Published: March 24, 2007 11:50 pm            

Crash crop

Bristol race serves up 12 cautions

BRISTOL, Tenn. — In Saturday’s Sharpie Mini 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway, Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 60 Scotts Miracle Gro Ford Fusion, knew early on he had the car to beat.

Even with last fall’s Busch race winner Matt Kenseth lying on his bumper late in the race, Edwards said he still knew it would be difficult for anyone to catch him.

Edwards earned the win, even though Kenseth pressured Edwards the final 30 laps for the lead. However, damage suffered by contact with Ryan Newman caused tightness in his car that prevented him from seriously challenging.

"I was too tight on those last set of tires. We were real good before that and I just got too tight and couldn’t quite get to him," said Kenseth, who improved nine spots from his qualifying effort. "The tie-up with Ryan bent my fender in and knocked my toe up a little bit. I wish we could have gotten to him and made it a little more exciting."

Edwards began the race behind pole-sitter Steve Wallace, but he learned quickly that he was faster than Wallace in the corner and sent a simple message to his crew: "I’ve got to go."

On lap 32, Edwards gently nudged Wallace up the track and took the lead for the first time. He ultimately led a total of 105 laps. Wallace fell to seventh when a train of cars followed Edwards through. Wallace descended steadily after that and finished the race in 31st place.

"I felt like today was my time to shine, but I let it blow up in my face," Wallace said, whose pole position was his first ever in the Busch Series. "I’m disappointed and let my team down."

Edwards was complimentary of Kenseth’s tactics during the race’s final stretch and was well aware of the 2003 NASCAR Nextel Cup series champion’s success on the high banks of Bristol. Edwards credited a fresh set of tires in being able to edge Kenseth by 0.260 seconds.

"I just can’t thank Matt enough for racing me clean. He’s so great here and it means the world to beat him. He had my heart beating for sure," said Edwards said, who won for the 10th time in 77 career Busch Series starts. "I think my car was just a little faster, but it was starting to get extremely loose in corner entry.

“With five laps to go, and Matt a car length off my bumper, it was exciting and a lot of fun."

There were 12 caution flags for 103 laps and one red-flag stoppage in the race. One, in particular, caused major confusion for the drivers, fans, and even NASCAR officials.

Although NASCAR had notified track officials that pit road was open, the light that indicates so failed to turn green. Some drivers believed their radio communication that said they could come in; others relied strictly on the lights.

NASCAR President Mike Helton decided that — in the interest of fairness to all involved — drivers could pit if they wanted to or not pit at all, but regardless the lineup for the restart would be just as it was when the caution went out.

"Sometimes we get lucky, and sometimes we mess up," said Helton. "Most of the time, things go right, but this is one time it didn’t. We tried to put the best mandate back on."

Edwards has won at least one race in each of the past three NASCAR Busch Series seasons. This is his first victory and fourth top-10 finish in six races at Bristol. He now leads the NASCAR Busch Series point standings by 197 points over Kevin Harvick, who brought his car home in eighth place.

Nextel Cup drivers took the top eight spots, with Busch finishing third, followed by Newman, Clint Bowyer, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Greg Biffle and Harvick.

Coeburn, Va., native Danny O’Quinn, driver of the Kymco USA Chevrolet and last season’s Busch Series Rookie of the Year, finished 21st, moving up from his qualifying start in the 40th position.

        

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