Atlanta - Pep Boys Auto 500
RACE WINNER: JIMMIE JOHNSON
Our Boys Running Order:
8. Kurt (started 2nd)
10. Brian (started 14th)
11. Michael (started 24th)
12. Casey (started 15th)
19. DJ (started 3rd)
25. Dale Jr. (started 5th)
31. Martin (started 20th)
DNQ David
This race was actually one that all our boys were running fairly well, but some unfortunately were taken out. Kurt had a great car and led nearly 100 laps, but pit road was really biting him in the butt. I love Kurt’s team and they are usually awesome on their pit stops but Atlanta was not their weekend. By the end of the race Kurt’s frustrations were boiling over as they continued to lose him spots. I’m not a big fan of drivers shrieking at their crews but this time I understood why he was doing it. Thankfully the car was good enough to make up for lost ground but I’m not sure if it got as high of a finish as it may have been capable of.
Both of our DEI guys were having great days until the last few laps. Denny Hamlin did not pit and in doing so put himself at risk of running out of fuel. What amazes me is that they were also aware that water was mixing in with their fuel, but stayed out anyway. He led the restart and immediately ran out of gas, but instead of getting out of the way he moved down in the middle of the track in front of everyone! And of course Martin smashed right into the back of him. Yeah, yeah, I guess that Hamlin may have been shocked, confused, desperate, or whatever, but I think back to a quote by Kevin Harvick: “Usually, when you're out of gas, you get out of the racing groove.” So Martin was creamed. The next restart would come with a similar result for Junior…as he dove in turn 1 his left rear wheel split from the #8 and went careening into the air. Dale Jr. shot into the fence, taking out Jamie McMurray with him. As much as it sucked for McMurray I was glad he was there because he broke the momentum of the crash, which was a really hard one. I’ll admit I held my breath and prayed to anything that would listen that Junior was okay…those limp slides down the banking scare me after wrecks and I freaked out a little bit that ESPN took their time in showing that he was moving inside the car.
Brian, Michael, Casey and Dale had good days, and it was nice to see the Toyotas with those kind of finishes. This is Michael’s third top 20 in a row! And DJ’s best finish of the year! It must have felt great for Brian to get another top 10 after not making a race since Talladega. As for Casey, he was ESPN’s In-Race Reporter. Only they talked to him once, before the race started, and ignored him the rest of the day. Wow. Gotta love ESPN.
David hasn’t missed a race for a long time so it was really odd watching Atlanta without him. When Michael DNQed for the first time back in 2006, I kept “seeing” his car on the track and expecting his name to show up in the running order, and it was the same with David. I guess it’s comparable to the phenomenon of getting your leg chopped off but thinking it’s still there…
Our Boys Point Standings
- Driver Points -
9. Kurt -419 behind 1st
12. Martin -513 behind 1st
13. Dale Jr. --
14. Casey -79 behind 13th
- Owner Points -
38. David -409 behind 35th
39. Brian -434 behind 35th
40. Michael -795 behind 35th
41. DJ -856 behind 35th
Our Boys Running Order:
8. Kurt (started 2nd)
10. Brian (started 14th)
11. Michael (started 24th)
12. Casey (started 15th)
19. DJ (started 3rd)
25. Dale Jr. (started 5th)
31. Martin (started 20th)
DNQ David
This race was actually one that all our boys were running fairly well, but some unfortunately were taken out. Kurt had a great car and led nearly 100 laps, but pit road was really biting him in the butt. I love Kurt’s team and they are usually awesome on their pit stops but Atlanta was not their weekend. By the end of the race Kurt’s frustrations were boiling over as they continued to lose him spots. I’m not a big fan of drivers shrieking at their crews but this time I understood why he was doing it. Thankfully the car was good enough to make up for lost ground but I’m not sure if it got as high of a finish as it may have been capable of.
Both of our DEI guys were having great days until the last few laps. Denny Hamlin did not pit and in doing so put himself at risk of running out of fuel. What amazes me is that they were also aware that water was mixing in with their fuel, but stayed out anyway. He led the restart and immediately ran out of gas, but instead of getting out of the way he moved down in the middle of the track in front of everyone! And of course Martin smashed right into the back of him. Yeah, yeah, I guess that Hamlin may have been shocked, confused, desperate, or whatever, but I think back to a quote by Kevin Harvick: “Usually, when you're out of gas, you get out of the racing groove.” So Martin was creamed. The next restart would come with a similar result for Junior…as he dove in turn 1 his left rear wheel split from the #8 and went careening into the air. Dale Jr. shot into the fence, taking out Jamie McMurray with him. As much as it sucked for McMurray I was glad he was there because he broke the momentum of the crash, which was a really hard one. I’ll admit I held my breath and prayed to anything that would listen that Junior was okay…those limp slides down the banking scare me after wrecks and I freaked out a little bit that ESPN took their time in showing that he was moving inside the car.
Brian, Michael, Casey and Dale had good days, and it was nice to see the Toyotas with those kind of finishes. This is Michael’s third top 20 in a row! And DJ’s best finish of the year! It must have felt great for Brian to get another top 10 after not making a race since Talladega. As for Casey, he was ESPN’s In-Race Reporter. Only they talked to him once, before the race started, and ignored him the rest of the day. Wow. Gotta love ESPN.
David hasn’t missed a race for a long time so it was really odd watching Atlanta without him. When Michael DNQed for the first time back in 2006, I kept “seeing” his car on the track and expecting his name to show up in the running order, and it was the same with David. I guess it’s comparable to the phenomenon of getting your leg chopped off but thinking it’s still there…
Our Boys Point Standings
- Driver Points -
9. Kurt -419 behind 1st
12. Martin -513 behind 1st
13. Dale Jr. --
14. Casey -79 behind 13th
- Owner Points -
38. David -409 behind 35th
39. Brian -434 behind 35th
40. Michael -795 behind 35th
41. DJ -856 behind 35th
