Kyle Busch's pit crew made an unintentional move that paved the way for victory. Credit: Autostock

Sunoco Pit Move: California

FONTANA, Calif. -- It's not often in sports that what appears to be a big mistake turns out to be a winning move. However, that's exactly what happened for Kyle Busch and crew chief Alan Gustafson on Sunday night.

As the caution came out for the 10th time due to debris on Lap 242, leader Busch intended to fake the rest of the field out near the commitment line and stay on the racetrack. However, when all the other leaders followed him, crew chief Alan Gustafson decided to take on four tires for the final stretch to the checkers.

Kyle Busch celebrates his first Cup win. Credit: Autostock

Results Sony HD 500 Pos. Driver Make 1. Kyle Busch Chevrolet 2. Greg Biffle Ford 3. Brian Vickers Chevrolet 4. Carl Edwards Ford 5. Tony Stewart Chevrolet Complete results, click here Standings, click here Junior's day endsDale Earnhardt Jr.'s Chase hopes expire with his engine Final lapsKyle Busch wins in a green-white-checkered finish Victory LaneKyle Busch celebrates after his Sony HD 500 win at Fontana Top finishersListen to the top finishers from the Sony HD 500 Sign up for TrackPass now BUY YOUR NEXTEL DRIVER PHONE

However, Busch pitted too close to the pit wall, so the team was forced to change just two tires on a track that was getting a reputation as being tough on tires as the evening wore on.

"He just got in a tick hot," Gustafson said. "We were a little close to the inside wall. I know with just a little bit of time, we just switched off the two."

Not an easy feat.

"The guys did a really good job," Gustafson said. "I'm screaming in their ear, they're trying to make the winning pit stop and they did it without any mistakes."

In the end, all of the contending cars with the exception of Tony Stewart and Matt Kenseth took two tires, and Busch was able to get his first Nextel Cup win.

"We came down pit road not even wanting to come down pit road," Busch said. "I was going to fake everybody, but when everybody followed, we decided to stick with it.

"We just decided to go for two and that was the race-winning move right there."

Not-so-fantastic four

On the other side of the spectrum, Matt Kenseth was wishing his No. 17 team had taken two tires on its final pit stop.

Instead, they took four, struggled on the restart, and finished seventh.

"Hindsight is always 20/20, but we never, ever, ever gamble and take two and we should have took two," he said. "We would have come out of the pits first or second and I think we would have finished there."

The clinching advantage

When you've already clinched a spot in the Chase for the Nextel Cup, you can afford to do things a little bit differently. That worked in Jimmie Johnson's favor Sunday night in Fontana.

On Lap 56, Johnson, running third, brushed the wall, but appeared not to lose much ground. He continued to run third and, in fact, blasted past Stewart on the backstretch.

Forty-one laps later, Johnson's No. 48 Chevrolet headed to pit road to repair a right-front shock. Since the team was not feeling pressure to rush back out to pit road, it took its time slightly to make the change.

As Sheryl Crow once sang, a change will do you good -- and it did for Johnson.

He restarted in 32nd position, but started clicking off competitors in quick fashion. By Lap 125, Johnson was 17th. As it was, he finished 16th.

Foreshadowing?

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We may have seen the first moves by a team to try to gain ground on 11th place for the end of the season. On Lap 116, Michael Waltrip, long out of Chase contention, took just two tires while everyone else on pit road took four.

He had the lead when the race went back to green on Lap 118, garnering five bonus points. His joy was short-lived. Ten laps later, Waltrip was 17th. He finished 13th.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Waltrip's DEI teammate, elected to stay out to lead a lap during the next-to-last round of pit stops on Lap 168 in order to get five bonus points for leading a lap.

It mattered little, as Junior was mathematically eliminated on Lap 211 when the engine expired on the No. 8 Chevrolet.

"The championship's been over for at least 80 laps," said Earnhardt Jr. "I'm really glad it's over with."

Quotable

"Our car was horrible," -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. after the motor -- and his championship hopes -- expired on Lap 211.

"I think it's going to be a really exciting Chase, especially Richmond. It's going to be a gunfight" -- Rusty Wallace