From the March, 2007 issue of Stock Car Insider
Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway Recap
The one benefit the Car of Tomorrow presented to us fans strapped to our couches for yesterday's Food City 500 was the new camera angles. The new camera locations on the car are unreal and give fans hair raising vantage points that even the drivers themselves can't experience.Other than that, from a viewer's perspective there were no major differences when compared to previous races at Bristol. There was tons of cautions (15) and lost of beating and banging. Even the opening pace laps offered up action. Reed Sorenson was so anxious to get going that he rear-ended JJ Yeeley before the green flag ever waved.
It always seems the most successful drivers at Bristol are the ones who lay low and make a charge toward the end. Both Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton did just that. After starting 20th & 29th respectively, Kyle and Jeff found themselves racing for the win at the end. Kyle was able to hold off Burton by 1/2 a car length to win the Food City 500.
Other top drivers faired as follows:
Tony Stewart had the best car in the field at Bristol, and led the most laps. However, the former champion suffered a huge setback as he lost fuel pressure in the middle stages of the race. As a result, Stewart finished many laps down and in 35th place. Stewart now sits 12th in points.
Kasey Kahne is slowly starting to climb his way out the monster hole he dug in the first 4 races of the season. A 19th place finish at Bristol has moved him to 34th in the points and allows him to take a provisional should he not qualify at next week's race in Martinsville. Early on, the #9 Dodge looked strong running in the top 3, but plummeted halfway through the race to 33rd.
The Daytona 500 winner, Kevin Harvick, jumped 2 spots in the standings to 5th place with a 4th place finish at Bristol. After struggling the last two races, Harvick was in desperate need of a strong finish to salvage his great start to the season.
Reigning champion, Jimmie Johnson, had a decent race at one of his least favorite tracks. That was until lap 485 where Johnson had a right front go flat. He was able to salvage his car and a 16th place finish. Johnson now sits 3rd in points.
| See complete 2007 NASCAR Schedule |
