If you ask any driver or any team owner, they’ll be the first to tell you that every race is a big deal, and nobody can deny that. But, as I take a look at the starting grid for the Toyota Save/Mart 350 and then look at the points standings, when I combine that with everything that I know has already taken place in this crazy season, I can’t help but think that it especially holds true this weekend at Infineon Raceway, and it all starts right there at the top of the field.

Kasey Kahne has been on a helluva roll ever since he won the All-Star Race in Charlotte about a month ago. Of the four points races that have taken place since then, he’s won two of them and finished 2nd in another, with his only hiccup coming when he got caught up in the big pileup at Dover. Yet, the typical race fan would be quick to discount Kahne as a legitimate threat to win the championship this year, and would chalk it up as nothing more than a hot streak. Kasey must be privvy to these statements, though, because he didn’t let the fact that he’s never scored higher than 23rd at Infineon stop him from pacing the field during Friday’s qualifying runs and taking the pole for Sunday’s race. Now, with all of the momentum going in his favor, a win - or, even a top-five - could and probably would establish Kahne as the real deal … for this season at least.

The most disappointing team in 2008 has without a doubt been Penske Racing, where Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch are currently 17th and 19th in the points standings. Since pulling off their dramatic 1-2 finish in the season-opening Daytona 500, the duo has combined for only one more top-five and five more top-ten finishes. Looking to turn their seasons around, a stop at Infineon could be just what the doctor ordered. Both Newman and Busch rank amongst the series’ top-ten full-time active drivers at Infineon in terms of best average finishes, and both will be starting Sunday’s event from top-ten starting positions.

Perhaps the buzz of the town this weekend surrounds Marcos Ambrose, who will make his Sprint Cup debut when the green flag drops in Sonoma. Stepping inside of the no. 21 Ford for the Wood Brothers this weekend, Ambrose will be looking to use his road course expertise to turn a few heads at Sonoma in hopes of landing a ride in the series next year. He qualified 7th and led the final practice speeds, though he did lose control of the car about halfway through the practice session and ran into the tire barriers. There was a bit of damage sustained to the left side of the car, but the crew was able to repair the car, and there seems to be little concern over the mishap for Sunday.

And, of course every team owner in the garage will be expecting top results from their former open-wheel stars that have since joined the ranks of NASCAR full-time. Afterall, if these guys are unable to get the job on the road courses - the one place they’re expected to do well - then what kind of results should they really expect from their drivers on a weekly basis going forward? Just ask Dario Franchitti how secure he feels his job is now after the 2007 IndyCar Series champion failed to qualify for Sonoma. With that in mind, you can bet that fellow Ganassi teammate, Juan Pablo Montoya, will be looking to rebound from his 21st starting position and recapture some of the glory that helped him win this race last year. But, at least he doesn’t have it near as bad as Patrick Carpentier, whom has been rumored to be on the chopping block over at Gillette-Evernham Motorsports. Carpentier, a former IRL driver himself, will start Sunday’s race from the 37th position.

Road course racing has been on the receiving end of more than its chare of criticism from NASCAR fans over the years, and often finds itself on the losing end of such debates. Whether you’re a fan or not, though, one thing cannot be denied, and that’s the fact that this drama-filled season is sure to play a part at Sonoma.

*Credit photo to Newscom.

We all know that Joe Gibbs Racing has established themselves as the powerhouse of the field at this point in time. We know that Roush-Fenway Racing has come a long way in figuring out this new car and that Hendrick Motorsports seems to have lost the edge that they had on everyone else last year. We’ve analyzed potential contractual signings every which way we could, and still found ourselves locked in a guessing game. Been there, done that, but perhaps one of the stories that we haven’t talked nearly enough about are two teams that are holding out hope of getting a driver into contention for the Chase for the Cup for the first time in their team’s history, and another that hasn’t fielded a Chase contender since 2004.

