstate 400 @ The Brickyard from the pole.

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Race Review

LifeLock.com 400

Chicagoland Speedway Joliet, IL.

Welcome race fans to the nineteenth race of the season. Rain washed out qualifying, so the race is set by owner points. With 18 Kyle Busch on the pole and 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. on the outside.45 Terry Labonte will use a past Champion provisional to get into the race. As will 21 Bill Elliott. 70 is Jason Leffler, a NASCAR Nationwide Series regular. Not making the race are 08 Johnny Sauter and 34 Tony Raines. 78 Joe Nemecheck made an engine change and will start from the rear. 96 J J Yeley doesn’t come out of the garage until the pace car comes out. And here we go!
18 leads from the pole. 99 Carl Edwards gets by 88 for second. 00 Michael McDowell gets into the wall.70 got loose and into 00. 48 gets by 88 for third. 11 Denny Hamlin is loosing spots. NASCAR will have a competition caution on lap 35. It rained all night and washed off the rubber. They want to give the teams a chance to check everything out. 29 Kevin Harvick gets by 9 Kasey Kahne for eighth. 11 has a miss in the engine. The gages are going blank.
The first caution is on lap thirty-five, the competition caution. 96 is the Lucky dog, and gets his lap back. Out of the pits, it’s 31 Jeff Burton, 18, 99 and 88. 31 was too fast on pit road, so looses the lead. He couldn’t find his pit and got into 26 Jamie McMurray on his way back out the pits. Then he comes back in to pit. So he’s way back there. 99 and 18 battle for the lead, side-by-side. 99 finally takes the lead.
The second caution comes out because 11 is slow on the track. There is no Lucky Dog awarded as 11 was next in line, and he caused the caution. 16 Greg Biffle, 24 Jeff Gordon and 83 Brian Vickers stay out. 18 gets out of the pits first.12 Ryan Newman and 48 Jimmy Johnson battle for position. 20 Tony Stewart and 99 battle. 48 gets by 12. 99 gets by 20. 20 gets back by 99. 83 gets by 24 for second. 99 and 18 battle. 29 gets by 18.
1 Martin Truex, Jr. gets by 99. 1 and 99 battle. 1 kisses the wall. 16, 24, 83 are making Green Flag Pit Stops. 20 leads when they pit. When all the Green Flag Pitting is complete, 16 is back in the lead. The third caution comes out during the commercial when 10 Patrick Carpentier gets into the wall. 55 Michael Waltrip checks up and gets sideways into 10 in front of 31. 55 slides into the grass. Out of the pits, it’s 17 Matt Kenseth, 18, 6 David Ragan, 84 A J Allmendinger. 18 takes the lead from 17. 2 Kurt Busch stays in front of the leader to get his lap back. 20 catches 17 and 18. 20 gets by 17. 20 bobbles. 17 thinks he has a flat and pits. 83 and 99 battle.
The fourth caution comes out again during the commercial. 31 Jeff Burton is the Lucky Dog. 00 was too fast out of the pits. 26 is ahead of the leader 18 on the tail end of the lead lap. He had a puncture and had to pit. So he stays out now to stay in front of the leader. 88 is stuck in twenty-first and is loose. He battles with 2. 20 is catching 18. The fifth caution comes out for debris. Someone’s spring rubber. 17 Matt Kenseth is the Lucky Dog. There are thirty-nine cars on the lead lap.Out of the pits, the top ten are 18, 20, 99. 29, 6, 83, 48, 84, 24 and 8 Mark Martin.
18 scrapes the wall. 99 gets by 20 for second. 17 is moving up. 99 takes the lead. 07 Clint Bowyer and 2 battle. 99 thought he had a flat tire and pitted. He has a broken splitter. 2 has dropped a cylinder. 48 and 29 battle. 48 makes the pass. The sixth caution comes out during the commercial for debris. 70 Jason Leffler is the Lucky dog. 28 Travis Kvapil goes down to the apron and back up almost into 12. 29 and 16 get by 12. 20 and 16 battle. 20 gets loose and almost gets into 16. 20 looses momentum and 16 also gets loose.
The seventh caution is for debris. 15 Paul Menard got into 70. 70 looses his back end and it flies off onto 15 and then onto the track. 48 catches 18. The eighth caution comes out for spinning 43 Bobby Labonte. He got too close to 96 J J Yeley. 26 Jamie McMurray is the Lucky Dog. 48 and 18 battle for the lead. 48 takes the lead. There is debris on the 48 grill. The ninth caution comes out when 38 David Gilliland blows up. It will be a Green, White Checker finish. 18 and 48 battle for the lead. 18 takes the lead, and wins the race. He goes into the infield to do donuts and gets stuck in the mud! His team comes out to push him out.

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Race Review

Coke Zero 400

Daytona, FL.

