Mexico Qualifying

Danni

RESULTS
1. Colin Braun
21. Scott
33. David

Ugh. I can't stand this place.

Yesterday's final practice was not very kind to our guys. Early on, David spun during his first lap (according to the booth - they went away to commercial as the cars got on the track ). Then, on his second lap, he didn't pull hard enough on the stick and it popped gear while he was entering that last massive turn. He did a good job saving the Dream Machine from total carnage but still managed to scrape that stupid concrete wall with all the carvings in it with the rear of the car. It was like taking a cheese grater to your butt. If that had been a safer barrier (which are absent at this place!), he would have had probably less than half that damage. So that was pretty much it for the #99 team's chances of dialing the car in for qualifying.

Scott also got into a scuffle with Joe Fox, a newcomer. Fox was slow and when Scott attempted to pass him, they made contact which did a pretty good number on the #29's right front. Luckily, it wasn't enough to park them in the garage for two hours.

Then, in the closing minutes of "Happy Hour", ESPN got a hold of David for an interview. Of course, he began bashing himself about what happened and lamenting the fact that he caused unnecessary work for his guys, so he was helping them out. The following was the kicker: "If you're gonna be stupid, you might as well be tough." Well. I've seen a lot more experienced guys screw up at these road courses! It was a mistake, not stupid! At least he didn't knock the wall down like poor Landon Cassil and Joe Fox later in the session. The car looked good in the previous practice (11th!). I know it hurt that they never got back out on track but it could've been a lot worse.

David - Darrell said "Don't beat yourself" for a reason.

Qualifying today wasn't the greatest thing in the world. At first I got kind of excited because David was grouped to go out in the first 6-car stint, which occurred early in the morning. So the cooler track maybe give him an advantage, right? WRONG. Of course, it just had to rain the night before. David whupped everyone for about the first three groups or so. But eventually I had to face it that the lap wasn't good, as his start indicates. He still blamed himself for everything, but said some interesting and funny things:

"We just had to be ultra conservative -- we didn't have to be, but I kind of painted ourselves into a box here with me messing up yesterday. We didn't get a chance to do a qualifying run (during practice). The car was pretty free that time and it was about just staying on course and putting down a decent lap. We put in a lap where we didn't tear anything up. The Aaron's Dream Machine Camry has been pretty good since we unloaded it and I just messed it up. I have to thank all my guys because they really thrashed this thing back together. On top of that, I have to thank the NASCAR officials because they worked with us really well trying to get everything fixed. I have to thank them as well.

"Chris Cook helped me out a lot out there at Infineon. I learned a ton of stuff and a lot of that stuff I applied in my first practice session where we were 12th on the speed chart. That was a big jump up from last year. I made a miscue there in the second practice and that was definitely something Chris did not teach me. I learned a lot, like how to apply things and breaking points as well as turn-ins and all that kind of stuff that I didn't know before. Hopefully I'll be able to use it in the race and we'll see what we have on Sunday."

What? NASCAR officials actually help drivers and teams?! And I had to laugh at the Chris Cook thing. Even when things didn't look so hot for David's lap, he still maintained a sense of humor.

Look who's on the pole. Wow. Scott Pruett is starting second. I really want to see this first lap!

Ah, Finally...

Jess

Doesn't the media realize that there are hundreds of drivers to write stories about? Then why do we hear about the same handful of people every single week? The Hudson Valley newspapers aren't really the greatest places to get good NASCAR coverage, but my local paper has a NASCAR page every Wednesday, which is nice. However, their main story is usually about Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart or Dale Jr...okay, that's lovely, but what about the guys we don't get to see as much?

Well, this week I was thrilled to see a big article about David (yeah, it's distorted to fit here, but if you click on it it gets bigger so it's legible ):



I really enjoyed this read. But since when was being in your thirties considered "old"? Anyway, David certainly doesn't look old...he can go up against an eighteen-year-old any day in more ways than one, and looks is one of them! I know back when he was racing in trucks I thought he was in his twenties because he looks so darn young. Even recently I saw a picture of him sitting with Michael and McD and if I had no idea what any of their ages were I'd say David is the youngest out of all of them.

