It was Kasey Kahne's fourth win of the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup season, a series-high, which catapults him up two spots to third in the Nextel Cup standings.
It appears that Kahne and his Evernham Motorsports team is geared up for a serious championship run.
"It's pretty crazy to win in the rain and be in the right place there at the end. But we did have the best car." Kahne said.
He was in the right place at the right time, but I really did not think that Kahne had the fastest car. It's a moot point now, I guess.
Is it just me or does the weather seem to be an issue almost weekly in NASCAR? At Daytona, we had the threat of rain and heavy fog. A month later at Atlanta, we were drenched. At Bristol, the track was turned into a Winter Wonderland, with snowball fights breaking out. At Talladega, we endured a downpour, which postponed the Nextel Cup race until Monday. At Richmond, the Busch Series event was delayed. The threat of rain was present at Darlington. At Dover, qualifying was delayed due to rain. And finally at Michigan, the race was cut short. Rain clouds, please stop following us!
The feel good story of the decade occurred in the NASCAR Busch Series event at Kentucky Saturday night when David Gilliland motored past J.J. Yeley to win the Meijer 300. Gilliland drives for the independent Clay Andrew Racing team, which supplies an in-house engine package, as well as chassis.
In this day in age, when high-powered organizations with endless resources dominate the NASCAR world, the win by the independent Clay Andrews Racing was practically unbelievable. Gilliand and his unsponsored #84 Chevrolet defeated the likes of Nextel Cup regulars such as Greg Biffle, J.J. Yeley, Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, and Denny Hamlin.
"You come into this, you're the lowest of lows -- the lowest on the totem pole you can be," Gilliland said.
The question is which powerhouse organization will take notice of David Gilliland, the best-kept secret in NASCAR.
Michael Waltrip Racing announced a sponsor for next season as Burger King and Domino's will share sponsorship of theToyota Camry fleet. Waltrip was vague as to who would actually drive the car. It's likely that if UPS doesn't follow Dale Jarrett, then he will represent the two major food chains.
Toyota will submit a 2007 Camry to NASCAR, and is expected to test at Atlanta on Tuesday.
Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, and Carl Edwards all scored much-needed top ten finishes at Michigan. All three of those drivers are still on the outside looking in as far as the race to the Chase for the Championship is concerned.
Earnhardt nation is smiling wide as Dale Earnhardt Jr scored a third-place finish at Michigan, a track that hasn't been one of his finest in recent years. Also, Earnhardt Jr now has sole rights to the trademark of his name, after himself and Dale Earnhardt, Inc agreed to terms.
Quote of the week
By Tony Stewart after he was clipped by Jeff Green.
"We got taken out by a pretty stupid move, I just got turned around -- something that didn't really need to happen that early in the race."
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