Posted on by Zack Albert

Five-Time stands 44 points ahead of second-place Carl Edwards

DARLINGTON, S.C. — One year removed from celebrating a historic 200th win for car owner Rick Hendrick, Jimmie Johnson had much more modest elation this time around at Darlington Raceway.

But the evening’s developments hinted that Johnson possesses a broader view of what could be a bigger celebration at season’s end.

Johnson eked out a fourth-place finish in Saturday night’s Bojangles’ Southern 500, stretching his points lead in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series to 44 over championship rival Carl Edwards, who finished seventh.

The five-time Cup champion could almost take a race off and maintain his lead in the standings, considering the maximum points a driver can earn in a given race is 48 — Johnson’s car number. But Johnson gave every impression that he intends to pour it on before the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup begins after the regular-season finale Sept. 7 at Richmond International Raceway.

"I want to make sure we collect as many points as we can if we can’t win."

— Jimmie Johnson

"The big picture, we want to lock in before Richmond and control as much of the regular season as we can," said Johnson, who won the most recent of his five titles in 2010. "We’re doing that right now, so I’m very happy. We didn’t win the race, but I think we opened up the gap from first to second (in the points) and that’s nice to do."

Johnson had to overcome some mild adversity after his Hendrick crew had trouble changing the rear tires during the last round of pit stops. He lost five spots in the exchange, dipping to eighth for the next-to-last restart.

"Just kind of mired back at that point," Johnson said. "Still, passed a few cars, went from eighth to fourth. Picked up four spots, but that (stop) didn’t help any."

Repeat wins at Darlington aren’t extraordinarily rare, but going back-to-back at one of NASCAR’s most treacherous circuits is no easy task. Still, Johnson will take a top-five and a two-week grasp on the standings lead heading into next Saturday night’s non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

"Another good points night," he said. "I know Richmond is still kind of far away, but top of my mind, I want to make sure we collect as many points as we can if we can’t win."

READ MORE:

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WATCH: Big wreck
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Posted on by George Winkler

Steady Gordon keeps on starting; Kenseth keeps winning; plus more

Related: Standings | Results | Darlington coverage | Video

The cars aren’t the only thing in NASCAR moving at a dizzying pace. Time has a way of doing just the same. Did Jeff Gordon really just make his 700th consecutive start on Saturday night, at Darlington Raceway of all places?

Of course he did, but it’s still amazing if you slow down and think about it. Seven hundred straight times Gordon has suited up and given his best.

NASCAR is comprised of many dedicated people who make the sport work, but it’s still incredible that an illness, an emergency of some sort, or even a hangnail didn’t pop up from time-to-time to cause Gordon to miss a race.

It’s that type of consistent effort that is the mark of a champion, and Gordon’s third-place finish in the Bojangles’ Southern 500 jumped him to 12th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings. In other words, it’s enough to put him into contention for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, and a sign to all those young pups that this gracefully aging dog still has some bite.

Gordon got off to a slow start this season, but he now has three top-10 finishes and has been in the top 10 or just outside of it in six of the past seven races. He’ll need to continue that consistency to stay in contention.

Another driver who knows a thing or two about consistency is Matt Kenseth, and to say he’s on a roll would be an understatement. After making a late move to win Saturday night’s race in Darlington, Kenseth has finished in the top 10 in four straight races, including two wins. He has three wins and seven top-10s this season.

And if it weren’t for a couple of blown engines that led to a 37th-place finish in the Daytona 500 and a 35th-place showing at Bristol, the 59-point gap between Kenseth and points leader Jimmie Johnson would be smaller. Of course, the gap could be bigger, too, if it weren’t for the National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel reducing a 50-point penalty against Kenseth to 12 points last week.

As it stands, Kenseth, if he continues this run, might be the driver Johnson is keeping an eye on the most. And since Kenseth does some of his best work on the intermediate tracks and superspeedways, one figures he’ll continue to roll next week in Charlotte, followed by Dover and Michigan.

As for Gordon, he got his first Sprint Cup win back in 1994 in Charlotte. Hundreds of starts later, he’s still going.

• Kenseth’s win capped a big week for Joe Gibbs Racing. First came the good news of reduced penalties. Instead of losing 50 points, Kenseth was docked only 12 — moving him up to fourth place in the standings. After Saturday’s win, Kenseth now sits third behind Carl Edwards and Johnson.

Crew chief Jason Ratcliff’s suspension was reduced from six races to one, and Wally Brown got his first Cup win as Ratcliff’s one-week replacement. Gibbs’ owner points penalty was reduced from 50 to 12, and the suspension of his car owner’s license was rescinded.

Then, the JGR drivers put on quite a show at Darlington. First in the NASCAR Nationwide Series’ VFW Sport Clips Help a Hero 200 on Friday night, JGR drivers finished 1-2-3 with Kyle Busch winning for the fifth time this season, followed by Elliott Sadler and Brian Vickers. Joey Logano broke up the Gibbs party by finishing fourth, but Kenseth, in effect, handed out the goodie bags at the door with a fifth-place showing.

On Saturday, Kenseth got the win in the Bojangles’ Southern 500, followed by teammate Denny Hamlin in second. Kyle Busch dropped to sixth after a cut tire but led 265 of the 367 laps. Joe Gibbs Racing has five wins, 10 top-fives and 17 top-10s in 11 Sprint Cup races this season and five wins, 15 top-fives and 20 top-10s in nine Nationwide races this year.

• Speaking of Hamlin, his second-place finish Saturday came in his first full-time race since injuring his back in a last-lap crash with Logano on March 24 at Auto Club Speedway. Hamlin did a planned part-time gig last week at Talladega where he drove until the first caution, when Vickers replaced him.

Hamlin’s second-place finish at Darlington pushed him up four spots to 27th in the standings, so immediately the debate heats up as to whether he can make the Chase. He needs to be inside the top 20 to be eligible for a Wild Card berth, and probably needs two or three victories on top of that to make it.

Certainly doable for a driver who has had four-plus wins in three of the past four seasons, provided he avoids setbacks with his back. A real test for Hamlin’s health and stamina will be the 600 miles next week in Charlotte.

Denny Hamlin finished second at Darlington in his full-time return, but the No. 11 team will needs wins — likely at least two of them — to contend for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.


172: The number of laps between the first and second cautions of the Bojangles’ Southern 500 — a green-flag run that had the video editors at NASCAR.com feeling antsy.

150: A perfect driver rating for Kyle Busch following the VFW Sport Clips Help a Hero 200. Busch has a 134.8 rating for the Nationwide season.

118.6: Matt Kenseth’s 2013 driver rating, which is tops in Sprint Cup this year and slightly better than Jimmie Johnson’s (114.9).


