Aggro the winner at Pocono

By Andrew Charman

Pocono needs special treatment. The 2.5-mile long track has just three turns, needs loads of gear changes and kills engines, but none of this fazed Jimmie Johnson, who survived a long day of cautions and confusion to win the Pocono 500 and close in on Dale Earnhardt Jnr's championship lead.

With bad weather threatening the Pocono mountains the start was moved forward and shortly after 1pm rookies Kasey Kahne and Brian Vickers led the field to the start of 200 laps. At the green Kahne's #9 UAW/Dodge Dealers Dodge got the jump but Joe Nemechek's #1 US Army Chevrolet quickly moved past, only for the caution to fly as the newly replaced engine in Morgan Shepherd's #89 Red Line Dodge began dropping oil.

The restart on lap 5 saw Nemechek break away as Jimmie Johnson's #48 Lowe's Chevrolet moved around Kahne into second, the rest of the field spreading out along the wide and very long straightaways. Team-mates Jeff Gordon and Brian Vickers soon followed through in the #24 Dupont and #25 GMAC cars, and with 11 laps down Hendrick Motorsports hit the front as both Johnson and Gordon passed Nemechek, himself in a car powered by a Hendrick motor.

The race settled into a long green run, Vickers completing a Hendrick 1-2-3 up front, but lap 20 brought a surprise as defending series champion Matt Kenseth headed the #17 DeWalt Ford to pitroad early for a tyre change, losing a lap in the process. Not far behind came Nemechek, his car getting "looser and looser" as the race went on.

As the Hendrick trio held sway Jeremy Mayfield moved the #19 UAW/Dodge Dealers Dodge into fourth. Soon however he had to give way to Dale Jarrett, running his strongest for many races in the #88 UPS Ford. Closing had been point leader Dale Earnhardt Jnr, until the #8 Budweiser Chevrolet suddenly got very loose, Earnhardt briefly fearing he had a flat tyre. He held on to the car until green flag pit stops started on lap 35, just in time for Jeff Gordon among others who ran out of fuel as he peeled into pitlane. By the time the stops had cycled through Johnson had seven seconds over Vickers, Gordon a further four back followed by Greg Biffle's #16 National Guard/Pennzoil Ford, Jarrett and Kenseth, running out of sequence after his early stop. Earnhardt meanwhile dropped back to 31st.

One-quarter distance saw Johnson eight seconds clear of Vicker, Gordon having dropped back to almost 14 seconds off the lead. But it all became meaningless as the caution flew, Ward Burton's #0 Netzero Chevrolet breaking into a wild spin out of turn 3 under pressure from Earnhardt. Everyone pitted, Sterling Marlin's #40 Coors Light Dodge taking just two tyres to come out ahead of Johnson and Vickers, Gordon slipping to eighth.

As the green flew Johnson and Vickers quickly rounded the tardy Marlin, and the leaders briefly swapped places, Vickers earning useful bonus points by heading the field for a lap. Behind Marlin Jeff Gordon had re-established himself in fourth, chased by Mayfield, Biffle, Martin and Terry Labonte's #5 Kellogg's Chevy, yet another Hendrick car.

Lap 60 saw caution number three as Brendan Gaughan's #77 Kodak Dodge lunched its engine along the back straight. Despite having less than 10 laps on their rubber all but the top half dozen and some lead lap tail-enders headed for the pits, but then Marlin suspected a puncture and pitted late, resuming 31st as his team found a cut in his discarded rubber. At the restart on lap 67 the Hendrick show hauled away from fourth-placed Mayfield, Gordon moving past his rookie partner into second. Adjustments to tighten up his car had found the four-time champion some inspiration, and he closed down Johnson, moving past on lap 72. Meanwhile two-time Pocono winner Mayfield interrupted the demo, moving past Vickers into third on a track he loves.

As another long green run ensued the 10 drivers who hadn't stopped on the previous caution began to fear for their track position. Vickers was first in for fuel and tyres on lap 85, leader Gordon following two laps later and the other eight not far behind. But a missing lug nut sent Gordon back to pitlane and dropped him a lap down.

