Darlington has been the scene of some of the most exciting races in NASCAR history, and today's Carolina Dodge Dealers 400, the 100th race at the egg-shaped speedway, is sure to be remembered as one of the best. Pit strategy and on track rivalry took a back seat to surviving the "Lady In Black", one of NASCAR's oldest and toughest venues.
Elliott Sadler led the field to the green flag after capturing his first ever Bud Pole in Friday's qualifying session, but had to struggle to hold the lead as Ryan Newman passed him in Turn 2, before they had completed a single lap. Sadler battled back and reclaimed the lead on lap 2, pulling away from the rest of the leaders.
The first of the day's seven cautions came out only 6 laps into the race, when Jerry Nadeau lost control in turn 1. He managed to keep his car off the wall, but as traffic slowed to avoid him, rookie Jamie McMurray and points leader Matt Kenseth made contact. Only half the field came in to the pits, but when the caution flew again only 6 laps later when former Craftsman Truck Series champion Jack Sprague spun, the remaining cars headed down pit lane. Only Jimmy Spencer stayed out through both yellow flags, leading Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jerry Nadeau and the rest of the cars who had pitted under the first caution to the restart.
Earnhardt passed Spencer to take the lead on lap 18, and dominated the next few laps. On lap 22, Jimmie Johnson's Chevy shimmied and forced Sterling Marlin into the outside wall, setting off a chain reaction that damaged seven cars, including that of last week's winner Bobby Labonte. Johnson and his crew chief, Chad Knaus, were told to report to the NASCAR trailer after the race, though Marlin didn't believe that the episode had anything to do with the lingering resentment between the drivers after a last lap incident between the two at Las Vegas.
As the caution flag waived for the third time, Dale Jarrett and Jeff Gordon remained on track while the rest of the lead lap cars headed down pit road. Jarrett held through a short, green flag run, but heads for the pits when the yellow flies again just 11 laps later.
More bad news for Roush racing came on lap 33, when Jeff Burton pulled into the garage, his car smoking, bringing out the third caution. Fellow Roush driver Kurt Busch suffered an engine failure in Saturday's practice, sending him to the back of the field after a 6th place qualifying effort and marking the third week of engine problems in the Roush garage.
As the leaders headed to the pits again, Earnhardt stayed out to take the lead. Pursued by cars on fresher tires, he got a good jump on the restart and opened up a comfortable 5-second lead over Jerry Nadeau. When the yellow flag waved for the 5th time on lap 68 following contact between Ward Burton and Ryan Newman, a remarkable effort by Earnhardt's crew enabled him to win the race off pit road and hang on to the lead, followed by Martin, Nadeau, Busch and Sadler. Nadeau, who had recovered from his earlier spin, saw his problems return on lap 87 when NASCAR black flagged him after his car began to smoke. A long stop revealed no major problems, but by the time he returned to the track, he was 8 laps down.
Earnhardt built up a solid lead again after the restart, but as the race stayed green, Mark Martin slowly closed the gap, and ultimately took the lead on lap 117. As the first green flag pit stops of the race approached, Gordon also passed Earnhardt to take second. After the round of stops, Martin held the lead, followed by Gordon, Kenseth, Sadler and Earnhardt.
Timing and luck came into play as another round of pit stops neared with a caution. Several cars stopped early, only to be caught a lap down when Spencer got into John Andretti and sent him up into the outside wall. On the restart, only 11 cars remained on the lead lap, led by Jeff Gordon. Martin followed, but loose lug nuts brought him back down pit lane and dropped him back to 11th, leaving Busch in second position.
Gordon, Busch and Sadler battled for position as the remaining laps dwindled, Sadler passing Busch to take second and challenge Gordon for the lead. As Sadler and Gordon raced side by side, Busch passed them both in a single, spectacular move with only 20 laps remaining. Gordon slipped back through the field and eventually slid up into the outside wall, forcing a last minute pit stop and leaving him to finish 33rd.
Meanwhile, the #32 car of Ricky Craven was making its way to the front, followed by the #77 of Dave Blaney. Craven closed on the leader in the final laps, racing hard against Busch who struggled to hold the lead despite power steering problems. In turn 3 of the final lap, Craven dipped to the bottom of the track to pass Busch, but Busch would not give up the lead. Together the pair raced, their cars up against each other, through the final turn and into the final straightaway, to finish first and second. Craven edged his nose out in front of Busch to win by a margin of just 2 thousandths of a second in the closest finish in a decade.
Unofficial Results
- Ricky Craven
- Kurt Busch
- Dave Blaney
- Mark Martin
- Michael Waltrip
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Elliott Sadler
- Matt Kenseth
- Bill Elliott
- Tony Stewart
Unofficial Standings
- Matt Kenseth
- Tony Stewart -57
- Michael Waltrip -62
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. -126
- Ricky Craven -143
- Kurt Busch -143
- Jimmie Johnson -156
- Dave Blaney -157
- Joe Nemechek -159
- Elliott Sadler -185
