Sunday, July 29, 2007
TODAY'S SCHEDULE (all times local):
| 7 a.m. | Public Gates Open |
| 10:30-11:30 a.m. | Jeff Taylor Concert, choosechevy.com Stage, behind Hall of Fame Museum |
| Noon-1 p.m. | Jo Dee Messina Concert, choosechevy.com Stage, behind Hall of Fame Museum |
| 1:30 p.m. | NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Driver Introductions |
| 1:58 p.m. | "America the Beautiful" performed by the Indiana State University Marching Band |
| 2:01 p.m. | Invocation, Rev. Howard Brammer |
| 2:01 p.m. | National anthem performed on trumpet by Sgt. Byron Bartosh, Indiana National Guard |
| 2:03 p.m. | Flyover by B-1 Lancers from the 37th Bomb Squadron, Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota |
| 2:08 p.m. | Command to Start Engines, Mari Hulman George, Chairman of the Board, Indianapolis Motor Speedway |
| 2:20 p.m. | Actor James Denton waves green flag for the start of 14th Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, 160 laps, 400 miles |
***
Jason Leffler won the Kroger 200 benefiting Riley Hospital for Children NASCAR Busch Series race Saturday night at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. It was the first NASCAR Busch Series victory for Toyota.
2007 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard starters Greg Biffle, David Reutimann and Carl Edwards finished second, third and fourth, respectively.
***
Kyle Petty will make his 800th career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series start today.
***
Goodyear Tire notes for this event:
•Tire Codes: Left-side – D-4100; Right-side -- D-4102
•Tire Circumference: Left-side – 87.4 in.; Right-side – 88.6 in.
•Minimum Recommended Inflation: Left Front – 17 psi; Left Rear – 17 psi;
Right Front – 37 psi; Right Rear – 33 psi
•This is the first time Goodyear has brought this combination of left- and right-side tires to the
track. Indianapolis is the only track at which teams will run this combination this season.
***
Reed Sorenson, 21, became the youngest pole winner of a major event in Indianapolis Motor Speedway history Saturday.
Rex Mays was 22 years, two months, when he won the pole for the 1935 Indianapolis 500. Lewis Hamilton was 22 years, five months, when he won the pole for the 2007 United States Grand Prix.
Kyle Busch is the youngest pole winner ever for a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series event. He was 19 when he won the pole Feb. 27, 2005 in Fontana, Calif.
Actor James Denton, star of the hit ABC series "Desperate Housewives," is the grand marshal of this event. He will wave the green flag to start the race. Denton met with the media this morning in the Economaki Press Conference Room.
JAMES DENTON: (Are you nervous about your duties today?): "You know, I wouldn't say nervous. It's interesting; it's a whole different kind of adrenaline. It's something I've never done. It seems silly; it's certainly a big responsibility. I have been talking to NASCAR officials about the fact that restarts are different, but the green flag is kind of important. I think they've taught me well. So I am going to try not to screw it up. I have never done anything … you know, I am a theater guy. I've always performed in front of live audiences, but we never had a house that held 300,000. It's a very unique opportunity to screw up. And I'll do all that I can not to." (Have you ever been around a track before): "I haven't. I've seen a lot of races on TV. I've never been to a race before. Most of my family are fans of NASCAR. I grew up in Nashville. In fact, my brother-in-law came with me, and I gave him for his birthday, he's going to do 25 laps at one of the Jeff Gordon schools. That's pretty exciting for him. But I just haven't had time. But I'd love to. It would be pretty exciting." (Impression of NASCAR): "The first thing is hot. NASCAR is so hot right now, so popular. So much money, huge dollars involved. I kind of resisted, I'll be honest, I am a big baseball fan, big Colts fan, because I went to Tennessee long before Peyton, but I'm a Peyton Manning guy. So, I follow enough sports as it is. I own a minor-league baseball team with a bunch of other guys. I don't have that kind of money. I own a note on a baseball team. It's like owning a house—no, you own a mortgage—you don't own a house, unless you're lucky. I am so tied up in other sports that I kind of resisted NASCAR. When I was a kid, I followed Richard Petty and had a bunch of