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Checkered Countdown: Top-Five Kansas Finishes

By Marco Venosta

May 7, 2016; Kansas City, KS, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers Martin Truex Jr. (78) and Matt Kenseth (20) lead the field to restart the GoBowling.com 400 at Kansas Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
May 7, 2016; Kansas City, KS, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers Martin Truex Jr. (78) and Matt Kenseth (20) lead the field to restart the GoBowling.com 400 at Kansas Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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No. 1 Joe Nemechek gets his last Cup win in a close finish (2004).

A perfect weekend was what Nemechek had at Kansas in 2004. He got what would be his last career Busch Series win, and then the next day he did the same in the Cup race, sweeping the weekend. The two victories were both decided by very close finishes: he beat Greg Biffle in a photo finish in the Busch race and won by just 0.81 seconds over Ricky Rudd the next day.

The two had a fierce battle in the final laps. Rudd managed to get alongside of him while taking the white flag, but Nemechek retook the lead in turn one. He appeared to have pulled away on the backstretch but in turns three and four Rudd was stronger and caught him back. The driver of the Wood Brothers’ #21 had a run on the leader but couldn’t quite make it and Nemechek won. It was a magic weekend but “Front Row Joe” would never win another NASCAR race.

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