Dale Jarrett Grabs Green-White-Checker at Talladega
Written by John Davison · October 2, 2005
Dale Jarrett returned Ford to Talladega’s Victory Lane Sunday by taking the lead from Matt Kenseth and Tony Stewart just before a crash by Kyle Petty during an extra-laps green-white-checker finish froze the field. Jarrett’s win is Ford’s first at Talladega since 1998 and his first since 2003. Ryan Newman’s third-place finish moved him into second in points, just five markers shy of Tony Stewart after Stewart dominated the race but finished second to gain four spots from last week. Rusty Wallace dropped into third in point standings, while Carl Edwards vaulted three positions, ending the day in fifth position, behind Jimmie Johnson, after Johnson had a 31st place finish. Interestingly, the initial race results posted on NASCAR.com’s site omitted tenth-place finisher Kevin Harvick.
The ‘Big One’ at Talladega didn’t wait long in Sunday’s race. Mark Martin, Jimmie Johnosn, Michael Waltrip, Elliott Sadler
The crash started when Sadler’s car got loose in Turn One with Jimmie Johnson right on his rear bumper, slid up the track and trapped Dale Earnhardt Jr against the SAFER barrier. In the crash, chase contender Mark Martin rammed into Earnhardt and got spun into the outer wall then down the track into the path of Michael Waltrip, ripping apart the front end and leaving the No. 6 Ford with its radiator dragging the track. Waltrip’s car barrel-rolled a couple of times before sliding down to the infield grass where he crawled out of the wreckage on his own, uninjured.
Joe Nemechek, Mike Skinner, Rusty Wallace and Kevin Lepage were other drivers involved in the crash, joining Sadler, in the garage area. Skinner was scored as the first driver out, finishing 43rd with Waltrip next at 42nd. Martin’s crew looked over the car for a few laps before deciding to declare it out, relegating the Chase contender to a 41st finish.
“The race cars today have outgrown these race tracks,” said Martin shortly after being released from the medical center at the track.
Johnson reported that someone hit him in the rear bumper and pushed him into Sadler but helicopter video seemed to belie that attitude.
Johnson contributed to the second caution when his left-rear tire blew apart on the front straight and shredded the fender, strewing debris all over the track to bring out the yellow flag to start lap 35.
On the restart from this caution, Kurt Busch led after staying out on the track instead of pitting. Ryan Newman ran second, then Greg Biffle, Casey Mears and Rusty Wallace rounded out the top five.
Pit road during the caution was more dramatic than the track, with Bobby Labonte hitting Kyle Petty’s car when Petty cut across in front of the No. 18 Chevy entering his pit stall. Then Labonte’s engine stalled leaving the pits and cost him time.
Caution No. 3 flew when Mike Bliss suffered a left-rear blowout in the middle of the pack and spun. Jeff Green got collected, as did J. J. Yeley and Travis Kvapil smacked the outside wall in the minor melee but no really major incident occurred. The entire pack pitted for fuel and tires with Jimmie Johnson taking only right-side tires to gain track position in his hunt for the NEXTEL Cup.
Another big one on the front straight saw Scott Riggs take an ugly tumble, rolling and flipping before he came to rest and got out on his own after Casey Mears got bumped by Ryan Newman in the middle of the dogleg. Rusty Wallace got tapped and clipped Riggs, sending the No. 10 car shooting up the track and into the outside wall before rolling on its side, sliding down the track and starting its gyrations. Greg Biffle’s car received mostly superficial damage while Jeff Burton’s car had significant damage.
Jamie McMurray headed the pack again, with Martin Truex second, Brian Vickers third, Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman finishing the top five at 75 laps run. Then on lap 77, Kyle Busch reoprted that his right rear tire went down, he slewed into the outside wall in front of Travis Kvapil, who may well have closed his eyes and steered, but avoided impact.
“I think it’s in the drivers’ hands. We’re the only one who can avoid getting into the bumper of the guy in front of you,” said Jeff Gordon on TV.
Kevin Harvick led on the restart from the fifth caution then after a few laps faded back with Matt Kenseth taking the lead, followed by fellow ‘Roushketeer’ Kurt Busch, then Ricky Rudd, Sterling Marlin and Kasey Kahne. About this time, NASCAR weather observers reported that rain might be approaching the track.
Kurt Busch suffered a cut right-front tire to bring out the sixth caution and become the latest Chase contender to have troubles as the race approaches the halfway point. Busch slapped the outside wall but managed to slow and enter the pits without having to drive an entire lap on flat front tires.
Ricky Rudd led on the restart, the 17th leader of the race, as the green flag came out to mark the race’s midpoint. Kasey Kahne ran second, Sterling Marlin and Ryan Newman third and fourt and Brian Vickers fifth. In just three laps, Vickers moved around the rest of the leaders and into the lead. Not much later and Vickers faded to seventh with Newman leading Kenseth, Rud and Edwards, but the running order changes at Talladega faster than the eye can follow.