Richard Petty cars when I was in high school. But after that, I just got tied up in baseball and fantasy baseball. I resisted the NASCAR craze for a long time, like a lot of the sports talk guys. I know Jim Rome personally, and he's one of the guys that beat up on NASCAR and it not being that interesting. He got to know a bunch of the drivers and got caught up in it. It's pretty common, I think, for people to not understand it, like I didn't. And it just kind of sucks you in. I know that after being at my first race live today, I've been told that there's no turning back. It is interesting to me. I'm anxious to be here. It's fascinating to me how it is sweeping the nation; the number of people involved, the spectacle. It's like the Super Bowl every weekend. The timing is perfect for me. I have just started following these guys in the last year and the Chase and all of that stuff and trying to learn it. It's really nice of Allstate to bring me out." (What is it like for IMS to be your first track to attend a race?): "That's another great thing. It's a really storied, great historic venue in the world of sports, not just car racing. So it's really exciting that this is the first track I got to come to. Just driving in and seeing all of the haulers and the number of people and the number of seats alone. Then knowing how many people are going to be here; it's really unbelievable. Already before it's full, it kind of gives you goose bumps when you see the magnitude of it. And then the history of this track for almost a hundred years now. It's pretty cool."
***
RACE SPECIFICS:
•Eight-time Allstate 400 at the Brickyard starter Brett Bodine drives the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Pace Car during the race. There will be three pace laps before the race starts.
•There will be two competition caution periods, after 15 laps and after 40 laps.
•Pit-road speed limit is 55 mph.
•The Pace Car speed will be 65 mph during caution periods.
•The race distance is 160 laps/400 miles on the 2.5-mile oval.
•The estimated pit window is every 36 to 38 laps, based on fuel mileage.
•The flagmen for today's race are Rick Monroe and Rodney Wise.
John Barnes, the co-owner of two-time IndyCar Series champion Panther Racing, is attending the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard today.
JOHN BARNES: "Just seeing a lot of dear friends of mine that I've had the pleasure of being around for a long time. Robbie Loomis from Petty Enterprises, Ricky Rudd, a lot of people. I've hung out with them for a while." (Is today an opportunity to talk a little business, perhaps talk to a few sponsors, or strictly pleasure?): "Just for fun today. I was out here Friday, that's the day we did that (talked business), talked to a few different people. Today we're just out here with a suite full of people here and just see the people from Goodyear, Robbie, the Petty's and people we've known for a long while." (Does it feel strange to come here, to this racetrack, and not work?): "Yeah it is, but it's OK. I could get real used to it real quick."
***
Nicole Rash, 2007 Miss Indiana, is serving as an honorary crew member for the #96 DLP HDTV Chevrolet driven by Tony Raines, a native of LaPorte, Ind.
***
RACE RUNNING:
·At 2:05 p.m., the ambient temperature was 84 degrees with a relative humidity of 40 percent and northeast winds at 12 mph. Track temperature was 135 degrees. Skies were sunny.
#07 Clint Bowyer will move to the rear of the field on the pace laps due to an engine change after qualifying.
2:10 p.m. – Command to start engines by Mari Hulman George, Indianapolis Motor Speedway chairman of the board.
2:14 p.m. – All 43 starters pull away on first pace lap.
Lap 1: GREEN. Grand marshal James Denton waves green flag to start 14th Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. #41 Sorenson leads into Turn 1. #8 Earnhardt, who started fourth, passes #42 Montoya for second at the start-finish line.
•Reed Sorenson led Lap 1, continuing the streak of the pole winner leading the first lap of all 14 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard races.
Lap 2: #41 Sorenson leads #8 Earnhardt by .673 of a second.
Lap 3: #20 Stewart under #9 Kahne for eighth entering Turn 3. #41 Sorenson leads #8 Earnhardt by .581 of a second.
Lap 4: #20 Stewart up to sixth.
Lap 5: #41 Sorenson leads #8 Earnhardt by .490 of a second.
Lap 6: #41 Sorenson leads #8 Earnhardt by .703 of a second.
