Post by labontefanboy on Jun 30, 2014 18:37:31 GMT -5
Race 18 - Pepsi 400
Pre-race: We began this year, as we do every year, with the Daytona 500. Now, we finish up the first half of the season right back where we started. 400 miles, 160 laps, under the lights on a Saturday night at Daytona. It doesn't get much better than this, so sit back, grab some popcorn, and enjoy what should be a wildly exciting race.
Green flag: Polesitter Kevin Harvick leads the 42 cars to the green flag.
Lap 2: Matt Kenseth gets around the 29 and leads the first lap of the race.
Lap 3: And here we go. We're expecting to see upwards of 70 lead changes today. The newest leader at the stripe is Tony Stewart.
Lap 3: Trouble! Six cars are sliding through the infield grass on the backstretch.....but no caution! Ryan Newman and Todd Kluever got pinched together exiting turn 2 and swept up Jeff Burton, Jimmie Johnson, Elliott Sadler, and Jason Leffler. All drivers will continue with minor damage, but well back of the field, which continues on peacefully...for the moment.
Lap 4: Kyle Busch to the lead.
Lap 5: Jimmie Johnson hits pit road to change tires as Clint Bowyer takes over the race lead.
Lap 6: Jeff Gordon to the front.
Lap 7: Roush Racing's development team seems to do well here. David Ragan took the #06 to a 4th here in February, and Danny O'Quinn has gotten the car to the lead here in the early going.
Lap 8: Welcome back! Kurt Busch, back after missing 6 races with a broken thumb and arm, has taken over the top spot.
Lap 10: YELLOW FLAG #1-BIG CRASH IN THE TRI-OVAL! Over a dozen are involved in a wreck triggered by Paul Menard, Carl Edwards, and O'Quinn Jr. running out of real estate exiting turn 4. O'Quinn Jr. got flipped upside-down immediately, and Greg Biffle and Dave Blaney also got upside down in the incident. In total, 18 cars were involved. Eliminated from the race are: Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Jeff Burton, Terry Labonte, Dave Blaney, O'Quinn Jr., Aric Almirola, and Biffle.
Lap 15: Green flag back out. Joe Nemechek leads Kurt Busch, points leader Brian Vickers, Casey Mears, and Ryan Newman.
Lap 17: Newman to the lead.
Lap 18: Jeremy Mayfield grabs the lead for the first time today. That 88 car has had plenty of success here with Dale Jarrett, including a victory in last year's edition of this race.
Lap 19: David Stremme becomes the first Toyota to lead a lap today.
Lap 20: Polesitter Harvick finally grabs 5 bonus points for leading a lap.
Lap 24: Mike Bliss to the lead.
Lap 25: Kyle Busch gets the lead as the damaged vehicle of Martin Truex Jr. jumbles up the field while getting lapped.
Lap 27: Casey Mears to the lead.
Lap 28: Kurt Busch now in front.
Lap 30: Vickers to the lead.
Lap 32: Nemechek has gotten back up front.
Lap 33: Vickers is up front every week. He's gotten back around the #01 to lead another lap.
Lap 34: Harvick back in front.
Lap 36: Kurt Busch leads a lap as another swarm of lapped traffic scrambles the lead draft. Ryan Newman has gone to pit road with a vibration.
Lap 37: Harvick back in the lead.
Lap 39: Strong showing for Bliss today. He's reclaimed the lead and ran top 10 most of the night.
Lap 40: Vickers grabs the lead again, using lapped traffic of Bobby Labonte as a pick.
Lap 43: Truex Jr. hits pit road.
Lap 48: Looks like a couple early takers have hit pit road for their first scheduled stop. Sadler, Todd Kluever, and Bowyer change 4 tires and get fuel.
Lap 49: Mears to the lead.
Lap 50: Michael Waltrip and Jamie McMurray stop for tires and gas.
Lap 51: Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s damaged vehicle goes up in smoke as his engine disintegrates. Meanwhile, a large group of cars pits. On pit road: Johnny Benson, Harvick, Nemechek, Kurt Busch, Bliss, Kyle Petty, and Leffler.
Lap 52: Vickers leads another lap. Pitting are Scott Riggs, Mayfield, Bobby Labonte, and Menard.