Still rolling: What else can we say about Jimmie Johnson? With yet another top-10 finish at Darlington (his eighth in 11 races this season), he enjoys a 44-point lead over second-place Carl Edwards. In other words, he has a one-race lead over everyone else, which in the standings is like being a lap ahead.

Backslide: Greg Biffle has gone four weeks without a top-10 finish and dropped two spots to 13th in the standings after a 13th-place run at Darlington. That was better than his 36th-place showing a week ago at Talladega when he wrecked. However, he has struggled this year on tracks where he historically does well. At Kansas, where he had an average finish of 7.2 entering this season, Biffle was 36th during this four-race stretch.

On the rise: Besides Hamlin moving up four spots in the standings, the next biggest gainer was Juan Pablo Montoya, who went up three places after Darlington. Still, Montoya is sitting only 22nd in the standings. But his fourth-place finish at Richmond and eighth-place showing at Darlington have Montoya looking up heading into the summer, when some road courses should help him.

The time has come: Paul Menard and Aric Almirola were beginning to gain notice for their consistency this season, but doubts about their Chase-worthiness might start to creep in after last week’s showing at Darlington. Both drivers were off the lead lap for much of the night and finished 19th and 20th, respectively. They get two weeks to try to regroup before the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte. 

For the first time all season, Greg Biffle is outside the top 12 in the points standings. His last top-10 finish was at Texas Motor Speedway on April 13.

• “He screwed up again. It was his third time this year he’s screwed up.” 


— Kasey Kahne on Kyle Busch after the two bumped with 33 laps remaining Saturday night in Darlington, sending Kahne fishtailing into the wall.

• "I wanted the 700th to be a memorable one, and I’m glad it wasn’t like last year’s memory where we blew two left-rear tires back‑to‑back. This was much better than that."

— Jeff Gordon on his third-place finish at Darlington in his 700th consecutive start.

• “I told Matt, ‘Why didn’t you let Denny win?’ ”


— JGR team president J.D. Gibbs joked after Kenseth’s Darlington victory over teammate Hamlin.

The NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race gives fans a chance to enjoy the best of the best on Saturday night in Charlotte (7:30 p.m. ET, SPEED). It also allows fans to be a part of the action by participating in the Sprint Fan Vote, which will determine the final driver to make the field.

Related: Cast your vote today

So let’s get familiar with some of the rules for the Sprint All-Star Race, because there is one major change from last year. The running order at the completion of the fourth segment will be repositioned based on average finish for the first four segments, setting the cars up for a mandatory four-tire pit stop. Pit road will be opened, and the order of the cars returning to the track will determine the order for the fifth and final segment.

In other words, drivers have to compete in all segments to boost their average finish and be in a good position for the all-important pit stop. It puts a lot of pressure on those pit crews, but it should be fun to watch.

Speaking of the segments, the race is broken up into four 20-lap segments leading up to the fifth segment, which is a 10-lap dash for the cash (a $1 million check from Sprint). Between the first three segments teams have the option to pit. All laps will count in segments 1-4; only green-flag laps will count in the fifth segment.

To be eligible for the Sprint All-Star Race a driver must have done one of the following: win a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race this season or the previous season, be a former Sprint Cup Series champion over the past 10 years, be a former All-Star Race champion over the past 10 years, finish in the top two in the Sprint Showdown (40-lap race before the Sprint All-Star Race) or win the Fan Vote.

Jimmie Johnson is the defending Sprint All-Star Race champion.

READ MORE:

READ: Kenseth wins
Southern 500

READ: Gordon happy
with 700th start

WATCH: Denny Hamlin
Press Pass

READ: Kahne, Busch
battle again

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Posted on by Brad Norman

Busch, Kahne tangle again; Gordon enters top 12

1. Jimmie Johnson (No. 48)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Where he stands: Johnson leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings with 423 points.
Last week: Johnson was in position to challenge for a win at Darlington — he was, after all, the defending race champion — throughout Saturday night’s Bojangles’ Southern 500. Johnson was second on the grid, and while he could never catch the leader, he was in the top five for nearly the entire evening in his emerald green-trimmed No. 48 Chevrolet. Johnson lost position during a run of late cautions, but gained ground over the final laps to finish fourth. It’s Johnson’s sixth top-five in 11 races and third in his past five races.
What he said: “It was just a great 500 miles here at Darlington. There is nothing easy about this race track. It keeps you on your toes all night long. … I love this place. I wish we could race here three or four times a year.”
This week: In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Johnson ranks third out of 37 drivers with an average place of 6.9. He is the defending All-Star Race champion. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Johnson thrived under a new format, using both a fast car and solid strategy to win the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. Johnson won the first of four segments, guaranteeing he’d lead the field into pit road after the four 20-lap segments, just before the 10-lap sprint to the start/finish line. With that first spot locked up, Five-Time drifted to the back for the final three 20-lap sessions to protect his car. In the race off pit road following 80 laps, Johnson was first. He then shot away from the pack to easily win and collect the $1 million prize.

2. Carl Edwards (No. 99)

Roush Fenway Racing, Ford 

Where he stands: Edwards is second in the standings with 379 points.
Last week: It appears a trend is developing with Edwards this year. For not the first time this year, Edwards was a blip on the screen, not running in the top 10, but not falling too far down the field. His ability to close has rocketed him up to second place in the standings, a spot he’s held for three consecutive weeks. Edwards, during a series of late pit stops, gained spots every time and guided his No. 99 Ford to a seventh-place finish.
What he said: “We struggled a lot tonight and we ended up coming back to seventh, so I’m proud of our effort. But it’s like (crew chief) Jimmy Fennig and I talked about, we’re just missing something.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Edwards ranks 12th of 39 drivers with an average place of 7.7. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Edwards ranks 14th of 37 drivers with an average place of 10.8. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: The defending race winner, Edwards had a disheartening experience in last year’s NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. Following the mandatory pit stop after the first 20-lap segment, Edwards was in 10th position for the second session. Just five laps in, though, his engine blew up, sending him into the garage for the night.

3. Matt Kenseth (No. 20)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota 

Where he stands: Kenseth is third in the standings with 364 points.
Last week: Kenseth was having a phenomenal week before he even left for Darlington. Throw in a win in the Bojangles’ Southern 500, and it seems like something special is brewing for the No. 20 driver. First, an appeals panel overturned some of NASCAR’s sanctions on Kenseth — including docking him 12 points instead of 50, giving Kenseth a 38-point boost. Then Kenseth went out and passed teammate Kyle Busch, who led 265 laps, late Saturday night and held on to win. Eleventh place in the standings entering this week, Kenseth is now third and leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with three wins.
What he said: “Honestly, I’ve only dreamed about winning the Southern 500. This to me probably feels bigger than any win in my career. I really feel bad that Jason (Ratcliff, crew chief) isn’t here. This is obviously his team and his effort.”
This week: In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Kenseth ranks fifth out of 37 drivers with an average place of 8.3. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Despite a slow qualifying time that put Kenseth 15th on the grid of 20 drivers, the veteran motored his way up the field in a new format and challenged for the overall win. Kenseth won the second 20-lap segment and entered pit road second prior to the 10-lap sprint to the finish. The driver couldn’t catch winner Jimmie Johnson, though, but still finished third. Kenseth is a previous winner, having won the All-Star Race in 2004, the year after his Cup championship.

4. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Where he stands: Earnhardt Jr. is fourth in the standings with 359 points.
Last week: Earnhardt Jr. has struggled at Darlington recently, and he looked to be in for another long night at “The Lady in Black.” And while the No. 88 Chevrolet never fooled anybody into thinking it was a potential winning race car, it did get better as the night went on, and Junior drove to a ninth-place finish. It was Earnhardt’s first top-10 at Darlington since 2008 and gave the driver a 10-point cushion over fifth-place Clint Bowyer.
What he said: “We had a real good car all weekend, just never really got great track position. The last half of the race the car was a little bit up out of the race track, but we were still pretty happy.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Earnhardt ranks fifth of 39 drivers with an average place of 5.4. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Earnhardt ranks 16th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 11.1. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Without a victory in 2011, Earnhardt qualified for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race last year by winning the 40-lap NASCAR Sprint Showdown. That win gave Junior an automatic entry into the main event later in the evening. And Earnhardt made the most of it, driving well and challenging for a win in the four 20-lap segments. In the final 10-lap dash to end the event, he finished fifth.

5. Clint Bowyer (No. 15)

Michael Waltrip Racing, Toyota 

Where he stands: Bowyer is fifth in the standings with 349 points.
Last week: “The Lady in Black” has often been a cruel mistress to Bowyer, but the driver of the No. 15 Toyota appeared on the verge of moving past the, well, past. Then a mental snafu doomed Bowyer — the driver pulled out of pit lane with his gas canister still in, which resulted in a pass-through penalty. That dropped Bowyer from seventh to 17th, but he rallied to finish 11th, one of 17 drivers on the lead lap.
What he said: “Overall it wasn’t our best night and it wasn’t our worst. We made some mistakes that set us back but we battled back and got a pretty decent finish. That was a tough race tonight at a pretty unforgiving track.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Bowyer ranks 24th out of 39 drivers with an average place of 13.1. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Bowyer ranks 27th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 14.8. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Driving the No. 15 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing, Bowyer finished the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race in 14th place after qualifying 12th.

6. Kasey Kahne (No. 5)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Where he stands: Kahne is sixth in the standings with 326 points.
Last week: For the third time this season — and for the second consecutive week — Kahne and Kyle Busch were involved in an incident. One week after Busch sent Kahne into the wall (it was accidental, and Busch apologized), the two drivers had an exciting exchange late that saw Kahne pass Busch for the lead, then Busch take it back in the same lap. The two dueling cars eventually were broken up when Kahne slapped the wall hard; there didn’t appear to be any contact, but afterward, the driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet said Busch messed up his turn entry, which triggered the incident. Kahne’s car was battered, but it limped to a 17th-place finish to salvage some points.
What he said: “I mean, (Busch has) got to just race me. I’ve never touched the guy in my life as far as on the race track. Three times this year, there have been other times in other years. I don’t really know what his deal is with me. … The angle he took into the corner, he had no steer and just went straight. Then I went spinning. It was definitely a tough way to end our race.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Kahne ranks 14 out of 39 drivers with an average place of 8.2. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Kahne ranks 20th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 11.6. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: The 2008 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race winner, Kahne didn’t have much of a shot in 2012. During qualifying, Kahne — trying to speed to the pole position — wiped out and was forced to go to a back-up car. He finished the event ninth.

7. Brad Keselowski (No. 2)

Penske Racing, Ford 

Where he stands: Keselowski is seventh in the standings with 326 points.
Last week: Without crew chief Paul Wolfe for the first of two races, Keselowski struggled at Darlington. A vibration issue put the No. 2 Ford two laps down after it had climbed from 26th to 13th. The climb back up was slow due to a prolonged green-flag run, and it was for naught when Keselowski was caught up in the wreckage after Casey Mears spun out, bringing out the caution from Laps 313-317. It added up to a 32nd-place finish for the defending series champion.
What he said: “It was definitely a race we would like to forget. I honestly feel that we had a Miller Lite Ford that could have run in the top five, so to finish 32nd is disappointing.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Keselowski ranks third out of 39 drivers with an average place of 3.2. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Keselowski ranks 24th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 14.1. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Keselowski put himself in excellent position to contend for the win by finishing third in the third of four 20-lap segments. That put him third in line entering pit row before the final 10-lap segment, but he — along with every other driver — couldn’t catch Jimmie Johnson. Still, Keselowski finished second and, in perhaps a bit of foreshadowing from the eventual 2012 series champion, told reporters “We got beat by a five-time champ and two-time All-Star winner, so I think we’re doing pretty good.”

8. Kyle Busch (No. 18)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota 

Where he stands: Busch is eighth in the standings with 325 points.
Last week: Busch was the dominant Darlington driver, and it wasn’t close. One day after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series race, Busch grabbed the lead four times and led an astonishing 265 (of 367) laps, including a stretch of 153 in a row. Matt Kenseth passed Busch to lead Lap 355, and held on to win. Busch’s right-rear tire was cut during the final laps and went low, but the driver never lost control of his vehicle and finished sixth. He moved up one spot in the standings for his efforts and is one point behind sixth-place Kasey Kahne and seventh-place Brad Keselowski.
What he said: Busch declined comment as he left the track. His crew chief Dave Rogers said: “(Kyle’s) pretty tore up that they’re racing hard and (Kasey) Kahne tore up another car. This is the third time we’ve been involved in an incident with Kasey and all of us over here have a ton or respect for that program. Kyle thinks the world of Kasey Kahne and I think Kenny Francis (No. 5 crew chief) is a great guy … (Kyle) was just really somber and disappointed that it happened.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Busch ranks ninth out of 39 drivers with an average place of 7.3. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Busch ranks fourth out of 37 drivers with an average place of 7.0. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Things started off well for Busch. The driver won the pole for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race for the second consecutive year and third time overall. He fell short of the $1 million prize, though. Winning the first 20-lap segment was the key, and Busch lost the lead to Jimmie Johnson (segment one winner) after 15 laps. The No. 18 Toyota didn’t win one of the four segments, and went on to finish the event fourth.