Lap 7: #12 Newman, who started third, running 10th. #29 Harvick, who started 20th, up to eighth.
Lap 8: #66 Green to pits, right front tire change. Green made contact with wall in Turn 2 on prior lap. #20 Stewart passed #2 Ku. Busch for fifth.
Lap 9: #24 Gordon, who started 21st, up to 11th. #66 Green returns to pits for drive-through penalty for speeding on pit road.
Lap 10: #41 Sorenson leads #8 Earnhardt by .608 of a second.
Lap 11: #17 Kenseth, who started 31st, up to 19th.
Lap 13: #41 Sorenson leads #8 Earnhardt by .697 of a second.
Lap 14: #20 Stewart passed #31 J. Burton for third at start-finish line.
Lap 16: YELLOW. #66 Green does half-spin into SAFER Barrier exiting Turn 3. Car spins to apron, continues. Heavy damage to rear of car. Team reports right-rear tire failure.
Lap 16: All cars to pits for competition caution. #41 Sorenson first, #20 Stewart second.
Lap 16 pit stop report: Four tires and gas: #24 J. Gordon, 16 seconds; #00 Reutimann, 21 seconds; #99 Edwards, 11 seconds; #31 J. Burton, 15 seconds; #1 Truex, 26 seconds; #18 Yeley, 27 seconds; #8 Earnhardt, 14 seconds; #83 Vickers, 13 seconds; #42 Montoya, 14 seconds; #19 Sadler, 16 seconds; #7 R. Gordon, 15 seconds; #10 Riggs, 16 seconds; #25 Mears, 16 seconds; #11 Hamlin, 16 seconds; #16 Biffle, 56 seconds; #20 Stewart, 15 seconds. Four tires, gas, air pressure, chassis adjustment: #29 Harvick, 14 seconds; #17 Kenseth, 28 seconds; #2 Ku. Busch, 14 seconds; #26 McMurray. Four tires, gas, chassis adjustment: #48 Johnson, 13 seconds; #96 Raines, 34 seconds. Four tires, gas, pressure adjustment: #5 Ky. Busch, 14 seconds; #41 Sorenson, 19 seconds; #24 J. Gordon; #40 Stremme, #21 Elliott.
#01 Martin reports loss of second gear.
Lap 17: Running order after pit stops: #20 Stewart, #8 Earnhardt, #41 Sorenson, #31 J. Burton, #42 Montoya.
Lap 20: GREEN. #8 Earnhardt passes #20 Stewart for lead at start-finish line, just before caution.
Lap 21: YELLOW. #12 Newman does half-spin in Turn 4, hits SAFER Barrier with left side of car. Heavy left front damage, left-side damage. Car continues to garage. #11 Hamlin to pits with left front damage.
Lap 23: #7 R. Gordon to pits to bleed brakes.
Lap 25: GREEN. Restart order: #8 Earnhardt, #20 Stewart, #41 Sorenson, #31 J. Burton, #42 Montoya. #8 Earnhardt leads #20 Stewart by .527 of a second.
Lap 35: #8 Earnhardt leads #20 Stewart by 1.756 seconds. #12 Newman, #66 Green out of race due to earlier incidents.
RYAN NEWMAN: "It's unfortunate. It was a pretty good lick into the wall, and it ended our day. It's devastating in more than one way. It just depends on how far we have to come back."
Lap 40: YELLOW. #96 Raines spins in Turn 1, hits SAFER Barrier. #9 Kahne hits right side of Raines. #7 R. Gordon spins to avoid #96 Raines, #9 Kahne. Heavy damage to rear and right side of #96 Raines. Heavy damage to front of #9 Kahne.