All of which shook up the order, at the front still a Hendrick car, except that now it was Labonte's Kellogg's machine, while second would have been #15 Michael Waltrip's NAPA Chavrolet if he hadn't run out of gas and crawled into pitlane. Labonte however immediately pitted, as a general round of green flag stops began to confuse the order again.

By the time everything panned out the race had passed half distance, 15 drivers had led at least a lap (one off the Pocono record) and Jimmie Johnson was back ahead, Vickers second and Mayfield third. Back on the lead lap too was Gordon, 28 seconds down in 11th.

On the move now was Biffle, taking third from Mayfield on lap 106 despite having only arrived at the track at 4am after running a Busch Series race in Nashville the previous evening. By lap 112 he was into second, Mayfield also passing Vickers, but then the caution flew as Mark Martin's Ford puffed out smoke and headed for the garage. Everyone headed for the pits, Ryan Newman taking two tyres to put the #12 ALLTEL Dodge into the lead over Biffle, Johnson and Vickers, Mayfield back to seventh just ahead of Gordon, who of course could now see the leader again, his lug-nut problem forgotten.

The green flew on lap 117 and Biffle was caught in a Hendrick pincer, slipping to fifth as Johnson and Vickers chased after Newman. But suddenly the caution was out again for a wreck sparked by Bobby Labonte's engine losing an oil line, Marlin and Scott Wimmer finding the fluid and hitting the wall. It took several laps to clean up the mess and most cars topped off with fuel in the hope of going to the end with only one more stop, Gordon in the pits three times and taking four tyres. They restarted with 68 to go and Johnson and Newman ran side by side for the lead, Johnson going ahead and Jarrett joining in along with Kahne and Casey Mears, again running strong in the #41 Target Dodge.

Gordon and Vickers were back in 18th and 19th but coming fast, while also benefiting from topping-off with fuel was Earnhardt, suddenly eighth and in the mix. At three-quarter distance Johnson had eight seconds over Newman, Jarrett and Mears, Gordon up to sixth. But four laps later Ricky Craven's Tide Chevrolet blew up, the yellow flew and confusion reigned as the pits were opened a lap too early leading to Johnson and three others missing their call. Once they had pitted NASCAR spent some deciding what to do. On lap 162 they threw the green and Johnson was the big loser, stuck in ninth spot.

Kahne, who had stopped just before the caution, led the field away, but was soon passed by Gordon who knew he would need fuel soon. A pitting opportunity quickly surfaced as Rusty Wallace ran into Waltrip and both smacked the wall hard. As they took the green with 28 to go Mayfield led, but Johnson moved straight past into the lead while now in third was Bobby Labonte with a repaired oil line, while the refuelled Gordon languished 17th. The leaders still needed to save fuel, and Tony Stewart helped with a spin, sparking yellow number eight.

So we had a 20-lap sprint, and the question of who had the fuel to last. Johnson led Mayfield, the latter convinced he was shy on gas, Labonte and Jarrett, but further back Robby Gordon tagged the kerb and spun Ryan Newman into the wall - caution nine...

The green flew with 12 to go, and neither Johnson or Mayfield had fuel worries any more, but we weren't finished with yellows, tail-ender PJ Jones snagging Jamie McMurray. They restarted with eight laps left, and Johnson simply drove away, but this time Mayfield and Labonte went with him as Jarrett's superb run came to a cruel end in the pits, Jeff Burton's engine blew and Kenseth was spun by Kevin Harvick, sparking a yellow. Kenseth then re-spun Harvick under the caution, sparking a trip to see NASCAR's rule makers...

"This has been one crazy day," said Jeff Gordon to his spotter as the race finished in anti-climactic fashion under the yellow, along with one or two missiles from disappointed spectators. Not that his team-mate Johnson minded, the win closing him up on series leader Earnhardt, while Mayfield reflected on yet another second place. Labonte took third, Gordon fourth to re-establish his championship challenge.

"I was nervous after that pitlane confusion, but this was one special day for Hendrick Motorsport," grinned Johnson. Next stop Michigan in seven days time, and surely it won't be quite so frantic? Will it....