9. Aric Almirola (No. 43)

Richard Petty Motorsports, Ford 

Where he stands: Almirola is ninth in the standings with 317 points.
Last week: Almirola is still in the top 10 — and therefore still owns one of 10 automatic entries into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup — but the competition is tighter this week. Almirola’s streak of consecutive top-10s ended at four when the driver finished 20th and one lap down at Darlington. Eleventh-place Paul Menard is just two points behind Almirola, and 12th-place Jeff Gordon is six points behind.
What he said: “That’s not the result we wanted at all. That was a tough night. We fought hard, but just weren’t quite good enough. We were slipping and sliding all over the place, so we’ll regroup and go to Charlotte and have another go at it.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Almirola ranks seventh out of 39 drivers with an average place of 5.9. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Almirola has no starts. To qualify for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race, he needs either a top-two finish in the 40-lap NASCAR Sprint Showdown or to win the fan vote.
Last year: Almirola had a speedy No. 43 Ford for the NASCAR Sprint Showdown event, but he didn’t place in the top two to automatically qualify for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. He finished seventh in the 40-lap showdown.

10. Kevin Harvick (No. 29)

Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet 

Where he stands: Harvick is 10th in the standings with 315 points.
Last week: Harvick negotiated a potentially terrible bit of luck — pitting early due to strategy, then seeing a caution come — with the aplomb of a veteran. The driver never lost focus under the lights at Darlington, and he’s now in the top 10 in the standings after his fifth-place finish. Harvick’s two top-fives this year have come in the past three races, and he has a win in his back pocket should he fall out of the top 10 in the standings and need to make the Chase via one of the two Wild Card entries.
What he said: “We got caught with that one caution; luckily we were running fifth at the time and we were able to take a wave-around and restart I think 11th. So, it didn’t bite us too bad and we were able to get back where we were and that’s probably about where our car should have finished.”
This week: In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Harvick ranks 17th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 11.2. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Harvick qualified fifth for the NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star Race, then finished sixth. He won the event in 2007.

11. Paul Menard (No. 27)

Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet 

Where he stands: Menard is 11th in the standings with 315 points.
Last week: Menard slipped in the standings, much like he slipped late in the Bojangles’ Southern 500. Driving near the top 10 earlier in the race, Menard fell six spots between Lap 280 and Lap 300 because of a pit-road penalty for a commitment line violation and was 20th with 67 laps to go. He finished 19th and, as the standings lie currently, he would have one of the two Wild Card entries into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
What he said: “We struggled with handling issues for the majority of the day, and I put us behind late with a pit-road penalty. We were able to catch a break at the end with those caution flags to get a couple of our laps back. We’ll learn from tonight and move on.”
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Menard ranks 26th out of 39 drivers with an average place of 13.4. In the past eight non-points Sprint NASCAR All-Star Races, Menard ranks 18th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 11.3. To qualify for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race, he needs either a top-two finish in the 40-lap NASCAR Sprint Showdown or to win the fan vote.
Last year: Menard qualified seventh for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, the first time he was in the event. Menard’s No. 27 Chevrolet and teammate Kevin Harvick’s No. 29 Chevrolet accidentally bumped early on, and it was tough for either to recover. Menard finished 16th.

12. Jeff Gordon (No. 24)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolett 

Where he stands: Gordon is 12th in the standings with 311 points.
Last week: In his 700th career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start, Gordon showed no fear at Darlington. The No. 24 led for 16 laps and was never out of the top 10 after starting eighth. Gordon’s third-place finish Saturday was his second such finish of the season and, for the second time this year, brings the driver into the top 12 in the points standings.
What he said: “I couldn’t think of a better place to come to and get the 700th start here. Then to go out there and have a strong performance, it felt great. I wanted the 700th to be a memorable one, and I’m glad it wasn’t like last year’s memory where we blew two left-rear tires back‑to‑back. This was much better than that. Top three, that’s fantastic.”
This week: In the past eight non-points Sprint NASCAR All-Star Races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Gordon ranks sixth out of 37 drivers with an average place of 8.3. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
Last year: Gordon qualified eighth for the NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star Race and finished 13th. He is one of three drivers in NASCAR history to hold three wins in the event, having finished first in 1995, 1997 and 2001.

Five in the rearview mirror …

Greg Biffle (No. 16)

Roush Fenway Racing, Ford 

Where he stands: Biffle is 13th in the standings with 311 points.
Last week: Biffle’s situation isn’t quite dire — he’s actually tied with 12th-place Gordon in points — but at the very least, it’s starting to become worrisome. He’s finished outside the top 10 for four consecutive races. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Biffle ranks first out of 39 drivers with an average place of 1.7. In the past eight non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races, Biffle ranks 12th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 10.3. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.

For more information on Biffle and the Coca-Cola Racing Family, click here.

Martin Truex Jr. (No. 56)

Michael Waltrip Racing, Toyota 

Where he stands: Truex Jr. is 14th in the standings with 301 points.
Last week: While Truex Jr. qualified fifth, he finished seven spots worse than that in 12th place. Then again, he also gained six spots over the last 140 laps after falling down in the field. Truex Jr. is 10 points out of 12th place in the standings and he’s finished in the top 20 for five consecutive races.
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Truex Jr. ranks eighth out of 39 drivers with an average place of 6.7. In the past eight non-points Sprint NASCAR All-Star Races, Truex Jr. ranks 26th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 14.7. To qualify for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race, he needs either a top-two finish in the 40-lap NASCAR Sprint Showdown or to win the fan vote.

Kurt Busch (No. 78)

Furniture Row Racing, Chevrolet 

Where he stands: Busch is 18th in the standings with 262 points.
Last week: Busch blazed his way to a new track record during qualifying and started the Bojangles’ Southern 500 on the pole. He led 69 total laps, including the first 51, but his car worsened as the race wore on — which Busch let his crew know through some colorful (but not vulgar) radio chatter. The No. 78 Chevrolet eventually finished in 14th.
This week: In the past eight non-points Sprint All-Star Races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Busch ranks 11th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 10.3. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.

Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42)

Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet 

Where he stands: Montoya is 22nd in the standings with 238 points.
Last week: Although he hasn’t gained much ground in the standings and remains outside the top 20, Montoya has put together strong showings of late. That trend continued in Darlington when the Colombian finished eighth, his second-best showing at the track in his Cup career. He has two top-10s in the past three weeks and was consistent Saturday night. Montoya qualified 12th and stayed inside the top 15 for the first 300 laps before climbing into the top 10 late.
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Montoya ranks 29th out of 39 drivers with an average place of 15.3. In the past eight non-points Sprint NASCAR All-Star Races, Truex Jr. ranks 30th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 16.0. To qualify for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race, he needs either a top-two finish in the 40-lap NASCAR Sprint Showdown or to win the fan vote.

Denny Hamlin (No. 11)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota 

Where he stands: Hamlin is 27th in the standings with 197 points.
Last week: In his first full race since his March 24 race, Hamlin finished second and picked up some points he desperately needed to get back into contention for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
This week: In the past eight NASCAR Sprint Showdown non-points races at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Hamlin ranks second out of 39 drivers with an average place of 3.1. In the past eight non-points Sprint NASCAR All-Star Races, Hamlin ranks 13th out of 37 drivers with an average place of 10.6. He has automatically qualified for the 2013 NASCAR All-Star Race.

