bigbadbrother
11-03-2014, 01:23 AM
AP
Fort Worth, Texas —
Jimmie Johnson survived a flurry of late-race cautions to win Sunday's AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway for the third straight year.
Johnson hung on through a pair of green-white-checkered finishes to bring his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet to Victory Lane over Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet. Brad Keselowski was third in a Team Penske Ford, followed by Kyle Busch and Jamie McMurray.
It was Johnson's fourth win of the season and 70th of his career.
After the race, a brawl ensued between the crews of Jeff Gordon and Keselowski on pit road. The drivers also tangled with each other, with Gordon reacting to the fact that the two had late-race contact that robbed Gordon of a chance for victory.
"I'm doing everything I can to win this championship, racing at 100 percent and I'm not going to apologize for it," said Keselowski. "… I'm not trying to dish out something I can't take myself."
Gordon didn't see it that way.
"He's just a dips—t," Gordon said of Keselowski.
"He was in bulldozer mode," Harvick said of Keselowski. "… I couldn't run over the 24 (Gordon) or the 48 (Johnson) like that."
Despite the chaos, the race belonged to Johnson's who triumphed after what so far has been a disappointing season. "Just a testament to this team and the fact that they never give up," said Johnson. "We're not in the Chase, we're not where we want to be fighting for a championship, but a great day."
The afternoon began calm but got crazier as the day turned to night.
Matt Kenseth started from the pole, flanked by Gordon. At the green, Kenseth wheeled his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota into the lead, with Gordon second and Kurt Busch third.
Kenseth led the first 53 laps before Jimmie Johnson caught and passed him to assume a lead he would not quickly surrender.
At the halfway point of the race, Lap 167, Johnson led his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Gordon by 1.416 seconds, with Kevin Harvick third ahead of Ryan Newman and Kenseth.
By Lap 200, Johnson had been out front for a total of 142 circuits.
Johnson led all the way until Lap 217, when Gordon finally got past him for his first lead of the day.
After debris hit the nose of Kenseth's car on Lap 241, Johnson used an 11.4-second pit stop to take the lead over Gordon under caution on Lap 244.
On Lap 276, Gordon was able to go high on the backstretch to catch Keselowski and reassume the lead, with Harvick third ahead of Johnson.
Debris on the track sent the field down pit road on Lap 287, with Johnson taking the lead again over Harvick, Gordon and Logano.
On Lap 291, the green flag came out and when it did, Johnson pulled away smartly over Harvick and Gordon.
But just 6 laps later, Brett Moffitt hit the wall at the exit of Turn 2. Under caution, about half the lead-lap cars stayed out and half pitted. Kenseth stayed out and led, with Johnson taking four tires and coming out ninth, in front of Harvick and Gordon.
Once the green flew on Lap 303, Kurt Busch went into the lead, only to see a Logano spin bring out yet another caution. Busch led the field to the green on Lap 309 in front of Kenseth and Johnson.
Then, Kasey Kahne spun on Lap 314 and set up another caution. Busch, Johnson and Gordon all stayed out to lead, with Harvick fourth on fresh tires.
The green waved on Lap 318, Johnson and Gordon taking the top two spots. But then Kahne crashed on the backstretch, so the yellow came out one more time. Newman and Kenseth had contact on track and both had to pit for tires.
The green came out on Lap 326, Johnson leading Gordon and Busch. Gordon immediately jumped into the lead ahead of Johnson, Keselowski and Harvick.
The drama wasn't over.
Clint Bowyer had a wallbanger on Lap 331 to bring out caution No. 12 to set up a green-white-checkered finish.
On the restart, Gordon chose the highline and had contact with Keselowski, which gave him a flat tire and sent him spinning to a 29th-place finish.
That meant a second green-white-checkered finish, with Johnson hanging on to win.