Lap 53: Kyle Busch takes over the race lead as Vickers pits along with Mears, Kasey Kahne, Stremme, Johnny Sauter, J.J. Yeley, Jon Wood, Carl Edwards, Kenny Wallace, and Bobby Hamilton Jr.
Lap 54: Pit stops this time around: Kyle Busch, last week's winner Travis Kvapil, Kenseth, Johnson, and Reed Sorenson.
Lap 56: Here's a full field rundown following pit stops.
Lead lap: 5, 23, 91, 33, 25, 9, 2, 78, 0, 01, 29, 40, 17, 11, 21, 88, 38, 6, 55, 45, 00
1 lap down: 12, 19, 1, 42, 07, 48, 41, 18
2 laps down: 34, 77, 99
3 laps down: 15
OUT: 8, 24, 20, 31, 92, 43, 06, 22, 16
Lap 57: Benson takes the lead as Wallace gets lapped. Remember Talladega? Benson almost stunned the racing world with an upset victory. He's going for another top 5 finish tonight.
Lap 59: Kyle Busch back to the lead.
Lap 61: 100 laps to go. The strongest cars appear to be Kyle Busch and his teammate, and your new leader, Vickers.
Lap 62: Mears back to the front.
Lap 63: Benson back in front. The crowd is loving it, cheering the underfunded but strong-willed driver.
Lap 65: Elder Busch Bro now in the lead.
Lap 67: Cue your points leader. It's time to move him back to the top of the scoring pylon.
Lap 69: Kurt back to the lead.
Lap 70: Vickers in front, with a huge gaggle of lapped traffic approaching. Newman's gotta be loving the sight of this, as this group of cars about to be put one lap down are all potential positions for him. His unscheduled stop to fix the vibration caused him to lose the draft, but he's still got a fast car and is running with the leaders, albeit one lap down.
Lap 72: Kyle Petty has been lapped.
Lap 73: Waltrip and Kluever go down one lap.
Lap 74: Sadler loses a lap.
Lap 75: Mayfield gets lapped as Harvick moves to the top spot.
Lap 77: Kyle Busch back to the lead.
Lap 81: Brotherly love at the halfway point. Kurt passes Kyle for the lead.
Lap 82: Kasey Kahne to the front.
Lap 83: Benson back to the lead.
Lap 84: Harvick in the lead again.
Lap 85: Stremme is another Toyota having a very strong run. He's gotten back to the lead again.
Lap 86: Truex Jr. hits pit road for a scheduled stop as Sauter grabs the lead for the first time tonight.
Lap 87: Vickers into the lead as we get ready for a full cycle of green flag stops.
Lap 88: Kyle Busch back to the lead. Bowyer hits pit road.
Lap 89: Kluever, Sadler, and McMurray drop to the apron and stop.
Lap 90: Scott Riggs to the lead for the first time this evening as Kurt, Waltrip, Leffler, and Nemechek pit.
Lap 91: Mears back in front. Benson, Bliss, and Mayfield make their stops.
Lap 92: Harvick, Petty, Kenseth, Yeley, Wood and Edwards all onto pit road....and CONTACT! Wood rams the rear end of Yeley's Chevy as the 11 slides into his stall. That's really gonna hurt the 21 team, and it looks like they're gonna be taking the hood off.
Lap 93: Big gaggle onto pit road: 91, 18, 40, 5, 25, 00, 48, and 34.
Lap 94: Kahne leads the next charge, and is followed by Mears, Kvapil, Sauter, and Menard.
Lap 95: Kahne cycles through and holds the lead as Sorenson completes the cycle.
Lap 97: Kurt Busch back to the front.
Lap 98: Bliss has the lead now. There's a 6 car breakaway that also holds the lapped car of Kenseth. In the lead draft are Bliss, Mears, Riggs, Kahne, Stremme, and Kurt Busch. The next cars are Kyle Busch, Benson, Harvick, and Vickers, about 5 seconds behind, Sauter is 8 seconds back, and Nemechek is all by himself, 36 seconds behind the leaders.
Lap 99: Mears grabs the lead.
Lap 100: Riggs grabs the lead.
Lap 101: Mears back to the top spot. Strong showing thus far by several of the Dodges with 2 Evernham cars and a Penske car in the top 6.
