Not a 'Good Year' at Charlotte
Jimmie Johnson won his 'home town' race at the Lowe's Charlotte Motor Speedway, his fourth in a row at his sponsor's track, and the win vaulted him into a tie with Tony Stewart for the lead in the chase heading into the final five races.
The big problem all night - on prime time television - was the Good Year tires. They were only good for about 17-20 laps, which put a damper on
the whole night. Jeff Gordon, Dale Jr., Ryan Newman, Bobby Hamilton Jr, Serling Marlin, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Rusty Wallace, Tony Stewart, Elliot Sadler, Scott Riggs and Kasey Kahne all had tire problems that pretty much ended their night.
Winner Johnson also had a flat, under yellow, that sent him to the back, but he still made it back to the front. Also, keep in mind, that Johnson started 41st, with no cooling fans, no drink bottle, no tire fans, due to a charging problem. Even with all that going on, the #48 team rallied to take the win.
Mark Martin, with a top five, had the best quote of the night. Early on in the race, on his radio, he was not impressed by having to constantly pass
the #01 of Joe Nemechek. He was upset because his crew had problems each time Martin stopped, so he'd have to overtake Nemechek each time the race restarted. "Am I gonna' have to pass the 01 forty times tonight?" Ironically, with Martin finishing fifth, take a guess where the 01 finished...right, 4th.
Stewart took a hit in the points, and his lead is gone, and in post race interviews he wasn't too impressed with how his lead vanished - he was one of the tire victims, while leading. Stewart should be happy that he was the only one that could afford a night like this, and still come out with the points lead, well tied for it anyhow. Anytime you can finish 26th and still load up in the lead - it's a good night.
Jimmie Johnson won his 'home town' race at the Lowe's Charlotte Motor Speedway, his fourth in a row at his sponsor's track, and the win vaulted him into a tie with Tony Stewart for the lead in the chase heading into the final five races.
The big problem all night - on prime time television - was the Good Year tires. They were only good for about 17-20 laps, which put a damper on
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| Jimmie Johnson won his 'home town' race at the Lowe's Charlotte Motor Speedway. |
Winner Johnson also had a flat, under yellow, that sent him to the back, but he still made it back to the front. Also, keep in mind, that Johnson started 41st, with no cooling fans, no drink bottle, no tire fans, due to a charging problem. Even with all that going on, the #48 team rallied to take the win.
Mark Martin, with a top five, had the best quote of the night. Early on in the race, on his radio, he was not impressed by having to constantly pass
 |
| Martin was upset because his crew had problems each time he stopped. |
Stewart took a hit in the points, and his lead is gone, and in post race interviews he wasn't too impressed with how his lead vanished - he was one of the tire victims, while leading. Stewart should be happy that he was the only one that could afford a night like this, and still come out with the points lead, well tied for it anyhow. Anytime you can finish 26th and still load up in the lead - it's a good night.