Thank you Mr. Minter!

Phoenix Int'l Speedway - Subway Fresh Fit 500

Danni

RESULTS
1. Jimmie Johnson
7. Dale Jr.
8. Martin
11. Casey (1LD)
18. David (1LD)
23. Kurt (2LD)
24. Michael (2LD)
25. Brian (2LD)

Wow. This is the first race in memory that we've missed all the pre-race ceremonies, the green flag and half of the first lap! Incredibly poor planning by FOX. This move will ring in their brains for quite some time, from both NASCAR and baseball fans.

So when we finally got to watch racing, it didn't take long for a debris caution to come out, during which Dale Jr. and Casey took the time to pit and improve on their cars. With fresh tires, Junior tore through the field back to the front. Meanwhile, David was also moving into the top-20.

The race was fun to watch, but it was fairly uneventful. Judging off of TrackPass, there was plenty of passing and racing - just not at the front. A lot of fans would brush Saturday night off as boring, but that's because FOX isn't doing a very good job of showing anyone outside the top-10 when it's not a big name doing embarrassingly bad.

Long green flag runs put the cars running near the back a lap down, including Michael and Brian. Cars began pitting under green when a caution came out, relegating a bunch of drivers, including David, to the tail end of the lead lap. Junior marched to the front and took the lead after a restart of Lap 124. About ten laps later, the biggest wreck of the race occurred when Ryan Newman blew an engine and oiled up the track (David remained on the lead lap as a result, yay!). Several cars spun on the slick track as Newman continued to drop oil on his way to pit lane. On approach to his stall, he went too fast and ended up spinning out. I know he must have been frustrated, but man...don't endanger people when you know you're leaking fluid all over. The red flag came out because of the huge mess.

Dale took the lead again after he stayed out during a later caution. Meanwhile, Martin complained of a carburetor problem that was causing the engine to miss. Kurt was struggling greatly with an extremely tight car, while Brian was wickedly loose. Eventually, Kurt would get the free pass, but the leader soon went by him again. He just hasn't gotten a handle on the new car and will be testing all during the off-week so hopefuly the #2 crew will discover what they've been missing since Daytona.

On Lap 233, Junior brought the field to the green after Kasey Kahne blew a tire. The race would go yellow free till the end, which I think a lot of teams weren't expecting. The problem - most couldn't make it on fuel. Ugh. The dreaded fuel-mileage race.

Mark Martin took over the lead from Junior. You could almost feel the tension from all Junior fans - and I'll admit that I felt a twinge of anxiety. I'm not against the #8 winning, but to pass Junior to do it makes me a little sick inside. It's hard to explain. I know that Junior is in a better situation at Hendrick Motorsports despite all the fans whining that he hasn't won yet or Tony Jr. is an idiot crew chief. It would just make it look like he should've stayed at DEI and I don't want to see that lie rubbed in his face.

However, Mark losing the race I think has confused every race fan. He isn't running full-time and the car is in good shape in points. But they made him pit. I just don't get it. WHY? Take a risk! People who need points, like Dale Jr., didn't have that luxury. If anyone can save fuel it's Mark. Upon hearing the radio communications, I realized that there is absolutely no trust between Mark and Tony Gibson. I think that Mark is almost like Mikey now - if he can't have Ryan Pemberton, that one great crew chief, nobody else works.

Some guys did indeed save enough gas to win! It was comical to watch Jimmie Johnson crawl around, probably just above minimum speed to take the checkers in first. Casey did the same and although he did not run where he finished, this was another good points day for that team.

David was having a pretty solid day that is typical of he and the #44 bunch. Then, while running close to 15th, he pretty much lost his brakes with about a quarter of the race to go. It was really frustrating because he had been hardly using them in the first place! He also had problems with Paul Menard again. But all in all his finish was great considering the team is now back in the top-35! Great effort!!

