In his most dominating performance in NASCAR to date, Juan Pablo Montoya led 74 of 90 laps at the 2.45-mile Watkins Glen road course to take his second career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory. While Montoya has been heralded throughout the world as a road course expert in open wheel vehicles, he emphatically proved today that he can wheel stock cars around right and left turns. However, the win was not a given for the driver from Colombia. The race had two sets of green flag pit stops with several teams utilizing various strategy moves to move towards the front. Also, five cautions slowed the event and each of those restarts created a massive shuffle to grab positions. Carl Edwards started the race on the pole, but the race quickly became a showcase for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with its two drivers, Montoya and Jamie McMurray. McMurray took the lead from Edwards on lap 1 in turn 7 and looked to grab another impressive win in the 2010 season. However, he couldn’t hold the lead for long until Montoya took it on lap 6 entering the bus stop. From there, the 2007 NSCS Rookie of the Year controlled the pace of the race and ran away from all contenders in the first run of the event. Yet, a formidable challenger was beginning to move to the front: Marcos Ambrose. Ambrose started 11th, but he was sitting in second when the first caution waved on lap 28. On the subsequent restart, he stayed on Montoya’s rear bumper and the two drivers fought hard for the lead. Ultimately, Ambrose took the lead on lap 41 in turn 1 and he looked to cruise to his first win in NASCAR’s highest division. However, the second caution waved a lap later and the impending restart proved to be an important moment in the race. Ambrose and Montoya drove into turn 1 when the race went green with A.J Allmendinger making the battle for the lead a three-way fight. Ambrose wheel hopped and Montoya carried enough power out of the turn to take the lead from the middle of the three-wide situation. From there, he led through a cycle of green flag pit stops around lap 59 and he was in first when the third caution waved on lap 62. The caution lead to a restart and two quick cautions as several drivers were involved in accidents. Following the second of those quick cautions on lap 71, the field was ready for what would be the final restart and dash to the finish. Montoya maintained the lead on the restart and he proceeded to put a huge gap between himself and the entire field. The laps clicked away and the Colombian driver took the white flag with Ambrose and Kurt Busch battling for second. As the checkered flag waved, Montoya took the win with Busch and Ambrose over four seconds behind him. It was a dominating performance for Montoya and his team to complete a career sweep on the road courses in the NSCS. While the race did feature a dominating driver, these five stages of analysis will show that the battle for the lead was a fierce contest on restarts and every driver raced hard to contend with the tricky layout of Watkins Glen International.
Stage 1:
Driver of the Day: Montoya Leads All But 16 Laps in Dominating Performance at Watkins Glen
Juan Pablo Montoya is in his fourth full-time season in the NSCS, but the story of his racing career is filled with more than stock cars. He won seven races during his tenure in Formula One from 2001-2006. He grabbed the 1999 championship in the former open wheel division known as CART along with ten victories in the series. Montoya also won the 2000 Indianapolis 500 running for Chip Ganassi. After endless success in open wheel vehicles, Chip Ganassi decided to give the Colombian driver a shot at running stock cars. While Montoya is considered a road course ringer due to his previous experience, he has been running better and better at ovals for his race team. Coming into today’s race, though, Montoya was ready to use his road course racing knowledge to take a second win in his NSCS career at a track with right turns. From the start, he was poised to visit victory lane once again. He rolled off the grid in third place, but he quickly passed his teammate, Jamie McMurray, for the top spot on lap 6. In the next few laps, Montoya began to drive away from the field as they battled for positions behind him. When his green flag pit stop rolled around on lap 26, his lead was an advantage of over four seconds. As the pit stops cycled through, he returned to the lead just as the first caution of the day waved on lap 28. When the race restarted, Montoya held onto the lead, but he began to be challenged by Marcos Ambrose. For several laps, the two drivers battled hard for the top spot before Ambrose was able to overtake his fellow competitor on lap 41 as they drove into turn 1. However, the second caution waved on lap 42 and set-up another battle between Montoya and Ambrose. On the restart, the Top 3 drivers of Ambrose, Montoya, and A.J. Allmendinger entered turn 1 three-wide. Ambrose wheel hopped on the inside of the track and lost his momentum, which allowed Montoya to power from the middle of the three-wide situation into the lead. The Colombian driver looked to run away again, but Ambrose rebounded from his miscue and he began to close on the leader. When green flag pit stops came on lap 59, they were running bumper to bumper as they entered pit road. They came off pit road in the same positions just as the third caution waved on lap 62. The restart was shaping up to be a thriller between the two drivers, but the race only stayed green for a short time before the fourth caution waved on lap 66. Again, the race restarted, but the yellow flag waved again for an incident between Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin on lap 71. The next restart would turn out to be the final one for Montoya and the field. On the restart, Montoya managed to pull away from Ambrose and the rest of the pack. As the laps clicked away, the former Indy 500 winner was adding tenths of a second to his lead with no challengers catching. Finally, the white flag waved and Montoya was able to cruise back to the checkered flag for a second victory in the NSCS. After leading 74 of 90 laps, Juan Pablo Montoya and his team proved that they could not only visit victory lane again, but do it without making a mistake.