Once considered one of the top organizations in NASCAR, Yates Racing last visited Victory Lane back in the Fall of 2005 when Dale Jarrett drove the no. 88 car to a win at Talladega and the last time they were able to land a driver inside the top-12 in points was with Elliott Sadler back in ‘04. Since those days, the team has gone through a horrendous rebuilding stage and continue to struggle week in and week out to find primary sponsorship of their cars driven by Travis Kvapil and David Gilliland. Both are highly regarded as “underdogs” every Sunday when the series hits the track, and both have failed to land a top-five finish all season long. Still, they’ve continued to push forward, and have managed to turn a few heads along the way, particularly Kvapil. Coming into the season as a driver that nobody really paid much attention to, Travis admittedly got off to a rather slow start. But, something seems to have clicked within this team ever since a solid run at Phoenix turned sour and he finished 22nd. After that race, Kvapil sat 24th in points, but four finishes of 16th or better in the last six races - highlighted with a 6th place run at Talladega and an 8th place run in Darlington - have now moved Travis up six spots in the standings. He’s now 18th in points and trails 12th place, Tony Stewart, by only 150 points.

Red Bull Racing has been the team that quite a few people have been talking about as of late. With Brian Vickers and AJ Allmendinger behind the wheel for the organization, the team managed to qualify for only 40 races in a combined 72 attempts in their inaugural season in 2007. Coming into the season with both cars outside of the top-35 in points and forced to qualify on time, Allmendinger again missed out on the first three events of ‘08 before being replaced temporarily by veteran driver, Mike Skinner. Despite failing to finish inside of the top-25 in any of the five races that Skinner filled in, the move appears to have paid dividends. AJ has been able to take what he’s learned from Skinner and put it to good use on the track, first winning the All-Star Showdown at Lowe’s to make the cut for the All-Star event itself, and then scoring a career best 12th place finish last week at Pocono. Still, the focus of the media on this team has been placed with Brian Vickers, who appears to be on the verge of scoring the second Cup victory of his career. After a disappointing 2007 that brought him only 1 top-five and 5 top-ten’s, Vickers has been impressive on several occassions this year, though it may not always show up in the results column. He’s been strong on all of the superspeedways, but the team really started to turn heads when they established themselves as one of the dominant cars in the Coca Cola 600 before an equipment failure ended their day. Since then he’s bounced back with a 13th place effort at Dover and finished 2nd last week at Pocono. Brian has now moved up to 17th place overall and trails 12th by a mere 112 points.

Rounding out the list of underdogs making a charge towards the Chase is non-other than Petty Enterprises. Despite the fact that this team has more wins than any other organization in the history of the sport and a slieu of championships from when “the King” himself, Richard Petty, drove the car, the company hasn’t celebrated a win since 1999 when John Andretti won at Martinsville, and the closest they’ve come to a bid for the Chase was an 18th place finish in the standings last year from Bobby LaBonte. Now, nobody’s really sure who will drive the no. 45 car next year as Kyle Petty, Chad McCumbee, and Terry LaBonte have all failed to do much with the ride, but Bobby continues to press forward. Though he’s failed to score a top-ten all season long, he does have seven top-15’s and has gone the entire year without a DNF, something that has hindered the team in recent years. Additionally, he’s got six finishes of 18th or better in the last eight races, which started with a 12th place run at Phoenix, and LaBonte now resides in 19th in the standings, trailing his former Gibbs teammate in 12th by 159 points.

As many of the drivers in the top-12 continue to experience their share of misfortunes as they bounce back and forth between the bubble spots, this could be a prime opportunity for one of these teams to capitalize. But, with the recent emergance of guys like David Ragan, the resurgance of Matt Kenseth, and other perrenial Chase hopefuls such as Ryan Newman and Martin Truex Jr. standing between them as well, the guys currently in the top-12 may not be all they’ll have to contend with.

DYN Imposes:
This week, Do You NASCAR also asks its readers …

1. Which driver in these 3 organizations will be the first to score their first / next win?
2. Are consistent top-15 and top-20 runs going to be enough to land a driver in the Chase field?
3. Which of these teams has made the best organizational move(s) in the last 2 years?
4. Will any of these 3 teams get a driver into the 2008 Chase? If so, who?

*Credit photos to Newscom.

Image details: Coca-Cola 600 served by picapp.com

Yes, it’s Friday once again, and I think we all know what that means!  Welcome, everyone, to yet another edition of “Loose in Turn Three” with your favorite blogging panel. Of course, you know who I am, and I believe my colleagues here no longer need introduction, either … but, just formality’s sake, I’m joined once again by Bruce Simmons from Bruce’s NASCAR Bits & Pieces, and the infamous Charlie Turner from On Pit Row.

