Toyota & Busch: So Happy Together in Atlanta

Kyle Busch took the checkered flag in Atlanta with impressive dominance. The win is Busch’s first in a Toyota and it makes him the youngest driver to win the Kobalt 500.

Joe Gibbs racing had an outstanding day to say the least. Busch and Tony Stewart finished 1-2 in a race that had limited interruptions for caution flags, with minor exceptions. Eliot Sadler drew three yellows in a row before he had to drop out after colliding with the wall.

Carl Edwards, hoping for his third straight victory, jumped out from fourth place to take the lead but lost it with only 50 to go. Edwards built up a huge lead, over 7 seconds, before his car started to smoke. His recording played him saying to his proxy crew chief that all his gauges were fine, but it appeared that the transmission was done for the day.

It was a tough ending to an even tougher week for Edwards whose team was fined $100,000 for the missing oil cap on his vehicle during a post race inspection following the UAW-Dodge 400. Additionally, he lost 100 points in the Cup Race Standings, his team owner lost 100 team points, and his crew chief was suspended for 6 weeks. No appeals have been filed.

This victory marks the first win for Toyota in a Cup Race. Ever. And Busch, ever mindful of the fact that his car’s number is the same as the great Bobby Labonte had during his six win reign.

The race was not without its controversies. Tony Stewart, as outspoken as always, went on a post race tirade regarding Goodyear tires, stating that they should be “embarrassed” of the tires’ poor performance calling it the “most pathetic racing tire of [his] career.”

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The top five finishers were rounded out with Dale Earnhardt Jr finishing third, Greg Biffle fourth and Jeff Gordon giving Hendrick MotorSports 2 top five finishers with a fifth place result.

Jimmie Johnson continues to have a mediocre year with a 13 th place finish; truly a disappointment for the two time reigning champion.

By Angela Moore
Pro Racing Fans Staff Writer

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