Richmond International Raceway isn't known as "The Action Track" for nothing. It definitely lived up to its billing in Saturday night's "Crown Royal presents the Matthew and Daniel Hansen 400" with storylines and fireworks from the drop of the green flag. Would Denny Hamlin sweep the weekend? Would Kyle Busch continue his short track dominance and win three spring Richmond races in a row? Would polesitter Juan Pablo Montoya score his first oval track win? Would Dale Jr finally win at one of his best tracks? All of these questions would be answered in just 400 short miles.
But first, I just want to say what a great thing Crown Royal is doing with their "Your Name Here 400" promotion, which started so a fan would have the opportunity to have their name on a NASCAR race and now has turned into a wonderful tribute to our military men and women. This year's race was the "Matthew and Daniel Hansesn 400." Matthew and Daniel Hansen are twin brothers who enlisted in the Marines. Matthew was deployed and served in Operation Iraqi Freedom, while Daniel was selected to protect President George W. Bush at Camp David and Lieutenant General Richard C. Zilmer in Iraq. Daniel was tragically killed in action by an IED while supporting combat operations in Iraq in 2009. This race not only recognized Matthew, but also payed tribute to Daniel and both of their sacrifices. Words like "hero" and "greatness" and "legend" are used a lot in the sports world, but the Hansen brothers, and all of the men and women of our Armed Forces, exemplify these words. They are the real heroes. The bravery and courage they show everyday is unparalleled and they can never be thanked enough. To see Matthew Hansen give the command to start engines Saturday night, teary eyed and filled with pride, put everything into perspective. God bless the Hansen brothers, our Armed Forces and America.
After that poignant moment, Juan Montoya and Regan Smith led the field to the green and kicked off the racing action. Montoya was quickly overtaken by Clint Bowyer's #33, but everyone had their eye on Denny Hamlin's #11 Toyota. As he had done all weekend, Hamlin started out back, but quickly worked his way to the front. The racing was amazing for the first 100 or so laps, but the real fireworks started with the first caution flag. Montoya had been on a backslide and was hooked off turn two by Ryan Newman. Newman, who could have lifted and given a little room to teh 42 that early on, caused the back of the Target car to hit the wall and the spoiler to hook to the SAFER barrier and the decklid to fly off. After lengthy repairs to the Target Chevy, Newman's car would prove to be the car with the bullseye on it.
The race went back to green with Kyle Busch as the leader with teammate Hamlin in tow. Jeff Gordon had also emerged as an early contender in third. After a little more green flag racing, Montoya and Newman found each other again. This time, Montoya (very skillfully) slid his #42 across the back of Newman's #39, sending the ARMY car into the turn four wall. Newman, ever the crybaby, later took his "case" to NASCAR expecting a response to JPM's actions. None was given. Great call NASCAR! If Newman can't handle beating and banging on a short track, then he needs to find a new career because this racecar driver thing isn't for him. Have at it boys!
The action continued with Busch, Hamlin, Gordon and Martin Truex, Jr up front. Truex grabbed the lead in a three wide battle with Busch and Hamlin on lap 246 and proved his NAPA Ultimate Tune Up Toyota would be a force. While these three battled for the lead, the field wrecked behind them. Matt Kenseth thought there was room up top, but when he slid up, Bowyer hooked him and turned the Crown Royal Ford into the wall with Paul Menard. The wreck also collected David Reutimann and Mark Martin. Other than Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski going around, that was the last of the wrecking action.
The other hot topic to surface was the X-rated radio chatter. Kurt Busch was the biggest offender, dropping F-bombs like its going out of style and going as far a calling out Penske Racing management by name. The other was Truex, Jr. With about thirty laps remaining in the race, he pitted for a loose wheel and his crew missed a lugnut, supposedly due to a broken stud. A very livid Truex screamed at his crew, saying "You're all f***ing fired! Every g**damn one of ya!" Debates raged about whether or not these incidents warranted a talking to from their respective owners. In Kurt's case, he's always a hot head, he's always been a hot head and he always will be a hothead. Getting a scolding from Roger Penske is not going to change anything. And Truex said what he said out of heat of the moment anger. He had every right to be upset (his potentially race winning car finished 27th) and he has had a rough four or five weeks in a row. Sometimes enough is enough.
So with little help from caution flags and little challenge from Hamlin, Kyle Busch went on to win his third spring Richmond race in a row. It seems to be turning into a springtime ritual. The flowers bloom, the leaves turn green and Kyle Busch wins at Richmond. But Busch fan or not, you have to be excited by the racing that we saw. Three and four wide passes almost all night long, wrecks here and there, a newly formed rivalry and best of all... Jimmie Johnson was nowhere to be found!! It's always nice when the #48 team gives someone else a chance to win a race once in a while. So now it's on to Darlington Raceway. Denny Hamlin scored the win there last season in NASCAR's lone trip to "The Lady in Black." Will he repeat or will someone else conquer the track "Too Tough to Tame?"
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