For more information on Hamlin and the Coca-Cola Racing Family, click here.

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Wally Brown steps up for Joe Gibbs Racing with Jason Ratcliff on suspension

Related: Kenseth wins first at Darlington | JGR penalty timeline

DARLINGTON, S.C. — Wally Brown is headed back to his day job.

On Monday morning, Matt Kenseth’s interim crew chief at Darlington Raceway will return to his regular duties at Joe Gibbs Racing, which include managing the shop floor and ensuring the cars are loaded up to go the track that weekend. But his one-week stint atop the pit box produced a memorable result, one that ended with him and the No. 20 team celebrating Saturday night in Victory Lane.

A former crew chief for Carl Edwards, Brown was chosen by JGR to fill the role usually occupied by Jason Ratcliff, who was back in North Carolina serving a one-week suspension mandated by NASCAR for a rules violation. Brown wasn’t the only substitute working the Bojangles’ Southern 500 — Kevin Buskirk and Steve Reis managed the Penske Racing teams of Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano, respectively — but none enjoyed a better outcome.

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“Overall, the weekend went pretty good,” Brown said. “Just due to the preparation of the (No.) 20 guys, Jason Ratcliff, they put a lot of effort, several test plans. We had our plan all weekend. It actually went pretty smooth. Once the race started, I noticed we were able to hang in there for a while. I knew at that point we’d be OK. If we just kept up with the track position, we would have a good night.”

It was, with Kenseth seizing the lead late and winning a race in which his teammate Kyle Busch led 265 laps. Busch cut down a tire late and faded to sixth, but despite his own disappointment No. 18 crew chief Dave Rogers was pleased to see the race victory stay in the family.

“Thankfully, the trophy is going back to Joe Gibbs Racing,” he said. “There are over 400 people back there that are working really hard to build us fast race cars. I know they’re all upset that we dominated all day and didn’t get the win, but I know they’re all happy, too, because Matt brought the trophy home. At the end of the day, that’s what we’re looking to do. We’re looking to dominate every race as a company. We did that tonight.”

No question that happened, with Kenseth and teammate Denny Hamlin — in his first full race back after missing most of five events with a fractured vertebra, no less — sweeping the top two spots, and Busch dominating the race until the final stages. In the middle of it all was the low-key and unassuming Brown, who before Saturday had called 39 events at NASCAR’s highest level, including a full season with Edwards at Roush Fenway in 2006.

But he had never won a race — until now. “We got a bunch of changes here,” Brown radioed to Kenseth when his driver reported being “sideways” late in the race. The adjustments paid off, with Kenseth moving up to second and leading the final 13 laps of the event. Brown credited Ratcliff, who was in touch with the team even though he was serving a suspension for a connecting rod in Kenseth’s winning Kansas engine that was found to be too light in post-race inspection. The suspension was originally six races, but cut to one on appeal.

“Jason was pivotal to this win,” Brown said. “We were in constant communication at all times. This win is because of him and his guys, how prepared they are. It’s amazing.”

Brown, though, was the one on the hot seat Saturday night. It helped that he and his driver had known one another since their days together at Roush, for which Kenseth had spent his entire career before moving to Gibbs this season. “I think a lot of it was, I’ve known Matt since like 2003,” Brown said. “So if everything went bad and he started yelling at me, he knew I wouldn’t care. It wouldn’t bother me.”

It never came to that, though the other substitute crew chiefs working Saturday night had their hands full. Paul Wolfe and Todd Gordon, regular signal-callers for Keselowski and Logano, respectively, sat out the first of a three-week suspension that also includes the upcoming events at Charlotte. Reis and Logano lost a lap early because the No. 22 car was too loose, and finished 22nd. Keselowski and Buskirk lost a lap early because of a vibration. The reigning Sprint Cup champ was later involved in a crash, and wound up 32nd.

Wolfe and Gordon, as well as the car chiefs and engineers on the respective Penske teams, are suspended because of rear-end housings on both cars that were confiscated by NASCAR before the event at Texas. Those suspensions were originally slated to be six weeks as well, but were cut to two points events, plus the Sprint All-Star Race, on appeal.

Wolfe and Gordon will return for the June 2 event at Dover. Ratcliff, though, will be back next week, ending Brown’s successful one-race return to the pit box. No surprise that the victory came at Darlington, a place that showed off the depth of a Gibbs organization that swept the top three spots in Friday night’s Nationwide Series event before winning again the next day.

“We’ve just got a great team,” said JGR President J.D. Gibbs. “So from top to bottom, drivers, crew chiefs, guys that travel, guys back at the shop, I think that really pays off on the weekend. It pays off in Nationwide. That’s kind of our training ground for our guys to move up to Cup. Then it pays off in Cup. We have guys that work hard, long hours. They enjoy it. They enjoy winning races, too.”

Brown, meanwhile, is headed back to his regular job at the Gibbs shop.

“This was a one-race deal,” he said, “just to help out.”

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For third time this season Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne have run-in on track

DARLINGTON, S.C. — Kasey Kahne pulled his race car up to the rear of his transporter, where team owner Rick Hendrick was waiting to offer a few words of encouragement. At the same time, Kyle Busch walked briskly by on his way to the motorhome lot. They were two competitors connected by the fact that neither got what they wanted at Darlington Raceway.

Kahne’s chances of contending Saturday night ended when he and Busch battled for the lead off a restart with 33 laps remaining, and his No. 5 Chevrolet fishtailed into the outside wall. Busch would find his heartbreak later on, when his dominant No. 18 Toyota cut down a tire in the waning laps and wound up sixth after leading 265 circuits around the old track.

The aftermath found both drivers agitated for different reasons, but bound by a tussle that involved two of the best cars in the race. Did Busch make contact with Kahne when he slid up the track in Turn 1, either nipping or barely missing the left rear of the No. 5 car? Following the race, nobody was really sure. But in Kahne’s eyes, it didn’t really matter — the result would have been the same either way.

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“It was very close,” Kahne admitted. “I could see him, I was like, ‘Oh shoot, oh shoot.’ And then the car moved and just spun out. I don’t know if he actually touched me or not. If he would have just entered the corner like normal, like he had done the whole race, there would have been no issues and I would have been leading off 2. He just didn’t want that to happen, so he blew Turn 1. Whether he hit me or not, he still caused that whole deal with screwing up. It’s mind fade, you know? He’s had a few of them this year when I’m around him.”

Saturday marked the third time this season — and second in as many weeks — that Kahne and Busch have had a run-in on the race track. In the Daytona 500, Busch appeared to turn Kahne sideways in the draft, sparking an accident that collected several other cars. Last weekend at Talladega, the Big One began with Busch turning Kahne in traffic, contact that prompted Busch to call Kahne earlier this week and offer an apology.