Welcome race fans to the eighteenth race of the season and the half-way point. 60 is Boris Said who qualifies seventh. 78 Joe Nemechek qualifies fourth. 70 Johnny Sauter qualifies fifth. 10 Patrick Carpentier qualifies tenth. 84 AJ Almendinger qualifies thirteenth. 21 is Jon Wood, who qualifies twenty-second. 09 is Sterling Marlin, who qualifies eighteenth. 45 is Terry Labonte, while Kyle Petty is in the booth at TNT. He had to take a past Champion provisional to make the race. Going home are 96 JJ Yeley and 66 Scott Riggs. 1999 Winston Cup Champion Dale Jarrett starts the engines. Kyle Petty is reporting from the pace car. On the pole is 15 Paul Menard, with a speed of 185.916. 8 Mark Martin starts second.
This is a restrictor-plate race to slow the cars down on this massive 2.5 mile track. It is also an impound race. That means you race with the same set-up you had to qualify. Those having to make the race on speed have a qualifying set up on their cars, and will have to make changes for racing after the race begins. 84 and 60 voluntarily move to the rear so they won’t be in the way with their qualifying set up.
So, here we go. 15 leads from the pole. 21 goes to the garage to make racing changes. 24 Jeff Gordon gets loose, but saves it. They are mostly single-file. 24 is in a pack and gets into 70 to get by. 21 is back on the track, eight laps down. 20 Tony Stewart gets ahead of 8 for fourth. 8 pulls low to get back by 20, and lets 18 Kyle Busch get by. 88 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. takes the lead.
The first caution comes out on lap 19 when 84 gets into the wall. Out of the pits, it’s 18, 15, 01 Regan Smith, 22 Dave Blaney. This is TNT’s “wide open coverage”, so there are commercials below the race and station breaks during cautions. This is good on one hand because you get to see racing while watching commercials, but annoying on the other hand. We resume racing on lap 25. And it’s double-wide racing. 6 David Ragan makes it three-wide. 48 Jimmy Johnson gets stuck in the middle, and falls back. He is racing in the middle line, and cars get by him. 88 takes the lead.
12 Ryan Newman gets caught in the middle. 20 gets by 8 for third. The second caution comes out when 12 spins. 26 Jamie McMurray came up and into 12 to spin him. 84 is in the garage. 60 Boris Said is the Lucky Dog and gets his lap back. 88 leads them down pit road. Out of the pits, it’s 18, 88, 20, 8, 24, 9 Kasey Kahne, 17 Matt Kenseth. And we go to a 75 second commercial break.
29 Kevin Harvick stayed out to lead a lap, but didn’t cross the line as the leader and pits, coming down pit road too fast to beat the pace car. So, he will resart the race in thirty-seventh without leading a lap. 01 got into 15 on pit road. They both had to come back into the pits for repairs. 01 gets by 99 Carl Edwards. 29 gets by 16 Greg Biffle. 88 and 18 battle for the lead. 88 and everyone behind him go high past 18. 18 pulls in front of 20. Everyone goes low with 18 on the top. They all go by 18 on the bottom. 20 falls behind 18. 77 Sam Hornish, Jr. gets into the wall. 88, 8 and 24 pull away. 20 is back up to tenth.
The third caution comes out when 16 goes up into 42 Juan Pablo Montoya and they both get into the wall. 16 spins into the infield. Tony Stewart doesn’t feel good. JJ Yeley will fill in. 09 Sterling Marlin is the Lucky Dog. They exit the pits 88, 48, 18, 24. 48 pulls up in front of 88 to take the lead. 18 is on the outside. 17 pushes 24. 88 takes the lead. 24 takes the lead. 18 is slow on the apron. His steering is off.
9 pushes 17 past 99. 38 David Gilliland takes third from 48. They are double-wide in front. 88 and 38 get by 24. 11 Denny Hamlin and 12 get by 48 for fourth and fifth. During the ninety second commercial, the fourth caution comes out. 19 Elliott Sadler gets into the wall, after blowing a tire. 44 David Reutimann is the Lucky Dog and gets one of five laps back. Thirty-eight cars are on the lead lap. Out of the pits, it’s 88, 11, 12, 48. 38 had a slow pit. 99, 10 and 78 stay out and 99 leads a lap. All three pit the second time around.
We go green with forty-six to go and 88 leading. 12 pushes 11 in front of 88, giving 11 the lead. 88 takes the lead back. 12 gets stuck in the middle. 11 takes the lead. 12 gets back in on the high side. 6 gives 88 a shot, and 88 takes the lead. The fifth caution comes out with thirty-six to go. 12 and 38 get together with 38 into the wall. Behind them 83 Brian Vickers gets into 31 Jeff Burton, sending him spinning. Out of the pits, it’s 11, 6, 88, 24. 55 Michael Waltrip stays out to lead. 6 had a “noncompliant  fueling” and has to come back in. The catch can man took the catch can out before fueling was complete. 55 pits after leading a lap. 60 is now in the lead, as he doesn’t pit.
They are three-wide for the lead. 88 takes the lead. The sixth caution comes out when 26 spins, trying to sneak in front of 83. 44 David Reutimann is the Lucky Dog, and is now two laps down. 24 takes the lead. 48 and 18 get together. The seventh caution comes out for 11 and 12. 1 Martin Truex, Jr. got into 11 who spins into 12. 44 is now only one lap down. 24 is leading. 7 Robby Gordon, 01, 48, 70, 00 Michael McDowell and 78 pit. They restart with 21 laps to go. 20 (now Yeley) follows 88.
The eighth caution comes out when 6 gets into 20, 5 Casey Mears gets sideways, 2 Kurt Busch gets into 31 to send him spinning. 44 David Reutimann gets the Lucky Dog, and is now back on the lead lap. Someone got into 9 and he has a tire rub. The ninth caution comes out when 60 spins. 9 pits. 26 Jamie McMurray is the Lucky Dog and is now six laps down. Thirty-one cars are on the lead lap, with 24 in the lead. The tenth caution comes out on the final lap. And it’s “The Big One”. 22 got into 48. 99 spins 24. Everyone spinning behind. 11, 44, 20, 15, 01, etc. We end under caution and they have to visually see where everyone was when the caution came out to determine that 18 Kyle Busch wins. With 99 Carl Edwards second.
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