Field to pits for service. Pit stop report: #25 Mears, 17 seconds; #19 Sadler, 74 seconds; #20 Stewart, 12 seconds; #26 McMurray 18 seconds; #42 Montoya, 16 seconds; #16 Biffle, 1 minute, 53 seconds, replace radio; #83 Vickers, 20 seconds; #8 Earnhardt, 15 seconds; #2 Ku. Busch, 16 seconds; #48 Johnson, 16 seconds; #5 Ky. Busch, 16 seconds; #7 R. Gordon, 17 seconds; #10 Riggs, 27 seconds; #11 Hamlin, 25 seconds; #41 Sorenson, 16 seconds; #25 Mears, 20 seconds; #31 J. Burton, 17 seconds; #24 J. Gordon, 17 seconds; #29 Harvick, 13 seconds; #1 Truex, 13 seconds; #18 Yeley, 19 seconds; #17 Kenseth, 19 seconds; #01 Bowyer, 12 seconds; #99 Edwards, 22 seconds; #00 Reutimann, 28 seconds.
Running order after pit stops: #8 Earnhardt, #20 Stewart, #42 Montoya, #24 Gordon, #41 Sorenson.
Lap 44: GREEN. #8 Earnhardt leads #20 Stewart by .368 of a second.
Lap 45: YELLOW. #48 Johnson, #26 McMurray collide side-by-side in Turn 1, triggering eight-car accident. Left-front damage for #48 Johnson, heavy rear damage for #7 R. Gordon, #10 Riggs. Also involved: #21 Elliott, #18 Yeley, #88 Rudd, #99 Edwards.
Lap 46: #26 McMurray, #18 Yeley to garage for repairs. Other six cars involved to pit road for repairs. #48 Johnson in pits for 50 seconds for repairs. #10 Riggs in pits for 1 minute, 56 seconds for repairs.
Lap 50: #96 Raines out of race. #99 Edwards to pits, 39 seconds, reports flat-spotted tires. #00 Reutimann to pits, 21 seconds; #17 Kenseth to pits, 47 seconds; #1 Truex to pits, 19 seconds.
Lap 53: GREEN. Restart order – #8 Earnhardt, #20 Stewart, #24 J. Gordon, #42 Montoya, #41 Sorenson.
Lap 54: #20 Stewart passes #8 Earnhardt for lead on backstretch with inside move. #10 Riggs to pits for 14 seconds.
Lap 55: YELLOW. #25 Mears, #19 Sadler spun entering Turn 3, collecting #45 Petty, #70 Sauter. #70 Sauter, #19 Sadler, #25 Mears make contact with SAFER Barrier. All four cars continue with damage. #70 Sauter, #25 Mears, #45 Petty to garage for repairs. #19 Sadler to pits for repairs. #10 Riggs returns to pits for 1 minute, 21 seconds for sheet-metal repairs.
Lap 56: #48 Johnson to pits for service, 16 seconds.
Lap 57: #48 Johnson to pits for more repairs, 1 minute, 30 seconds.
Lap 60: GREEN. Restart order – #20 Stewart, #8 Earnhardt, #24 J. Gordon, #42 Montoya, #01 Martin. Martin has no second gear and is experiencing problems with third gear.
Lap 62: YELLOW. #48 Johnson hits SAFER Barrier in Turn 3, car slides along SAFER Barrier through short chute between Turns 3 and 4 with flames trailing from car, crosses track and stops inside track in Turn 4. Heavy damage to front and right side of car. Johnson climbs from car quickly, without assistance. Safety crew extinguishes flames. #48 Johnson out of race.
Lap 63: Lead-lap cars to pits. #42 Montoya wins race off pit road. Fuel only and chassis adjustment for #42 Montoya, six seconds. Pit report: #20 Stewart, two tires, fuel, 9 seconds; #7 R. Gordon, 14 seconds; #2 Ku. Busch, 15 seconds, chassis adjustment, slow due to stuck lug nut on right rear tire; #8 Earnhardt, 10 seconds, left side tires only; #19 Sadler, 1 minute, 8 seconds; #42 Montoya, 6 seconds; #11 Hamlin, 10 seconds; #41 Sorenson, 12 seconds, chassis adjustment, two tires only; #22 Blaney, 6 seconds; #31 J. Burton, 11 seconds, right side tires only; #24 J. Gordon, 12 seconds; #29 Harvick, 10 seconds, right side tires only; #17 Kenseth, six seconds; #1 Truex, six seconds; #00 Reutimann, 32 seconds; #99 Edwards, #13 seconds; #01 Martin, 11 seconds, right side tires, chassis adjusment; #6 Ragan, two right side tires, gas; #40 Stremme, gas only; #19 Sadler, four
Lap 64: #9 Kahne out of race.
