Visit back 'home' for Roush more meaningful in victory

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- They were calling him to the center of all the attention in Victory Lane.

After all, as the architect of the remarkable day that had just unfolded at Michigan International Speedway, he deserved to be there, basking in the moment.

But Jack Roush's eyes were transfixed on the little girl he held in his arms, and her eyes on his. They shared a moment of pure joy before Roush gently set her down and told her that Grandpa had to go for a moment and would see her later.

"That was Josie Rose McClenaghan," Roush said of his grandchild, his own oldest daughter's daughter. "She's 3 and a half years old, and she's been to Victory Lane before. I think she's 4-for-4. I don't think she's gone to a race when we haven't celebrated a victory."

After breaking away from blond-haired, blue-eyed, smiling Josie Rose, Roush was off to join race winner Carl Edwards to continue the celebration. High above it all, the scoreboard towering above the MIS start/finish line told the broader story -- not only had Edwards won the 3M Performance 400 in his No. 99 Ford, but four of the top five finishers were members of the Roush Fenway Racing family. David Ragan had claimed third, Greg Biffle fourth and the resilient Matt Kenseth fifth in fellow Fords. The fifth member, Jamie McMurray, was 10th.

Not only had Edwards won Sunday's Sprint Cup Series event, but he also won Saturday's Nationwide Series Carfax 250 at the track. And not just any track, but Jack's track in the lush, green Irish Hills of rural Michigan.

It's located one hour up the road from Ford headquarters in Detroit and about the same distance from Roush Industries in Livonia, Mich., where Roush said he employs 3,000. That's in addition to those who are part of his sprawling racing operation, based in Concord, N.C., and on Sunday the track seemed overflowing with all of them.

"It's really home for me," Roush said of racing at MIS. "It's a chance to play in front of the home crowd. It means a lot to Ford Motor Company, and it means a lot to me."

Home-track advantage?
One other aspect to Sunday's victory appealed to Roush and Edwards. In winning the race, Edwards held off the No. 18 Toyota of Kyle Busch down the stretch -- including on the final restart with two laps to go. In a season that has been largely dominated by Busch and the No. 18 car, that was no small feat.

Edwards said he thought back to the recent race at Chicagoland before the green flag dropped on the final restart. It was there that Edwards watched as Busch worked his way around two-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson and stole a win at the very end. (Continued)