Lap 102: Stremme shows some Toyota power, with a nice pass in turn 3 to take the lead.
Lap 104: Kurt Busch back to the lead.
Lap 108: That might've been the longest anyone's held the lead when outside of a pit stop cycle. Stremme couldn't get past Busch until now.
Lap 109: Bliss to the lead.
Lap 112: YELLOW FLAG #2-Debris on the backstretch will close up the field with 49 laps to go. Fuel window is still a few laps away, so everyone will have to make at least one more stop after this caution. We'll see who stays out and who comes in.
Lap 113: Bobby Hamilton Jr. rear-ends Riggs on pit road. Riggs gets away pretty much unscathed, but Hamilton Jr. is done for the night.
Lap 114: Oh no! 3 cars tangle exiting pit road, and it looks like this could result in some penalties. Ryan Newman just completely hooked Kahne into the wall on the backstretch under caution, and Jimmie Johnson piled in with nowhere to go. Both the 12 and 48 teams are done, and NASCAR has called Newman, his spotter, and his crew chief to the hauler. That could have been easily avoided. Kahne will continue, but he's got pretty substantial damage to the rear end, and it looks like his fantastic run won't hold out until the end.
Lap 117: Green flag. Here are the lead lap cars: 33, 0, 23, 29, 78, 01, 17, 6, 2, 9, 40, 91, 25, 5
Lap 119: Harvick to the lead.
Lap 120: Bliss back in front.
Lap 121: Vickers back to the lead. 13 cars in the lead draft with Kahne losing time rapidly.
Lap 122: Kyle Busch to the lead.
Lap 125: Nemechek to the lead.
Lap 126: It's an MB2 kind of night. Nemechek gets passed by his teammate Sauter with 35 to go.
Lap 128: Riggs takes the lead as Kahne and Bowyer hit pit road. All the guys who stayed out under the second caution are going to pitting over the next few laps. The guys who pitted on lap 113 should go another 20 or so laps, making stops with around 10 laps to go.
Lap 129: Mears to the lead as Kluever stops.
Lap 130: Stremme takes command, and Sadler makes his last stop of the night.
Lap 131: Big group coming down pit road: Kenseth, Nemechek, Waltrip, Leffler, Petty, and McMurray.
Lap 132: Benson leads Harvick, Kurt Busch, Wallace, Truex Jr., and Bobby Labonte to pit road for their respective final stops.
Lap 133: Riggs takes over the race lead from Stremme as Edwards and Menard pit.
Lap 134: Sauter hits pit road.
Lap 135: Bliss and Mayfield pit as Stremme returns to the race lead.
Lap 138: Riggs to the lead.
Lap 139: Vickers leads as Yeley pits.
Lap 141: Stremme to the race lead. It's hard to believe, but it looks like pit strategy will decide the winner of this race. The 5 remaining leaders on track should be able to go to about lap 151 or 152, and can take just a splash of fuel and two tires. Every that pitted already had to take 4 tires while waiting for enough fuel. That 7 or so seconds saved will be crucial. It looks like it'll come down to either Stremme, Mears, Kyle Busch, Vickers, or Riggs. 3 of those 5 have never won, Vickers has only one career win earlier this season, and Mears, the Daytona 500 champ, has two wins this season.
Lap 146: Kyle Busch gets around Stremme to take the lead with 15 to go.
Lap 148: Tensions are really high on pit road for the top 5 teams. Vickers has taken the lead.
Lap 149: Even though pit stops are coming soon, these top 5 drivers are doing everything they can to get the most track position entering pit road. It may not seem like a big deal, but being the first past the commitment cone is a big advantage over the 5th guy past the cone. That's why Kyle Busch has gotten around Vickers and is racing his teammate so hard for the lead.
Lap 150: Vickers back to the lead. Jon Wood makes his final pit stop.
Lap 151: 10 to go. Riggs is the first of the leaders to pit. Will coming by himself be a disadvantage to the Evernham driver?
Lap 152: Here we go. The remaining four drivers pit along with Reed Sorenson...and oh no! Kyle Busch gets into the back of Casey Mears, crumpling the rear fenders of the 2. You can pretty much count out Mears now, as he'll need a few laps to repair that damage. Somehow, though, Kyle looks like he only had minor damage that won't afffect his car's performance.
