The Pit Stall

It’s a good time to be a Busch.  Kyle, the younger of the 2 brothers extended the family winning streak to 3 races with a dominant victory in the Food City 500 at Bristol.  Don’t be surprised to see one or both of the Vegas natives up front this coming weekend at Martinsville, trying to make it 4.

One of the bigger stories of the race would have to be Mark Martin and Ryan Newman.  Both were in danger of being a go or go homer at Martinsville, thanks to some bad luck to start the season.  They both nailed down top 10s to give them a little bit of breathing room from the 36th position.

Group 1 – Jeff Gordon(8) & Kyle Busch(8)

I gave Gordon the start as I expected him to get his first win in this one.  He managed a 4th place finish, yet didn’t lead a single lap.  Definitely a finish that doesn’t hurt in the grand scheme of things.  Kyle on the other hand dominated the race leading almost 80% of the laps, and finishing 1st.

Group 2 – Denny Hamlin(8), Kasey Kahne(7), Kurt Busch(7), Tony Stewart(7)

I went with Hamlin and Kahne for this one, and was rewarded with a pair of top 5 finishes.  Hamlin finished 2nd and led for 7 laps, and Kahne finished 5th.  Busch and Stewart weren’t terrible options either with 11th and 17th place finishes respectively.

Group 3 – Aric Almirola(8), Bobby Labonte(9)

Almirola had a decent qualifying effort, rolling off in 18th, but finished a lackluster 35th.  Labonte on the other hand put in a decent Group 3 performance, with a 22nd place finish. 

Recap

• Points for this race: 286 (Gordon, Hamlin, Kahne, Almirola)
• Most Possible Points: 393 (Ky. Busch(Martin qual), Hamlin, Newman, Ambrose)
• Season Points : 1450
• Current Place : 1st
• Lead over 2nd : 73
• Overall Percentile : 99th (2059 overall) 

Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR

Filed under: Pit Picks, Short Tracks by Site Admin - Wednesday, March 25th, 2009