I guess it could have been worse for Kurt, Michael and Brian. Michael seemed to have a better time than usual, so hopefully this means things will look brighter going in to Talladega.

#44 Quotes of the Race
After Elliott Sadler wrecked and was scraping along the wall.

Shawn: "Nah, give him (Menard) room David. Come on now, stop! David! We had a car against the wall and you had to give him some room."

David (interrupting with much indignation): "-across the apron! Everybody else he lets go, as quick as he gets to me, he runs on the apron."

Shawn: "Let him go dude, you're on the lead lap and he ain't, let him go."

David (angry): "That's my fuckin' point!"

Shawn: "We just need to finish, we don't need to get caught up in no crap."

David (sharply): "'Kay?! (darker) Then I'd say what you do, if you wanna keep us safe here, you go down there and please tell them to cut me a little slack. That's all I'm asking. That's all you need to do. End of discussion. Droppin' it right now. Done talkin' about it."

Ryan (quickly): "10-4, drop it drop it! How many green flag laps was that right there?"

It's kind of amazing how David can go from on wit's end to completely calm in seconds. This audio actually upset me emotionally. I guess you'd have to hear David's voice to get the full effect. It just confounds me that Menard will do anything to try and piss him off, risking his own day in the process. A driver can only take so much until he snaps. Menard is lucky David has some self-control!

POINT STANDINGS
1. Jeff Burton
3. Dale Jr. -86
14. Martin -318
17. Kurt -364
20. Brian -387
24. Casey -474
30. David -551 (34th in owner points +16 from 36th)
32. Michael -600 (32nd in owner points +70 from 36th)

NNS - Phoenix Int'l Speedway - Bashas’ Supermarkets 200

Jess

RESULTS
1. Kyle Busch
9. David

This felt like a really long race even though it wasn't...maybe it's that east coast, up until 1AM when you're exhausted after a long week of college thing! Phoenix is always pretty intense because it feels like a short track so the nerves were high, too.

David ran around in the top 15 all night but seemed to be struggling a little bit. ESPN's coverage is rarely any good so we didn't hear much about anyone running behind third (unless, of course, you drive for Rusty Wallace). It was cool to see Kyle Busch win again because he's so fun to watch celebrating with his guys and doing burnouts behind drivers standing on pit road doing interviews. I was happy that David got an interview! He said it was the worst car he's driven all season but to finish ninth with it wasn't bad.

He did drop two spots to fifth in the standings - that shows how tight this championship run is when you can finish in the top ten and drop. He'll go get 'em again this week at Mexico...just don't drink the water. Or walk around the city. No, that is a dog and not a deformed rat. Uhg. I hate Mexico City.

POINT STANDINGS
1. Clint Bowyer
5. David -124

I Want NASCAR, NOT Baseball!!

This is ridiculous! The fricking baseball game is playing on both FOX and FX, we don't need to see it on FOX while our NASCAR pre-race is going on! This is bullcrap! We NASCAR fans have to suffer through all these station switches when we have rain delays but baseball fans get their game on two stations. They can scroll that it's on FX on the bloody ticker! I want to see my pre-race!!!

Well now I'm sitting here listening to David's in-car. The green is scheduled for 8:53PM - well it sure sounds like they're in the cars right now! So NASCAR is going to run them under pace laps for ten minutes, huh? Yeah right!

I guess I should just shut up because Shawn just said they're delaying the start of the race because of this baseball game. Give me a break! This is crap!

Now where is that email for FOX? Ah-ha, here it is. And here I am listening to a baseball game and preparing to write a letter of complaint to FOX.

http://msn.foxsports.com/feedback

Phoenix Qualifying

Jess

CUP RESULTS
1. Ryan Newman
9. Martin
13. Dale Jr.
26. David
28. Michael
30. Casey
33. Brian
40. Kurt

Yikes Kurt! They're saying during this off-weekend that Kurt's days will mostly be taken up by testing. Thank goodness!