Lap 153: Stremme leads the lap as the leaders are still getting back up to speed.
Lap 154: Move Kyle Busch to the lead. He and Stremme have drafting help from the lapped car of Clint Bowyer, and Vickers and Riggs are both over 2.5 seconds back. Pit crews are gonna be what wins this race for one of these 4 drivers.
Lap 155: Stremme gets back around Busch. Bowyer is losing pace with the front two. If he drops back a little more, Vickers and Riggs could catch his draft and close in on the front two. But right now, Riggs is leaving too much room in between his nose and Vickers' tail to make any significant ground.
Lap 156: 5 to go as Kyle gets back in front.
Lap 157: 4 to go. Kyle still leads, but Vickers is pulling away from Riggs. His Hendrick motor is too strong for Riggs' Evernham powerplant, and they aren't gonna have a tight enough draft to have any chance of catching Busch and Stremme.
Lap 158: 3 to go. It's gonna be Kyle or Stremme now. Vickers has gapped Riggs by a half second now as they close in on Bowyer, and they are starting to lose ground to the front two.
Lap 159: 2 to go...Stremme makes a move to the inside of Kyle exiting the tri-oval!
Lap 159: Stremme has cleared Kyle on the backstretch....but wait a minute...here comes Kyle with the crossover!
Lap 160: Kyle made a smart move with his crossover, and leads Stremme by a car length and a half as they take the white flag. One lapped car is ahead, but it should not be an issue. Can Stremme get back around Kyle and score the incredible upset, or will Kyle finally get his first career win, which has eluded him the past two races?
Lap 160: Stremme with a move to the inside on the backstretch!!!
Lap 160: The leaders rocket through turn 4, and Stremme has all the momentum.
Checkered flag: Stremme clears Busch entering the tri-oval, and brings his #40 Coors Light Toyota to an UNBELIEVABLE UPSET! He gets his first career win and first career top 5 after having only qualified for 8 of the 16 races he's attempted, and also scores the first victory for Toyota in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. Once again, Kyle Busch falls short of getting his first career win and will watch the #40 team celebrate, as David Stremme records a monumental upset in Daytona. We told you it was gonna be wild, and we certainly weren't disappointed.
Pre-race: We began this year, as we do every year, with the Daytona 500. Now, we finish up the first half of the season right back where we started. 400 miles, 160 laps, under the lights on a Saturday night at Daytona. It doesn't get much better than this, so sit back, grab some popcorn, and enjoy what should be a wildly exciting race.
Green flag: Polesitter Kevin Harvick leads the 42 cars to the green flag.
Lap 2: Matt Kenseth gets around the 29 and leads the first lap of the race.
Lap 3: And here we go. We're expecting to see upwards of 70 lead changes today. The newest leader at the stripe is Tony Stewart.
Lap 3: Trouble! Six cars are sliding through the infield grass on the backstretch.....but no caution! Ryan Newman and Todd Kluever got pinched together exiting turn 2 and swept up Jeff Burton, Jimmie Johnson, Elliott Sadler, and Jason Leffler. All drivers will continue with minor damage, but well back of the field, which continues on peacefully...for the moment.
Lap 4: Kyle Busch to the lead.
Lap 5: Jimmie Johnson hits pit road to change tires as Clint Bowyer takes over the race lead.
Lap 6: Jeff Gordon to the front.
Lap 7: Roush Racing's development team seems to do well here. David Ragan took the #06 to a 4th here in February, and Danny O'Quinn has gotten the car to the lead here in the early going.
Lap 8: Welcome back! Kurt Busch, back after missing 6 races with a broken thumb and arm, has taken over the top spot.
Lap 10: YELLOW FLAG #1-BIG CRASH IN THE TRI-OVAL! Over a dozen are involved in a wreck triggered by Paul Menard, Carl Edwards, and O'Quinn Jr. running out of real estate exiting turn 4. O'Quinn Jr. got flipped upside-down immediately, and Greg Biffle and Dave Blaney also got upside down in the incident. In total, 18 cars were involved. Eliminated from the race are: Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Jeff Burton, Terry Labonte, Dave Blaney, O'Quinn Jr., Aric Almirola, and Biffle.
Lap 15: Green flag back out. Joe Nemechek leads Kurt Busch, points leader Brian Vickers, Casey Mears, and Ryan Newman.