Now the eighth caution flies on lap 109 for a piece of metal on the back straight. This should give Kyle Petty the ‘lucky dog’ pass onto the lead lap, putting 26 cars on the lead lap. McMurray led Stewart to the green, followed by Kenseth, Newman, Jarrett, Rudd, Vickers, Nemechek, Marlin and Kahne in the top ten. Jarrett dropped back deliberately to try and avoid the typical restrictor plate carnage but has now moved up, saying that he feels he can win the race with his car.
Tony Stewart grabbed the lead again, with the 15 or 20 cars behind him running three-wide, shuffling positions with every turn of the wheel. In spite of the shuffling behind him, Stewart’s lead over Kenseth was just under 0.2 sec, while Kenseth was another tenth and a half in front of Newman. The time spread from first to Kyle Petty in 25th ws only 2.551 seconds at lap 122. Ryan Newman’s No. 12 Dodge has developed a piece of the left rear fender that sticks out into the airstream. It doesn’t appear to be affecting his speed dramatically
Another debris caution flew just seven laps later on lap 129, for something on the track in Turn Three. Stewart held onto the lead over McMurray, Kenseth, Marlin and Edwards, with Jarrett dropping back again, this time to 17th.
Green flag pit stops began on lap 161. Most leaders took only two tires, opting to keep track position. Greg Biffle got penalized with a drive-through for passing (or almost passing) Ryan Newman on the left on pit road. When all the leaders had stopped, Stewart still held the point, followed by McMurray, Kenseth, Nemechek and Newman. Ken Schrader earned a penalty for driving down pit road too fast.
With only 18 laps to run, Martin Truex Jr, point leader in the Busch Series, slowed, reporting that he thought he’d broken the engine in the No. 1 Chevy. The pack following Ryan Newman, including Bobby Labonte, Sterling Marlin, Carl Edwards and Kurt Busch, obeyed discipline, running in single file, trying to catch the lead quartet of Stewart, McMurray, Kenseth and Nemechek. Kenseth dropped out of line in the lead pack, looked around McMurray and started dropping back, while Newman closed on Nemechek’s rear bumper, the lead 12 or 13 cars now in one tight line with a dozen laps left to race.
McMurray moved low and around Stewart suddenly, then Stewart dropped to fifth in only the first two turns of the next lap. McMurray headed Newman, then Kenseth led fellow Roush driver Edwards for a challenge until Edwards fell back. Dale Jarrett charged up from about tenth to sixth. With just over four laps to run, McMurray got loose and Kenseth, aided by a push from Newman, grabbed the lead. Stewart and Jarrett held fourth.
Then, coming around the fourth turn, Ken Schrader’s left-rear tire blew, spinning him into the wall and creating a green-white-checker finish. Nobody in the lead pack pitted as Kenseth lead Newman to the green, followed by Stewart, Jarrett, McMurray, Edwards Vickers, Kurt Busch, Sterling Marlin and Bobby Labonte in the top ten positions.
The green flag flew for a bonus-lap finish. Kenseth blocked a move by Newman and the rest of the pack split into a double-file gaggle, then Stewart ran wide around Newman and low around Kenseth, with Jarrett wide and into the lead as Kyle Petty crashed on the back straight, leaving the fans disappointed again at Talladega. Jarrett’s win is the first Ford victory at Talladega since 1998. It is Jarrett’s first win since Rockingham in 2003. He ran to the starter’ss stand to collect the checkered flag before saluting the fans and making a reverse victory lap for the crowd.
A very emotional Robert Yates told interviewers that before he moved Todd Parrott over to the No. 88 car as crew chief, Parrott had said that he would win races this year with Jarrett as driver.