Lap 67: #26 McMurray returns to track after repairs, 21 laps down.
Lap 68: GREEN. Restart order: #5 Ky. Busch, #83 Vickers, #17 Kenseth, #1 Truex, #10 Riggs.
Lap 69: #42 Montoya up to third. #17 Kenseth second.
Lap 70: #5 Ky. Busch leads #17 Kenseth by 1.693 seconds.
Lap 73: #45 Petty leaves garage to return to track, 17 laps down.
Lap 75: #20 Stewart passes #42 Montoya for second.
Lap 77: YELLOW. Debris on frontstretch.
Lap 78: Pit stop report – #19 Sadler, 1 minute, 16 seconds; #10 Riggs, 9 seconds; #83 Vickers, 16 seconds; #7 R. Gordon, 14 seconds; #5 Ky. Busch, 15 seconds, chassis adjustment; #2 Ku. Busch, 15 seconds; #16 Biffle, 20 seconds; #11 Hamlin, 17 seconds; #00 Reutimann, 22 seconds; #22 Blaney, 15 seconds; #17 Kenseth, 15 seconds; #1 Truex, 12 seconds. #2 Ku. Busch, #07 Bowyer, #33 Wimmer collide on pit road. Contact between #07 Bowyer, #2 Ku. Busch results in sheet metal being torn off rear of #2 Ku. Busch's car.
Lap 79: #2 Ku. Busch returns to pits for check of damaged rear end sheet metal, chassis adjustment, 10 seconds.
Lap 80: GREEN. Restart order: #20 Stewart, #42 Montoya, #17 Kenseth, #31 J. Burton, #29 Harvick. #25 Mears returns to track after repairs, 26 laps down.
Top 10 at halfway: #20 Stewart, #42 Montoya, #17 Kenseth, #29 Harvick, #31 J. Burton, #1 Truex, #40 Stremme, #24 J. Gordon, #8 Earnhardt, #99 Edwards.
KASEY KAHNE: "We were just going backward. We didn't have a very good car. We were really surprised yesterday. It was a completely different car in practice. It wouldn't turn, and yesterday it was loose. As we were going back, he (Raines) was coming by me on the outside, and we were both losing traction. That's the way it goes, I guess."
Lap 86: #20 Stewart leads #42 Montoya by 2.705 seconds.
Lap 89: #33 Wimmer to garage to repair front left fender.
Lap 91: YELLOW. Debris.
TONY RAINES: "I can tell you what Kasey (Kahne) said to me. I went by him so fast on the outside that it got him loose and made him mad. So he said, 'I figured if I was going, I'd take you with me.' That's what he said to me. I guess he's having a bad day. It's a frustrating sport, and neither one of us want to be racing in the race like this today. When you win six races last year and you can't get out of your own way this year, I can understand the struggles. We go though that a little bit more than he does. I just don't like being the guy he takes it out on." (It looks like you had a good run going):"We were real tight, but we're we going to get better, for sure. We started off good and then had a bad pit stop on the first one, but we were moving forward. We caught the 9 car and passed him in (Turn) 3 and then I got a little tight off of (Turn) 4 and let off and he got beside me again, but then I thought that he had pulled down to let me go around him in Turn 1. His car wasn't handling great, I guess. I told you what he told me, and that's all I can go off of."
JIMMIE JOHNSON: "We didn't want to finish up that way, by any means, but unfortunately some early aggressive racing was taking place. The 11 got into the 17, and we all got piled up, and I got the car torn up initially there. Then we were just trying to get the car straightened back out and trying to get back on the lead lap, I had just got by the 88 to be in position for the 'Lucky Dog,' and the tire blew again going into Turn 3. Everybody's trying hard because track position's so important, but everybody's forgetting how aero-sensitive these cars are side-by-side on corner entry, and I got caught up in a wreck, then I saw my teammate and a group of cars make the same mistake going into Turn 3. It's just really tough running side-by-side and being aggressive at this track." (How disappointing is this, especially after such a tough race at Chicagoland Speedway?): "It's been a steady roll of bad races for us. We've had lots of speed. Chicago, we were in position to win, here we had a top-five car, but we don't have the results to show for it. We need to make sure we don't lose our focus, which is building fast race cars. And we continue to do that, but we can't control these outside elements. We'll sit down with the guys next week and get everybody pumped up. We've got to keep fighting and make sure we stay in this Chase."
