Going into the FedEx 400 in Dover this weekend, certain names emmerged as the potential winners. Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards and New Jersey native Martin Truex, Jr were heavily favored to tame the Monster Mile. Even Denny Hamlin, whose Dover record isn't all that stellar, was expected to contend. One name that wasn't metioned a whole lot was that of Matt Kenseth. But that's how you know that the #17 team is going to have a great weekend. When the Kenseth crew has a quiet race, you know they will be contenders by the end of it. That's exactly what happened Sunday. The Wiley X Ford didn't make a lot of noise, just ran a solid top five most of the day. But when it came down to the final pit stops, thats when the game changed. Crew chief Jimmy Fenning planned to take four tires, until Kenseth asked how he fel about just taking two. Fenning called an audile, they changed two tires, came off pit road first and won the race.
With the forecast and the way the day started, it didn't look like we'd see any Sprint Cup racing Sunday. But the clouds parted, the sun broke through and the race ran it's 400 mile advertised distance. There was a brief caution for a little drizzle about halfway through but other than that, it was clear skys and exciting racing. Qualifing was scrubbed due to rain showers so Jimmie Johnson led the field to green (which would have probably happend if they had qualified anyway). All race long, it looked like Jimmie Johnson or Carl Edwards would be going to victory lane, with hardly anyone able to keep pace with them. I do want to give a shoutout to Marcos Ambrose though. He never led a lap Sunday, but he came damn close. He kept his DeWalt Ford up inside the top five for most of the race and made several charges at the lead and it looked like maybe he could score the victory. He did contend and finished a very stong third. With a run like that at a track that tough, I think that the Tazmanian Ambrose has finally shaken off that "road course specialist" label and proven that he is a Nascar racer.
Aside from a few cars spinnig now and then and the caution for rain, it was a fairly green race. Almost all the drivers complained about their cars being too tight. At one point, David Reutimann said it was like his front end wasn't even on the ground. His car took off towards the wall when he got back to the gas off the corner. This was attributed to the track taking too much rubber because of the tire Goodyear brought to the track. There was a problem back in Bristol (another concrete track) where the track stayed very white and the groove never blackened up with any rubber until late in the race itself. All of the drivers and crew cheifs were thrown by the sudden changes in their cars and this was also the case Sunday. There wasn't a lot a team could do to make their cars drive a whole lot better. So if somebody was going to take down the Johnson/Edwards tandem up front, they were going to have to do it on pit road.
At a regular asphalt track, if your car isn't handling right, you usually stick to a four tire strategy.
Two tires will just make your car drive worse. With the issues that teams had in Dover with how the track rrubbered up andhavign way too much grip, that was the game plan for most teams. But on the final caution, all the leaders pitted, except Mark Martin, and most of the leaders, specifically Edwards and Johnson took four tires. But Matt Kenseth, who had planned to take four, asked his crew chief what he thought about taking two tires instead. Jimmy Fenning's response: Do two tires! On the final restart, Martin managed to get a little lead over Kenseth, but his older tires soon gave up and Kenseth worked his way out to a lead of about one second. Meanwhile, Jimmie and Carl took four and were mired in the back of the pack. After what looked like it would be a Johnson/Edwards showdown, Matt Kenseth and his team, the "Killer Bees" (their nickname from when the team was sponsored by DeWalt), managed to steal one and drive t victory lane at the Monster Mile. This was also the first victory lane celebrtiton where both of Matt's daughters were able to share with their father, which made it more special for the 2003 Cup champion.
So with this unexpected, come from behind win, the Sprint Cup boys move on to the Sprint All Star Race in Charlotte this weekend. This race kicks off Charlote's version of Speedweeks, the two week streach of racing where the All Star race and Coca Cola 600 are run. This is also a special two weeks because the drivers and teams are back home in Charlotte and they get to sleep at home for once. There is also the Sprint Pit Crew Compertion at the Bobcats Arena where the unsung heros of the sport get their due. Then it all culmunates with the All Star race and Nascar's longest race, the Coke 600. With the recent Kyle Busch/Kevin Harvick feud and no points on the line, this years All Star race promises to be a real barn burner. It's gonna be a checkers or wreckers shootout on a Saturday night. And like the Elton John song says, "Saturday nights alright for fighting".
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