September 17, 2006

Loudon: 2006 Chase Race 1

(Filed under: Race Recap)

Kevin Harvick wins the first of the 10-race Chase and takes the points lead for the first time in his Nextel Cup career. He dominated the race, too, leading almost two-thirds of the laps. Last week I said he was on fire, and he is.

Last week I also said you can never count out Jimmie Johnson, but with his 39th place finish maybe you can count him out. Kyle Busch also had a bad day and could be on the outs. Denny Hamlin and Jeff Gordon, however, had great days, finishing 4th and 3rd respectively, and moving up to 2nd and 4th in the standings. Jeff Burton came home with 7th, but more importantly managed to get a decent finish--not in the top five like he ran much of the day, but at least a top 10. Kenseth, Martin, Earnhardt and Kahne (10th, 11th, 13th and 16th), however, need to have stronger finishes.

11th is OK, but it may not be enough. But you have to give Mark Martin props for the move he made on Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Ryan Newman towards the end of the race, going three wide to pass both of them. Stealing two positions like that in the closing laps of a race is what you have to do. 11th may not be enough, but it's certainly better than 13th.

Posted by kevin at September 17, 2006 3:49 PM

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