Lap 92: All cars on track to pits except #49 Schrader, #18 Yeley. Pit report (all cars except Truex, Blaney four tires and gas, adjustments noted): #2 Ku. Busch, 1 minute, 14 seconds for repairs; #83 Vickers, 50 seconds, repairs, major chassis adjustment; #8 Earnhardt, 14 seconds; #5 Ky. Busch, 14 seconds, chassis adjustment; #11 Hamlin, 13 seconds; #42 Montoya, 17 seconds, chassis adjustment; #20 Stewart, 17 seconds, air pressure adjustment; #29 Harvick, 13 seconds, air pressure adjustment; #24 J. Gordon, chassis adjustment, 10 seconds; #31 J. Burton, 17 seconds, air pressure adjustment; #00 Reutimann, 23 seconds, reporting engine problems; #99 Edwards, 18 seconds; #01 Martin, 20 seconds; #1 Truex, 7 seconds, fuel only, chassis and air pressure adjustment; #17 Kenseth, 13 seconds; #22 Blaney, 7 seconds; fuel only.
Lap 93: #33 Wimmer returns to track after repairs to fix broken right suspension, 14 laps down.
Lap 98: GREEN. Restart order – #16 Biffle, #38 Gilliland, #07 Bowyer, #29 Harvick, #20 Stewart. Crew has changed Biffle's radio twice during pit stops.
Lap 100: Top 10 – #16 Biffle, #29 Harvick, #20 Stewart, #07 Bowyer, #42 Montoya, #5 Ky. Busch, #38 Gilliland, #31 J. Burton, #24 J. Gordon, #11 Hamlin. Thirty-one cars on lead lap.
Lap 102: #16 Biffle leads #29 Harvick by .277 of a second.
Lap 103: #29 Harvick passes #16 Biffle with inside move on back straightaway for lead. #29 Harvick leads #16 Biffle by .394 of a second at the start-finish line.
Lap 104: #20 Stewart passes #16 Biffle for second in Turn 1.
Lap 105: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .570 of a second. #42 Montoya third, 3.262 seconds behind leader.
Lap 106: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .390 of a second.
Lap 107: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .335 of a second.
Lap 108: #70 Sauter returns to race after repairs, 51 laps down. #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .229 of a second.
Lap 109: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .266 of a second.
Lap 110: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .184 of a second.
Lap 111: #20 Stewart passes #29 Harvick entering Turn 3 with inside move. Harvick attempted to regain lead in short chute, but Stewart keeps lead. #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by .271 of a second at line. #42 Montoya third. #40 Stremme hits concrete wall just past exit of Turn 4, continues to pits.
Lap 112: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by .859 of a second.
Lap 113: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 1.415 seconds. #5 Ky. Busch passes #42 Montoya for third.
Lap 114: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 2.028 seconds.
Lap 117: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 2.839 seconds. #5 Ky. Busch third, 5.176 seconds behind leader.
Lap 120: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 4.571 seconds.K
Lap 121: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 4.848 seconds.
Lap 124: #17 Kenseth to pits, four tires and fuel, 13 seconds. #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 5.529 seconds.
Lap 125: #16 Biffle, #99 Edwards, #1 Truex, #19 Sadler to pits for routine service.
Lap 126: #31 J. Burton to pits, four tires and fuel, 15 seconds.
Lap 127: #8 Earnhardt, #41 Sorenson, #01 Martin, #38 Gilliland to pits. Pit report: #8 Earnhardt, four tires and fuel, 14 seconds; #41 Sorenson, four tires, fuel, air pressure adjustment, 17 seconds.
