JIMMIE JOHNSON
BACK IN FORM

Charlotte, NC: Jimmie Johnson breathed a sigh of relief as he climbed out of the #48 Lowes Chevrolet in the Winner's Circle. After being jinxed in the past 2 races, Jimmie needed to get back to a track where he has performed well. Charlotte has been a favorite track of Jimmie's. He won the past 2 Spring races here, as well as the 2003 All Star race. The sweep this year is a feat last accomplished by Dale Earnhardt, Sr. in 1986.

The miraculous comeback by Jeff Gordon left him shaking his head in wonder. He was involved in a wreck that occurred on the first lap. When the green flag waved, Scott Riggs had a problem with the transmission in the #10 Valvoline Chevrolet. He could not shift. In the back up that followed, Jeff struck the rear of Kurt Busch. The #24 DuPont Chevrolet was damaged on the right front and Jeff stopped several times under the caution to make repairs.

The car was running horribly and eventually Jeff went a lap down. Then, on lap 75, Jeff ran into the wall. As he slid back down the track, Rusty Wallace slammed into the rear of the #24. The front of the #2 Miller Lite Dodge was totaled. It was a huge disappointment for Rusty who was on the move to the front. He was in 4th position at the time of the wreck.

Jeff found himself back on pit road getting repairs he thought would just keep him in the race to gain as many points as possible. Little did he know that his crew chief, Robbie Loomis would finally find the key to get the #24 running the way he needed. Jeff caught a big break when he received the Lucky Dog pass back onto the lead lap. From that point, he began picking off cars at an unbelievable rate. What a shock it was to see Jeff come off pit road in 3rd place on lap 318. He moved up to 2nd, then actually tried to take the lead away from Jimmie Johnson in the closing laps. Jeff was elated to finish the race 2nd.

Small problems throughout the race kept Dale Earnhardt, Jr. on his toes. He took the lead away from Kasey Kahne on 2 occasions, but could not stay there. He moved up and down inside the top 10 and was able to finish 3rd in the #8 Budweiser Chevrolet.

The Golden Horseshoe Award of the race belonged to Kurt Busch. He escaped no less than 3 separate incidents that should have wiped out the #97 Irwin/Sharpie Ford. He was struck on lap 1 by Jeff Gordon and like the week before in Kansas, Kurt spun. Incredibly, he did not hit anyone and no one struck him. He ended up on pit road, but there was no major damage to the car.

He began his trek to the front and narrowly missed the wreck that involved Brian Vickers slamming the wall and flying around to land the #25 GMAC Financial Services Chevrolet hard on the start/finish line. His most spectacular miss came when Jimmy Spencer rammed the #4 Lucas Oil Chevrolet into the back of Brendan Gaughan's #77 Jasper Engines Dodge on lap 312. Kurt slid all the way through the infield grass and did not lose control of the car. His teammate, Mark Martin, did not fare as well. Kurt had a fantastic finish ending the race in 4th place. His lead in the Championship Chase is now "24" points.

It would have been another great day if Joe Nemechek could have won consecutive races. He gave it a valiant try, but could not get the #01 US Army Chevrolet to stay in the lead. He finished a respectful 5th.

Dale Jarrett spent another race trying to get the #88 UPS Ford up front. He fell short of that goal, but once again finished in the top 10. He came in 6th.

It was an extremely frustrating night for Elliott Sadler. He was able to lead early in the race, but the handling went away on his car and never came back. Elliott wrestled the #38 Combos Ford into a 7th place finish.

Maintaining his quiet consistency, Jamie McMurray finished in the top 10 again. It was his 19th top 10 finish of the year. It is a shame he did not make the Chase for the Championship. Under the old points standings, Jamie would be in 8th place, which is where he finished this race in the #42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge.

Jeff Burton had his best finish in more than a month. He came in 9th with the #30 AOL Chevrolet.

Suffering a tremendously loose car that later turned too tight, Tony Stewart was hoping for a good race. Unfortunately, the #20 Home Depot Chevrolet did not cooperate. Twice Tony fell down a lap and received the Lucky Dog pass. He moved up and dropped back all night. His fortune came in the number of cars that wrecked allowing him to finish 10th.

It was a tough night for a lot of drivers including several Cup Chasers. Matt Kenseth and Jeremy Mayfield hit oil left behind by the blown engine of Kevin Harvick. The #17 DeWalt Ford finished 11th and the #19 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge came in 30th. Jeremy may be all but eliminated from the Championship.

Once again Mark Martin had a strong car only to meet his demise on the lap 312 wreck with Jimmy Spencer and Brendan Gaughan. The #6 Viagra Ford finished 13th.

The biggest upset of all belonged to Kasey Kahne. He dominated the race, leading 207 of the 334 laps, most of them by a hefty margin. He decided not to pit with most of the field during the lap 223 caution. After the restart on lap 232, it was only 35 laps before Kasey blew a tire and the #9 Dodge Dealers Mopar Dodge smacked the wall. It seems Kasey cannot catch the break that will get him that elusive first win. He finished 32nd.

Article by S. Kipple
10/16/04

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