Unofficial Finish, UAW-Ford 500, Talladega Superspeedway:
Fin, St, Driver, Car, Laps, Pts/Bonus, Status
1, 2, Dale Jarrett, No. 88 UPS Ford, 190, 185/5, Running
2, 4, Tony Stewart, No. 20 The Home Depot Chevrolet, 190, 180/10, Running
3, 3, Ryan Newman, No. 12 ALLTEL Dodge, 190, 170/5, Running
4, 10, Carl Edwards, No. 99 World Financial Group Ford, 190, 165/5, Running
5, 11, Matt Kenseth, No. 17 DeWalt Power Tools Ford, 190, 160/5, Running
6, 27, Brian Vickers, No. 25 GMAC/ditech.com Chevrolet, 190, 155/5, Running
7, 16, Sterling Marlin, No. 40 Coors Light Camouflage Can Dodge, 190, 146/0, Running
8, 21, Kurt Busch, No. 97 Sharpie Ford, 190, 147/5, Running
9, 5, Joe Nemechek, No. 01 U.S. Army Chevrolet, 190, 143/5, Running
10, 42, Kevin Harvick, No. 29 GM Goodwrench Chevrolet, 190, 139/5, Running
11, 28, Kasey Kahne, No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge, 190, 130/0, Running
12, 32, Jeremy Mayfield, No. 19 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge, 190, 132/5, Running
13, 14, Jamie McMurray, No. 42 Texaco/Havoline “Shine On” Dodge, 190, 129/5, Running
14, 6, Bobby Labonte, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet, 190, 121/0, Running
15, 15, Travis Kvapil *, No. 77 Kodak/Jasper Engines Dodge, 190, 123/5, Running
16, 30, Dave Blaney, No. 07 Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet, 190, 115/0, Running
17, 36, Scott Wimmer, No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge, 190, 112/0, Running
18, 33, Mike Wallace, No. 4 Lucas Oil Products Chevrolet, 190, 114/5, Running
19, 29, Ricky Rudd, No. 21 Motorcraft Genuine Parts Ford, 190, 111/5, Running
20, 31, Bobby Hamilton Jr., No. 92 Tide Chevrolet, 190, 103/0, Running
21, 40, Jeff Green, No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge, 189, 105/5, Running
22, 43, Tony Raines, No. 37 BoSPOKER.net Dodge, 189, 97/0, Running
23, 22, Robby Gordon, No. 7 Menards Chevrolet, 189, 94/0, Running
24, 38, Kyle Petty, No. 45 Georgia-Pacific/Brawny Dodge, 188, 91/0, Running
25, 41, Rusty Wallace, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge, 185, 88/0, Running
26, 39, Ken Schrader, No. 49 Red Baron Frozen Pizza Dodge, 183, 90/5, Out
27, 8, Greg Biffle, No. 16 Post-it/National Guard Ford, 172, 82/0, Running
28, 17, Martin Truex Jr., No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Chevrolet, 170, 79/0, Out
29, 19, J.J. Yeley, No. 11 FedEx Ground Chevrolet, 165, 81/5, Running
30, 37, Kevin Lepage, No. 66 Ace & TJ Show/Peak Fitness Ford, 160, 73/0, Running
31, 9, Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, 158, 75/5, Running
32, 23, Mike Bliss, No. 0 Best Buy Chevrolet, 149, 67/0, Running
33, 13, Kyle Busch *, No. 5 Kellogg’s Chevrolet, 146, 64/0, Out
34, 1, Elliott Sadler, No. 38 M&M’s Ford, 128, 66/5, Running
35, 18, Jeff Burton, No. 31 Cingular Wireless Chevrolet, 71, 58/0, Out
36, 7, Scott Riggs, No. 10 Checkers/Valvoline Chevrolet, 65, 55/0, Out
37, 12, Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, 65, 52/0, Out
38, 26, Casey Mears, No. 41 Target/Breast Cancer Rsrch Fndation Dodge, 65, 54/5, Out
39, 34, Kerry Earnhardt, No. 33 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Chevrolet, 57, 46/0, Out
40, 20, Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet, 19, 43/0, Out
41, 24, Mark Martin, No. 6 Viagra Ford, 19, 40/0, Out
42, 25, Michael Waltrip, No. 15 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, 19, 37/0, Out
43, 35, Mike Skinner, No. 34 Aaron’s Ford, 19, 34/0, Out
*: Rookie
Unofficial Point Standings:
Rank +/- Driver Points Behind Starts Poles Wins Top 5 Top 10
1 +4 Tony Stewart 5519 Leader 29 2 5 14 20
2 +1 Ryan Newman 5515 -4 29 6 1 8 13
3 -1 Rusty Wallace 5443 -76 29 0 0 8 16
4 -3 Jimmie Johnson 5437 -82 29 1 3 10 17
5 +1 Greg Biffle 5421 -98 29 0 5 11 16
6 +2 Carl Edwards 5419 -100 29 1 2 9 12
7 +2 Matt Kenseth 5408 -111 29 1 1 8 13
8 -1 Jeremy Mayfield 5407 -112 29 0 1 4 8
9 -5 Mark Martin 5381 -138 29 0 0 7 14
10 – Kurt Busch 5339 -180 29 0 3 8 15
11 +1 Kevin Harvick 3321 -2198 29 2 1 3 9
12 +1 Jamie McMurray 3307 -2212 29 1 0 4 8
13 -2 Elliott Sadler 3288 -2231 29 3 0 1 10
14 +1 Dale Jarrett 3270 -2249 29 1 1 4 6
15 +1 Joe Nemechek 3222 -2297 29 1 0 1 8
16 -2 Jeff Gordon 3202 -2317 29 2 3 5 9
17 +1 Brian Vickers 3187 -2332 29 1 0 5 10
18 -1 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 3112 -2407 29 0 1 6 11
19 – Kyle Busch* 3064 -2455 29 1 1 8 11
20 – Jeff Burton 3022 -2497 29 0 0 2 4
21 – Kasey Kahne 3002 -2517 29 2 1 5 8
22 – Michael Waltrip 2901 -2618 29 1 0 3 7
23 – Ricky Rudd 2860 -2659 29 0 0 2 7
24 – Bobby Labonte 2802 -2717 29 0 0 2 5
25 – Casey Mears 2721 -2798 29 0 0 1 5
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