Lap 128: #20 Stewart, #29 Harvick, #42 Montoya, #07 Bowyer, #24 J. Gordon to pits. #5 Ky. Busch takes lead. Pit report: #20 Stewart, four tires, fuel, air pressure adjustment, 13 seconds; #42 Montoya, four tires, fuel, air pressure adjustment, 14 seconds; #29 Harvick, four tires and fuel, 15 seconds; #24 J. Gordon, four tires, fuel, chassis adjustment, 14 seconds.
Lap 129: #5 Ky. Busch, #11 Hamlin to pits. #20 Stewart regains lead, leads by 2.910 seconds over #29 Harvick. Pit report: #5 Ky. Busch, four tires and fuel, 14 seconds; #11 Hamlin, four tires and fuel, 1 minute, 8 seconds, car ran out of fuel;
Lap 131: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 2.806 seconds.
Lap 133: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 3.506 seconds. #5 Ky. Busch third, 5.347 seconds behind leader.
Lap 136: Heavy smoke trailing from #8 Earnhardt on front straightaway.
Lap 137: YELLOW, due to smoke trailing from Earnhardt's car.
Lap 138: #8 Earnhardt stops on pit road as cars under power are pitting. Crew runs up pit road to push car to garage. Pit report: #2 Ku. Busch, four tires, fuel, 16 seconds; #5 Ky. Busch, four tires, fuel, 15 seconds; #16 Biffle, fuel only, 10 seconds; #22 Blaney, fuel only, eight seconds; #1 Truex, fuel only, eight seconds; #31 J. Burton, fuel, right-side tires, chassis adjustment, nine seconds.
Lap 141: GREEN. Restart order – #20 Stewart, #29 Harvick,#24 J. Gordon, #42 Montoya, #41 Sorenson. #29 Harvick passes #20 Stewart for lead in Turn 1. #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .330 of a second.
Lap 142: #42 Montoya passes #24 J. Gordon for third entering Turn 4. #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .410 of a second.
Lap 143: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .502 of a second.
Lap 144: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .349 of a second.
Lap 145: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .143 of a second.
Lap 146: #20 Stewart tries to pass #29 Harvick with inside move entering Turn 3, fails. #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .137 of a second.
Lap 147: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .265 of a second.
Lap 148: #20 Stewart tries to pass #29 Harvick with inside move entering Turn 3, cars almost touch, move fails. #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .236 of a second.
Lap 149: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by .294 of a second.
Lap 150: #29 Harvick leads #20 Stewart by ..114 of a second.
Lap 151: #20 Stewart passes #29 Harvick for lead in short chute between Turns 1 and 2. #29 Harvick moves side by side with #20 Stewart entering Turn 3, cars touch. Stewart keeps lead entering short chute between Turns 3 and 4, keeps lead by .307 of a second. #42 Montoya third, 1.398 seconds behind leader.
Lap 152: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by .964 of a second.
Lap 153: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 1.346 seconds. #42 Montoya third, 2.114 seconds behind leader.
Lap 154: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by .1763 seconds. #42 Montoya third, 2.286 seconds behind leader but only a half-second behind Harvick.
Lap 155: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 1.894 seconds.
Lap 156: #20 Stewart leads #29 Harvick by 2.605 seconds.
Lap 157: #42 Montoya passes #29 Harvick in Turn 1 for second. #24 J. Gordon uses outside move in Turn 4 to pass #29 Harvick for third. #20 Stewart leads #42 Montoya by 3.364 seconds.
Lap 158: #20 Stewart leads #42 Montoya by 3.128 seconds. #29 Harvick falls to sixth.
Lap 159: #20 Stewart leads #42 Montoya by 3.534 seconds. #24 J. Gordon third.
Lap 160: CHECKERED. #20 Tony Stewart wins the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard by 2.982 seconds over #42 Juan Pablo Montoya. #24 J. Gordon third. It is Stewart's second victory in this event, as he also won in 2005. Stewart climbs fence at Yard of Bricks with team.
WINNER'S QUICK QUOTE:
TONY STEWART: "This thing was pretty good in traffic all day. For some reason, I got really tight in Turn 1 on that restart. I was just trying to be patient. That's a hard guy to race with (Harvick). He's a clean guy. He's one of my best friends, and I can't think of another guy I'd want to race with for the lead. I felt good in the car today. This one is for everyone in the stands who pull for me and have to take all the bull(crap) from everyone else."
