JOE NEMECHEK
SWEEPS KANSAS WEEKEND

Kansas City, Ks: Not only did "Front Row GI Joe" win the Bud Pole at qualifying on Friday, he went on to win the Busch Series race on Saturday and topped it all off by winning the Banquet 400 at Kansas Speedway on Sunday.

In a race that saw many of the Nextel Cup Chasers struggling, Joe Nemechek made all the right adjustments to the 01 U.S. Army Chevrolet. This was the first time the O1 car ever made it to the Winner's Circle. NBC celebrated a warm family moment with Joe as he acknowledged all the troops overseas and his incredible weekend.

The end of the race was exciting as Ricky Rudd, who had avoided near disaster on the prior restart, caught Nemo with 2 laps remaining. The #21 U.S. Air Force Ford battled the 01 U.S. Army Chevrolet, but could not inch his way past. Ricky was happy to come in 2nd after the hair raising incident that saw him end up down on the apron after he clipped the #10 Valvoline Chevrolet of Scott Riggs.

All of the military cars seemed to do well in the race. Gregg Biffle was very strong for most of the day. Early in the race, he stole the lead from Jeremy Mayfield and then Kasey Kahne on 2 occasions. The #16 National Guard Ford led 32 laps. But pit strategies detained the car and Gregg could not power his way back to the front. He finished 3rd.

Not only did the military sponsors do well, but Ford had 5 cars in the top 10. Elliott Sadler was true to his word when he predicted at qualifying on Friday that Jeff Gordon would be watching him from behind all day. Elliott led the race when he challenged Jamie McMurray and passed him on lap 229. Unfortunately, his lead was short lived as Nemo passed him on lap 230. Elliott restarted the race 2nd after the lap 250 caution, but could not keep that position. Elliott brought the #38 Pedigree Ford with the special Wizard of Oz paint theme of Dorothy & Toto in 4th.

Leading the most laps today was Jeremy Mayfield in the #19 Dodge Dealers Hemi/UAW Dodge. He had a special orange paint scheme on his car. His 5th place finish did not move him up in the standings, but he did move closer to Jimmie Johnson and Ryan Newman in points.

Coming into the race in first place among the top 10 Nextel Cup Chasers, Kurt Busch made a miraculous recovery after he spun out on lap 152. He was lucky enough not to sustain any damage and his crew chief, Jimmy Fennig, made the necessary adjustments to the #97 Sharpie Ford. Kurt powered his way back to the front and came in 5th. He remains the leader in the Chase for the Championship.

Jamie McMurray took over the lead on lap 214 and stayed there until lap 229. He was able to keep the #42 Havoline Dodge in the top 10 coming in 7th. He also stayed in the all important 11th place in the standings. That position could earn him a $1 million bonus at the end of the season.

Dale Jarrett danced up and down the middle of the field for most of the race. He brought the #88 UPS Ford in 8th. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. had a day of ups and downs in the #8 Budweiser Chevrolet. On his final pit stop, he took two tires and was able to work his way up to finish 9th. Brendan Gaughan had another spectacular race for the 2nd week in a row. He was 10th in the #77 Kodak Dodge with the Wizard of Oz paint theme that featured the Scarecrow.

The woes continued for Cup Chasers Jimmie Johnson and Ryan Newman. Jimmie spun the #48 Lowes Chevrolet on lap 152. He didn't sustain any damage in that incident, but he suffered an ill handling car. Then, on lap 214, the loose car hit the wall and Jimmie headed to the garage with severe front end damage. He came back into the race and finished 32nd.

Ryan Newman had been riding up front for most of the race. He was 5th on lap 208 when his loose car slammed into the outside wall. He was able to stay in the race, but came in 33rd. He dropped a position to 8th in the Championship Chase.

Other Chasers that struggled in today's race were Jeff Gordon finishing 13th in the #24 Dupont Chevrolet with the Cowardly Lion special Wizard of Oz paint theme. Tony Stewart finished 14th in the #20 Home Depot Chevrolet. Matt Kenseth finished 17th in the #17 DeWalt Ford. Mark Martin finished 20th in the #6 Viagra Ford.

Article by S. Kipple
10/10/04

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