Jeff Gordon will still be mad
when teams get to Florida
By DAVID POOLE and JIM UTTER
The Charlotte Observer and ThatsRacin.com
Checking out Darlington Raceway and the final Southern 500 in the rearview mirror ...
Jimmie Johnson won Sunday's race in the same Chevrolet he drove to victories at Charlotte and Atlanta. Designated by the chassis number 4859, tt's the first car built at Hendrick Motorsports for Johnson's use and was the car he raced in his first career Cup start at Lowe's Motor Speedway in 2001.
The last time he's raced the car and NOT won was at Texas on April 4.
Guess which car he'll be taking to Homestead-Miami Speedway for the season's final race.
Fans gave Darlington Raceway a fighting chance by showing up for the last scheduled Southern 500. A few tickets might have gone unsold, but there were no large gaps in the grandstands on a day that started chilly and moved to downright cold.
If the fans show up again in May, International Speedway
Corp. will have to manufacture another excuse if they want to strip this historic track of its final Cup date.
Starting Sunday's race at 1:50 p.m. was dumb. As the sun went down, the drivers said they couldn't see going into Turn 3. This place is hard enough for them to drive when they can see where they're going. A race here either needs to be a daytime race or a nighttime race. The hybrid didn't work.
Sunday's win gives Rick Hendrick 11 all-time victories at Darlington, more than any other car owner in this track's 55-year history.
NOTING THE CHASE ...
1st - Kurt Busch
How important is it for Kurt Busch to still have the championship lead going into next week's finale?
In the 29 years the previous points system was used, only twice did the points lead change hands in the year's final race. It happened in 1992, when Alan Kulwicki passed Davey Allison, and in 1979, when Richard Petty passed Darrell Waltrip.
If Busch holds on to win the title, he'd be the third youngest champion in NASCAR history. Bill Rexford, the 1950 champion in NASCAR's second season, was 23 years, 8 months and 17 days old on Nov. 15 that year. Jeff Gordon was 24 years, 3 months and 27 days old when he won in 1995.
As of Monday, Busch is 26 years, 3 months and 11 days old. Gordon was 16 days older when he won his second title in 1997.
2nd - Jimmie Johnson
Johnson won both of this season's races at Darlington, giving him season sweeps at three tracks this year - adding it to Charlotte and Pocono.
"Winning at this track is one of the biggest accomplishments in my career," he said. "As far as thinking about what I've been able to do in a race car, it's going to be great to think back and know I have tamed this lady twice, so far, in my career."
Johnson said winning the final scheduled Southern 500 would rank as the biggest win of his career except for the extraordinary circumstances he and his team have been through in recent weeks. Johnson won the race at Atlanta one week after 10 people died in the crash of a Hendrick Motorsports plane on the same day of his Martinsville victory.
"That's my moment," he said.
3rd - Jeff Gordon
Gordon said he'll go to the final race at Homestead next week with his chili running hot after a mistake on pit road cost him a shot at his sixth career Southern 500 win.
"We're hungry and I am glad I am mad right now," said Gordon, who was leading until his crew got the air hose hung under his right-rear tire during a pit stop on Lap 337. "I'm looking forward to going to Homestead really mad."
"It's all about us not making mistakes. ...We all make them, it's about not making them at the crucial moment."
4th - Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Earnhardt Jr. is 72 points out of the lead and trailing three drivers going into the final race, but he's still alive in the Chase for the Nextel Cup after salvaging 11th on a rough day at Darlington.
He got a huge break in the waning laps when Kevin Harvick's Chevrolet stopped on the track on Lap 345 to bring out a yellow. The battery in the No. 8 Chevrolet had died, and Earnhardt Jr. was able to come in and get it changed.
"Yeah, we got lucky," he said.
Earnhardt Jr. said he has trouble figuring out how to tell his team what he needs to run better at Darlington. But he knows one thing that might help.
"The whole place just needs new asphalt, and believe me, I'd pay for it myself," he said.
5th - Mark Martin
Martin will have to come from 82 points down on the season's final day to win his first career Cup championship. But he was ecstatic about how his car drove Sunday.
"We put on a show today, it was a great effort," he said. "That's what I've lived my life to do today. ...I am not one bit concerned about those points.
I'm so proud and honored to be a part of this team and to have the opportunity to run at Darlington like I did 15 years ago. That's a big deal to me."
