Busch wins ... but this time it's Kurt
The Lenox Industrial Tools 301 is underway at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, where fears of rainfall have actually given way to the joy of hazy sunshine. We're not out of the woods yet, with a small band of storms headed this way, and a 50 percent chance of rain persisting, but we're nearing the midway point -- which would make this race official -- and this thing looks good for a Sunday completion.
So stay with us throughout the afternoon. As the cars make their ovals under us, let the Vitamin Water Hewlett Packard be your trackside team for all the details on the Home Depot Toyota, the Dupont Chevy, the DeWalt Ford and all the rest. We live by the creed that if you ain't typin' you ain't tryin', so we'll be here to keep you posted.
*Through 75 laps they've run a caution-free race, with Kevin Harvick and Dale Earnhardt Jr. emerging as the early cars to contend with, and leading all but the first four circuits at the quarter pole. Polesitter Patrick Carpentier paced the first four laps, then Harvick took over (leading 42 ovals), and eventually Earnhardt passed him to seize the point. Junior has been so quick he was the last car to make its green-flag pit stop, on lap 71, and still came out fourth.
*We're done with 100 laps and the running order is: Casey Mears, Kevin Harvick, Brian Vickers, Tony Stewart, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. Junior is eighth.
*Neither Mears nor Vickers pitted, the only ones among the field, when the caution flew for a Dario Franchitti crash. That's been a huge factor in their presence at the front.
*Polesitter Carpentier has slid to 31st by lap 117, though off-pole driver Bobby Labonte is hanging tough. He's 13th.
*So far it looks like a slow day on home turf for the boys from Roush Fenway Racing. At lap 122, Matt Kenseth is 16th, Jamie McMurray is 19th, David Ragan is 21st, Carl Edwards is 22nd and Greg Biffle is 24th. They started the afternoon with four cars among the first 17.
*Since our last update at lap 100 (see above), the running order is basically the same. Mears still leads at lap 130, by 1.4 seconds over Harvick, then it's Stewart, Vickers, Gordon, Bowyer and Earnhardt. Vickers, however, is due for a pit stop within the next 10-15 laps. A caution would be huge for him because otherwise he's likely to come out of his stall some 30 places worse than he went in.
*Through 133 laps, 31 cars are on the lead lap; and everybody -- even the spun Franchitti -- is within two laps of the leaders.
*By the way, it was announced this morning that this is the 27th consecutive Cup sellout at the Magic Mile ... but there are significant patches of empty seats in the grandstands above the exit to turn three.
*Debris on the track brings out the yellow. HUGE break for Mears, and for Vickers, each of whom was about 15 laps ahead of everyone else in their pit sequence. So instead of coming in under green, and falling back, they come in with everybody else on the lead lap. Mears exits second to new leader Tony Stewart, while Vickers -- who arrived here 15th and looking to gain ground on Chase contention -- is fifth. If the 5 and 83 are really as good as they appear to be, that mysterious debris could be the thing that sends either to victory lane.
*Points leader Kyle Busch has been conspicuously irrelevant this afternoon, slumping to 20th position at lap 145. Teammates Stewart (leading) and Denny Hamlin (10th) are both okay, so don't think Rowdy can't get this right quickly.
*The best teams, though, have been under the Chevy banner. Richard Childress Racing has three cars in the top nine (Harvick is 4th, Bowyer is 6th, Jeff Burton is 9th), while Hendrick Motorsports has each of its four rides in the top eight. Mears is 2nd, Gordon 3rd, Earnhardt 7th and Johnson 8th.
*Count it. This thing is halfway, so you can keep your plans for tomorrow, and Gavin Faretra gets his well-deserved vacation.
*Front Row Joe Nemechek cuts a tire and ends up in the wall at lap 151, opening the door for another massive move to the pits. All the important cars last came in on lap 139, so by coming through during this caution the cars could set themselves up to make just one more stop the rest of the day. Tires are an issue, of course, but in terms of fuel the teams tend to have a pit window of 85-95 laps at the Magic Mile.
*Some genius I am. A few cars from the back of the pack came through, but Stewart stayed out and so did the 16 best cars behind him. One consideration could be the weather, which is still excellent on site, but fairly ominous on the radar, and could still wreak havoc. Based on the pit window, they could get to lap 215 or so before there's a serious issue, and with 67 circuits to make before that time, teams may be concerned about losing track position just before the rain comes, then seeing the race shortened and never getting a chance to recoup those losses.
*With 162 laps in the books, it's safe to say Ganassi has lost whatever magic it had bottled in both of yesterday's practices. Juan Pablo Montoya was fastest in both of those sessions, while Reed Sorenson and Franchitti were both quick, too, however Montoya is currently 23rd, Sorenson is 32nd, and Franchitti is 41st.
*At lap 175, the running order is: Stewart (1.5 seconds), Gordon, Mears, Vickers, Johnson, Harvick and Bowyer. Earnhardt is eighth.
*Through 185 laps it's still Stewart, Gordon, Mears, Vickers and Johnson in the top five, which is significant because each of them started 19th or worse. Since July 2002 only one driver (Kurt Busch) has come from worse than 13th to win on Sunday, and two of the last three victors opened on the pole.
