Pit Picks Review – Kobalt Tools 500 (Atlanta)
Well we’re four races in, and one thing is becoming quite clear. The Blue Deuce is going to be a factor this season. It looks like the new Dodge engine the Penske squad is running, is money on the intermediate speedways. It didn’t matter who he was running down, or who was trying to run him down, Kurt had the answer every time. If the package performs as well on the smaller tracks, the Miller Lite Dodge should have a spot in The Chase after a one year absense.
A caution in the middle of a green flag pit cycle threw a big wrench (not the one Kurt is holding in the picture) into the chances of most of the field. Thanks to an absent minded crewman from the #47 team chasing a tire across the infield, several cars were trapped laps down, and struggled all day to get them back. The incident occured with only 6 cars on the lead lap. By the end of the race, only 12 cars had completed all 330 laps.
Group 1 – Jimmie Johnson(8) & Kyle Busch(8)
I went with Jimmie over Kyle in this one, and was rewarded with a 9th place finish and a 10 point bonus for leading a lap. He tied for third overall for the group (with Kevin Harvick) after Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards. Kyle finished mid-pack in 18th, thanks mostly to some untimely cautions, which pinned him laps down in traffic and he was never really a factor.
Group 2 – Kurt Busch(7), Tony Stewart(7), David Reutimann(9), Brian Vickers(9)
Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart got the nod this week. Kurt thanks to his qualifying effort (outside front row, which almost assured him of leading a lap with Martin on the inside). I definitely wasn’t disappointed, thanks to a domininant performance by the #2 car. Busch won the race, and led the most laps, plus qualified second to score just 5 points under the max of 120. Stewart didn’t look good in practice, but he ran well and finished 8th for a decent points day. Vickers knocked down another top 5 and was second only to Busch in this group. Reutimann had a performance I’m sure he’d like to forget, and finished 32nd.
Group 3 – AJ Allmendinger(5), Bobby Labonte(9)
AJ Allmendinger got his 4th straight start for my squad, and had a respectible 17th place finish, the last car 2 laps down. The finish was, however, tops for the third group. Several teams took Bobby Labonte for the race after last week’s top 5, and were dinged big time for it, with a 40th place finish after engine problems forced them out. Prior to that, he was all over the track and could never get a handle on the car.
Recap
- Points for this race: 333 (Johnson, Ku. Busch, Stewart, Allmendinger)
- Most Possible Points: 367 (J. Gordon (Martin qual), Ku. Busch, Vickers (McMurray, Montoya qual), Allmendinger)
- Season Points : 1164
- Current Place : 1st
- Lead over 2nd : 85
- Overall Percentile : 99th (2726 overall)
Photo Credit: Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR
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