Lap 17: Newman to the lead.
Lap 18: Jeremy Mayfield grabs the lead for the first time today. That 88 car has had plenty of success here with Dale Jarrett, including a victory in last year's edition of this race.
Lap 19: David Stremme becomes the first Toyota to lead a lap today.
Lap 20: Polesitter Harvick finally grabs 5 bonus points for leading a lap.
Lap 24: Mike Bliss to the lead.
Lap 25: Kyle Busch gets the lead as the damaged vehicle of Martin Truex Jr. jumbles up the field while getting lapped.
Lap 27: Casey Mears to the lead.
Lap 28: Kurt Busch now in front.
Lap 30: Vickers to the lead.
Lap 32: Nemechek has gotten back up front.
Lap 33: Vickers is up front every week. He's gotten back around the #01 to lead another lap.
Lap 34: Harvick back in front.
Lap 36: Kurt Busch leads a lap as another swarm of lapped traffic scrambles the lead draft. Ryan Newman has gone to pit road with a vibration.
Lap 37: Harvick back in the lead.
Lap 39: Strong showing for Bliss today. He's reclaimed the lead and ran top 10 most of the night.
Lap 40: Vickers grabs the lead again, using lapped traffic of Bobby Labonte as a pick.
Lap 43: Truex Jr. hits pit road.
Lap 48: Looks like a couple early takers have hit pit road for their first scheduled stop. Sadler, Todd Kluever, and Bowyer change 4 tires and get fuel.
Lap 49: Mears to the lead.
Lap 50: Michael Waltrip and Jamie McMurray stop for tires and gas.
Lap 51: Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s damaged vehicle goes up in smoke as his engine disintegrates. Meanwhile, a large group of cars pits. On pit road: Johnny Benson, Harvick, Nemechek, Kurt Busch, Bliss, Kyle Petty, and Leffler.
Lap 52: Vickers leads another lap. Pitting are Scott Riggs, Mayfield, Bobby Labonte, and Menard.
Lap 53: Kyle Busch takes over the race lead as Vickers pits along with Mears, Kasey Kahne, Stremme, Johnny Sauter, J.J. Yeley, Jon Wood, Carl Edwards, Kenny Wallace, and Bobby Hamilton Jr.
Lap 54: Pit stops this time around: Kyle Busch, last week's winner Travis Kvapil, Kenseth, Johnson, and Reed Sorenson.
Lap 56: Here's a full field rundown following pit stops.
Lead lap: 5, 23, 91, 33, 25, 9, 2, 78, 0, 01, 29, 40, 17, 11, 21, 88, 38, 6, 55, 45, 00
1 lap down: 12, 19, 1, 42, 07, 48, 41, 18
2 laps down: 34, 77, 99
3 laps down: 15
OUT: 8, 24, 20, 31, 92, 43, 06, 22, 16
Lap 57: Benson takes the lead as Wallace gets lapped. Remember Talladega? Benson almost stunned the racing world with an upset victory. He's going for another top 5 finish tonight.
Lap 59: Kyle Busch back to the lead.
Lap 61: 100 laps to go. The strongest cars appear to be Kyle Busch and his teammate, and your new leader, Vickers.
Lap 62: Mears back to the front.
Lap 63: Benson back in front. The crowd is loving it, cheering the underfunded but strong-willed driver.
Lap 65: Elder Busch Bro now in the lead.
Lap 67: Cue your points leader. It's time to move him back to the top of the scoring pylon.
Lap 69: Kurt back to the lead.
Lap 70: Vickers in front, with a huge gaggle of lapped traffic approaching. Newman's gotta be loving the sight of this, as this group of cars about to be put one lap down are all potential positions for him. His unscheduled stop to fix the vibration caused him to lose the draft, but he's still got a fast car and is running with the leaders, albeit one lap down.
Lap 72: Kyle Petty has been lapped.
Lap 73: Waltrip and Kluever go down one lap.
Lap 74: Sadler loses a lap.
Lap 75: Mayfield gets lapped as Harvick moves to the top spot.
Lap 77: Kyle Busch back to the lead.
Lap 81: Brotherly love at the halfway point. Kurt passes Kyle for the lead.
Lap 82: Kasey Kahne to the front.