We’ve got another exciting lineup for you this week, as we refuse to let go of the drama that was the Coca Cola 600 as we analyze the decisions of Tony Stewart and Greg Zipadelli on pit road late in the race. We will also examine the struggles of Dale Earnhardt Jr. to get into Victory Lane, and we also tackle NASCAR’s “great debate” … otherwise known as “Give and Take”. So, sit back and buckle up tight. Three questions, three voices, and three different answer … we’re about to get Loose in Turn Three! 

Should the no. 20 team have called for two right-side tires on Tony Stewart’s next-to-last stop at the Coca Cola 600?

TZ: As we all know, hindsight’s 20/20, so it’s easy to sit here and bash Zippy for not giving Smoke some fresh rubber with sixty plus laps left. But, it was the right call. For the past two weeks, the checkers at Lowe’s have gone to the gamblers , so I don’t see why they’d have reason to call this one differently. Kahne won the All-Star race by not taking tires; Busch won the Nationwide race not pitting so they could keep their track position; and, the 20 crew had the same thing in mind. No tire stops aren’t common for this team, and now I guess we know why, but it was still the correct call, and Tony should’ve been climbing the fence in Charlotte.

Bruce:  I’m all about fresh rubber…  Yes you lose time putting on tires, but you can gain that time if you have enough laps back up..   nothing ventured, nothing gained.. then again, they did venture.  No, it was not a bad call for the 20 team to not take tires…  the dice just came up snake eyes this time and did not work for them.  They must have had reason to believe the tires would have lasted.    Wouldn’t they?

Charlie: Charlie:  When in doubt, trust Zippy. Nobody knows Tony Stewart better than Zippidelli. I have to give him the benefit of the doubt. Besides, what do I know anyway?

Follow the rest of our discussion here:
- Kyle Busch got his panties in a bunch because Jeff Gordon kept racing him hard for position in the Coca-Cola 600.  Should drivers get over the idea of people moving over for them because they think they’re faster than they are? 

- Why Can’t Junior Finish?

Image details: Coca-Cola 600 served by picapp.com

In the longest race on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule, Kasey Kahne proved that attrition pays off, as he was setup in the right place at the right time in the closing laps of the Coca Cola 600 to put his no. 9 Dodge into Victory Lane at Lowe’s Motor Speedway for the second time in as many weeks for car owner Ray Evernham.

After cruising to a victory in last week’s All-Star Challenge, and then earning himself the outside pole position through qualifying, Kahne looked as though he was in position to potentially run away with the race at the drop of the green flag, but that wasn’t the case. Kasey immediately faded from the frontrunners in the early stages of the race, but as the sun went down and the track got cooler, the no. 9 car seemed to get some life back in it. Kahne didn’t lead the race until lap 207 when he snuck around Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the lead, but he surrendered the front position twenty laps later as the field came around for a round of greenf flag stops.

Kahne got the lead two more times before getting passed by Tony Stewart with only 17 laps remaining. Kahne made his final pit stop for fuel just a few laps later, but his stop took nearly 3 seconds longer than Stewart’s, and as the field cycled through their stops, Stewart’s lead over Kasey opened up to nearly half a track length. Misfortune struck the no. 20 team on lap 397 of the 400 lap race, though, as Tony blew a right front tire and was forced to pit, handing the lead over to Kahne for the final time of the evening.

For Kahne, it was his first points race win since the Fall race at Lowe’s in 2006, and it was enough to move him back into the top-12 in points, and the first top-five finish for Evernham Motorsports all season long. For Stewart, it was a frustrating ending to a near-perfect night. Smoke had started the race from 31st position, but his crew worked all night long to get his car up to the front, and it appeared as though he had his first Coca Cola 600 victory well in-hand. Instead, he went onto finish 18th.

Greg Biffle bounced back from a flat tire earlier in the evening that put him a lap down on lap 135. He was able to race his way back onto the lead lap just before a lap 170 caution that was brought out when Patrick Carpentier spun Juan Pablo Montoya through the infield. Biffle was able to avoid further troubles and went onto finish second.

Third place went to Kyle Busch, who was pretty much all over the map all night long. After leading the first 33 laps of the race, his car started to slip a little through the pack as his car started to lose some power. He then had to make an unscheduled stop on lap 150 when he thought he had a tire going down, but was able to race his way back onto the lead lap less than 15 laps later. He went onto lead three more times throughout the race before settling for a top-five finish.

Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. used some fuel strategy to sneak their way into top-five finishes, as they finished 4th and 5th, respectively. As the rest of the field made their final stops, both drivers stayed out on the track after topping off their fuel tanks on the final caution that occurred with 66 laps remaining. For Gordon, a top-five was a mental victory for the team after running outside of the top-15 for the majority of the race. For Junior, this was a way to salvage a race that had previously taken a turn for the worse. After leading the most laps of the race, Earnhardt blew a right front tire while leading on lap 296. He got into the wall, and then was run into from behind by JJ Yeley. The no. 88 team made several attempts to repair the damaged race car, but in the end, it was a little bit of strategy combined with some good luck that saved the day.

Jeff Burton had a solid day, and wound up finishing 6th. He was followed by Matt Kenseth, who had a pretty uneventful evening and finished 7th. In 8th place was Elliott Sadler, who used some pit strategy to gain some much needed track position around the halfway point of the race. Carl Edwards started the race in 30th, but wound up 9th despite running out of fuel on the final lap. David Reutimann came home in 10th to earn himself his first career top-ten in the Cup Series.

Along with Stewart, several of the race’s other dominant cars were also taken out through a variety of misfortunes. After leading more than 65 laps of the race, and having just surrendered the lead over to Jimmie Johnson, on lap 185, Brian Vickers’ tire actually flew off of his race car, sending him hard into the inside SAFER barrier. The tire then proceeded to smack the no. 38 car of David Gilliland before bouncing down the track and into the trackside camping area. After leading on four different occassions, Johnson would later blow his motor with only 49 laps to go. Kurt Busch had also led more than 50 laps of the race before he had a tire go down, sending him into the wall and ending his bid for his first win of the season.

And, the most interesting statistic of the evening belongs to Ken Schrader. He was given the task of debuting the RCR no. 33 car this weekend, which he successfully qualified 33rd … and, then raced to a 33rd place finish.

Grades:
the Race: 96%
the Drama: 97%
Coverage: 89%
Pre-Race: 76%

Overall Grade: 92.8%

Complete Results (from nascar.com):

Sprint Cup Series Standings (from nascar.com):

Image details: NASCAR Testing served by picapp.com

It’s probably fair to say that before the 2008 NASCAR season started, the dynamic duo over at Hendrick Motorsports, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, would have finished in the top-five “Most Hated Drivers” poll by NASCAR fans. For years, Jeff Gordon’s dominant on-track nature has had him marked as the “Alpha Male” in the sport, but it has also marked a huge target on his back in the eyes of the fans. And, ever since Johnson has entered the Cup Series ranks and adopted Gordon’s winning behavior, the typical fan has seemingly put Jimmie into that same anti-Gordon category. Sure, they have both always had more than their share of fans throughout the country, but unlike most other drivers, it’s always been that if you’re not a fan, then you’re actually rooting against them each and every week. It’s never been a case of, “Oh, well I wouldn’t mind seeing him win” … at least until now.

Maybe it’s the fact that in 2008, Dale Earnhardt Jr. joined the ranks of NASCAR’s most dominating organization. Or, maybe it’s that Kyle Busch has taken the heat off these guys. Whatever it is, the crowd’s cheers were louder than their jeers for the first time in years as Jeff Gordon was introduced for the All-Star Challenge, and nothing was thrown on the track after Jimmie Johnson won the Subway Fresh Fit 500. It’s allowed us to stop looking at the two of them as these evil figures in NASCAR and instead focus on some of the many good things that they do not only for our sport, but for their loyal fans out there as well as some of the less fortunate.

For instance, as WSOCTV.com pointed out just the other day, in the midst of a new marriage, raising their newborn, and competing to win his fifth Cup Series championship, Jeff Gordon still takes the time out of his schedule to meet with members of his fan club throughout the year, the largest of which showings takes place at Hendrick Headquarters in Charlotte during the May Speedweek. Earlier this month, Jimmie Johnson petitioned his fans to support the Jimmie Johnson Foundation by donating money for the May 16th NASCAR Telethon in an effort to get an extra $24k for the Foundation, which of course would help support their mission of assisting needy children and families.

Let’s also not forget what the duo did this past April at Phoenix International Raceway when Gordon continued his thirteen-year relationship with the Make-A-Wish Foundation as he visited a young child from New York in the hospital. That same weekend, the Jimmie Johnson Foundation sponsored the Camping World West Series race to once again support that continued effort.