AAA Texas 500
Nov 2, 2014 | Texas Motor Speedway - Fort Worth, Texas | 501.0 mi
Pos Driver Car # Make Started Laps Led Points Driver Rating
1 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 3 341 191 48 145.0
2 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 5 341 2 43 120.0
3 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 26 341 22 42 97.8
4 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 9 341 0 40 85.4
5 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 21 341 0 39 85.7
6 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 12 341 0 38 103.8
7 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 17 341 0 37 87.3
8 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 4 341 15 37 103.7
9 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 11 341 0 35 76.9
10 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 20 341 3 35 88.3
11 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 6 341 0 33 81.8
12 Joey Logano 22 Ford 10 341 0 32 102.8
13 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 19 341 0 31 74.7
14 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 23 341 0 30 72.1
15 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 7 341 0 29 102.9
16 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 13 341 0 28 85.0
17 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 15 341 0 27 88.7
18 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 38 341 0 26 59.0
19 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 8 341 0 25 81.9
20 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 30 341 0 24 63.3
21 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 29 341 0 23 78.5
22 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 33 341 0 22 57.0
23 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 18 341 0 21 59.2
24 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 22 341 0 20 58.7
25 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 1 341 59 20 103.1
26 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 40 341 0 18 46.0
27 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 16 341 0 17 62.1
28 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 24 341 0 16 68.6
29 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 2 340 49 16 110.8
30 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 28 338 0 14 43.9
31 J.J. Yeley 83 Toyota 39 338 0 0 37.5
32 David Ragan 34 Ford 37 338 0 12 42.8
33 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 32 337 0 11 46.2
34 David Gilliland 38 Ford 31 335 0 10 33.1
35 Timmy Hill 33 Chevrolet 42 334 0 9 31.9
36 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 27 332 0 8 42.4
37 Joey Gase 32 Ford 43 330 0 0 28.0
38 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 14 319 0 6 79.8
39 Trevor Bayne 21 Ford 25 318 0 0 47.2
40 Brett Moffitt 66 Toyota 41 283 0 4 24.8
41 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 36 256 0 3 28.7
42 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 35 245 0 2 32.9
43 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 34 134 0 0 39.3
2014 AAA Texas 500 Stats
Scheduled Laps: 334
Total Laps: 341
Distance: 501.0 miles
Lead Changes: 25
Fort Worth, Texas —
Jimmie Johnson survived a flurry of late-race cautions to win Sunday's AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway for the third straight year.
Johnson hung on through a pair of green-white-checkered finishes to bring his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet to Victory Lane over Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet. Brad Keselowski was third in a Team Penske Ford, followed by Kyle Busch and Jamie McMurray.
It was Johnson's fourth win of the season and 70th of his career.
After the race, a brawl ensued between the crews of Jeff Gordon and Keselowski on pit road. The drivers also tangled with each other, with Gordon reacting to the fact that the two had late-race contact that robbed Gordon of a chance for victory.
"I'm doing everything I can to win this championship, racing at 100 percent and I'm not going to apologize for it," said Keselowski. "… I'm not trying to dish out something I can't take myself."
Gordon didn't see it that way.
"He's just a dips—t," Gordon said of Keselowski.
"He was in bulldozer mode," Harvick said of Keselowski. "… I couldn't run over the 24 (Gordon) or the 48 (Johnson) like that."
Despite the chaos, the race belonged to Johnson's who triumphed after what so far has been a disappointing season. "Just a testament to this team and the fact that they never give up," said Johnson. "We're not in the Chase, we're not where we want to be fighting for a championship, but a great day."
The afternoon began calm but got crazier as the day turned to night.
Matt Kenseth started from the pole, flanked by Gordon. At the green, Kenseth wheeled his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota into the lead, with Gordon second and Kurt Busch third.
Kenseth led the first 53 laps before Jimmie Johnson caught and passed him to assume a lead he would not quickly surrender.
At the halfway point of the race, Lap 167, Johnson led his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Gordon by 1.416 seconds, with Kevin Harvick third ahead of Ryan Newman and Kenseth.
By Lap 200, Johnson had been out front for a total of 142 circuits.
Johnson led all the way until Lap 217, when Gordon finally got past him for his first lead of the day.
After debris hit the nose of Kenseth's car on Lap 241, Johnson used an 11.4-second pit stop to take the lead over Gordon under caution on Lap 244.
