NASCAR NATION – 3-24

Something that hasn’t been said very often lately happened last Sunday during the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Jimmie Johnson, four-time defending Sprint Cup Series champion, won for the first time in his decorated career at Bristol.
Johnson started fourth and led 84 laps, including the final seven laps, to capture his third victory in five races. It was also the 50th victory in Johnson’s 296 Sprint Cup Series starts, making him the fourth faster driver to reach the milestone, behind Jeff Gordon, Darrell Waltrip, and David Pearson.
Kurt Busch again appeared to be dominating the field at the fastest half mile on earth, leading 278 of the race’s 500 laps. But as Busch seemingly cruised towards the checkered flag, a caution for debris with 17 laps remaining closed his gap between himself and the field, and set up for a final round of pit stops.
Several drivers choose to take just two tires on the stop, while Busch and Johnson both took four tires, placing them in fifth and sixth, respectively, when the race restarted with just ten laps remaining.
Johnson wasted no time getting around Busch when Matt Kenseth was slow to get moving, and the No. 48 capitalized by maneuvering through traffic and allowing Johnson to take the lead with seven laps to go. Busch managed to race his way to third before the checkered flag fell.
After the race, Johnson’s crew chief, Chad Knaus, commented to reporters how much winning at Bristol meant to Johnson.
“It was pretty high on his list,” Knaus said. “For him to say that he wanted to focus on that and get better at this racetrack, for us to be able to go out there and do what we did, I think it speaks volumes about the dedication and desire he’s got inside. We want to win every single event. This one has eluded us. We’re very proud to be able to have it.”
Tony Stewart had his first top five finish of the season after finishing in second behind Johnson. Busch was third, while Greg Biffle finished fourth and Kenseth fifth. Carl Edwards posted his season-high finish in sixth, while Dale Earnhardt Jr. was seventh. Daytona 500 winner Jamie McMurray was eighth, followed by Kyle Busch in ninth and Jeff Burton in 10th.
Martin Truex Jr. of Mayetta, started 19th and finished 12th.
Nationwide Series:
Justin Allgaier passed his Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski on a late restart, than held him off for the final 27 laps of the Scotts Turf Builder 300 for his first career NASCAR Nationwide Series victory. Keselowski finished second, to give Roger Penske his first ever 1-2 finish in the Nationwide Series. Kyle Busch was third, Carl Edwards fourth, and Kevin Harvick fifth.
Other News: Two drivers were taken to the hospital after a violent wreck last Saturday in a charity race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Larry Pearson, two-time Busch Series Champion and son of NASCAR legend David Pearson, lost control of his vehicle and spun down across the track, when he was subsequently hit hard in the driver’s side by Charlie Glotzbach.
Emergency crews worked for several minutes to extricate Pearson from his severely battered race car before he was airlifted to a local hospital, where it was discovered he had broke his pelvis, left ankle, and right hand. Glotzback was later transported to the hospital for precaution.
Coming Up: The Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series head to Martinsville Speedway, while the Nationwide Series takes the weekend off.
Bruce Knoll, 18, of Eldora, can be contacted by email at bknoll jr4cmcherald@yahoo.com