Tough Day for Chase Contenders - Newman Gains Points

Ryan Newman (#12) Leads the Pack to the Green Flag in Atlanta.

Things were looking good for Ryan Newman and the Mobil 1 Dodge team early in the race, until a pit stop messed things up a little. One of Newman's tires was chattering so much, that he made an early green flag pit stop and that pretty much ruined his chances to finish in the Top 10. One of the Goodyears that was on his car was off-balance -- a defect -- and that cost him. Newman ended up finishing 17th on the day, 2 laps down -- but on the bright side, he gained a butt-load of points due to bad finishes and car problems for the leaders throughout the day.

"Chase" points leader Kurt Busch blew an engine, as did his Roush Racing teammate Matt Kenseth. Jeff Gordon experienced transmission problems, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. crashed in the closing laps of the race. Elliott Sadler had steering problems after a run-in with Joe Nemechek in pit road. Jeremy Mayfield had a cut-tire early in the race that set him back.

Overall, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, and Newman had the cars that really gained the points, besides having Jimmie Johnson winning an emotional victory -- his 3rd straight. Martin clearly had the car to beat, but was up-in-the-air about a decision to pit late in the race during a caution. Martin stayed out, while the rest of the field pitted with fresh tires. Martin was quickly overrun at the restart until Earnhardt, Jr. crashed, then Martin and everybody pitted once again. Martin couldn't catch Johnson, a Hendrick driver whose upper management big-wigs perished in a plane crash near Martinsville, Virginia a week before.

Newman nearly gained 90 points for the day, bringing him within 186 points behind points leader Kurt Busch. Next Sunday is Phoenix!