Stage 2:
Underdog of the Race: Allmendinger Takes Road Course Expertise to Impressive Top 5 Finish
Much like Montoya, A.J. Allmendinger has a lot of experience running in open wheel racecars on road courses. Allmendinger competed for three seasons in the Champ Car World Series, formerly known as CART, and won five races in addition to the Rookie of the Year honors in 2004. After his success in open wheel, the California driver was given a shot in the NSCS with Red Bull Racing. However, the results with the team were rather dismal for Allmendinger. He did not qualify for 19 races in 2007 and he was released from the team late in the 2008 season after an abysmal year. After running a race with Michael Waltrip Racing at Charlotte, Allmendinger was hired by Gillett Evernham Motorsports to run five events to end 2008. After performing well, he was retained by Richard Petty Motorsports, which had merged with GEM. His success in 2009 led to his return in 2010 with the organization and he moved to the famous #43. So far, 2010 has been his best career season behind the wheel of the number Richard Petty made famous with a pole and three Top 10’s coming into today’s event. While he has been more competitive this year, the team is still far from competing for wins and excellent finishes. With Allmendinger’s previous experience at road courses, though, today’s race offered the young driver the opportunity to display his skills around the high-speed turns at Watkins Glen. He started the race in fourth and by lap 8, he was in second place with a fast car and a desire to take the lead from Montoya. Allmendinger stayed in second until green flag pit stops began on lap 24 when Ambrose passed him. He came down pit road just a couple of laps later and when the stops cycled through, he slotted into the fourth position as the first caution waved on lap 28. When the race went back green, Allmendinger held station in fourth and he remained there until the second caution waved on lap 42. On the subsequent restart, he made a bold move to try and take the lead. He shot to the outside of Ambrose and Montoya as the field accelerated and the three drivers went into turn 1 three-wide with none of them willing to lift. Ambrose wheel hopped and lost his momentum, which allowed Montoya to take the lead and Allmendinger to slide into second place. However, he was unable to hold onto the spot and he slid back into fourth as the run progressed. He came down pit road around lap 57 and he stayed in the same position when the stops cycled through. When the third caution waved on lap 62, Allmendinger was prepared to restart in fourth place with a legitimate shot at grabbing the lead. Through two restarts and two quick cautions, he maintained his spot in the Top 5. After the fifth caution on lap 71, he was lined up and again ready to make a charge for the lead. The race restarted and the RPM driver looked strong in his run for an impressive finish. As the remainder of the race clicked by, Allmendinger remained in the fourth spot and he was impressively holding off the drivers behind him. When the checkered flag waved, the #43 crossed the finish line in fourth, giving the team its first Top 5 of the season. In addition to being his first Top 5 of the year, it was also Allmendinger’s second best finish of his career after he finished third in last year’s Daytona 500. At the end of the day, the excellent run for the team was much needed after a year of being an underdog.