The most recent of these ongoing ventures occured earlier this week after Bank of America signed new licensing agreements with Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and Casey Mears to expand their “My Expression NASCAR Banking Program,” which Gordon already participates in. To celebrate, Hendrick Motorsports and Bank of America teamed up to surprise BOA banking customer, Rhonda Beck of Cornelus, NC, with not only the opportunity to not only tour the HMS race shop, but also the once in a lifetime opportunity to meet with 2-time Cup Series Champion, Jimmie Johnson. Johnson spent several hours talking with Rhonda as the two toured through the shop, and took the time to explain to her about the car set-ups and how they are processed to be made “race-ready”.

“One of the great things about our sport is that we get to interact so closely with fans, but rarely do we get a chance to be part of a fun, well-kept secret. It was cool to see the look on her face. I could tell that Bank of America really helped to make this experience special for their NASCAR banking customer,” Johnson said.

The over-exhilarated Rhonda Beck stated, “This has truly been a once in a lifetime experience for me. It’s all so wonderful, and I’ll remember it forever. I saw some pretty neat stuff today.”

For more information on this great banking program, please visit Bank of America’s NASCAR Banking website at My Expression NASCAR Banking Program.

Image details: null served by picapp.com

Most of you watched this past weekend as all three of the Joe Gibbs Racing cars went “up in smoke” (sorry for the pun, couldn’t resist) at some point while either getting ready for, or during the All-Star Challenge. It all started on Friday when Tony Stewart blew up in practice and the team was forced to change engines in the car overnight, resulting in a dead last starting position for Smoke. Then, on Saturday night during the race itself, after dominating the first segment of the race, Kyle Busch’s engine blew during the second segment, ultimately ending his evening. Then, the third engine gave in when Denny Hamlin’s motor had issues with the valve train as he led the fourth and final segment of the race. In fact, the only engine that held up over the weekend that the JGR crew put under one of their hoods was the replacement engine for Stewart that helped guide him to a fifth place finish despite his shoddy starting position.

It’s been no secret that JGR has had its share of bad luck this year, whether it be tire issues or mechanical - most notably, the fuel pickup problem that Hamlin suffered earlier in the season that robbed him of a win at Bristol. For those of you worried that this could be more of the same, however, you can rest easy knowing that the rotten luck that the team suffered this past weekend in Charlotte was self-inflicted and nothing more than a bit of greed from the team’s engine department.

Several reports have indicated that Gibbs opted not to go with their standard engine stock that they use each week from Toyota Racing Development, and instead decided to use their own engines. The results were dissatisfying, no doubt, but the team felt that this was the week to try to pull of such a feat and really don’t seem to shaken by their lackluster performances.

Mark Conquist, the head engine builder at Joe Gibbs Racing, stated, “We got some new stuff coming and it’s really good, and we should have brought it. But, we got greedy and brought more than that. So, it was probably just more my greed than anything, but you come to this race with all your guns loaded.”

Two-time Cup Series Champion, Tony Stewart, simply added, “You can’t get better if you don’t try stuff. It was experimental stuff and [that] was the night to try that stuff. When it comes time to run 600 miles next week, we can do it.”

With all of the controversy that Kyle Busch has managed to cause already this year due to his reckless on-track behavior, I thought it would only be fitting to compile a list of his most shining moments … or, rather, his top-ten wrecks. Enjoy!

10. Busch gets spun by Jeff Burton at the finish line as they race for the win at the Sam’s Town 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2007.

9. Kyle Busch sets off “the big one” in the 2006 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega.

8. Richmond wasn’t the first time that Kyle Busch has been involved in an accident with Dale Earnhardt Jr. Here they make contact on pit road during the Ford 400 in 2007 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

7. Kyle is involved in another “big one” at Talladega Superspeedway, this time during the 2007 UAW-Ford 500.

6. Kyle Busch and Mike Skinner get into it at the Craftsman Truck Series’ opening event in 2008, the Camping World 300, at Daytona International Speedway.

5. In the closing laps of the Craftsman Truck Series’ Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway, Kyle plows into Johnny Benson as they race for third place.

4. Kyle’s involved in a horrific accident in the 2007 Aaron’s 312 at Talladega Superspeedway, in which his Nationwide car performs several barrel rolls.