In the wake of all that, no wonder Kahne was frustrated Saturday night.

“He just made another mistake,” Kahne said. “That’s his third one when he’s been around me this year. I don’t really understand it. We’re battling for the lead or the top two or three spots, and where he entered and hit his brakes, he just crushed the splitter. We do it all race long. The way he did it, he hit the brakes, and you have no front end. He went straight on entry. His car’s going straight; it’s not even turning left. It’s just a mistake on his part. I imagine he’ll call me again tomorrow and say sorry.”

It was the culmination of a dramatic moment, one involving clearly the event’s best car and the only driver who seemed capable of challenging him on restarts. The two were side-by-side, and Kahne nosed ahead. After they came back around, Busch slid up the track very close to Kahne’s car. Either contact or disturbed air caused the No. 5 to wiggle, and it slapped the wall right-rear first before sliding along it and falling back in the field. Kahne finished 17th.


Watch Daytona 500 wreck involving Kahne and Busch.

Busch didn’t speak to reporters after the race. But his crew chief, Dave Rogers, said his driver was upset that the incident took place. “He’s pretty tore up that they’re racing hard and Kahne tore up another car. This is the third time we’ve been involved in an incident with Kasey, and all of us over here have a ton of respect for that program,” Rogers said.

“Kyle thinks the world of Kasey Kahne, and I think (crew chief) Kenny Francis is a great guy. Kyle still has a ton of friends over there in the 5 car — he used to drive that car. Has a ton of good buddies, they all hang out. He certainly doesn’t want to create more work for those guys. He was just really somber and disappointed that it happened. But unfortunately, it’s part of this sport. They were putting on a heck of a race. Kasey made a great move to pass us, and then Kyle was just trying to pass him back. I can’t tell if we touched or not, but it was obviously really close racing.”

Busch weathered the incident without any damage, but saw his hopes of winning disappear in the final laps when his car ran over something and cut its right-rear tire. Busch wasn’t sure what had happened, only that the car suddenly wasn’t handling as well as it had been. When his crew looked at the car after the race, they found “a big chunk in the dead center of the tread,” Rogers said, and a right-rear with only 12 pounds of air left in it.


Watch Talladega wreck involving Kahne and Busch.

“We’ve dominated a lot of races and ended up not wining, but it’s really demoralizing being the Southern 500 on Mother’s Day weekend,” Rogers said. “When you start the season you have that bucket list, and it really consists of every track, but there are some you really want to win. … This is one you really wanted to win, and really discouraged it got away.”

Kahne could relate. “I don’t know if I would have won, but I definitely had a car to,” he said. “… We kept getting better throughout the whole race. I cleared (Busch) down here and then he does that in 1 and 2. We absolutely had a shot at winning. It’s discouraging. I could catch him and Jimmie (Johnson) all night long the longer the run went. And if we could get clean air early, we were going to be just fine. Unless I screwed up, we had a great shot at winning.”

Now that will have to wait until next week, and the Sprint All-Star Race in Charlotte. In the meantime, Kahne is left to wonder why he’s had so many run-ins with Busch in such a short period of time.

“He’s got to just race me. I’ve never touched the guy in my life as far as on the race track. This is three times this year, and there’s been other times in other years, so I don’t really know what his deal is with me,” Kahne said.

“I think he just struggles racing me, and he made an error as far as his entry. He entered so early, he had no steering. You figure that out throughout the whole race. He passed so many lapped cars, he knew what was going to happen, and he tried to stop, but he couldn’t slow down at that point. He screwed up again. It was his third time this year he’s screwed up.”

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Darlington typically provides clarity to the Chase race — but not this year

Related: Sprint Cup schedule | Sprint Cup standings

DARLINGTON, S.C. — Want to know who’s a lock to make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup this year?
 
I’ll give you six names: Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Clint Bowyer and Kyle Busch.
 
Typically, by the time the Cup series leaves Darlington, it’s relatively easy to predict most of the Chase field. Last year, 10 of the drivers in the top 12 in the standings after the Mother’s Day eve visit to the Lady in Black went on to qualify for the Chase.
 
That won’t happen this year. Trust me.

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The six drivers listed above are locks for two basic reasons. Number one is the point spread between Bowyer in fifth and Kasey Kahne and Brad Keselowski, who are tied for sixth. Bowyer has scored 349 points through 11 races, 23 more than the two drivers immediately behind him.
 
Second, five of the top six drivers (the first five listed above) have shown the sort of consistency necessary to make the Chase. Johnson and Edwards have no DNFs this year. Kenseth has two but has run well in every race save Fontana, and his two DNFs are offset by three victories.
 
Earnhardt has been remarkably consistent, with seven top 10s and no DNFs in 11 races, but he and crew chief Steve Letarte have yet to find the speed they’ll certainly need to contend for a championship. Bowyer likewise has been solid, if not spectacular.
 
Kyle Busch, eighth in the standings, has two DNFs but he also has five top-fives (tied for second most in the series), two of which are victories. If Busch should fall out of the top 10 in points, he’ll make the Chase as a Wild Card. You can take that to the bank.
 
Beyond those six, however, assumptions are impossible and predictions nothing short of precarious. For one thing, five of the 12 drivers who made the Chase last year — Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle, Martin Truex Jr., Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin — are currently outside the top 10.
 
Common sense tells you that most, if not all of the drivers in that elite group will make a move in the 15 races before the Chase field is set.
 
To add to the intrigue, no driver in positions 11-20 in the standings has a victory so far this year. Should that remain the case, Paul Menard and Gordon (currently 11th and 12th) would win the two Wild Card spots by default.
 
Also likely, however, is the prospect of such drivers as Hamlin (currently tied for 26th) or Stewart (21st) winning a race or two, cracking the top 20 and grabbing a Wild Card spot. And if you want a good long-shot bet, try road course ace Marcos Ambrose (23rd), who could use victories at Sonoma and Watkins Glen as a springboard into his first Chase.
 
Aric Almirola and Menard, neither of whom has ever made a Chase, are currently ninth and tied for 10th in points, respectively. The next 15 races will tell us whether they have the staying power to go with their early-season success.
 
Of those currently outside the Chase-eligible positions, Hamlin has the most compelling story. After missing four races with a compression fracture of his first lumbar vertebra and giving way to a relief driver in a fifth, Hamlin celebrated his return to full-time Cup racing with a second-place finish in Saturday night’s Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington.
 
Hamlin moved from 31st in the standings into a tie with David Ragan for 26th. Hamlin is 61 points behind Jeff Burton in 20th, the position he must reach to be eligible for a Wild Card, but he has 15 races to make the move.
 
Moreover, Hamlin must win at least one race, probably two. As dominant as Joe Gibbs Racing has been this season — winning five of the 11 races so far — that’s a reasonable prospect, too.
 
