Pro Sports
Email
Print
Bump and Run: Despite new rule, last laps turn into free-for-all
AP Photo
Ryan Newman slides upside-down across the track at Talladega Superspeedway after crashing with Kevin Harvick in the AMP Energy 500.
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: November 2, 2009
TALLADEGA, Ala. - NASCAR demanded drivers be on their best behavior at Talladega Superspeedway, where a ban on bump-drafting sanitized what's usually one of the most spectacular races of the season.
In the end, chaos reigned, just like always.
After 450 miles of what resembled a slow Sunday drive, the action picked up and the outcome was much of what everyone has come to expect out of Talladega: An unlikely winner, two spectacular crashes and an army of drivers frustrated about the unpredictability of restrictor-plate racing.
"I think we all know that's what's going to happen when we come to Talladega," said Jeff Gordon, who first ran out of gas and then wrecked -- all in a five-lap span.
Jamie McMurray was the surprise winner, snapping an 86-race winless streak by leading 32 late laps and holding on in a race that ended under caution. Jimmie Johnson, meanwhile, ended up sixth, likely wrapping up his NASCAR-record fourth-consecutive championship because of all the late action.
"I made the comment ... it's just going to be luck," McMurray said, "whoever can get in the right row and make the moves."
That's how it usually works at Talladega, where horsepower-sapping restrictor plates slow the speeds and force drivers to use aggressive maneuvers to plow their way through tight packs of traffic.
But after Carl Edwards' airborne April crash into the front-stretch fence, NASCAR has felt the pressure to cut down on the dangerous bumping and blocking that usually triggers the multi-car accidents known as "the Big One."
Officials warned at the start of the weekend that they didn't want to see drivers shoving each other around the speedway and proved it by parking Michael Waltrip during a Friday practice when he didn't back off Johnson's rear bumper.
NASCAR president Mike Helton ramped it up another notch yesterday in a stern pre-race lecture that banned all bumping in the corners. He was peppered with questions from the drivers but held firm and warned that a victory could be stripped if it was gained through bump-drafting.
In response, the 43-car field spent much of yesterday in a single-file parade lap that almost looked to be a conscious thumbing of the nose at NASCAR.
"I think everyone was just content to log laps," said Denny Hamlin, who was sidelined with an engine problem before the finish. "Where is the middle ground between the new NASCAR rule and racing? Let us race. They gave us a car to race, now let the drivers handle it."
They did when it counted, and, as always, it got dicey when the racing picked up with about 20 laps remaining.
Ryan Newman's harrowing crash with five laps to go left him upside down in the grass, and NASCAR needed a stoppage of almost 13 minutes to cut him from the car. Outspoken in the wake of Edwards' April crash, he was none too pleased to have spent almost 15 minutes trapped in his car.
"It's probably the closest thing to being stuck in a tomb and not being able to get out -- all my body weight was pressed up against my head," he said. "I respect NASCAR. I just wish they respected me."
His crash set up two-lap sprint to the finish, and that was halted when championship contender Mark Martin went flipping across the track in his own spectacular crash.
The race ended under caution with McMurray in Victory Lane.
Because Johnson spent most of the race puttering around the back of the pack, he was stuck back in the mid-20s when Newman crashed. Crew chief Chad Knaus sensed a lengthy delay and quickly called Johnson in for gas -- a decision that may have clinched the title.
When cars ahead of him in the running order began to run out of gas because of the red-flag delay, Johnson vaulted up in the standings. The final finishing order showed him in eighth, but he was adamant that he finished sixth.
After a lengthy review, Johnson was indeed credited with a sixth-place finish that stretched his lead in the standings to 184 points over Martin with three races remaining.
"From where we were with the red flag to where we finished, I'm still in shock," Johnson said. "I can't believe that it worked out. I can't believe that many guys ran out of fuel and put themselves in that position."
It was the final hurdle in Johnson's path because his 17.7 average finish at Talladega is his worst of the 10 races in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
"I was so concerned about this race," he said. "I thought I was going to lose points with about three or four (laps) to go. So to have it turn around and lead with points over the guys, I didn't expect it."
Aside from Johnson and McMurray, who won for the first time since Daytona in July 2007, few drivers were happy with the final outcome.
Energy 500 race results
(Talladega Speedway)
Fin. St. Driver Car Laps Rat. Pts. Money
1. 22 Jamie McMurray Ford 191 99.4 195 $229,275
2. 11 Kasey Kahne Dodge 191 75.1 175 $212,098
3. 20 Joey Logano Toyota 191 91.2 170 $184,301
4. 8 Greg Biffle Ford 191 77.5 160 $142,500
5. 18 Jeff Burton Chevy 191 100.8 160 $156,706
6. 1 Jimmie Johnson Chevy 191 70.3 150 $151,876
7. 33 Michael Waltrip Toyota 191 69.7 151 $110,675
8. 36 Brad Keselowski Dodge 191 89.4 147 $94,150
9. 26 Elliott Sadler Ford 191 80.8 143 $97,875
10. 37 Bobby Labonte Chevy 191 70.3 134 $90,300
11. 24 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevy 191 110.5 135 $106,325
12. 15 Clint Bowyer Chevy 191 66.7 127 $93,650
13. 12 Brian Vickers Toyota 191 82.6 124 $112,648
14. 10 Carl Edwards Ford 191 70 126 $139,431
15. 13 Kyle Busch Toyota 191 91.1 123 $127,073
16. 29 Reed Sorenson Dodge 191 50.1 115 $119,051
17. 28 David Ragan Ford 191 89.2 112 $89,600
18. 41 Robert Richardson Jr. Toyota 191 48.7 109 $77,250
19. 5 Juan Pablo Montoya Chevy 191 97.3 111 $115,248
20. 3 Jeff Gordon Chevy 191 98.1 108 $119,351
21. 21 Kevin Harvick Chevy 191 101.9 105 $122,678
22. 30 David Stremme Dodge 191 83.6 102 $112,340
23. 35 John Andretti Chevy 191 47.4 99 $88,075
24. 14 Matt Kenseth Ford 191 83 91 $121,790
25. 19 Casey Mears Chevy 191 91.4 93 $93,750
26. 16 David Reutimann Toyota 191 67.8 90 $104,873
27. 38 Scott Speed Toyota 190 43.3 82 $94,573
28. 2 Mark Martin Chevy 190 74.1 84 $85,750
29. 42 Max Papis Toyota 190 42.2 76 $74,600
30. 6 Kurt Busch Dodge 189 65.8 78 $93,425
31. 23 Martin Truex Jr. Chevy 189 74.8 75 $112,765
32. 34 Robby Gordon Toyota 189 70 72 $95,335
33. 25 AJ Allmendinger Dodge 189 34.9 64 $74,875
34. 17 Marcos Ambrose Toyota 188 67.6 66 $88,323
35. 4 Tony Stewart Chevy 183 67.4 63 $85,648
36. 7 Ryan Newman Chevy 183 63.7 60 $101,054
37. 31 Erik Darnell Ford 167 39.5 52 $100,929
38. 9 Denny Hamlin Toyota 137 83.6 54 $91,175
39. 43 Regan Smith Chevy 99 39.1 46 $73,050
40. 27 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge 44 51.9 43 $91,670
41. 40 Dave Blaney Toyota 12 27.9 40 $72,755
42 32 Paul Menard Ford 4 24.8 37 $103,031
43 39 Joe Nemechek Toyota 4 24.4 34 $73,006
Race statistics
Average speed of winner: 157.213 mph. Time of race: 3 hours, 13 minutes, 54 seconds. Margin of victory: under caution. Caution flags: Six for 23 laps. Lead changes: 58 among 25 drivers. Lap leaders: M.Martin 1; Ku.Busch 2-8; C.Edwards 9; D.Reutimann 10; C.Edwards 11; D.Reutimann 12-16; J.Gordon 17-21; C.Mears 22-41; D.Earnhardt Jr. 42; E.Sadler 43-46; J.Burton 47; R.Newman 48; T.Stewart 49; M.Waltrip 50-51; E.Sadler 52-57; D.Hamlin 58; E.Sadler 59; D.Earnhardt Jr. 60-61; D.Hamlin 62; K.Harvick 63-88; D.Earnhardt Jr. 89; J.Montoya 90; K.Harvick 91; M.Martin 92-97; M.Ambrose 98-99; D.Hamlin 100-105; J.Andretti 106; D.Hamlin 107-108; R.Gordon 109-110; J.Burton 111; J.Gordon 112-113; R.Gordon 114; J.Logano 115; D.Earnhardt Jr. 116-118; D.Hamlin 119; Ky.Busch 120-122; R.Newman 123-124; Ky.Busch 125; J.Burton 126; J.Gordon 127-130; D.Stremme 131-135; B.Keselowski 136-139; J.Andretti 140; B.Keselowski 141-143; J.Gordon 144; K.Harvick 145; M.Truex Jr. 146; K.Kahne 147; E.Sadler 148; J.Montoya 149-150; J.Burton 151; J.McMurray 152; M.Ambrose 153; J.McMurray 154-167; D.Earnhardt Jr. 168-169; J.McMurray 170-175; D.Stremme 176-180; J.McMurray 181-191. Leaders summary (Driver, times led, laps led): J.McMurray, 4 times for 32 laps; K.Harvick, 3 times for 28 laps; C.Mears, 1 time for 20 laps; E.Sadler, 4 times for 12 laps; J.Gordon, 4 times for 12 laps; D.Hamlin, 5 times for 11 laps; D.Stremme, 2 times for 10 laps; D.Earnhardt Jr., 5 times for 9 laps; B.Keselowski, 2 times for 7 laps; M.Martin, 2 times for 7 laps; Ku.Busch, 1 time for 7 laps; D.Reutimann, 2 times for 6 laps; J.Burton, 4 times for 4 laps; Ky.Busch, 2 times for 4 laps; J.Montoya, 2 times for 3 laps; R.Gordon, 2 times for 3 laps; M.Ambrose, 2 times for 3 laps; R.Newman, 2 times for 3 laps; M.Waltrip, 1 time for 2 laps; C.Edwards, 2 times for 2 laps; J.Andretti, 2 times for 2 laps; K.Kahne, 1 time for 1 lap; J.Logano, 1 time for 1 lap; M.Truex Jr., 1 time for 1 lap; T.Stewart, 1 time for 1 lap.
Did not finish
Scott Speed, Mark Martin, Kurt Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Robby Gordon, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Paul Menard, Joe Nemechek (accident); Danny Hamlin, Regan Smith, Sam Hornish Jr. (engine); Dave Blaney (vibration)
Points leaders
1. J.Johnson, 6,248; 2. M.Martin, 6,064; 3. J.Gordon, 6,056; 4. J.Montoya, 6,009; 5. T.Stewart, 5,969; 6. Ku.Busch, 5,936; 7. G.Biffle, 5,908; 8. R.Newman, 5,846; 9. K.Kahne, 5,834; 10. C.Edwards, 5,811; 11. D.Hamlin, 5,800; 12. B.Vickers, 5,692
Driver rating
A maximum of 150 points can be attained in a race. The formula combines the following: wins, finishes, top-15 finishes, average running position while on lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, led most laps, lead-lap finish.
Email
Print
