Jarrett stuns them all at 'Dega
Now there's a country seldom heard from! DJ said his car was good before the start of Sunday's wreck fest, and he made good on that statement by grabbing the lead as the final caution flag flew. It was great to see this old veteran back in Victory Lane after a drought that began after Rockingham in February 2003.
Wreck fest doesn't begin to describe what we saw at Talladega. Nearly half the field was in tatters at the end of this one, including several of the early favorites to win it.
GLENN'S TEN (4-for-10... Great, all things considered):
* Jimmie Johnson (winner) -- 31st, Jimmie made headlines, but not the way he would have liked. He was blamed for triggering the Lap 20 crash that took out pole sitter Elliott Sadler, fellow Chaser Mark Martin and both the DEI cars. Jimmie suffered some damage himself, which was compounded later when his tire popped and ripped of hir rear quarter panel. Jimmie spent some time behind the wall and hobbled home. Another dismal day at 'Dega for the #48.
* Rusty Wallace -- 25th, Suffered some damage in the Lap 66 crash. Took a hit in the points.
* Kurt Busch -- 8th, Trouble found Kurt once again, only this time he was able to recover from it to post a decent finish. He blew a tire while leading. At least he didn't wreck the car.
* Brian Vickers -- 6th, I had my doubts about this pick after finding out that Brian had to start 27th. But he was one of the few drivers who stayed out of the problems around him.
* Ryan Newman -- 4th, Penske cars both looked good. Ryan ran his best race here ever Sunday. He had a shot at the win but got shuffled back. The caution flag froze the field, taking away the extra half lap that might have helped him get back toward the front. Just 4 points out of the lead...
* Mark Martin -- 41st, Martin's day ended in the Lap 20 crash, his car suffering some of the heaviest damage as he coasted into the wall with his hood flapping in the breeze. He's bitter about the rules that lead to tight packs of cars that often lead to the Big One. He wants the fans to do something to change this style of racing. But the fans love it (me included) and aren't likely to rise up against gNA$hCAR to protest.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 40th, Day ruined by the Lap 20 crash.
* Michael Waltrip -- 42nd, Too many of my picks finished in the 40s, thanks to being in the wrong place at the wrong time on Lap 20.
* Greg Biffle -- 27th, Never led a lap. Finished 18 laps off the pace.
* Tony Stewart -- 2nd, Tony had what looked like the car to beat, leading the most laps in dominant style, and somebody beat him. But the strong finish puts him back atop the points standings.
REST O FTHE TOP 10:
* Dale Jarrett -- 1st, Way to go, DJ! Car owner Robert Yates was practically in tears over this one. Dale has been reunited with former crew chief Todd Parrott, which has already paid dividends in just one race.
* Matt Kenseth -- 3rd, I doubted that he would avoid calamity.
* Carl Edwards -- 5th, Another great finish for Carl has put him in the hunt for the Cup.
* Sterling Marlin -- 7th, Often excels at the restrictor tracks.
* Joe Nemechek -- 9th, Benefited from the high attrition.
* Kevin Harvick -- 10th, Finally gets another top 10.
OTHER NOTABLES:
* Jamie McMurray -- 12th, Looked destined to get a win or top 5 but got hung out to dry in the final mad dash to the finish.
* Kyle Petty -- 24th, Crahsed on the final lap to bring out the caution, then limped his ruined car across the finish line to great applause.
* Scott Riggs -- 36th, Took the day's wildest ride on Lap 66 when the car barrel rolled.
* Jeff Gordon -- 37th, Bad luck continues. He was caught up in the crash involving Riggs.
Next week... We travel somewhere over the rainbow to Kansas Motor Speedway.