Stage 3:
Comeback of the Race: Busch Goes from Starting Last to Finishing Eighth
Since his rookie season five years ago in the NSCS, Kyle Busch has been one of the most successful drivers in the series. In 2005, he won Rookie of the Year honors with Hendrick Motorsports after winning two races. In 2007, Busch won the first NSCS race in the brand-new COT car the series was testing at Bristol. In 2008, after moving to Joe Gibbs Racing, he grabbed Toyota’s first win in the Cup Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In addition to those historic achievements, Busch had a grand total of 18 wins coming into today’s race, including a win at Watkins Glen in 2008. However, all his previous experience at the Glen and in the Cup Series wouldn’t help him today. Busch was scheduled to roll off in the tenth position, but he shockingly came to pit road during the pace laps before the green flag waved. He reported to his team that a lead weight, which is legally allowed to be attached to the frame of the racecar, wasn’t welded properly against the chassis in the right rear. The team took off the right rear tire and added an aluminum spacer to keep the weight attached and prevent further problems. The repairs were completed before the race began and Busch returned to the track. However, per NASCAR rules, he would have to start at the back for pitting before the green flag. Instead of starting tenth, the Nevada driver would be starting 43rd on a difficult road course for passing with only a limited time to move to the front. As soon as the green flag waved, though, Busch was on the move. By lap 10, he was sitting in 24th position with a fast Toyota. Through green flag pit stops and a restart, Busch gained several more spots. However, he was dealing with another issue at the same time. His throttle spring, which is connected to the engine and regulates the speed the racecar travels based on the driver’s throttle pressure, had broken and Busch had no idea if his throttle would stick driving around the track. However, he managed the issue throughout the race and seemed to be steadily improving. When the second caution waved on lap 42, his crew chief, Dave Rogers, decided to employ a strategy move to help the team comeback from the adversity at the start of the event. Busch came down pit road with some other drivers for four tires and fuel while most of the leaders stayed on track. Despite restarting a little deeper in the field, Busch used the fresh tires to gain several positions and slide into the Top 15 on the leaderboard. Instead of staying out as long as he could, though, Busch came down pit road during the green flag pit stops around lap 57. Fortunately for him, the third caution waved on lap 62 and he cycled back out in around the twelfth spot for the restart. Busch gained two spots on the restart before a quick caution waved. When the race restarted again, Busch made a move underneath Jeff Burton in turn 7 to take the ninth spot when Burton clipped Jimmie Johnson. While Johnson spun up the track, Busch was able to avoid and take the ninth position without receiving any damage. When the race restarted for the final time after the fifth caution, Busch maintained his spot in ninth and looked to grab an incredible Top 10 after his struggles before the race. As the end of the race neared, he was still sitting in ninth with hopes of another restart. The white flag waved and Busch was still fighting in ninth. Thanks to a flat tire for Kevin Harvick on the last lap, Busch managed to move into eighth place as the checkered flag waved. While he is a NSCS winner and an eighth-place finish isn’t incredible, Kyle Busch fought back from a rare problem before the race to grab a Top 10 finish.
Stage 4:
Memorable Moment: Bowyer and Martin Swap Final Chase Spot as the Fight for the Championship Nears
Today’s race was the 22nd event of the season for the NSCS, but it was also the fifth race before the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship begins. With such a limited amount of time before the 12-driver championship field is decided, each race means more to the championship contenders. For Clint Bowyer and Mark Martin, Watkins Glen proved to be an interesting race for their title hopes. Bowyer entered today’s event in the 12th and final transfer spot to the Chase with a 34-point advantage over the 13th spot. Martin began the race today in the 13th position in the points standings looking to overcome that 34-point deficit. Watkins Glen, which is prone to strategy shake-ups and mechanical issues for top contenders, offered the perfect opportunity for the two drivers to swap positions. Ultimately, the high-speed road course proved to be a day of changes in the standings for Bowyer and Martin. Bowyer qualified poorly and started the race in 34th while Martin started several spots higher in 24th. However, neither driver stayed in those positions. In the first 50 laps of the race, Bowyer moved from outside the Top 30 all the way to 14th with a very fast Chevrolet. Martin, on the other hand, dropped back in the first 30 laps of the race and by lap 50, he had fought back to 25th. Around lap 60, though, their races and the championship picture began to change drastically. Just after his pit stop, Bowyer reported to his team that something had broken on his racecar. Shortly, pieces began to come out the back of his car in turn 7 and he reported to the garage for repairs. His team quickly went to work on the chassis components of the car as one of the pieces on the track was a cover for the driveshaft. Meanwhile, Martin was employing