Vickers' reign atop standings a short one

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- To hear Brian Vickers, evil lurked somewhere deep within the steel recesses of his No. 5 Chevrolet.

Mr. Goodcents 300  Results  Standings

Vickers fought a losing battle Saturday to an ill-handling race car, spinning and slapping the wall on lap 90 of the Mr. Goodcents 300.

Vickers was OK, but the 19-year-old had his one-race reign atop the Busch Series points standings come to an end. He came into the race 32 points ahead of Scott Riggs after his victory at Dover, but Vickers left Kansas Speedway in 32nd place.

"It was definitely not our day," Vickers said. "I don't know what happened. The GMAC crew did the best they could all weekend. We never gave up. But there was something about this car. It's like it had a demon in it. I've had a car that handled better with two flat rear tires, as loose as it was today.

	Vickers' car is towed back to the garage. Vickers finished 32nd. Credit: Autostock

"It finally just caught up with us. You can't go around here with a car that's 10 degrees loose all day long."

Vickers made up four spots in the results by returning to the race, even though he finished 52 laps down. Vickers dropped two spots in the points standings to third, 46 out of the lead.

David Green took over the Busch Series points lead, moving up three spots. Scott Riggs is second, 21 back.

Ron Hornaday dropped one spot to fourth, and he trails Green by 48 points. Jason Keller stayed in fifth, but he's only 59 points back.

The points lead changed for the ninth time in the last 15 races, with Green moving back on top for the fifth time. Green had fallen to fourth after getting knocked out of the Dover race by Riggs.

Mr. Goodcents 300 Notes  KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Michael Waltrip was on cruise control, holding an easy lead on Bobby Hamilton Jr. as the Mr. Goodcents 300 wound down.  But a not so funny thing happened as Waltrip was en route to his second Busch Series victory in three races. A right-front tire went down on Waltrip's No. 99 Chevrolet, and he bounced off the wall along the frontstretch.  Full Story

But his Brewco Motorsports team rallied with a solid run and a fortunate victory at Kansas.

"The hardest blow we took all year was at Dover, which propelled Brian," Green said. "Low day for us, high day for him. Racing's very difficult. ... It's good to get back up there. I don't care where the points fall. If we can go out and win and operate to the fullest of our potential, that satisfies me.

"We were put to the test at Dover. Emotions could've run high. Our team was very professional. We said, 'We'll get 'em next week.' By God, we did."

Vickers was never a contender Saturday. He started 17th but was a lap down when he lost it in Turn 2.

"It's not a good day for the points," Vickers said, "but we're not going to give up. It's a long year. ... It's a tough sport," Vickers said. "It can bring you up and put you down real quick."

Vickers had been on a tear lately, winning three times in six races to move from fifth in the points to first. He's competing in his first full season in the Busch Series, and he led the points for the first time in his career.

But he insisted pressure had nothing to do with what happened Saturday.

"That has absolutely nothing to do with it," Vickers said. "There's no more pressure sitting in second or third or fifth, like we were earlier this year, than there is sitting in the lead. It comes down to Miami.

"We just had a bad day. I don't know what was wrong with that car. I'm glad it's tore up right now. I hate for all the guys in the shop. They build great cars and do a good job. That thing was just possessed. Hopefully, I'll never have to race it again the rest of this year."