On Lap 276, Gordon was able to go high on the backstretch to catch Keselowski and reassume the lead, with Harvick third ahead of Johnson.
Debris on the track sent the field down pit road on Lap 287, with Johnson taking the lead again over Harvick, Gordon and Logano.
On Lap 291, the green flag came out and when it did, Johnson pulled away smartly over Harvick and Gordon.
But just 6 laps later, Brett Moffitt hit the wall at the exit of Turn 2. Under caution, about half the lead-lap cars stayed out and half pitted. Kenseth stayed out and led, with Johnson taking four tires and coming out ninth, in front of Harvick and Gordon.
Once the green flew on Lap 303, Kurt Busch went into the lead, only to see a Logano spin bring out yet another caution. Busch led the field to the green on Lap 309 in front of Kenseth and Johnson.
Then, Kasey Kahne spun on Lap 314 and set up another caution. Busch, Johnson and Gordon all stayed out to lead, with Harvick fourth on fresh tires.
The green waved on Lap 318, Johnson and Gordon taking the top two spots. But then Kahne crashed on the backstretch, so the yellow came out one more time. Newman and Kenseth had contact on track and both had to pit for tires.
The green came out on Lap 326, Johnson leading Gordon and Busch. Gordon immediately jumped into the lead ahead of Johnson, Keselowski and Harvick.
The drama wasn't over.
Clint Bowyer had a wallbanger on Lap 331 to bring out caution No. 12 to set up a green-white-checkered finish.
On the restart, Gordon chose the highline and had contact with Keselowski, which gave him a flat tire and sent him spinning to a 29th-place finish.
That meant a second green-white-checkered finish, with Johnson hanging on to win.
AAA Texas 500
Nov 2, 2014 | Texas Motor Speedway - Fort Worth, Texas | 501.0 mi
Pos Driver Car # Make Started Laps Led Points Driver Rating
1 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 3 341 191 48 145.0
2 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 5 341 2 43 120.0
3 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 26 341 22 42 97.8
4 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 9 341 0 40 85.4
5 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 21 341 0 39 85.7
6 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 12 341 0 38 103.8
7 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 17 341 0 37 87.3
8 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 4 341 15 37 103.7
9 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 11 341 0 35 76.9
10 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 20 341 3 35 88.3
11 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 6 341 0 33 81.8
12 Joey Logano 22 Ford 10 341 0 32 102.8
13 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 19 341 0 31 74.7
14 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 23 341 0 30 72.1
15 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 7 341 0 29 102.9
16 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 13 341 0 28 85.0
17 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 15 341 0 27 88.7
18 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 38 341 0 26 59.0
19 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 8 341 0 25 81.9
20 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 30 341 0 24 63.3
21 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 29 341 0 23 78.5
22 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 33 341 0 22 57.0
23 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 18 341 0 21 59.2
24 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 22 341 0 20 58.7
25 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 1 341 59 20 103.1
26 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 40 341 0 18 46.0
27 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 16 341 0 17 62.1
28 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 24 341 0 16 68.6
29 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 2 340 49 16 110.8
30 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 28 338 0 14 43.9
31 J.J. Yeley 83 Toyota 39 338 0 0 37.5
32 David Ragan 34 Ford 37 338 0 12 42.8
33 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 32 337 0 11 46.2
34 David Gilliland 38 Ford 31 335 0 10 33.1
35 Timmy Hill 33 Chevrolet 42 334 0 9 31.9
36 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 27 332 0 8 42.4
37 Joey Gase 32 Ford 43 330 0 0 28.0
38 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 14 319 0 6 79.8
39 Trevor Bayne 21 Ford 25 318 0 0 47.2
40 Brett Moffitt 66 Toyota 41 283 0 4 24.8
41 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 36 256 0 3 28.7
42 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 35 245 0 2 32.9
43 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 34 134 0 0 39.3
2014 AAA Texas 500 Stats
Scheduled Laps: 334
Total Laps: 341
Distance: 501.0 miles
Lead Changes: 25