Michael had a good lap despite scraping the wall in practice - it was relieving that he didn't wreck the car in practice and that it wasn't horrid during qualifying. He even used the word "smile" in his qualifying quotes on Race2Win...I hope he smiles a lot more this weekend, too.

The lil' UPS Camry looked rather evil but David jumped on the wheel and pushed her to a respectable position - he did have me nervous for a moment because most of the star cars were all over the place on the track. DW was remarking that Carl Edwards can manhandle this new car like nobody else but in my opinion David could give Edwards a run for his money once he gets some luck and momentum. There's that adaptability thing again...

NATIONWIDE RESULTS
1. Kyle Busch
12. David

A nice lap for a good starting spot in that pretty Best Western Camry. Time to make a big cup of coffee for all the east coast race fans!!

Texas Motor Speedway - Samsung 500

Jess

RESULTS
1. Carl Edwards
12. Dale Jr. (1 LD)
16. Brian (1 LD)
22. Casey (2 LD)
23. Kurt (2 LD)
31. Michael (6 LD)
36. Martin (OUT)
41. David (OUT)

Michael always says that there's no such thing as a boring race and he's probably right. When you're at a track sitting in the grandstands you can look at whoever you want, but when it's on TV and the cameras and commentators are focusing on a select group of drivers it can get pretty tiring to watch. This is what Texas was like to me. There's such a fine line between too many cautions (it can get ridiculous and nerve-wracking when drivers are wrecking every ten laps) and too few (the field gets extremely spread out and basically everyone is a lap down). Carl Edwards spanked everyone and that gets boring too, especially at a place that brags about its close finishes.

The first big thing that occurred was that David had to go to the rear because of an engine change. A bolt had come loose and disappeared into the motor - this also happened to Mike Skinner, so it must have been a Toyota engine shop issue. I wasn't too worried, as David was very good in practice.

When the green fell he began to move forward although he noted that the #44 was really, really loose. Despite this - and that his helmet blower was blowing hot air - he was making great lap times!

Polesitter Dale Jr. blasted away from the pack and led a good thirteen laps and would come back to lead quite a few more before fading a bit.

Unfortunately Michael brought out the first caution when he lost it in Turn 4. He did, however, do a great job at saving it, turning the wheel to the left and continuing to drive the car as it was spinning. Whoohoo! He kept it off the wall and was able to keep going.

Meanwhile Ryan and the #44 boys worked on tightening up the UPS Camry. On the track, David was having some issues with a couple old adversaries. Paul Menard constantly races David like he's evil or something - I don't know what his problem is! He just about wrecked David for no reason, which caused him to lose his rhythm and fall back a few spots. Later David and Shawn discussed this and Shawn mentioned something about Michigan last year. David couldn't even remember what happened there and neither can I!

On the next green run another driver was like a thorn in David's side: who other than Sam Hornish. Hornish was a lapped car while David was on the lead lap, but he raced him like he was going for the win. David was understandably annoyed and went to block him. Hornish responded by driving into the back of him in the middle of the corner! Are you freaking kidding me? Is he insane? You'd think after McD's wreck he'd have more sense than to try and do something that dangerous, but then again this is Hornish I'm talking about here. Thank goodness he tried to wreck someone who has a million times more talent than he does because David was skilled enough to avoid crashing.

In the meantime Martin was running quite well while Brian, Kurt and Casey we about mid-pack. A lot of drivers were complaining passionately about how bad their cars were - Kyle Busch would say later that it was worse than Atlanta. This made me laugh heartily because the tires were wearing great at Texas. I wonder what Tony Stewart had to say about that? He owes an apology to Goodyear more than ever now. It's not the tires...! However I do think that these cars allow the drivers to get up on the wheel more. They aren't driving perfectly but now we're starting to see who the most adaptable drivers are. A driver who can go for it when his car is driving good is a good driver. A driver who can suck it up and still put 100% effort into making the best out of a bad car is a great driver. Some of them just need to get more comfortable with the car, learn its ins and outs and I think they'll be fine.

