From the July, 2007 issue of Stock Car Insider
AllState 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway Recap
Tony Stewart was the hometown kid romancing the homecoming queen while Kevin Harvick was the silver-tongued devil looking to steal her away. Battling it out over the closing laps of the AllState 400, the hometown kid showed his mettle and won the girl of the dreams earning the right to kiss her hard, gritty and old lips one more time.And Tony did it in impressive fashion. The two-time former champion led 66 of 160 laps. However, Harvick made it interesting at the end. On the final restart, Harvick jumped around Stewart going into Turn 1. ``I just went down there on the restart and got real, real tight for some reason,'' Stewart said. ``Kevin got by us and I knew after 15 laps I could get around him. So I was just trying to be patient." Not long after the restart, Stewart pounced and passed Harvick in a bold move where both cars banged fenders going down the back stretch.
In the end, Stewart's car was way too strong at the end of the race for anyone to catch him. The win is the second consecutive for Stewart which, if he qualifies, will position him with a high seed for the Chase.
Other drivers to note:
Series leader Jeff Gordon continued on with his steady assault on his 5th championship. Gordon finished a quiet 3rd after starting 24th. Gordon now has a 371 point lead over Denny Hamlin.
Dale Earnhardt Jr had a top five car for most of the day. Racing in his last race at Indy with DEI, Jr was hoping to capture his first win at the beloved track. However, engine problems late in the race spoiled his hopes and contributed to Jr's 34th place finish. He now sits 12th in points, only 13 points ahead of 13th.
Juan Pablo Montoya had his strongest finish at an oval track in the Cup Series. Juan ran in the top 10 for most of the day and finished exactly where he started, in 2nd place. Juan is currently 18th in points.
Denny Hamlin had a quiet race at Indy. He finished in 22nd place, and maintained his 2nd place standing in the points.
| See complete 2007 NASCAR Schedule |