6th - Tony Stewart
Stewart's 17th place finish eliminated him from title contention. He trails by 185 points, and unless the five drivers ahead of him don't show up at Homestead the most he can make up is 156 points.
After struggling through a tough day and making wholesale changes to his No. 20 Chevrolet in attempt to make it better, Stewart summed up the day: "I'm glad this is over."
7th - Ryan Newman
Two flat tires and a blown engine made for a tough day for Newman, who finished 34th. His No. 12 Dodge had been among the fastest in Saturday's practice sessions.
"We had the car to do it today. It's just unfortunate that the motor let go," he said.
8th - Matt Kenseth
Kenseth finished 20th, his third consecutive week with a finish of 20th or lower. He has had four finishes of 20th or worse in the nine Chase races.
9th - Elliott Sadler
A move to a backup car after a run-in with the wall in a Saturday practice didn't turn out well for Sadler, who finished 23rd. "I just hung on for 500 miles and tried to make the most of the day," he said.
10th - Jeremy Mayfield
Mayfield, who finished 19th, was all over the map, and the track. His No. 19 Dodge would change from good to bad faster than his team could make adjustments.
"I rode the wall a couple of times and just couldn't get off of it," he said. "We went the wrong way for a while and then we got good again."
...AND THE CHASERS
Kasey Kahne came close to completing a NASCAR sweep this weekend.
He won a Busch race last season, and then added a Truck Series victory to his resume Saturday night at Darlington.
Late in Sunday's Southern 500, Jamie McMurray and Kahne stayed out while the rest of the leaders pitted for fresh tires on the during the final caution. Kahne battled hard with McMurray and then Jeff Gordon before falling to fifth at the finish.
"We stayed out and survived," Kahne said. "You never know what to do, but everybody came down so we thought we'd stay out."
Carl Edwards (seventh) earned his fifth top-10 finish in 12 career starts this season.
Mike Bliss made his first start in the No. 0 Chevrolet after
replacing Ward Burton, and brought the car home in 10th. Bliss will be in the car again at Homestead.
Joe Nemechek finished eighth, the seventh time in the past nine races he's finished 12th or better.
Bobby Labonte came back from a spin off Turn 4 to finish ninth for his second straight top-10 finish.
when teams get to Florida
By DAVID POOLE and JIM UTTER
The Charlotte Observer and ThatsRacin.com
Checking out Darlington Raceway and the final Southern 500 in the rearview mirror ...
Jimmie Johnson won Sunday's race in the same Chevrolet he drove to victories at Charlotte and Atlanta. Designated by the chassis number 4859, tt's the first car built at Hendrick Motorsports for Johnson's use and was the car he raced in his first career Cup start at Lowe's Motor Speedway in 2001.
The last time he's raced the car and NOT won was at Texas on April 4.
Guess which car he'll be taking to Homestead-Miami Speedway for the season's final race.
Fans gave Darlington Raceway a fighting chance by showing up for the last scheduled Southern 500. A few tickets might have gone unsold, but there were no large gaps in the grandstands on a day that started chilly and moved to downright cold.
If the fans show up again in May, International Speedway
Corp. will have to manufacture another excuse if they want to strip this historic track of its final Cup date.
Starting Sunday's race at 1:50 p.m. was dumb. As the sun went down, the drivers said they couldn't see going into Turn 3. This place is hard enough for them to drive when they can see where they're going. A race here either needs to be a daytime race or a nighttime race. The hybrid didn't work.
Sunday's win gives Rick Hendrick 11 all-time victories at Darlington, more than any other car owner in this track's 55-year history.
NOTING THE CHASE ...
1st - Kurt Busch
How important is it for Kurt Busch to still have the championship lead going into next week's finale?
In the 29 years the previous points system was used, only twice did the points lead change hands in the year's final race. It happened in 1992, when Alan Kulwicki passed Davey Allison, and in 1979, when Richard Petty passed Darrell Waltrip.
If Busch holds on to win the title, he'd be the third youngest champion in NASCAR history. Bill Rexford, the 1950 champion in NASCAR's second season, was 23 years, 8 months and 17 days old on Nov. 15 that year. Jeff Gordon was 24 years, 3 months and 27 days old when he won in 1995.
As of Monday, Busch is 26 years, 3 months and 11 days old. Gordon was 16 days older when he won his second title in 1997.