3. Kyle Busch was already quickly approaching notoriety status with the NASCAR fans, but here’s the one that pushed him over the top. Watch again, as Kyle battles Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the lead in the closing laps of the 2008 Dan Lowry 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

2. Kyle gets into his older brother, Kurt, while racing him for the lead at the 2007 All-Star Race. Neither of the brothers appeared to take it personally, and Kurt even makes some witty comments following the race to make light of the situation.

1. Saving the best for last … at the 2006 NASCAR Awards Banquet held in New York City, Kyle Busch was giving his “thank you” speech – and, actually called his girlfriend by the wrong name. You’ll love this!

Image details: NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race served by picapp.com

After finishing fifth in the All-Star Showdown, Kasey Kahne was announced as the winner of the fan vote, beating out Robby Gordon for the honors, and as a result transferred into the All-Star Challenge itself. He then became the first driver to ever win both the fan vote and then go onto win the All-Star Race, as he held off a charging Greg Biffle in the closing laps of the race to win the $1,000,000 purse.

Polesitter, Kyle Busch, led the entire first segment of the race and appeared to be in cruise control when he pulled out to more than a two-second lead in the second 25-lap segment. Misfortune and utter disappointment quickly erased that gap, though, as he was mired with a blown engine that handed the lead off to Carl Edwards, who then maintained the lead throughout the remainder of Segment 2.

Greg Biffle was the leader at the end of the third segment when the field when the field went under caution and pitted under “race conditions”. Biffle took two tires on the stop, but a few cars behind him gambled with no tires, shuffling the Biff back into some traffic. Jimmie Johnson’s crew got him out of the pits with the lead, but he was passed by Kahne eight laps later, and Biffle never got the opportunity to catch the no. 9 Budweiser car despite his late-race charge.

Kahne won the race, giving him his first All-Star win in his career, while Biffle finished the event for only the second time in his career and earned himself his first All-Star top-five with his second place finish. They were followed to the line by Biffle’s Roush-Fenway Racing teammate, Matt Kenseth, who finished fourth, and Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart completed the top-five.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. led 14 laps in the third segment of the race, but eventually faded to an 8th place finish. Sam Hornish Jr. and AJ Allmendinger, who both qualified for the race through their efforts in the All-Star Showdown, finished 7th and 17th respectively. Last year’s All-Star winner, Kevin Harvick, finished 11th, and three-time winner of the event, Jeff Gordon, came home with a disappointing 15th place run.

For more All-Star coverage, go to RevJim’s NASCAR Rants ‘n’ Raves as he provides “Live” on Type Delay: the All-Star Race

Complete Results (from nascar.com):

Greg Biffle won Saturday night’s Burnout Competition, the first of its kind by NASCAR, and as a result was awarded $10,000 for the Greg Biffle Foundation for his efforts. He ran the duration of the course in only 25.406 seconds, which was good enough to get the win over second-place Clint Bowyer.

Jimmie Johnson clocked an unofficial time of 69.017 seconds after having 20 seconds worth of penalties added to his time. “I wasn’t worried about the technical aspect of it,” he said. “I just wanted to have fun.”

Kevin Harvick followed Johnson’s lead and also put on a show, parking his car up against the outside wall and smoking his tires after he had run the course. And, of course, Kyle Busch appeased the fans by standing atop his car and giving a bow to the crowd following his run.

He failed to qualify for the first three races of the season, then Team Red Bull replaced him for with Mike Skinner for the next five events, he wrecked out of the two races after that, and he finished a race for the first time this season by finishing 27th last weekend at Darlington. Yet, following the NASCAR All-Star Showdown, AJ Allmendinger stood in Victory Lane for the first time in his Sprint Cup career, with his eyes now set on competing in the All-Star Race itself.

Allmendinger led all twenty laps in the second and final segment of the Showdown to earn himself a spot in the All-Star Challenge. He finished ahead of Sam Hornish Jr, who also earned a bid in the All-Star competition via his second place finish. Hornish took the transfer spot away from David Ragan on lap 33 of the 40 lap race, and was able to fend him off for the final 7 laps.

Brian Vickers led the race at the end of the first segment after taking the lead away from polesitter, Elliott Sadler, back on lap 1. He then pitted during the competition caution at the end of the segment, while 8 other cars opted to remain on the track, including eventual race winner, AJ Allmendinger.

Kasey Kahne finished the race in fifth, but earned himself a spot in the All-Star Race as well via the fan vote. He finished ahead of Robby Gordon in the voting to earn the honors.