Speaking of this adaptable behavior, David was showing just that. They had tightened up the car but doing so made their laps times fall off. So David did a wonderful thing: he offered to adapt! He said that they should change it back to what it was before and he'd drive it that way - and not wreck it - since it was fast.

I was very much looking forward to this when he started to report the water temperature climbing. Minutes later the engine blew up...

I couldn't freaking believe it. He was running well enough to be 32nd in owner points! Why does this crap have to happen to him? Why is he the MWR car that runs great only to have mechanical problems while Michael and McD ran horribly and made it to the end of the race? This team doesn't deserve this kind of fate.

My mood only worsened when I decided to listen to Michael. He was six laps down by then so I didn't expect happiness, but the communication was pretty terrible. He doesn't say anything about what the car is doing, only what he thinks will fix it! It's also notable that Ty Norris is now his spotter...I sort of wonder if Mark Green got tired of the abuse. Oh Michael...what are we going to do with you? He's so much of a better driver than this!

And as if I couldn't have gotten more depressed, Martin's engine let go with nine laps left. And Edwards won. Again.

#44 Quotes of the Race
(Under caution after the Menard and Hornish deals)

Ryan: "Hey Shawn, get with that spotter and make peace with all those guys and make sure that everybody knows, you know, that everything's okay, okay?"

Shawn: "10-4, I talked to him."

David (very offended): "I didn't do nothing wrong!!"

Ryan: "10-4, 10-4, it's okay, we just gotta put it behind us, we can't let it set us back - I'm trying to get them to put it behind us, we gotta put it behind us...but we can't be screwing with those cats..."

Ryan is such a great peacemaker!

POINT STANDINGS
1. Jeff Burton
4. Dale Jr. -87
15. Kurt -302
16. Martin -310
18. Brian -319
26. Casey -454 (27th in owner points +121 from 36th)
31. David -513 (38th in owner points -38 from 35th)
32. Michael -535 (32nd in owner points +40 points from 36th)

NNS: Texas Motor Speedway - O’Reilly 300

Danni

RESULTS
1. Kyle Busch
6. Brian
7. Dale Jr.
14. David

It was a pretty uneventful race, which is a suprising development in the normally caution-filled Nationwide races. Frankly, it was rather predictable, but a couple things changed.

Brian appeared to have good pit stops in the #32! This team is always strong, but in the past I have watched the cars come down for stops and the #32 constantly dropped several positions, which Brian would have to regain on the track. They didn't let him down this time, especially since there was plenty of green flag pitting. Brian motored his way forward and got quite a bit of attention. He ran in the top-5 near the end of the race but ended up settling for a solid spot just outside.

It was kind of a typical day for Junior in the #5 - run around 10th. His Nationwide "mediocrity" (I mean, it's not bad, but I think a lot of people expected him to just win and win...) is somewhat interesting to me, particularly because of his awing performance in the harder to drive Cup car. I've been a fan of his for long enough to know he has a difficult time adjusting to changes in cars. I wonder if he focused so much on how to get better in the Cup car that he forgot how to drive the streamlined, smaller Nationwide car. It's somewhat amusing to me. I can't imagine he's really enjoying it, though!

The #99 continues to impress! Unfortunately, late in the race the Dream Machine dropped a cylinder. Watching David gain so much in the corners only to lose track position on the straights brought on a mixed sense of pride and utter disappointment. It was another top-5 run marred by circumstance. However, it could have been worse. To survive for a lead lap finish is better than completely tearing something up. It just bites because he would have gained on all the Cuppies running for the championship and instead he lost points to them. On to fight another day, team!

It was good to see Kyle finally get that win - nice for a change rather than watch something freakish happen to him while leading! He's always so exuberant when he grabs those checkers first. I liked his dancing run back to the car after he caught the flag.