RUNNER-UP QUICK QUOTE:
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: "It was a lot of fun. My Texaco Havoline Dodge was amazing. I don't think anyone had anything for Tony. His car was way too fast. Second here at the Brickyard, it was awesome. We're getting closer. We're there already. We're just need to be the fastest car like Tony today."
***
ALLSTATE 400 AT THE BRICKYARD POST-RACE NOTES:
•This is Tony Stewart's second Allstate 400 at the Brickyard victory. He also won in 2005. He has six top-eight finishes in nine starts in this event.
•Juan Pablo Montoya's second-place finish is the best by a first-time starter in the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, not including the inaugural event in 1994. The previous best was third by Jamie McMurray in 2003.
•Juan Pablo Montoya's best finishes in all three major events at Indianapolis:
Indianapolis 500: First (2000)
Allstate 400 at the Brickyard: Second (2007)
United States Grand Prix: Fourth (2002)
•Juan Pablo Montoya's rookie finishes in all three major events at Indianapolis:
Indianapolis 500: First (2000)
Allstate 400 at the Brickyard: Second (2007)
United States Grand Prix: 18th (2001)
•Tony Stewart became the third multiple winner of this event. Jeff Gordon has won four times (1994, 1998, 2001, 2004). Dale Jarrett won in 1996 and 1999.
•Jeff Gordon finished third, his 11th top-eight finish in 14 starts at this event. It was his sixth top-three finish and eighth top-five finish at this event.
•Kyle Busch finished fourth, his third top-10 finish in three starts at this event.
•Reed Sorenson finished fifth, the third-best finish by an Allstate 400 at the Brickyard pole sitter. Kevin Harvick won from the pole in 2003, and Jeff Gordon finished third in 1999.
•Bill Elliott finished 23rd, one lap down. Elliott has completed 2,239 of the 2,241 laps in this event's 14-year history.
•Bill Elliott and Jeff Burton maintained their perfect record of running at the finish in all 14 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard events.
•Tony Stewart moved to second in all-time Allstate 400 at the Brickyard 400 laps led with 65 today, giving him a total of 215, second only to Jeff Gordon's 433. Stewart moved into a tie with Mark Martin for third in races led with five, behind Gordon's nine and Bill Elliott's six.
•Greg Biffle and Reed Sorenson led an Allstate 400 at the Brickyard for the first time.
•Tony Stewart's victory is the 31st of his NASCAR Nextel Cup career.
•Stewart tied Jeff Gordon's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard record of leading the race for seven times today, matching Gordon's total in the inaugural event in 1994.
•Today's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard was the second slowest in its history at an average speed of 117.379 mph. The slowest was 115.037 in 2004, won by Jeff Gordon.
•Tony Stewart's win over Juan Pablo Montoya by 2.982 seconds was the third-widest margin of victory in an Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. The widest was Bobby Labonte's win over Rusty Wallace by 4.229 seconds in 2000, and the second-widest was Dale Jarrett's win over Bobby Labonte by 3.351 seconds in 1999.
•Mark Martin's sixth-place finish gives him nine top-10 finishes in 14 starts here.
•Kevin Harvick's seventh-place finish gives him five top-eight finishes in seven starts here.
•Jeff Burton's eighth-place finish gives him three top-eight finishes in 14 starts here.
•Dave Blaney's ninth-place finish is his best in nine starts here. His previous best was 15th in 2002.
•Matt Kenseth's 10th-place finish was his fifth top-10 finish in eight starts here.
•Stewart's earnings of $488,111 in posted awards moved him to sixth place in all-time Allstate 400 at the Brickyard career earnings with $2,409,012.
***
The 15th Allstate 400 at the Brickyard is scheduled for Sunday, July 27, 2008.
Related Stories
- Tomorrow At The Track: Sunday, July 27
- Tomorrow At The Track: Friday, July 25
- Tomorrow At The Track: Saturday, July 26
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