2nd - Jimmie Johnson
Johnson won both of this season's races at Darlington, giving him season sweeps at three tracks this year - adding it to Charlotte and Pocono.
"Winning at this track is one of the biggest accomplishments in my career," he said. "As far as thinking about what I've been able to do in a race car, it's going to be great to think back and know I have tamed this lady twice, so far, in my career."
Johnson said winning the final scheduled Southern 500 would rank as the biggest win of his career except for the extraordinary circumstances he and his team have been through in recent weeks. Johnson won the race at Atlanta one week after 10 people died in the crash of a Hendrick Motorsports plane on the same day of his Martinsville victory.
"That's my moment," he said.
3rd - Jeff Gordon
Gordon said he'll go to the final race at Homestead next week with his chili running hot after a mistake on pit road cost him a shot at his sixth career Southern 500 win.
"We're hungry and I am glad I am mad right now," said Gordon, who was leading until his crew got the air hose hung under his right-rear tire during a pit stop on Lap 337. "I'm looking forward to going to Homestead really mad."
"It's all about us not making mistakes. ...We all make them, it's about not making them at the crucial moment."
4th - Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Earnhardt Jr. is 72 points out of the lead and trailing three drivers going into the final race, but he's still alive in the Chase for the Nextel Cup after salvaging 11th on a rough day at Darlington.
He got a huge break in the waning laps when Kevin Harvick's Chevrolet stopped on the track on Lap 345 to bring out a yellow. The battery in the No. 8 Chevrolet had died, and Earnhardt Jr. was able to come in and get it changed.
"Yeah, we got lucky," he said.
Earnhardt Jr. said he has trouble figuring out how to tell his team what he needs to run better at Darlington. But he knows one thing that might help.
"The whole place just needs new asphalt, and believe me, I'd pay for it myself," he said.
5th - Mark Martin
Martin will have to come from 82 points down on the season's final day to win his first career Cup championship. But he was ecstatic about how his car drove Sunday.
"We put on a show today, it was a great effort," he said. "That's what I've lived my life to do today. ...I am not one bit concerned about those points.
I'm so proud and honored to be a part of this team and to have the opportunity to run at Darlington like I did 15 years ago. That's a big deal to me."
6th - Tony Stewart
Stewart's 17th place finish eliminated him from title contention. He trails by 185 points, and unless the five drivers ahead of him don't show up at Homestead the most he can make up is 156 points.
After struggling through a tough day and making wholesale changes to his No. 20 Chevrolet in attempt to make it better, Stewart summed up the day: "I'm glad this is over."
7th - Ryan Newman
Two flat tires and a blown engine made for a tough day for Newman, who finished 34th. His No. 12 Dodge had been among the fastest in Saturday's practice sessions.
"We had the car to do it today. It's just unfortunate that the motor let go," he said.
8th - Matt Kenseth
Kenseth finished 20th, his third consecutive week with a finish of 20th or lower. He has had four finishes of 20th or worse in the nine Chase races.
9th - Elliott Sadler
A move to a backup car after a run-in with the wall in a Saturday practice didn't turn out well for Sadler, who finished 23rd. "I just hung on for 500 miles and tried to make the most of the day," he said.
10th - Jeremy Mayfield
Mayfield, who finished 19th, was all over the map, and the track. His No. 19 Dodge would change from good to bad faster than his team could make adjustments.
"I rode the wall a couple of times and just couldn't get off of it," he said. "We went the wrong way for a while and then we got good again."
...AND THE CHASERS
Kasey Kahne came close to completing a NASCAR sweep this weekend.
He won a Busch race last season, and then added a Truck Series victory to his resume Saturday night at Darlington.
Late in Sunday's Southern 500, Jamie McMurray and Kahne stayed out while the rest of the leaders pitted for fresh tires on the during the final caution. Kahne battled hard with McMurray and then Jeff Gordon before falling to fifth at the finish.
"We stayed out and survived," Kahne said. "You never know what to do, but everybody came down so we thought we'd stay out."
Carl Edwards (seventh) earned his fifth top-10 finish in 12 career starts this season.
Mike Bliss made his first start in the No. 0 Chevrolet after
replacing Ward Burton, and brought the car home in 10th. Bliss will be in the car again at Homestead.
Joe Nemechek finished eighth, the seventh time in the past nine races he's finished 12th or better.
Bobby Labonte came back from a spin off Turn 4 to finish ninth for his second straight top-10 finish.