some strategy and he was the leader as most of the field pitted. On lap 62, the third caution waved because of Bowyer’s debris and Martin was stuck on the track as the leader, but he hadn’t pitted yet. During the caution, he came down pit road for service and he returned to the race deep in the field. Bowyer’s team worked hard to fix his mechanical issue during the caution and he returned to the track before the restart, but he had lost three laps and was sitting in 36th with a desperate need to make it back onto the lead lap. Two quick cautions waved after the restart and Bowyer was able to gain two of his laps back while Martin gained a few positions. When the race restarted for the final time after the fifth caution on lap 71, Bowyer would be stuck a lap down, but he raced hard hoping there would be a caution. Martin began to gain a few spots and points as he looked to move into the 12th position in the championship fight. When the checkered flag waved, Martin come home in 19th while Bowyer gabbed a dismal 32nd place finish after an excellent run. Martin managed to move into the 12th spot in the points standings with a ten-point advantage over Bowyer. When the 12 drivers fighting for the championship are decided at Richmond in four races, Bowyer’s mechanical issue could become a memorable moment if he misses the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
Stage 5:
Terrible Luck: Road Course Ringers Suffer Mechanical Problems and Crash Hard at Watkins Glen
Of the 43 drivers that competed in today’s Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at the Glen, 12 of them can be considered road course ringers, which are drivers who excel on road courses and have plenty of experience around right turns. Whenever NASCAR runs at road courses, the field is typically invaded by several drivers who run the road course events instead of the full schedule. While Montoya, Allmendinger, Ambrose, Robby Gordon, Sam Hornish Jr., Max Papis, and Scott Speed are full-time drivers in NASCAR’s highest series, the rest of the road course ringers only run at Sonoma and Watkins Glen. At the end of today’s race, Montoya, Allmendinger, and Ambrose were left with excellent finishes at their niche race tracks while the rest of the contingent of ringers struggled and were left with disappointing finishes. Scott Speed was one of the ringers left with a terrible finish. He started in eighth in his Red Bull Racing Toyota and in the first ten laps, he was staying strong in that position with former champions and race winners struggling behind him. However, around lap 12, he reported to the garage with a transmission issue. Speed returned to the track several laps later after repairs, but he stalled at the exit of pit road with another problem and this one ended his day. He ended up finishing 43rd after the possibility of a Top 10 vanished. P.J. Jones also had issues during the race. Jones entered the race in a second car for Robby Gordon Motorsports and he started the event in 39th. In the first run of the race, he began to move towards the Top 30 when his day ended abruptly. He slowed heading towards the bus stop of the track and stopped in the runoff area in the turn, which resulted in the first caution of the day on lap 28 for NASCAR to move his racecar. Jones was having a fuel pump issue and his day ended there, which saddled him with a 41st place finish in his third start of the year. Ron Fellows had a good day turn bad in a rare appearance in a Cup car. He started 21st for Tommy Baldwin Racing and he was running around the Top 20 in his unsponsored car when a stroke of bad luck impacted him on lap 41. He was racing hard with Regan Smith when the two drivers made contact in turn 1. Fellows slid up the track while Smith straightened out his car. Fellows looked to have his car saved, but Smith slammed into his right front tire, which destroyed a suspension component. The team was unable to fix the broken part and Fellows ended up finishing in 40th after a promising day. Boris Said was the next ringer to have a problem on track. Said started in 13th and from the start, he moved into the Top 10 and ran with the best NASCAR has to offer. When the race restarted after the third caution on lap 62, Said and Tony Stewart began to battle hard on track for eighth. As they exited turn 1 on lap 66, the two drivers fought hard for the preferred line entering turn 2, neither one letting up. Stewart turned Said as they approached turn 2 and Said went spinning up the track. He backed hard into the outside barrier and his Toyota was heavily damaged. Somehow, the entire field slipped by his damaged racecar and no one else was involved in the incident. However, for Said, his race was over due to the hard crash and he was left in 38th position after a Top 10 run. Finally, Robby Gordon was the last ringer to suffer major trouble. The three-time winner in the NSCS started 15th and he was staying around the Top 15 when he reported to his team around lap 15 that he didn’t have third gear in his Toyota. The issues plagued him throughout the race and he continued to fall back in the pack until he brought his car to pit road late in the event with engine and transmission issues. The DNF left Gordon with a 37th place finish and a terrible day overall for his team. When the checkered flag waved after 90 laps at the Glen, only five of the 12 ringers were in the Top 20 with five more sitting outside the Top 35. It turned out to be a bad luck day for most of the ringers in today’s NSCS race as mechanical issues and on-track contact plagued the right turn experts.
