Fans got a double dose of racing on Monday as both the Sprint and Nationwide were canceled and rescheduled for Monday. It was a good thing though, it was a race worth watching for sure.
The Shockers:
Well let's start with the shockers of the race. Dale Earnhardt Jr. started ninth and eventually got all the way up to the front to lead some laps. After consistently staying in the top 10 and some of the greatest pit stops by the No. 88 team we have seen in almost two years, an eighth-place finish was a great morale booster for the team and fans alike. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is now seventh in points.
How about a big old round of applause for Mr. Jeff Burton. On lap 136 he went all the way up to 18th after restarting at the tail end of the field and by lap 150 he climbed all the way up to 14th. Burton made it to a high of fourth and ended up finishing a solid 12th place. He is currently eighth in the points standings. Great job for the No. 31 team.
The Knockers:
In case you didn't know the knockers are the ones who did a little bit of bumping and knocking on the cars around them. Let's start with Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon, teammates and also contenders for the win. They had a little bump and run ... and well it got a little out of control. Each driver said they were disappointed by the spat and Gordon said they will be sure to talk about it cause they are, "good enough friends, good enough teammates." They were both disappointed in how they raced each other, but each claimed they "got over it." Johnson was smiling afterward, however, for finishing in second place, and well, Gordon, not so much.
My next knocker is Tony Stewart, who ran a great race and claimed causing an accident. Stewart responded with, "It was my fault. Feel bad about it, about doing something stupid like that. I didn't plan on getting loose, but it is 100 percent my fault." I think I can also put Stewart in the Shocker category for growing up so much and taking responsibility even if it didn't seem to be his fault 100%. It seems to most that Carl Edwards' No. 99 bumped Stewart, which got him loose and ended up causing quite the pileup and taking out some of the best cars in the field. It was ultimately a product of hard racing with around 20 laps to go.
The Rockers:
Of course the No.1 rocker is Denny Hamlin, who held off Jimmie Johnson enough to win. Hamlin had a decent car and raced slow and steady to eventually get to the front. About two weeks after having surgery on his knee, this just goes to show the dedication of athletes. These are the athletes who make the sport, the ones who overcome obstacles and go on to be the winner. A big congrats to Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 FedEx team.
Now my other rockers are these drivers involved with the red flag wreck at the Samsung Mobile 500. These drivers included Clint Bowyer, Juan Pablo Montoya, Paul Menard, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Joey Logano and Jamie McMurray. Five out of the seven drivers went on to do double duty and race in the Nationwide series afterward as well. Logano went on to finish second after finishing 28th in the first race of the day. McMurray went on to finish sixth in his first Nationwide race for JR Motorsports after finishing 30th in the Sprint race. Paul Menard finished a solid 10th after finishing an unfortunate 35th in the Samsung Mobile 500. Redemption was sung proud and loud for those drivers.
And there you have it, the Shockers, Knockers and Rockers of the TMS weekend. Let's roll it on out at Talladaga and see what surprises are in store!
"Photo courtesy of Creative commons/flickr/Mike D.Merrill"
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