Kurt Busch avoided Bristol's heavy traffic by refusing to pit in the closing laps. Credit: Autostock
By Ryan Smithson, Turner Sports Interactive
March 30, 2004
9:57 AM EST (1457 GMT)
It has been a recent trend in the spring race at Bristol.
When in doubt, stay out.
For the third time in four spring races at Bristol, the winner went the last 85 laps – or more – without pitting.
Clearly, track position is everything at the half-mile track, and Busch knew it. So when crew chief Jimmy Fennig told him to come in for tires with 120 to go in the Food City 500, Busch overruled him.
The decision was the right one, as Busch kept the lead through a flurry of cautions in the final laps. The caution laps helped considerably, because Rusty Wallace had the better car.
"I was mad," said Fennig, who wasn't Busch's crew chief in 2002, when Busch used the same strategy to win. "I was upset because I felt we needed to pit, but Kurt knew what he had."
 | VIDEO CLIPS |  | Busch ignites argument by staying out for track position
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The cautions in the latter part of the event helped keep Busch's tires from excessive wear.
Another thing that helped Busch was the fact that Kevin Harvick, who finished third, had even better tires than Wallace. That forced Wallace to race with Harvick for position, leaving Busch with plenty of clean air to pull away.
Costly mistake for Gordon
Admittedly, even the best can have a tough time remembering the rules. And it cost Jeff Gordon a top-five finish.
| VIDEO CLIPS |  | Gordon circles pit road under the green flag
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On yellow-flag stops at Bristol, cars must pull around the entire length of the track. During a green flag stop, cars can enter pit road on the side of the track where they pit.
During the stretch of green flag stops two-thirds through the event, Gordon drove the entire length of pit road on the frontstretch when he didn't have to.
It cost him a lap, which he later made up. Instead of finishing close to Harvick, who was third, Gordon ended up a distant ninth.
On yellow-flag stops at Bristol, cars must pull around the entire length of the track. During a green flag stop, cars can enter pit road on the side of the track where they pit.
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