That Hamlin is even a consideration for the Chase after sitting out four events, however, tells you just how wide open and unpredictable this year’s competition will be.
 
The opinions expressed are solely those of the author.

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After losing her legs trying to protect her kids from tornadoes, Stephanie Decker started a foundation to help amputees

Related: Ten Days of Giving | Video from Darlington | Drivers’ Mother’s Day plans

Seconds after Stephanie Decker threw a blanket on top of her two young children and lay her body over them in a small recess of their home’s basement, she felt the windows shake violently and watched helplessly as the foundation on her house separated from the structure — her home disappearing with the two massive Category 4 tornadoes that so randomly and cruelly cut through her Indiana community last spring.

Bricks, shattered glass and broken furniture pounded Decker’s body in a horrifying version of human dodge ball, but she did what she says any mother would do: tightened her grip and leaned in harder to shield and protect her children while pieces of her life swirled around her body and mind.

And then came the hard part for Decker, 38, who was honored for her courage during NASCAR’s Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway Saturday night.

When the winds slowed and the debris had stopped hurling itself at Decker’s badly beaten body, she had to convince her eight-year-old son, Dominic, to leave her and his six-year old sister Reese in the twisted wreckage to find help. Both children had been sheltered enough to escape without so much as a scratch or bruise.

"I didn’t want to die in front of my kids. I wanted to get them to safety. And if I was going to die, I needed to make sure they weren’t there to see it."

— Stephanie Decker

“He didn’t want to go and I didn’t want to send him; it was probably one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make, but I realized that my injuries were life-threatening, I knew that I was bleeding out and I didn’t have a whole lot of time,’’ said Decker, whose badly injured legs were pinned and crushed under a steel beam.

Finding help wasn’t easy. The Deckers lived on 15 acres, and their hopes rested on a neighbor behind them and whether the couple was not only home, but had survived the two tornadoes themselves and had a way to summon help.

Able to use only her upper body — which had suffered broken ribs and a punctured lung in the pounding of the tornado — Decker found a couple mismatched flip-flops for her son to wear; ever the mom, she didn’t want him to step on something and cut himself. And then she sent him on his way, not knowing if she’d ever see him again.

“The kids really didn’t realize how hurt I was because I wasn’t screaming, I wasn’t crying,’’ Decker recalls vividly. “It was one of those things where I was really trying to stay under control for them because I didn’t want them to know how badly injured I was. On the flipside of that, I didn’t want to die in front of my kids. I wanted to get them to safety. And if I was going to die, I needed to make sure they weren’t there to see it.”

Thanks to Dominic, it never came to that.

Those that know Stephanie Decker say that the tornadoes had met their match in this busy mother of three — her teenage stepson Nolan wasn’t home that day) — who had “never sat still” before and had no intentions of that now.

She lost both legs in the accident, but has not missed a step since.

Only now — in addition to shuttling her kids to baseball, wrestling, gymnastics, football and basketball practices and cheering on the Silver Creek High School baseball team her husband coaches — she is a successful advocate and lobbyist for other amputees.

“When the accident first happened, it was pretty clear that she was going to lose her legs before I got to the hospital to find her,’’ her husband Joe Decker said. “She still had a trach (tracheotomy) tube in so she would write on her hand to talk to me. About her second day she wrote on her hand, “lost legs?” And I said, ‘yeah.’ And she cried for about 10 minutes then after that, she hasn’t cried since.

“She and I have both taken the same approach — once I went out and looked at our house and saw what was left of it — just the fact she’s here and the kids are here and they’re okay, I think we can live with whatever hand we’ve been dealt.’’

“I told her, ‘What you did was great, but I think a ton of moms would have done the exact same thing. But to me, what set you apart is how you’ve handled it since. It’s been such a great example for our kids, our community, everybody on how you can take something like what happened and it’s all in your frame of mind.’

“If you want to sit and dwell on it and go, ‘woe is me’ then you’re not going to make it very far. She has not done that once.’’

Nor would she have had time. Decker’s efforts to help other amputees through legislative lobbying and her Stephanie Decker Foundation is more than a commitment, it’s a crusade.

Because of state laws in Indiana, she was able to get top-line prosthetics and resume as normal a life as possible. But, Decker was soon shocked to learn, that isn’t the case everywhere.

Recently, her tenacity and testimony helped push a state law through in Kentucky requiring insurance companies to give patients access to better technology for prosthetic arms and legs. Now her efforts are aimed at similar laws at the federal level.

After hearing her story on the national news, President Obama met with Decker and her family at the White House. And just last week she was visiting with victims of the Boston Marathon bombing, inspiring, comforting and motivating them.

“(The opportunity) is truly a gift given to me because never in a million years would I ever thought I’d be able to reach that many people, help that many people,’’ Decker said. “It just puts a whole new perspective on your life when you realize it’s not just about me, it’s not just about my family. It’s really about how many other people you can really try to help.

“Visiting (the Boston victims), I try to help guide them the way I was guided. It played a huge role in my recovery to get me going and back on myfeet again.”

Speaking with Decker, there is never a hint of loss or despair. There are no excuses. Her tone is upbeat and she actually considers herself fortunate, preferring to concentrate on what she has, not what may have been lost.

And that extends to an amazing story of recovering her family’s treasured possessions in a scene of complete destruction.

Both of her kid’s baby books were mailed back to her — one found hundreds of miles away in Kentucky, another in Cincinnati, Ohio. Not a drop of water damaged her wedding album.

“It obviously happened for a reason, I wouldn’t be where I am today if we didn’t feel this was something meant for us,’’ Decker said. “But everything that was important to us was saved.’’

“This how we tackled it,’’ Decker continued. “You can either pull up your big-girl panties, and go on. Or you can wallow in self-pity.  And that’s just not how we do things.

“It’s a teaching moment for my kids too. They’ve learned that life throws you struggles and bring times that you think are unbearable, but there’s always a solution to the answer and it may no be what you like and it may not be what you want, but you learn to adapt and cope and that’s what we do. We adapt and cope."

She is grateful for the opportunities that have come out of this situation, like the chance to bring her family to their first NASCAR race this weekend, where she was so fittingly celebrated during Mother’s Day weekend and gratefully accepted a $5,000 donation from The NASCAR Foundation for her foundation.

 “I’ve always said this is about replacing the bad memories my kids have with good memories and if I can do that then I am,’’ Decker said. “This is a moment for them they’ll never forget. It will put a smile on their face and there’s nothing better than seeing my kids smile after all they’ve done all they’ve been through.’’

Decker’s ordeal was gut-wrenching and life-changing, but she steadfastly refuses to let it be heart-breaking. There’s still work to be done.

“In less than 30 seconds, the tornado just flipped our lives upside down and not in a bad way many people think,’’ Decker said. “Yes, at first, when the accident initially happened and you’re fighting for your life and not knowing if you’re going to live or die or your children, that’s obviously a moment I don’t want to ever experience again. It was truly a test of my will and spirit and determination to figure out a way to live through something like that.

