May 30, 2007
By Chuck Abrams

Chuck Abrams

Remember the Coca-Cola 600 back in 2005/2006?

Lowe’s was repaved (again) after a rash of crashes in 2005 and the 2006 All-Star race showed it was still a bit slick with the new tire combination. But fast-forward to 2007 with a more weathered Lowe’s and we got a much better show, although we still had some unbelievable wrecks but those were more indicative of close racing than a harder tire compound.

And to make it more interesting for race fans, first-time winners swept the weekend’s major races – Casey Mears at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Dario Franchitti at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

While most race pundits were ready to hand the race trophy to Jimmie Johnson, another Hendrick team decided this was their race. Early wrecks brought out several cautions, that ultimately decided the race.

The race was surprisingly led by Brian Vickers’ Red Bull Toyota, which had to have Team Toyota thrilled but left most of NASCAR fans praying for anything but a Toyota win in the 600. Ricky Rudd was also lurking in or near the top 10 most of the race and making a good show for Yates Racing. The rest of the usual suspects (Johnson, Earnhardt, Hamlin, Martin, Kenseth) were at, or near the front for most of the race, leading us to what most assumed would be Tony Stewart’s first win of the season.

Richard Petty once said that all you can do is keep yourself in a position to win and the rest would figure itself out. That was so true on Sunday night as the race wore on and the guys that were lurking in the top 15 suddenly found themselves closer to the front as they watched as the leaders pull into the pits for gas one by one.

They each had to be asking themselves if this was for real and who would be the last one to have the guts to make a call to go for it.

Now I am not usually a fan of fuel mileage races and Lowe’s is not a place you usually think of as a fuel mileage race. But the early cautions helped out those guys just outside the top 10. They used less fuel fighting for the lead, were able to back off just a bit while maintaining their position and putting themselves in a position to win. And that is all it took. Had Mears had to pit, J.J. Yeley was ready to take his first win. And had he pitted, Kyle Petty and Reed Sorenson were ready. Anyway you sliced it, the 600 was shaping up to have an interesting finish.

As nice as it is to see the underdogs win a race and shake up the top 10, it will be but a fond moment in a long season. Perhaps this was what it will take to keep Mears and Yeley in the top 15 every week. Perhaps Petty Enterprises is getting it figured out. More than likely, it gave some also ran drivers a nice boost of confidence and gave a struggling but determined organization a shot in the arm. More than likely we will see the usual suspects back at the front at Dover and beyond.

But wasn’t it nice to see some fresh faces even if just for a day?

That’s my take. Drive fast, turn left and keep the shiny side up.

Feel free to send Chuck your thoughts on this and other race topics at his forum at www.turnleftracing.com/forums or email him at Insider Racing News and at Turn Left Racing.

The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN.