Busch, Montoya Incident

What A Difference A (Rainy) Day Makes

On Saturday, Tony Stewart became the 22nd winner in 22 Nationwide series races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway when he won the Camping World RV Sales 200. The win marked his fifth in the series this year, and the eight for Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 20 car.

Stewart took two tires on his final pit stop under caution. He came out of the pits in third, and took over the lead three laps after the restart. He led the remaining 64 laps, with his JGR teammates, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch chasing him.

Stewart said:

That last stop is what won the race for us. To get track position and be able to stay up front and not have to overdrive the car or abuse the tires was the key to the win.

How ironic. Pit strategy led him to victory on Saturday and cost him the win on Sunday.

Stewart clearly had the car to beat for most of the LENOX Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. He led a race-high 132 laps, and appeared to be cruising to his first Sprint Cup win of the season and 33rd of his career.

But then… everything changed.

While Dale Earnhardt Jr. slowed to pit under green, Jamie McMurray rear-ended him like he was in one of Kasey Kahne’s Allstate commercials. ”Super-sorry about your car, Junior.”

That brought out the caution with about 30 laps to go. Stewart, like many of the other leaders pitted, while others with nothing to lose, Kurt Busch, Michael Waltrip, and J.J. Yeley rolled the dice and stayed out. Stewart lined up in 13th on the final restart.

Shortly after the restart, Sam Hornish and Clint Bowyer got together brining out the caution, as the rain began to fall. NASCAR red flagged the race, and called it shortly thereafter, leaving Stewart with the best damn 13th place car I’ve ever seen.

In his interview shortly after the red flag was waved, you could hear the disappointment and frustration in Stewart’s voice:

This has been the oddest year for this race team. It’s the worst string of bad luck I’ve ever seen. But a percentage of this industry is luck, and you can’t change it.

The dejection in Stewart’s voice was a clear indication that Saturday’s win was long forgotten. What a difference one day makes.

Busch Wins LENOX Industrial Tools 301

Kurt Busch had a bit of good luck for a change, leading the LENOX Industrial Tools 301 when the final caution came out for rain with 18 laps to go. Shortly after that, NASCAR called the race, declaring Busch the winner.

Michael Waltrip, J.J. Yeley, Martin Truex Jr., and Elliott Sadler rounded out the top 5.

Reed Sorenson, Casey Mears, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, and Bobby Labonte made up the rest of the top 10.

Notables: Jeff Gordon (11th), Jeff Burton (12th), Tony Stewart (13th), Kevin Harvick (14th), Carl Edwards (17th), Matt Kenseth (18th), Greg Biffle (21st), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (24th), Kyle Busch (25th), Clint Bowyer (26th), Kasey Kahne (30th), and David Ragan (40th).

On the final restart Kyle Busch and Juan Pablo Montoya got together after neither one gave the other enough room. Busch appeared to run Montoya a little high in turn 1, which Montoya didn’t appreciate. As the caution came out for contact between Clint Bowyer and Sam Hornish.

Under caution, Busch and Montoya were battling for position. Both thought they were in front of the other when the caution came out. Busch forced Montoya out of the way for the position. Montoya, then bumped Busch, spinning him out. As Busch spun, Montoya clipped his front end, and ended up spinning as a result.

Busch finished 25th and Montoya finished 32nd.

Hornaday Wins O’Reilly 200

Ron Hornaday survived a green-white-checker finish to win the O’Reilly 200 at Memphis Motorsports Park. Hornaday dominated the race, leading the final 129 laps.

The win gave Hornaday the points lead. He is now leading Matt Crafton by 27 points.

Top 5: Hornaday, Erik Darnell, Crafton, Rick Crawford, and David Starr.

Rounding out the top 10 were Jack Sprague, Mike Skinner, Bobby East, Shane Sieg, and Stacy Compton.

Notables: Dennis Setzer (12th), Todd Bodine (14th), Chad McCumbee (15th), Terry Cook (17th), Ted Musgrave (20th), and Johnny Benson (33rd).

Stewart Wins Camping World RV Sales 200

Tony Stewart wins the Camping World RV Sales 200 from New Hampshire Motor Speedway, marking his fifth victory in the Nationwide series this season.

Stewart took two tires on his final pit stop and restarted the race in third. On lap 136, he took the lead from Carl Edwards and led the rest of the way.

Stewart’s teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch finished second and third, respectively.

Kevin Harvick and Edwards rounded out the top five.

David Ragan, David Reutimann, Mike Bliss, Clint Bowyer, and Brad Keselowski finished sixth through 10th.

Notables: Jason Keller (11th), Mike Wallace (15th), David Stremme (17th), Greg Biffle (19th), and Jason Leffler (32nd).