“However, our lives in themselves have changed dramatically in such a good and positive way."

“And,’’ Decker continued,  “I firmly believe any parent that loves their children would do the exact same thing I did. I think what’s different about the story is the recovery side of it. I think it’s amazing to watch my kids bounce back, they are the true heroes.’’

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Gordon glad milestone was a memorable race that put him back in contention

Related: Standings | Results | Darlington hub page | Video

DARLINGTON, S.C. — The way the schedule played out, Jeff Gordon knew long before Saturday night’s race at Darlington Raceway that a milestone start was due. What he didn’t know was that another big, round number was about to happen.

Gordon celebrated making his 700th straight NASCAR Sprint Cup start for much of the weekend, even drawing special recognition from NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton in the pre-race drivers’ meeting. But after the Bojangles’ Southern 500 was in the books, Gordon was savoring his 300th top-five finish at NASCAR’s highest level after a consistent third-place run.

"I wanted the 700th to be a memorable one, and I’m glad it wasn’t like last year’s memory where we blew two left-rear tires back‑to‑back. This was much better than that," Gordon said, reflecting on his 35th-place finish here in 2012. "Top three, that’s fantastic. I mean, we needed this kind of performance, a gutsy performance, for the points as well as to make this one memorable."

"I think, looking back throughout my career, this track has been one of the best for me, a very special place."

—Jeff Gordon

Gordon had been stuck on 299 top-five efforts since a third-place effort April 7 at Martinsville Speedway, another historic track that has been good to the four-time Cup champion through the years. Fittingly, Gordon crossed both milestones off the list at Darlington, where he has used his experience cutting his teeth racing sprint cars on harsh, high-banked Indiana speedways to notch seven wins — easily the best among active drivers at the egg-shaped, 1.366-mile facility.

"I think, looking back throughout my career, this track has been one of the best for me, a very special place," said Gordon, who now ranks behind only NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty (555), Bobby Allison (336) and David Pearson (301) in career top-fives. "(It) holds so much history for this sport."

Gordon established himself as a contender in Saturday night’s endurance test by keeping his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet near the front during an extended 171-lap green-flag run, leading 16 laps in the process. The long caution-free span made the gap between the fastest cars and also-rans much more evident — by the time the second yellow flag flew, just nine cars could sustain the pace by staying on the lead lap.

"I just kind of got into a rhythm. It felt good to me," Gordon said of the lengthy green-flag segment. "I was enjoying it. I feel like green‑flag stops kind of separate the good pit crews and teams, and you can get yourself in a position, where as a competitor, you want to race against the least amount of guys as possible.

"The first portion of the race, it was surprising. I didn’t expect us to go that long, but I was kind of enjoying it actually."

The spate of late caution periods, however, changed the game for Gordon and the rest of the field, but he gained some track position in the pits and moved up two more spots when longtime leader Kyle Busch and fellow front-runner Kasey Kahne faded with late-race trouble.

Gordon said he could have done without his teammate Kahne’s misfortune, but acknowledged that his team needed a boost in the standings. His pair of third-place finishes at Darlington and Martinsville are his only top-fives in 11 races this season, but Gordon has moved up one position in the points each of the last three weeks, inching toward 12th place and in the discussion for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

The long-term goals for this season remain the bigger focus, but for a night anyway, Gordon was able to catch his breath and cherish his career achievements at a track known for making history.

"To have the seven wins here that I have, I couldn’t think of a better place to come to and get the 700th start here," Gordon said. "Then to go out there and have a strong performance, it felt great."

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Posted on by Zack Albert

JGR driver earns a second-place finish in first full race since injury

Results | RaceReplay | Darlington hub page

DARLINGTON, S.C. — It was a sore Denny Hamlin who walked into the media center at Darlington Raceway, with 500 more grueling miles on his odometer than he started with Saturday night. It prompted him to crack wise that he had the back of a 60-year-old.

With a stellar runner-up finish in hand, it was a bit easier for the 32-year-old to laugh in the face of pain.

Hamlin’s Hail Mary attempt to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup received its first major answer to prayer Saturday night at Darlington, as he went the distance in his first full race since suffering a back injury March 24. More importantly, he made a substantial four-position leap in the standings to bolster his Chase hopes against steep odds. 

Hamlin said on the eve of the Bojangles’ Southern 500 that the race, one of the most physically and mentally demanding on the circuit, would be a true test of his ability to compete for championship eligibility the rest of the regular season. Saturday night, he passed.

"We’ll have a couple weeks really to rest until the next long event and we’ll be good to go then."

— Denny Hamlin

"Really it’s like starting your season over with," Hamlin said after his best finish of the season. "To start it back over at Darlington for 500 miles, I mean, there’s some muscles that have gotten weak. I’ve gotten pretty sore and tired, mentally tired as well. We’ll have a couple weeks really to rest until the next long event and we’ll be good to go then."

Hamlin missed four consecutive races after his last-lap crash at Auto Club Speedway, then was credited with a 34th-place finish after starting the race last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway before giving way to relief driver Brian Vickers. In reviving his season at Darlington, he followed through on his stated intention to complete the entire distance without a fill-in.

Hamlin did more than just finish, picking off positions during a flurry of caution periods in the late going. He was running seventh when the night’s second yellow flag flew on the 302nd lap, then gained two more spots in the pits and two more on the track before the event’s final restart.

From there, he benefited from Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch‘s late fade after cutting a right-rear tire on a piece of debris, moving to second place behind race winner and fellow JGR stablemate Matt Kenseth.

A win would’ve been critical to helping Hamlin reach one of his two objectives in qualifying for a wild-card berth in the Chase, but he inched toward one of his other goals — finishing in the 11th-to-20th range at the end of the regular season Sept. 7 at Richmond — by jumping from 31st to 27th in the standings.

"I told Matt, ‘Why didn’t you let Denny win?’ " joked JGR team president J.D. Gibbs. "Matt is like, ‘I ain’t going to let him win.’ I think he’s got pretty good (Chase) chances, but it’s hard to predict that stuff."

Postseason hopes notwithstanding, the boost Hamlin received by not being subjected to watching his No. 11 Toyota circle the track with someone else at the wheel was immeasurable. The second-place finish, after a demanding 500 miles at NASCAR’s oldest superspeedway, was just icing.

"I mean, it feels good to just be competitive again," Hamlin said. "Watching the races from the sidelines for really five weeks, it’s tough.  You know you can change things.  You can do things to change your outcome, but you’re not in the race car.

"My back held up good.  I’m more sore, shoulders, neck, things like that. I’ve got to get back in racing shape. It will take time to get back to where I need to be."

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Darlington headlines

READ: Gordon makes
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