Nemechek dominates Pocono before tranny troubles.

Joe Nemechek dominated the opening 30 laps of Sunday's Pennsylvania 500 in a manner that only eventual winner Jimmie Johnson was able to replicate during the remaining 170 tours of the 2.5-mile Pocono Raceway before 'Front Row Joe' discovered that he only had third gear at his disposal.

In an almost exact replica of the transmission problem Nemechek's #01 MB2 Motorsports team suffered with in June's Pocono 500, (where Nemechek had only fourth gear to play with), the ever popular driver had to nurse a crippled car through the majority of the race, praying that the transmission didn't pack up completely or that the engine didn't blow.

Somehow, for the second straight race, Nemechek's car stayed rolling as more than 15 others failed to finish and he was rewarded with his second straight top 20 finish at Pocono, crossing the line in a frustrated 16th place and remarkably, still on the lead lap.

"We had an awesome car until the tranny broke," said Nemechek, who first reported the problem to his USG Sheetrock/US Army sponsored crew on lap 60. "I was cruising and enjoying my ride. I really felt like this was going to be our day.

"I am not sure why we had a transmission problem again, but it is frustrating," he continued. "With only third gear all I could do was to try and save the motor from blowing. Considering what happened and what could've happened I guess a 16th place finish was pretty decent under the circumstances."

But it wasn't the finish that Nemechek was counting on after impressive performances by the Army car in Friday's practice and qualifying sessions (Saturday's practices were rained out). The #01 car was the fastest in practice and went on to qualify second, just missing the pole by two-hundredths of a second to Casey Mears.

"It's really too bad we couldn't finish on a better note because we had a great car as soon as it was unloaded on Friday," explained Nemechek. "When you have a car as good as the Army car was this weekend, you need to take advantage of it. We didn't do that, but we showed again that this team has the potential to run up front."

After the transmission failure, the ensuing pit stops for the #01 team once again resembled a bobsled team. The only way to get the Army Chevy up to speed as it exited the pit stall was for the seven-member over-the-wall crew to push the car down pit road while Nemechek delicately slipped the clutch.

"In one breath, I am very disappointed with the finish," said crew chief Ryan Pemberton. "But in another breath I am proud of both Joe and the team for not throwing in the towel. I've said it many times, there is no quit in this team."

The next stop for Nemechek and his MB2 team will be at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway for Sunday's Brickyard 400.