Lap 83: Benson back to the lead.
Lap 84: Harvick in the lead again.
Lap 85: Stremme is another Toyota having a very strong run. He's gotten back to the lead again.
Lap 86: Truex Jr. hits pit road for a scheduled stop as Sauter grabs the lead for the first time tonight.
Lap 87: Vickers into the lead as we get ready for a full cycle of green flag stops.
Lap 88: Kyle Busch back to the lead. Bowyer hits pit road.
Lap 89: Kluever, Sadler, and McMurray drop to the apron and stop.
Lap 90: Scott Riggs to the lead for the first time this evening as Kurt, Waltrip, Leffler, and Nemechek pit.
Lap 91: Mears back in front. Benson, Bliss, and Mayfield make their stops.
Lap 92: Harvick, Petty, Kenseth, Yeley, Wood and Edwards all onto pit road....and CONTACT! Wood rams the rear end of Yeley's Chevy as the 11 slides into his stall. That's really gonna hurt the 21 team, and it looks like they're gonna be taking the hood off.
Lap 93: Big gaggle onto pit road: 91, 18, 40, 5, 25, 00, 48, and 34.
Lap 94: Kahne leads the next charge, and is followed by Mears, Kvapil, Sauter, and Menard.
Lap 95: Kahne cycles through and holds the lead as Sorenson completes the cycle.
Lap 97: Kurt Busch back to the front.
Lap 98: Bliss has the lead now. There's a 6 car breakaway that also holds the lapped car of Kenseth. In the lead draft are Bliss, Mears, Riggs, Kahne, Stremme, and Kurt Busch. The next cars are Kyle Busch, Benson, Harvick, and Vickers, about 5 seconds behind, Sauter is 8 seconds back, and Nemechek is all by himself, 36 seconds behind the leaders.
Lap 99: Mears grabs the lead.
Lap 100: Riggs grabs the lead.
Lap 101: Mears back to the top spot. Strong showing thus far by several of the Dodges with 2 Evernham cars and a Penske car in the top 6.
Lap 102: Stremme shows some Toyota power, with a nice pass in turn 3 to take the lead.
Lap 104: Kurt Busch back to the lead.
Lap 108: That might've been the longest anyone's held the lead when outside of a pit stop cycle. Stremme couldn't get past Busch until now.
Lap 109: Bliss to the lead.
Lap 112: YELLOW FLAG #2-Debris on the backstretch will close up the field with 49 laps to go. Fuel window is still a few laps away, so everyone will have to make at least one more stop after this caution. We'll see who stays out and who comes in.
Lap 113: Bobby Hamilton Jr. rear-ends Riggs on pit road. Riggs gets away pretty much unscathed, but Hamilton Jr. is done for the night.
Lap 114: Oh no! 3 cars tangle exiting pit road, and it looks like this could result in some penalties. Ryan Newman just completely hooked Kahne into the wall on the backstretch under caution, and Jimmie Johnson piled in with nowhere to go. Both the 12 and 48 teams are done, and NASCAR has called Newman, his spotter, and his crew chief to the hauler. That could have been easily avoided. Kahne will continue, but he's got pretty substantial damage to the rear end, and it looks like his fantastic run won't hold out until the end.
Lap 117: Green flag. Here are the lead lap cars: 33, 0, 23, 29, 78, 01, 17, 6, 2, 9, 40, 91, 25, 5
Lap 119: Harvick to the lead.
Lap 120: Bliss back in front.
Lap 121: Vickers back to the lead. 13 cars in the lead draft with Kahne losing time rapidly.
Lap 122: Kyle Busch to the lead.
Lap 125: Nemechek to the lead.
Lap 126: It's an MB2 kind of night. Nemechek gets passed by his teammate Sauter with 35 to go.
Lap 128: Riggs takes the lead as Kahne and Bowyer hit pit road. All the guys who stayed out under the second caution are going to pitting over the next few laps. The guys who pitted on lap 113 should go another 20 or so laps, making stops with around 10 laps to go.
Lap 129: Mears to the lead as Kluever stops.
Lap 130: Stremme takes command, and Sadler makes his last stop of the night.
Lap 131: Big group coming down pit road: Kenseth, Nemechek, Waltrip, Leffler, Petty, and McMurray.