*There's rain in the Lakes Region at the moment (4;05 p.m.), although my read on the radar is that it's going to stay north of Loudon. I'm no Al Kaprielian, but that's my guess.
*At lap 200, Stewart leads Gordon by 2.48 seconds. Then it's Mears, Vickers, Johnson, Bowyer, Hamlin in the top seven. Early horses Earnhardt and Harvick have slid to ninth and 10th.
*Stewart looks really good -- but remember: He and the rest must pit at some point in the next 15-20 laps.
*Or now. Here comes some strategic decisions, as A.J. Allmendinger catches fire after hitting the wall in a one-car incident along the front stretch. The caution came out on lap 203, so the leaders must decide whether they want to pit now, and need to pit again later, or hold out and try to stop once.
*Lap 204: The leaders are in and most have taken four tires and fuel. They'll need to stop later, but Stewart wins the race off pit road, Gordon is second, and from here on out the strategy will likely be a quick splash, two tires and go at the next caution.
*The race will restart on lap 210 with the field looking like this: Stewart, Gordon, Johnson, Mears, Bowyer, Hamlin and Vickers.
*One thing to consider if you're doubting Casey Mears's chance of out-running three of the tour's best drivers: His No. 5 team, and crew chief Alan Gustafson, were winners in Loudon in 2006. They will be able to draw on that experience should this come down to difficult choices.
*The National Weather Service has just issued a severe weather warning for Loudon, though there's no sign of even sprinkles as of yet.
*The corners have been crowded since the last restart, with the back half of the field running side by side and sliding through the turns at two and even three wide, and it just caught up with Aric Almirola. He was nudged by Kasey Kahne in a meeting of unconventionally spelled, same initials first and last drivers, and the caution came out.
*The window is open for those willing to risk their fuel and tires. With 82 laps left a driver could conceivably go the distance if they come in now. And Mears does it first. He's joined by Kyle Busch, Labonte, Biffle, Truex and Kahne, all of whom are apparently going for broke. The rest of the leaders stayed out, but Mears emerges as the lead car who may be able to finish without another stop. Should be interesting.
*Kahne just spun in the first turn, but the race stays green. That could wind up being a key decision by the officials, depending on the strategy from here on out.
*TNT just reported that Mears is about three laps short of being able ot make it on fuel, but Gustafson is counting on cautions to help his driver stretch that. The intensity of the racing at this stage suggests he's write. Johnson and Gordon are fighting for second, while Hamlin and Harvick are there as well. There are five cars within a second up front, and that says nothing of the packs at the back. The only one in clean air is Stewart, who has a 2.1 second lead at lap 231.
*At lap 239, it has certainly grown more cloudy here. That could be a big factor if the next caution should happen to be due to rain. Should the yellow come for something else, then the rain comes, Mears has to be the favorite. Otherwise this thing is Stewart's to lose.
*It's getting darker -- and darker -- with 52 to go.
*At lap 250 the running order is: Stewart, Johnson, Hamlin, Gordon, Bowyer, Harvick and Vickers. That's exactly the same as it was 10 laps prior.
*Darker and darker.
*Mears has slid all the way back to 25th, which is misleading because he's off the pit sequence. But what's interesting is the car that's leading the group that came in on 218, and could theoretically go the rest of the race without stopping. It's Kyle Busch, and if the rain stays away this could be his race to lose.
*At lap 260 the running order remains the same it was at lap 250 ... and 240. Though Johnson has closed to about two tenths.
*What's new? Nothing. Same top seven after 270 as there's been for the last 30 laps.
*Turning point: Dale Jr. was on his way to pit road when he was rammed from behind by McMurray. The two were both running just outside the top 10, and are now likely to finish somewhere close to 40th. McMurray's Roush teammate, David Ragan, was caught up as well.
But more importantly it opens up the strategic choices, and opens the door to the cars that pitted early to make up ground lost by their prior stop.
*Kyle Busch comes in with the leaders on lap 274, even though he pitted with Mears and the rest with about 83 to go. His brother, meanwhile, has gone to the lead after staying out. He's going to have to be close on fuel to go the distance, but ...
*... Carl Edwards is saying on his radio that it's raining. We could be headed for a red -- or even checkered -- flag, though the clean-up crew appears to be rushing and they'll restart on lap 278.
*Kyle Busch and Michael Waltrip are dueling for the lead at lap 279. And, no. This is not 2002.
*Now it's getting crazy. With the field still stacked at the restart, Clint Bowyer and Sam Hornish collided, causing a caution. During the caution Kyle Busch was hit -- obviously on purpose -- by Juan Pablo Montoya. That knocked Kyle to 24th, and also allowed his brother Kurt to keep conserving fuel.
*And before the restart the rain arrives. After a brief delay, NASCAR calls it official and the race is over. The No. 2 Penske Dodge wins its first race of 2008, followed by Michael Waltrip, J.J. Yeley, Martin Truex, Elliott Sadler, Reed Sorenson and Casey Mears. Not a single one is in Chase contention.
"Sometimes it's all about strategy, it's not about speed," Kurt Busch tells TNT.
