Carl Edwards in the Spotlight: Accusations of Cheating Taint Victory

Edwards’ back flip worthy performance last week in Las Vegas is probably starting to feel like a downward spiral. After fighting back in the UAW-Dodge 400 for a victory and avoiding a fine for a runaway tire on the track, Edwards is now faced with a serious accusation that has stripped him of 100 Cup points, and the overall points lead in the Cup Series.

The claim came after a post-race inspection revealed that an oil cap had come off the car. While the car passed pre-race inspection, officials are accusing Edwards’ team of rigging the oil cap to come off during the race. Why is this such as a big deal? Any garage will tell you that this gives the driver an advantage of downforce of 100 pounds. Considering the fact that no one could touch Edwards during the final run of the 400 lap race last week, this most likely gave him that edge.

But was it deliberate?

It’s hard to say. Now, the Roush team that Edwards races for is in an uproar. The owner has declared he’ll take a polygraph to deny any knowledge of cheating by his team. Edwards has gone so far as to make the statement "... I don't have anything going on Monday, so if Toyota or anyone else wants to line the cars up at Vegas and hire a flagman and run 400 laps again..."

But with all hoopla surrounding last week’s race, there is still a race this upcoming Sunday in Atlanta. While many favored Edwards to take the victory in at the Atlanta Motor Speedway even before the season began, the unnecessary media attention may play a factor in his finishing anything but first. Especially if Edwards has another impressive victory like he did last week.

Now, the attention turns to the other top three drivers who consistently perform well at this track. Leading that group is Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. neither of whom have won a race yet this year in the Sprint Cup. Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon round out the top five (Edwards has the best record and placements in Atlanta).

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On a racetrack where cars will reach speeds of nearly 200 mph and has a surface that’s 10 years old, safety could also play a major factor in the Kobalt Tools 500 race. After Gordon’s crash last week in Las Vegas into a portion of the wall that did not have SAFER, safety in general is a top concern for drivers, crew chiefs, and owners alike. Jeff Burton was very vocal about this issue before his Kobalt 500 practice, saying "The thing that I've been saying for seven years is that we can never be as safe as we can be. If we ever get to the point where we quit looking to be better, we're going to quit being better. And the wall last week is a good example of that."

By Angela Moore
Pro Racing Fans Staff Writer

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