A cut tire had put them behind early, and they spent the rest of the day trying to make up ground. He lost a lap, then gained it back. The car got worse, then better. A long afternoon of adjustments and perseverance and effort seemed finally about to pay off for the No. 33 team in the waning laps last Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway. A two-tire stop had put Clint Bowyer in the lead approaching what appeared the final restart, and the Richard Childress Racing driver had visions of heading into the off week as the Sprint Cup points leader.

And in an instant, it all came undone. Bowyer faded from the lead on the restart. Jamie McMurray spun. Suddenly seven drivers were caught up in the last, biggest accident of the day. Among them were Mark Martin, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch -- and Bowyer, who wound up finishing 23rd. NASCAR's recently revised rule allowing for multiple green-white-checkered attempts had struck again.

"For guys that have been on the lead lap, the reward should be that you finish up front," Bowyer said. "I got wrecked, and eight cars that finished in front of me, they were nowhere to be found all day long. It makes for good racing for the fans, but it makes you whine a little bit, too."

Lost in the furor surrounding Carl Edwards' intentional takeout of Brad Keselowski is the fact that his retaliatory tap not only sent the No. 12 car flying, but for many drivers completely changed the outcome of the race. Before the on-track altercation and the ensuing yellow flag pushed the event into overtime, Juan Montoya had been steadily narrowing the gap on leader Kurt Busch, and drivers like Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr. -- running seventh and eighth, respectively -- had put themselves in position for strong finishes and good points days. Although pit stops before the first green-white-checkered attempt allowed Bowyer to briefly take the lead, both drivers ultimately wound up on the losing end.

"It creates racing. As a fan of the sport, you want to see that," Bowyer said. "But we had to put two tires on, guys that were fast put four tires on. You've got cars crushed up there not running the pace, you've got guys that are trying to win the race that are up front all day long. It just creates an intense situation that sometimes gets out of hand. It did for me." (Continued)