Edwards looks to get back what he lost at Michigan

There were two laps to go. Carl Edwards was the leader and heading to what looked like was going to be his fifth victory of the season and his first at Michigan International Speedway.

But when his car got loose at the start of a green-white-checkered finish while trying to hold off Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Robby Gordon, the nose of Junior's Chevrolet touched the rear bumper of Edwards' Ford, sending him spinning into the infield. Edwards pleaded to have Earnhardt black-flagged. NASCAR reviewed the results for several minutes, and left them intact: Earnhardt was the winner. And for perhaps the first time in his NASCAR career, he was booed as he exited his car in Victory Lane, where Edwards met him for an explanation.

By the Numbers

Mark Martin is back at Michigan, this time in a Chevrolet. But he's going to face an even hotter Chevrolet driver.

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That, of course, was last year's Michigan race -- one of the most memorable in the 2006 Busch Series season. And with Edwards leading the standings by 766 points this time the series heads to the Irish Hills, all is forgotten, right?

"I can't wait to get back to Michigan International Speedway for lots of reasons," said Edwards, who wound up 23rd after leading 31 laps. "We ran up front the whole race last year and came up a lap short of the win."

Crew chief Pierre Kuettel put it more bluntly.

"We ran super fast there last year and led several laps," Kuettel said, "but were wrecked on the last lap. We can't wait to get back there and fight for the lead again."

That fight for the top spot initially began just a few laps prior to the crash, when Edwards made a daring three-wide move around Earnhardt and Gordon to take command.

But this year there's no Earnhardt. And there won't be a Gordon in the field, either. That doesn't lessen the motivation.

Edwards won the Cup Series race at Michigan in June this year, snapping a 19-month, 52-race streak in which he hadn't celebrated a win in NASCAR's top series. The drought never crossed over into the Busch Series, but it has made a difference.

"His confidence is sky-high from his Cup victory there in June," Kuettel said.

And if he's learned anything since that crash last year, it's that the track has lots of room, and sometimes it's all needed.

"It's two miles of pure adrenaline," Edwards said. "You can race and pass all over the track. It should be an awesome weekend for our team."

31 and counting
Last week's victory at Watkins Glen gave Kevin Harvick 31 career wins in the Busch Series, tying him with Jack Ingram for second on the all-time list behind Mark Martin's 47.

"To be next to those guys in the record books, to be tied with Jack Ingram and behind Mark Martin, it's something that's really special for me," Harvick said. "When you go back to when the Busch Series started in 1982, you had Sam Ard and Jack Ingram and all that paved the way for all of us. ... You don't get to race with those guys, so all you have is the history."

The Busch Series king
Martin is driving this week at Michigan, a track where he's won twice in the Busch Series. But both those times were in Fords. This week, he's back in a Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet for the second time this season.

Martin previously ran for Hendrick at Darlington, where he finished second.

"I am really excited to get behind the wheel of the 5 car again," Martin said. "I had a blast driving it in Darlington back in May. That's a really good team they have over there, and I'm really looking forward to getting back in their stuff."

Third time's a charm
Sam Hornish Jr. will climb behind the wheel of Penske Racing's No. 12 Dodge this weekend at Michigan. It will be his third race at the track this year.

He earned the pole and finished second in an ARCA race there, and just two weeks ago finished ninth in the IRL race.

"We didn't do so well in the IndyCar race, but considering how well we ran in the ARCA race, I'm looking forward to the Busch event," Hornish said. "Running the ARCA race allowed me to get a better feel for the track in a stock car."