Crew chief Pay Tryson makes his case -- to no avail. Credit: AP

Sunoco Pit Move of the Week: Michigan

Sunday's event at Michigan was proof that the Chase for the Nextel Cup will place even more pressure on the pit crews.

Mistakes will be magnified over the final 10-race stretch.

Such a mistake occurred at Michigan when Mark Martin's crew didn't get all five lug nuts tightened during a late pit stop. NASCAR made Martin come back in to tighten the lugs.

Martin's crew chief, Pat Tryson, argued vehemently NASCAR over the rule. For more on Tryson's version on the incident, and NASCAR's response, click here.

VIDEO Pit Miscue? The No.6 team is penalized for a loose lugnut

Right or wrong, the penalty could have been disastrous for Martin, who is one of the five drivers outside the top 10 with a realistic shot at making the Chase for the Nextel Cup.

But Martin rallied from the penalty, racing to second place for his third top-five finish of the month.

It was a call by Tryson that helped Martin get -- and retain -- second place.

On the final stop -- which occurred under the green flag -- Martin took just two tires.

He felt he had no choice.

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"We came from the back of the pack with no cautions to run second and I applaud Pat Tryson. He and I wanted to win the race so we took two tires," Martin said. "We knew that we could only run second if we took four and we knew if we took two we might run second or we might have a chance to win.

"As it turned out, we didn't have enough tires on the left side to run with him, but we did everything we could do considering we didn't get a yellow flag."