NASCAR NATION – 9-15

Entering last Saturday night’s Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway, the top 11 drivers had all but guaranteed their spots in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, and 12th place Clint Bowyer needed to finish only 28th or better to clinch the final spot.
So there wasn’t much expectation for excitement in the final race before NASCAR’s version of the playoff began, or was there?
With the current rules resetting the top 12 drivers with bonus points awarded for each win, being locked into the Chase field allowed several of NASCAR’s top drivers to go all-or-nothing or the victory and the bonus points. It also presented the opportunity for drivers to build confidence entering the 10-race stretch to the championship.
All this was accomplished in Richmond by hometown favorite Denny Hamlin, who had a highly competitive and entertaining battle with Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch to win his sixth race of 2010, and catapult to the top of the new standings.
Hamlin led a race high 251 of 400 laps to win the Air Guard 400. Hamlin had the strongest car from very early on, and a record low three cautions, including one for rain, allowed him to pull away from the field and dominate. Busch closed within several car lengths within 20 laps to go, but simply could not get around the No. 11 FedEx Toyota.
“We spent the last two weeks trying to gauge where we are going to be, and said we are going to try to start our Chase early and that way, when we got to Loudon, we would be in the swing of our momentum. And I feel like we have done that,” Hamlin said following the race. “We could have had two wins in a row going into the Chase.”
Hamlin’s teammate, Busch, was also very optimistic about his team’s chances entering the chase.
“I felt like the 11 was just a step ahead of us tonight and they deserved to win,” Busch said. “We can’t be disappointed in a second tonight. We wanted to win, and we fought hard with Denny, but racing teammates clean like that, and you know, not laying a bumper at all, we were just making sure that the Gibbs cars had a good, solid night so that we have everything on our side heading into the Chase here next weekend.”
Joe Gibbs Racing had a very strong weekend. In addition to the one-two finish by Hamlin and Busch, the third JGR driver, Joey Logano, had a strong car for much of the evening and finished fourth.
Four-time defending Sprint Cup Series Champion Jimmie Johnson finished third, while Marcos Ambrose, who will move to Richard Petty Motorsports next season, finished fifth.
Mayetta, New Jersey native Martin Truex Jr. finished 22nd, two laps down.
Chase for the Cup Standings (Entering Race one of 10, New Hampshire): 1. Denny Hamlin (5,060 points); 2. Jimmie Johnson (-10); 3. Kyle Busch (-30); 4. Kevin Harvick (-30); 5. Kurt Busch (-40); Greg Biffle (-50); 7. Tony Stewart (-50); 8. Carl Edwards (-60); 9. Jeff Gordon (-60); 10. Matt Kenseth (-60); 11. Jeff Burton (-60); 12. Clint Bowyer (-60).
Nationwide Series:
Kevin Harvick overshadowed a miraculous comeback by points leader Brad Keselowski to win his third Nationwide Series race of 2010. Harvick led 170 of 250 laps in the Virginia 529 College Savings 250 to take home the checkered flag. Keselowski finished second, followed by Trevor Bayne in third, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in fourth, and Reed Sorenson in fifth.
Keselowski hold a 373-point lead over Carl Edwards with eight races remaining.
Rolex Grand-Am Series:
Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas finished the 2010 Rolex Grand-Am Series season in fitting fashion, winning the final event of the season to cap off their record-setting championship run in the DP class. The duo won a record nine of the season’s 12 events en route to their second championship together.
Emil Assentato and Jeff Segal took home the championship in the GT class.
Coming Up:
Race Number One in the 2010 Chase for the Sprint Cup from New Hampshire International Speedway. The Camping World Truck Series also joins the Sprint Cup at New Hampshire.
Bruce Knoll, 18, of Eldora, can be contacted by email at bknoll jr4cmcherald@yahoo.com