Jimmie Johnson had the dominant car once Mark Martin was speared by the pit wall opening in a scary, mid-race crash. But as J.J. was strolling to what would have been his series-leading fourth victory, a valve spring failed with less than 15 miles left to run. That handed Greg Biffle Christmas in August, gift-wrapping him a second victory after a green-white-checkered finish and a pesky push from Michigan native Brad Keselowski.
Jimmie Johnson, who had dominated the race, had his car get out from under him on the final restart and collected second-place Matt Kenseth. From there, it was on.
In an era where many drivers don’t know how to turn a wrench, it was a refreshing change to see Dale Earnhardt Jr. taking the bull by the horns and helping his crew when the No. 88 suffered a transmission failure. By the time his crew got to the garage from pit road, Earnhardt had the car up on jackstands on the left side and was working on the right. Although handling the jack might not seem like a big deal, it is on a couple of levels. One that a lot of drivers, including some championship-caliber ones, wouldn’t have thought to do that.
It was very nearly the end of the world… or so we thought. Actually, it was only Dale Earnhardt Jr. divesting himself of his adored No. 8.
Did You Notice? How the US Army’s departure from NASCAR puts the focus on the No. 88 car manned by the sport’s Most Popular Driver?
Was Tony Stewart’s victory-lane vitriol worth a few first-place votes? Or did Matt Kenseth’s dominant run impress our writers? Keep reading to find out.
Did Brad Keselowski’s win propel him atop our Power Rankings? Did Kyle Busch get any sympathy votes for his string of bad luck? Keep reading to find out.
It’s not all been doom and gloom in 2012 as already we’ve seen a number of positive themes and trends emerge.
Did You Notice? No Cup Series champion in the modern era has driven for a different team the following season?
Sonoma was vindication for Clint Bowyer’s move from Richard Childress Racing to Michael Waltrip Racing.