Quicken Loans 400 Race Recap

While the battle for the lead continues Kahne also gets by the 56 for fourth and certainly seems to have a fast car. Logano is able to keep Edwards at bay as caution number four comes out for debris on track. The leaders all come to pit row and we see more pit strategy as most teams elect for fuel only except Kenseth, Stewart and Brad Keselowski who also take two tyres. While Edwards easily wins the race off pit row he won’t be the race leader as five cars stayed out and the new race leader is now Jamie McMurray.

Jun 16, 2013; Brooklyn, MI, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Marcos Ambrose (9) and Mark Martin (55) during the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

The restart sees McMurray holding off second place Austin Dillon with Ambrose, Mark Martin and Edwards behind. Danica Patrick also stayed out but she did not get going at the restart and quickly goes from 5th to 15th in the length of a straight. As the race passes quarter distance Johnson has worked his way all the way up to fourth and starts working his way through the top four. 14 laps later Johnson has passed and caught the top three and has completed an amazing drive through the field to hold the lead. He is soon joined by his Hendrick Motorsport team mate Kahne who has also scythed his way through and is now in second. McMurray and Dillon make a green flag stop giving up third and fourth to Dale Earnhardt Jr so that we now have a Hendrick 1, 2, 3 with Logano and Truex Jr completing the top five.

A debris caution puts pay to any team mate battles we might immediately see as the leaders all come to put row. A great stop by Jr sees him out first just ahead of Johnson and Truex Jr with Kahne slipping to fourth. On the restart it appears that Johnson spun his tyres and quickly gets passed by a lot of cars falling all the way to 12th. But what actually happened is that it was Jr who spun his tyres before the restart zone and Johnson, cautious of his penalty at Dover, lifted off so as to not lead at the line and was lucky not to cause a big crash, something he relayed to NASCAR over the radio! In the ensuing melee of drivers taking avoiding action it’s Kevin Harvick that takes full advantage of it and moves up to second from sixth. But Kahne’s speed is telling as he quickly gets by the 29 and catches up to leader Jr. It’s a race dominated by Hendrick cars as Kahne passes the 88 for the lead and Johnson has recovered from the restart and is already back up to fifth.

Jun 16, 2013; Brooklyn, MI, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. (88) leads Kasey Kahne (5) during the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

After sitting on Jr’s rear bumper for a few laps Kahne finally makes a move on the inside of the 88 and manages to make it stick and he is now the new leader on lap 90. As the race passes the halfway point Kahne has already pulled out to a lead of 3.5 seconds but that is wiped out when the 5 suffers a right front puncture that sends him straight into the wall and the friction ignites the engine bay. Luckily Kahne is able to get out and set off the fire extinguishers to put out the flames. The leaders again all come to pit row and it is Jr who wins the race off ahead of Kenseth, Biffle, Logano and Edwards, while Johnson falls 6 places to restart in 7th. The restart poses no issues for Jr who easily gets back out front, with a little help from Logano, while the 20 and 22 go side by side for second with the 20 car coming out on top.

Ten laps after the restart Jr has already got a lead of 3.7 seconds while Johnson again works his way back through the top five as both he and Biffle pass Kenseth for second and third. But there seems to be a curse on cars that have lead this race as Jr starts to report he is losing power as his speed dramatically falls away and a few laps later his engine lets go completely spilling fluids all over the track and bringing out caution number seven. With the leaders coming to pit row it is Logano who wins the race off narrowly ahead of Edwards who gains six places. Meanwhile Johnson has yet again had all his hard work undone as he takes 4 tyres and falls all the way back to 20th.