Kenseth wins at Talladega
TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Matt Kenseth won Sunday's Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 at Talladega Superspeedway after Michael Waltrip ran into Tony Stewart on the last lap, triggering a crash that wrecked more than two dozen cars.
In the tentative order of finish, Jeff Gordon finished second for the fourth time in the last six races, followed by Kyle Busch, David Ragan and Greg Biffle.
Points leader Brad Keselowski finished seventh, best of any of the championship contenders. Jimmie Johnson, second in points, was 17th and third-place Denny Hamlin finished the race 11th.
Pole-sitter Kasey Kahne led the first seven laps, and then the lead began to change hands with regularity, as it tends to do at Talladega.
In the first 50 laps, eight different drivers led, with a total of 14 lead changes.
Kurt Busch, who was leading, ran out of gas and got wrecked on Lap 99 in Turn 2. Busch stopped on the track and when safety crews approached, Busch drove away without his helmet on. NASCAR promptly parked him for the day.
It was an ugly end to Busch's final ride with Phoenix Racing, a tempestuous pairing that didn't even last a single season. Next week he moves to the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet
A caution flag for debris on Lap 140 occurred just after Dale Earnhardt Jr. raced his way back on the lead lap for the first time since Lap 62, when he got a pit-road speed penalty.
Jamie McMurray, who dominated much of the race, got turned around by Kevin Harvick with six laps to go, bringing out a late-race caution and setting up a sprint to the finish.
Stewart was on the bottom line when Waltrip hit him, wadding up the field and sending Stewart's car upside down.
NOTES: Lots of folks were thinking pink at Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. The cars of Kenseth, Clint Bowyer, Biffle and Trevor Bayne were all decked out in pink in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. ... Harvick said he expects a major management reorganization at Richard Childress Racing after the end of the season, including the hiring of a new competition director. ... NASCAR will redo its qualifying procedures next year, eliminating guaranteed spots based on owner points. Expect a formal announcement in the next two weeks.