POINT STANDINGS
1. Clint Bowyer
3. David -120

Texas Qualifying

Jess

CUP RESULTS
1. Dale Jr.!!
6. David
12. Martin
20. Michael
22. Casey
23. Kurt
36. Brian

Before anything else, obviously, I have to talk about Michael McDowell. Ladies and gentlemen, we just saw that this new car has paid off. Despite so many drivers disliking the car, so many saying it's ugly and slow, it's all worth it. I think it saved a life and a life is worth far more than any complaint.

When McD hit that wall I was certain I just saw him die. The impact was so direct and so violent I didn't think anyone could survive. I thought he was gone. The car started to roll and I just wanted it to stop...please just stop. Danni and I started screaming and I was praying so hard to anything that would listen. This wasn't hoping someone would qualify or win a race, this was desperately wanting to see someone walk again and hear his voice.

When I saw him move I thought I was imagining things but when Mike Joy confirmed in a tone full of raw relief I just started crying. I couldn't believe it when McD climbed out of that mangled, burning machine under his own power and waved to the crowd, who had burst into cheers.

When he gave his interview he was smiling. I like to poke fun at him because he's always grinning but I was never happier to see a smile on his face. Thank everything good in this world for NASCAR and their commitment to safety. Thanks to the people who designed the new car and the seats and head-and-neck restraints and the SAFER barriers and the countless other things that keep our drivers safe. They are a group of amazing people with innovative minds - every NASCAR fan owes them their deepest gratitude.

You could say our Lucky Dog stole the qualifying show but Dale Jr. did a great job by winning his first pole at HMS is grand style. He basically spanked the field and left them crying for their mommies. Way to go Junebug! Except uh, don't point that gun toward anything important!

David made the field with no trouble after leading every NASCAR practice so far this weekend. So very proud of him and the #44 boys. Are you watching UPS?

Whoo, what a day. I don't ever want to see a wreck like that again but if I do I hope it has the same outcome.

NATIONWIDE RESULTS
1. Kevin Harvick
5. David
10. Dale Jr.
19. Brian

Rain. Definitely got a broken record going. David was most definitely a shot for the pole but alas for crappy weather. I'm hoping for some ass-kicking by that lil' Dream Machine tomorrow - er, today. This afternoon. Yeah...time for bed!

UPS Is Right Where They Belong!

Jess

Obviously I and every other David Reutimann fan in the universe had a lot of reason to be very distressed after Martinsville last weekend. A driver that is 28th in points should not be 37th in owner points and outside the top 35. It's a slap in the face and incredibly unfair...and it never would have happened if David had been able to keep his #00, the number he loves so much.

But we can't change that now, so although I spent Monday and Tuesday in a rage I've calmed down now and feel it's better to move forward rather than look back at what could have or maybe should have been.

It didn't help my mood Sunday night when the TV was running in the background and I randomly heard something about UPS's future on Wind Tunnel. I usually don't watch this program but I wasn't going anywhere after that!

Dave Despain was talking to Zak Brown, the CEO of Just Marketing International, about UPS's status with its motorsports program. He said that they are committed to NASCAR but are reevaluating which team they want to be with next year - and have about five teams they are looking at, one of which is MWR if I heard him right (which is a small relief). They'll make a decision in around sixty days. Brown went on to say that they want a rock star who can contend for a championship.

They want a rock star. Who can contend for championships. Winning races is included, I'm sure. A good, classy personality for bonus points.

Do you know who I think fits that bill? How about the guy that Dale Jarrett handpicked to run under UPS's banner after his retirement? How about David Reutimann?

Do I need to emphasize this?

UPS, YOU'RE ALREADY ON YOUR ROCK STAR'S CAR! HE'S ALREADY WEARING YOUR LOGOS ON HIS DRIVER'S SUIT!

David is going to be a rock star. I already consider him one - he even comes complete with his own guitar (he won the CTS race at Nashville in 2005 for those who don't know - the trophy is a Gibson guitar). He's already contended for championships in both the Craftsman Truck Series and the Busch/Nationwide Series. He's won two races. He is the definition of class and one of the nicest people you'll ever meet in your life. He's human and emotional and handsome and passionate and his teams adore him. And he's a great driver. I hope UPS has been listening to his Cup radio because he's a top 15 driver at least even if his finishes don't always show. Those guys never give up and put their heart and soul into every race. I say "heart and soul" because that team is one heart and one soul working together toward the same goal: doing their best and living up to their potential. They want to win.

Look, I love Dale Jarrett. I think he did the best he could in his last five races but he had a lot of bad luck. It's not for a lack of effort he was 34th in owner points when David took over. He tried, he ran well but stuff just happens. But I did some research. I went back and looked for the last time DJ led a green-flag lap at the Cup level. The last time UPS led a green-flag lap.

It was October 8th 2006, the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega. Lap 1.

David led three laps at Martinsville last weekend. It was the first time UPS has led a green-flag lap for a year and a half. Forty-seven races. And it wasn't just one lap at a track where it's fairly easy to be on the outside row at the start and get a run. It was three.

There will be more to come. When Dale Jarrett told UPS that David Reutimann is their man he wasn't joking. He was dead serious. He could have said Michael McDowell or Josh Wise, but he didn't. He chose David.

UPS, please don't leave him. Stay with him. You won't regret it.

Not like they'll ever read this but maybe it will send good vibes their way. My friend who has XM radio says that Claire B. Lang is gunning for UPS to stay with David as well - that's awesome!

David Reutimann and UPS. They belong together. I hope they stay together for a long time.

Martinsville Speedway - Goody’s Cool Orange 500

Danni

RESULTS
1. Denny Hamlin
6. Dale Jr.
7. Casey
21. Martin (1LD)
23. Brian (DNF)
35. Michael (17LD)
36. David (DNF)

I don't like Martinsville. Never have. I don't like the style of moving around the track; the only ways you can pass are to be extremely patient or, in most cases, put a nose to someone's bumper. There is really no room for error. You make one mistake and you can lose ten spots in one lap.

But really, everything seemed to be going okay during the start of the race. Our guys that qualified well remained around the same vicinity and the ones who had a bad Friday began their march forward. There were plenty of wrecks, of course, including an awkward Kurt-Kyle contact (no harm intended, no harm given). But even though it looked pretty good, I never feel comfortable about my drivers' current positions until they cross the finish line.

Junior was very good early on and easily drove away from the cars behind him. During this time, the #41 was shown spun on the track, but an explanation was never given as to why. A minute later, David said over the radio to tell Reed Sorenson that he didn't mean to get into him! Maybe it was for David's own good that no one watching the race on TV knew he was the culprit, but objectively I was rather disappointed in FOX's coverage. They would constantly show the crash vicitims and then go immediately to commercial. Upon return, they could barely catch the green flag, much less reveal the cause behind the wrecks. Even some of the live altercations were not given clear reviews. At one point, Michael dove in deep and nearly ran into the back of Dave Blaney. He let off sharply to avoid the #22 and was subsequently knocked aside by Kurt. The booth acted like Kurt just bumped and ran when in reality Michael's car lost its momentum. At one point much later, Martin pitted under green. We were never told why.

But they certainly showed what happened to David on Lap 119! Aric Almirola apparently lost patience and plowed his #8 Chevy into the back of David's car, sending him spinning awkwardly into Almirola's teammate Paul Menard. It was then that I retracted the benefit of the doubt I had given him for wrecking Bobby Labonte earlier!! Luckily, the UPS Toyota suffered little damage save for some dents and black scuff marks. He stayed on the lead lap and was just making up more spots at the tail end of the field when the #15 of Menard evidently executed some "revenge" for the previous incident, whacked the UPS car and caused David to be passed by the leader. Fortunately, the team had made the car better and they were able to get the free pass a little later.

