CE DIEHARDS - March 2, 2008 - Race Recaps
Carl Edwards came into Las Vegas with momentum on his side from one weekend ago in California, and he kept it going with his second straight win of the 2008 season. Edwards led a race high 86 laps and won the UAW-Dodge 500 over Dale Earnhardt Jr., to score his ninth career Sprint Cup Series race.
Edwards waited until lap 21 to take control of the 400-mile event, when he went around Kyle Busch for the race lead for the first time in the event. Ten laps later, Edwards had stretched his lead out to 1.3 seconds over his Roush Fenway Racing teammate Greg Biffle. On lap 49, leader Edwards came down pit road for a green flag pit stop When stops cycled through on lap 62, the No. 99 Dish Network Ford Fusion is back out front after the cars of Robby Gordon and Kyle Petty cut down for pit road.
Edwards was able to extend his lead out to over seven seconds on Kyle Busch on lap 65, however, the biggest mistake of the race for the team came on lap 110. While making a four tire pit stop under yellow, the team lost control of a tire that went across the pits, causing Edwards to go from being in the top-five to being 18th. It would take almost 50 laps for the team to get back in the running forthe win. On a yellow flag pit stop on lap 180, Edwards took two tires and was able to leave the pits in the third position behind Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kevin Harvick on the lap 183 restart.
On lap 190, Edwards ducked under Harvick for second place. Then five laps later, passed Earnhardt Jr., for the race lead. He had teammate Matt Kenseth following his tire tracks on four fresh tires. On lap 210, the margin of the lead had expanded to 1.5 seconds and he quickly began to pull out on his teammate.
Four laps later, debris in turn 2 brings out the seventh caution flag of the race.
The scariest moment came on the final pit stop of the race for the No. 99 Dish Network/Office Depot Racing crew when a cameraman got in the way of the front tire carrier trying to get the tire over the pit wall. The tire got away from the crew and rolled across pit road. NASCAR Officials reviewed the situation and decided that it was not the crew at fault. On the restar, Edwards lined up third behind teammate Matt Kenseth and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The race restarted on lap 219, and the No. 99 Dish Network Fusion wasted little time getting around the No. 88 of Earnhardt. He was trailing teammate Kenseth when the race took the green flag once again on lap 236, as the two were battling for the lead before the caution came out. Edwards has a 2.5 second edge on Earnhardt with 14 laps remaining. Then on lap 256, Kurt Busch brings out the caution flag. Edwards and the rest of the field decide to stay out.
On the restart, Earnhardt has a horrible start and it causes Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon to wreck. Edwards then had to sit through a red flag for the race to get going once again on lap 265, for a two lap shootout. Edwards got a power run on his restart to pull away from Earnhardt and teammate Greg Biffle to win the event for his second straight victory of the year.