Lap 132: Benson leads Harvick, Kurt Busch, Wallace, Truex Jr., and Bobby Labonte to pit road for their respective final stops.
Lap 133: Riggs takes over the race lead from Stremme as Edwards and Menard pit.
Lap 134: Sauter hits pit road.
Lap 135: Bliss and Mayfield pit as Stremme returns to the race lead.
Lap 138: Riggs to the lead.
Lap 139: Vickers leads as Yeley pits.
Lap 141: Stremme to the race lead. It's hard to believe, but it looks like pit strategy will decide the winner of this race. The 5 remaining leaders on track should be able to go to about lap 151 or 152, and can take just a splash of fuel and two tires. Every that pitted already had to take 4 tires while waiting for enough fuel. That 7 or so seconds saved will be crucial. It looks like it'll come down to either Stremme, Mears, Kyle Busch, Vickers, or Riggs. 3 of those 5 have never won, Vickers has only one career win earlier this season, and Mears, the Daytona 500 champ, has two wins this season.
Lap 146: Kyle Busch gets around Stremme to take the lead with 15 to go.
Lap 148: Tensions are really high on pit road for the top 5 teams. Vickers has taken the lead.
Lap 149: Even though pit stops are coming soon, these top 5 drivers are doing everything they can to get the most track position entering pit road. It may not seem like a big deal, but being the first past the commitment cone is a big advantage over the 5th guy past the cone. That's why Kyle Busch has gotten around Vickers and is racing his teammate so hard for the lead.
Lap 150: Vickers back to the lead. Jon Wood makes his final pit stop.
Lap 151: 10 to go. Riggs is the first of the leaders to pit. Will coming by himself be a disadvantage to the Evernham driver?
Lap 152: Here we go. The remaining four drivers pit along with Reed Sorenson...and oh no! Kyle Busch gets into the back of Casey Mears, crumpling the rear fenders of the 2. You can pretty much count out Mears now, as he'll need a few laps to repair that damage. Somehow, though, Kyle looks like he only had minor damage that won't afffect his car's performance.
Lap 153: Stremme leads the lap as the leaders are still getting back up to speed.
Lap 154: Move Kyle Busch to the lead. He and Stremme have drafting help from the lapped car of Clint Bowyer, and Vickers and Riggs are both over 2.5 seconds back. Pit crews are gonna be what wins this race for one of these 4 drivers.
Lap 155: Stremme gets back around Busch. Bowyer is losing pace with the front two. If he drops back a little more, Vickers and Riggs could catch his draft and close in on the front two. But right now, Riggs is leaving too much room in between his nose and Vickers' tail to make any significant ground.
Lap 156: 5 to go as Kyle gets back in front.
Lap 157: 4 to go. Kyle still leads, but Vickers is pulling away from Riggs. His Hendrick motor is too strong for Riggs' Evernham powerplant, and they aren't gonna have a tight enough draft to have any chance of catching Busch and Stremme.
Lap 158: 3 to go. It's gonna be Kyle or Stremme now. Vickers has gapped Riggs by a half second now as they close in on Bowyer, and they are starting to lose ground to the front two.
Lap 159: 2 to go...Stremme makes a move to the inside of Kyle exiting the tri-oval!
Lap 159: Stremme has cleared Kyle on the backstretch....but wait a minute...here comes Kyle with the crossover!
Lap 160: Kyle made a smart move with his crossover, and leads Stremme by a car length and a half as they take the white flag. One lapped car is ahead, but it should not be an issue. Can Stremme get back around Kyle and score the incredible upset, or will Kyle finally get his first career win, which has eluded him the past two races?
Lap 160: Stremme with a move to the inside on the backstretch!!!
Lap 160: The leaders rocket through turn 4, and Stremme has all the momentum.
Checkered flag: Stremme clears Busch entering the tri-oval, and brings his #40 Coors Light Toyota to an UNBELIEVABLE UPSET! He gets his first career win and first career top 5 after having only qualified for 8 of the 16 races he's attempted, and also scores the first victory for Toyota in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. Once again, Kyle Busch falls short of getting his first career win and will watch the #40 team celebrate, as David Stremme records a monumental upset in Daytona. We told you it was gonna be wild, and we certainly weren't disappointed.