Meanwhile, Michael was having a rough day. He was running decently until a restart in which several cars got checked up in front of him. Unable to slow in time, he ran into Almirola () and severely damaged the front of his car. From watching PitCommand, it appeared that he hit the wall afterwards as well. The car sat on pit road for 6 laps before getting back on track. It wasn't long before trouble found Mikey again - in the form of freakin' Almirola! The #8 turned the #55! What the heck is wrong with him?! His second race of the year and he thinks he can run into whoever he wants! As if it couldn't get any worse, I guess Michael didn't watch the truck race and didn't see that you can get stuck on the curb. I'm assuming he needed a push or pull off of it, but he stayed there for a long time and the broadcast didn't say.

Things started looking up when David's car got good enough for a gutsy call by Ryan Pemberton - stay out! I was excited until I saw that Blaney didn't pit either and Jeff Gordon was behind David. Nerves were pretty high on that restart, especially when Blaney putted out and all the lapped cars blew by him! I guess he had an ignition go, but since Martinsville is so narrow David could barely get around him. Finally, he bumped the #22 and then passed him - FOR THE LEAD!! DAVID!! LEADING!!!! We were so excited! He didn't just lead one lap, either! He led THREE before Gordon's new tires and Martinsville prowess took over. Even though he was passed by more cars, he kept the track position advantage.

Then came the words you never want to hear on the radio - "It ain't gonna make it." The rear end was blowing up. After a few laps, David took the same UPS Toyota that looked so sharp leading the field to the garage. The crew worked feverishly and about 25 laps later he returned to the track, but the car ultimately succumbed. DNF. Just when they desperately couldn't afford it.

In the meantime, the battle for the win was heating up. Michael McDowell was the only MWR car left running half decent, but he sort of ruined his day when he lost a lap to leader and future winner Denny Hamlin and planted himself between him and the second place driver Jeff Burton. Despite potentially altering the finish of the race, McDowell would not allow Burton to pass. Held up and overusing his stuff, Burton was passed by Gordon and ended up finishing 3rd. Things didn't end well for McDowell either. He continued to get in the way and was shoved aside by Carl Edwards, later hit by Jamie McMurray and forced to pit after cutting a tire and running on his rim. Burton voiced his displeasure with McD after the race, saying that he needs to learn some manners. McD claimed that he had every right to do what he did because he was fighting for the free pass. Frankly, he should have yielded to Burton. One spot. He's lucky Burton is classy enough and didn't punt him after a few laps like everyone else would have. It's true - a car one lap down has the right to run his own race. However, this was within 20 to go and at a place like Martinsville, there is neither the time nor room to mess around. And what eventually happened? He went from being in the top-20 to finishing 25th and getting criticized by one of the sport's most respected drivers in his first race. You can't say that looks too good.

The race wrapped up on a sour note for Brian also. While running in the top-10, he ran out of fuel with a few laps to go. Martin had a disappointing day when he had a flat tire during a green flag run and had to pit.

On the other hand, Dale Jr. and Casey both finished in the top-10 and even got bumped up an extra spot each when Edwards ran out of gas on the last lap. It's another solid run to add to Junior's chain of consistency. But for Casey, this marks the first time all year he's actually finished where he's performed all race long. He really, really needed this!

It was good seeing Hamlin win. I know he's wanted to win in Virginia since he's from the state. He's grown on me, even though his sponsor is a rival of our own UPS. Oh well, UPS still has better-looking drivers, both on and off the track! Not saying Denny isn't attractive or anything! I've just always had a fetish for those men in brown...

We didn't get any quotes from David's team this week. In all reality, it was mostly depressing based on all the crap that happened to them. But also, we were not on our regular computer since our room has been in the process of renovation for two weeks and the other computer in the house could not record audio for some frustrating reason.

On a side note, I wish NASCAR.com would show live OWNER points, not driver points. It's so misleading. We didn't 100% know David dropped out of the top-35 until they showed it on TV. It's so upsetting. (Grumbling) Should've kept him in the #00.

POINT STANDINGS
1. Jeff Burton
4. Dale Jr. -69
13. Martin -220
16. Kurt -246
18. Brian -284
27. Casey -401 (29th in owner points +79 from 36th)
28. David -403 (37th in owner points -20 from 35th)
32. Michael -455 (33rd in owner points +25 from 36th)