Matt McLaughlin’s Thinkin’ Out Loud: 2012 Fontana Race Recap
Tony Stewart took the lead from Kyle Busch on lap 85 and appeared to be in a class of his own. The rain just sealed the deal.
Tony Stewart took the lead from Kyle Busch on lap 85 and appeared to be in a class of his own. The rain just sealed the deal.
Brad Keselowski prevailed on the final restart to keep Matt Kenseth behind him. Kenseth drove for all he was worth as the duo battled through lapped traffic, to no avail; he lost the race by 0.7 seconds.
Matt Kenseth drifted high on the final restart to pick up teammate Greg Biffle, who never made a move on his teammate down the stretch. While Biffle and Dale Earnhardt Jr. battled for second, Kenseth drove to his second Daytona 500 victory in four years.
Race One – A caution froze the field on the final lap of the race as Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was trying to mount a challenge on Tony Stewart for the win. Race Two – Greg Biffle dominated the race but swept up on the final lap thinking he’d hook up with teammate Matt Kenseth to seal the deal. Instead, Kenseth dove down into the lower lane Biffle had opened for him, towing Jimmie Johnson in his wake to take the lead and the win.
Kyle Busch used a David Pearson, patent perfect slingshot pass to get around Tony Stewart coming to the line.
*Who… gets my shoutout of the race?*
Talk about being there at the end. We barely heard a whimper from *Denny Hamlin* all night long, but when it counted, there he was, finishing fifth. The run is made all the more impressive by the fact Hamlin lost two laps early on, involved in a Lap 10 wreck only to stay patient, work with a damaged engine and draft to perfection after earning Lucky Dogs to get those laps back. Now, it’s too early to say if new (and defending Cup champion) crew chief Darian Grubb is having that big of an impact or if Hamlin will regain the form that nearly carried him to the 2010 title himself. But if the 31-year-old can run like he did Saturday night – quietly staying out of trouble only to make some noise at the end – Hamlin could well roar back into championship contention this year. Sometimes. you don’t have to be overtly spectacular to turn heads; you just have to get it done right.
I’d like to see everyone raise their hands who was absolutely gobsmacked shocked into silence that Kyle Busch drove Ron Hornaday into the wall, then didn’t apologize instantly. Anybody? Bueller? That’s what I thought. But wait, I have another one. A show of hands, please, on who couldn’t believe their ears when the Catawba County …
Brad Keselowski beat Jeff Gordon off pit road during the race’s final caution, blew by two-tire Martin Truex, Jr. on the final restart and made the rest of the Bristol field look like they were the ones driving drunkenly impaired on Miller Lite. Gordon tried to catch him, but alas, Bristol is the new half-mile Fontana: fresher tires made little difference while aero and track position took center stage – even at 15 seconds a lap.
What is it about Watkins Glen that brings out the complete inability in men to engage in mortal combat? First it was Juan Pablo Montoya and Kevin Harvick holding hands at Watkins Glen a couple of years ago, now it’s Greg Biffle throwing “baby punches” and Boris Said trying to go Waterboy around 10 crew …
David Ragan, with an essential assist from teammate Matt Kenseth, got some sweet redemption after his miscue shifting lanes prior to a restart at the Daytona 500.
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