After 90 laps of intense racing around the left and right turns of Watkins Glen, the NSCS heads to the 2-mile Michigan International Speedway for a more familiar oval race. MIS has some of the fastest speeds in NASCAR today with drivers entering the turns at over 200 mph. As they do that, other drivers will surround them and make handling in the corner a struggle for 200 laps. Plus, with only four races left before the Chase field is decided, several drivers will be fighting hard for positions while others will be looking to avoid damage, which could shake-up the entire point standings. Finally, Michigan races typically involve strategy and the team with the best pit calls will find itself in victory lane, which could allow a surprise winner to take the win. As the series rolls into the Irish Hills next Sunday, many things could change for the 43 drivers in the race. In addition to the storylines concerning the championship fight and the track, several drivers have stories heading into Michigan, Kevin Harvick went from sixth to eleventh on the final lap at Watkins Glen today thanks to a flat tire, but he maintained the points lead and he heads to Michigan with motivation to keep his championship run going. Denny Hamlin finished in a dismal 37th today after crashing with Jimmie Johnson, but he heads back to Michigan where he won last time the NSCS was there. Finally, Jeff Gordon and Jeff Burton grabbed Top 10’s in today’s race at Watkins Glen and maintained their Top 3 positions in the points with a desire to gain some points on Harvick before the Chase begins. Today’s race at Watkins Glen was filled with strategy decisions, close racing for positions throughout the field, spins and crashes, a frustrated Denny Hamlin, and a triumphant victory for Juan Pablo Montoya.
(More Stats Down Below!)
Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 28- P.J. Jones stopped on track in the bus stop.
2nd Caution: Lap 42- Joe Nemechek and Bobby Labonte made contact in the bus stop, which caused Nemechek to go sliding through the grass and Labonte to spin around on the racing surface. Nemechek managed to drive away. Labonte stalled his car as the field raced by and NASCAR was forced to throw the caution.
3rd Caution: Lap 62- Debris from Clint Bowyer’s car was spotted on the track in turn 7.
4th Caution: Lap 66- Tony Stewart bumped Boris Said entering turn 2 as the two drivers raced hard for position. Said spun up the track and backed hard into the outside retaining wall, which ended his race.
5th Caution: Lap 71- Jeff Burton bumped Jimmie Johnson slightly in turn 7, which sent Johnson up the track and into the outside wall. Denny Hamlin didn’t know where to go in the smoke and he slammed into the side of Johnson’s car, which ended his race. Johnson continued in the race.
Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: Travis Kvapil
2nd Caution: Elliott Sadler
3rd Caution: Kevin Conway
4th Caution: Clint Bowyer
5th Caution: Clint Bowyer
Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Juan Pablo Montoya
2nd: Kurt Busch
3rd: Marcos Ambrose
4th: A.J. Allmendinger
5th: Carl Edwards
Notables Not in Top 5:
7th: Tony Stewart
8th: Kyle Busch
10th: Jeff Gordon
11th: Kevin Harvick
13th: Matt Kenseth
15th: Martin Truex Jr.
17th: Kasey Kahne
19th: Mark Martin
20th: Brad Keselowski
26th: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
28th: Jimmie Johnson
32nd: Clint Bowyer
33rd: Joey Logano
37th: Denny Hamlin
Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://racing-reference.info/race/2010_Heluva_Good_Sour_Cream_Dips_at_The_Glen/W
-Image:
http://blog.syracuse.com/sports/2010/08/juan_pablo_montoya_wins_nascar.html
-Full Race:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwM6cVvsk0A
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