Busch Dominates at Pocono; Moves Ahead of Earnhardt

Earnhardt was second and Denny Hamlin, who swept both races at Pocono last year, finished third.

Kurt Busch dominated from the opening lap and raced his way back into championship contention, cruising to his first victory in 51 races Sunday at Pocono Raceway. Salem-News.com SPORTS file photo

LONG POND, Pa. - Kurt Busch dominated from the opening lap and raced his way back into championship contention, cruising to his first victory in 51 races Sunday at Pocono Raceway.

The race did not include Robby Gordon, who was suspended by NASCAR early Sunday morning for his conduct at the Busch Series race in Montreal a day before.

The win lifted Busch into the 12th and final spot of the Chase for the Nextel Cup standings -- one ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- with five races left until the championship races start.

Busch hadn't been in the top 12 in points since a 100-point penalty for reckless driving in June knocked him six spots down to 17th.

Now he's back and on his biggest roll of the season.

"I feel like a newborn," Busch said. "I'm ready to run for the Chase."

Busch, who had surged to 13th in the standings entering the Pennsylvania 500, led all but 25 laps and made his second career Pocono victory look easy. The 175 laps led was a Pocono record.

Not even a lug nut problem on pit road under caution late in the race and a hard-charging Earnhardt affected him very much. His No. 2 Dodge was clearly the car to beat all day.

Busch fell to ninth on the restart on Lap 143rd, but quickly made up ground and passed the revitalized Earnhardt for the lead with 47 laps left.

The 2004 series champion needs to keep his hot streak going -- three top-10s in four races -- if he wants to keep his spot for the 10-race Chase for the Nextel Cup championship.

It was Busch's first win since March 26, 2006, at Bristol, and he was second in both Pocono races last year.

Earnhardt was second and Denny Hamlin, who swept both races at Pocono last year, finished third. Points leader Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson rounded out the top five.

"Basically we're racing for team morale and wins right now," said Hamlin, second in the standings. "We're racing to try and get the guys pumped up and ready for the Chase."

Drivers often complain that the 2.5-mile triangle track with the longest straightaway in NASCAR often leads to one of the most boring races of the season.

This one was no exception as Busch led nearly the entire race except for a short stretch near the end when Earnhardt shook off early trouble with the No. 8 Chevrolet and temporarily took the lead.

But Earnhardt, who failed to capitalize on his first pole since 2002, couldn't press him for very long.

Certainly the 500-mile race wasn't as wild or controversial as the Busch Series race Saturday in Montreal.

Robby Gordon upstaged the debut weekend for the series in Canada with his antics on the track, including his refusal to pull off the track as ordered and celebrating the same time as race winner Kevin Harvick.

NASCAR suspended Gordon for Sunday's race, and additional disciplinary action could come this week. P.J. Jones drove Gordon's car and finished 37th.

"I'll accept my penalty and I'll accept sitting out today's race," Gordon said before the race Sunday. (read more)

Busch is experiencing a resurgence since crew chief Pat Tryson joined Penske Racing six races ago, the third crew chief the former champion has had this season.

He would have already had the 12th spot in the standings had he not been docked 100 points for reckless driving and endangering one of Tony Stewart's crew members on pit road at Dover.

Busch said after qualifying second on Friday that he hoped those 100 points wouldn't be a factor in making the Chase. With the way he's driving the No. 2 Dodge, they won't matter.

He started only 13 points behind Earnhardt. Now Junior is the driver on the outside looking for a way to qualify in the next five races before the 12-car field is frozen after Richmond.

Earnhardt complained early about his car being tight, spun out, and had shaky shocks before his crew solved the problems too late.

"I don't want to finish seventh, I want to finish eighth or seventh," Junior said. "We've got a few races, but I think we'll do fine."

Stewart had his two-race winning streak snapped and was sixth.

Story by: Dan Gelston, The Associated Press

Courtesy: NASCAR.com

Pennsylvania 500 Results:

FIN ST CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR PTS/BNS LAPS STATUS

1. 2 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 195/10 200 Running

2. 1 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Budweiser 175/5 200 Running

3. 6 11 Denny Hamlin Chevrolet FedEx Express 165/0 200 Running

4. 11 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 160/0 200 Running

5. 7 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 155/0 200 Running

6. 24 20 Tony Stewart Chevrolet The Home Depot 150/0 200 Running

7. 4 12 Ryan Newman Dodge Mobil 1 151/5 200 Running

8. 15 07 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Camping World

/ RVs.com 147/5 200 Running

9. 25 01 Mark Martin Chevrolet U.S. Army 138/0 200 Running

10. 8 25 Casey Mears Chevrolet National Guard / GMAC 134/0 200 Off Track

11. 18 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet AT&T Mobility 130/0 200 Running

12. 3 5 Kyle Busch Chevrolet Kellogg's / CARQUEST 132/5 200 Running

13. 20 88 Ricky Rudd Ford Combos 124/0 200 Running

14. 37 17 Matt Kenseth Ford DEWALT 126/5 200 Running

15. 17 96 Tony Raines Chevrolet DLP HDTV / "Rush Hour 3" 118/0 199 Running

16. 9 42 Juan Montoya * Dodge Texaco / Havoline 115/0 199 Running

17. 23 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell / Pennzoil 112/0 199 Running

18. 21 21 Bill Elliott Ford U.S. Air Force 114/5 199 Running

19. 32 66 Jeff Green Chevrolet Haas Automation 111/5 199 Running

20. 19 22 Dave Blaney Toyota Caterpillar 103/0 199 Running

21. 29 99 Carl Edwards Ford Office Depot 100/0 199 Running

22. 12 16 Greg Biffle Ford "Dog the Bounty Hunter" / Dish Network 97/0 199 Running

23. 13 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops / Tracker 99/5 199 Running

24. 16 10 Scott Riggs Dodge Valvoline / Stanley Tools 91/0 199 Running

25. 34 40 David Stremme Dodge Target 88/0 199 Running

26. 35 15 Paul Menard * Chevrolet Energizer / Menards 85/0 199 Running

27. 5 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Dodge Dealers / UAW 82/0 199 Running

28. 10 41 Reed Sorenson Dodge Target 84/5 199 Off Track

29. 28 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 76/0 199 Running

30. 26 43 Bobby Labonte Dodge Cheerios / Betty Crocker 78/5 198 Running

31. 43 36 Jeremy Mayfield Toyota 360 OTC 70/0 198 Running

32. 14 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Dodge Dealers / UAW 67/0 198 Running

33. 36 6 David Ragan * Ford AAA 64/0 197 Running

34. 42 45 Kyle Petty Dodge Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil 61/0 197 Running

35. 27 18 J.J. Yeley Chevrolet Interstate Batteries 58/0 197 Running

36. 41 70 Johnny Sauter Chevrolet Haas Automation 55/0 197 Running

37. 30 7 P.J. Jones Ford MAPEI / Menards 52/0 197 Running

38. 39 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 49/0 194 Running

39. 33 38 David Gilliland Ford M&M's 46/0 191 Running

40. 22 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 43/0 177 Out of Race

41. 31 00 David Reutimann * Toyota Burger King 40/0 159 Out of Race

42. 40 44 Dale Jarrett Toyota UPS 37/0 151 Out of Race

43. 38 4 Ward Burton Chevrolet Lucas Oil / State Water Heaters 34/0 109 Out of Race

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