The Sunday running of the Geico 500 was no different. He who keeps his race car away from the most trouble usually wins.
By the time 188 laps were run, Brad Keselowski came through with the help of two big pushes off the race’s final restart with two laps left that secured his fourth career victory at Talladega and second of 2016 (Las Vegas).
But it was what happened during the race itself that made Talladega a hair-pulling, maddening, and ultimately entertaining exercise.
Buoyed by the threat of rain that ultimately stayed away, drivers worked the steering wheel with much more urgency than normal in the early stages of the race. There wasn’t just one “big one” (a term that’s become an overused cliché), but three major wrecks that left plenty of sheet metal bent out of whack and egos bruised and battered at the end.
Big One Part One came at lap 96 – just past halfway – when Chris Buescher did three barrel rolls as his No. 34 car got caught in a seven-car wreck that involved Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards, among others.
Big One Deux happened at lap 161 and involved 21 cars. It was triggered when Kurt Busch got his car into Johnson’s bumper in the wrong place. Mistake made, carnage ensued.
When Johnson got turned, he hit Paul Menard, and more than half the field couldn’t escape damage.
But the capper of the crash trilogy came just 20 laps later. Matt Kenseth, who had led 39 laps, got the worst of it and let Joey Logano know about it afterwards. As it turned out, the feud from Martinsville last fall was reignited with the incident.
In the end, Keselowski emerged as the winner with another wreck involving seven more cars happening behind him and runner-up Kyle Busch. In total, only 28 of the 40 cars were running in the final finishing order, 21 on the lead lap.
That’s a fact of life at Talladega. Craziness can happen at any moment and lead changes are found in abundance, which makes the racing entertaining and not for those who don’t like the thrill of speed. There were 37 lead changes among 17 drivers at the Geico 500.
And if that wasn’t insane enough, the finish of Saturday’s Sparks Energy 300 XFINITY race got everyone talking just as loudly.
On the final lap, Logano and Elliott Sadler were dueling for the win when Logano got turned as he tried to block with the finish line in sight.
As Logano’s car plowed nose-first into the SAFER barrier, Brennan Poole thought he got by and got himself a victory.
But when the tape was reviewed, Sadler was awarded the win. The video shown on social media sites had the clear answer, showing the moment when the yellow caution light came on and how Sadler was ahead of the field.
It wasn’t the cleanest way to win, but it didn’t change the outcome. The right call was made, no matter who got angry.
And it all came on NASCAR’s biggest, baddest and most infuriating track. That’s why it’s a weekend that’s always worth looking forward to for any race fan.
Follow Tom Zulewski on Twitter @Tomzsports and email him at tominator19@yahoo.com.
NEXT WEEK'S RACES
Kansas Speedway (1.5-mile oval), Kansas City, Kansas
-SPRINT CUP: GoBowling.com 400, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT, Fox Sports 1. Radio: SiriusXM Channel 90 or your local MRN affiliate.
Race distance: 400.5 miles, 267 laps.
2015 champion: Jimmie Johnson
-CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES: Toyota Tundra 250, Friday, 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT, Fox Sports 1. Radio: SiriusXM Channel 90 or your local MRN affiliate.
Race distance: 250.5 miles, 167 laps.
2015 champion: Matt Crafton
-XFINITY SERIES: Off until May 14 at Dover International Speedway.
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