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Race Recap: Ky. Busch Wins Dega [/align][align=center]

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Apr 27, 2008 at 04:38 PM


Race Recap: Kyle Busch Wins Wild One at 'Dega

TALLADEGA, ALA. – Kyle Busch won racing's biggest crapshoot Sunday after a knuckle-cracking, tension-filled NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway.

[/align][align=center]After a multi-car wreck with 25 laps to go ruined Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart's chances, Busch battled his way to the front with some bold moves in the closing laps of a thrilling race.

Juan Pablo Montoya, the former Indy 500 winner and Formula One star, crossed the finish line in second, glued to the bumper of the winner.

The seventh caution flag of the day fell on the final lap, signaling the end of the race, when a gaggle of cars racing for finishing position started spinning behind the leaders.

The race which featured 52 lead changes among 20 drivers was totally unpredictable from start to finish with drivers swapping the lead several times on a single lap.

Denny Hamlin, who raced Stewart and Earnhardt for the lead throughout most of the race, finished third with rookie David Ragan fourth. Ragan also mixed it up with the leaders all day.

Brian Vickers was fifth, followed by Travis Kvapil, Casey Mears, Ryan Newman, Clint Bowyer and Earnhardt, who managed a 10th-place finish despite his car being damaged in the wreck.

It was a pins and needles afternoon with just about every driver leading for a spell. On the final restart, two-time champion Jimmie Johnson pushed Michael Waltrip to the front momentarily but the deck shuffled several times by the end. Johnson finished 13th and teammate Jeff Gordon, who challenged up front in the closing moments, wound up 21st.

Points leader Jeff Burton, who also ran with the frontrunners most of the overcast afternoon, was caught up in the last accident and finished 15th.

[/align][align=center]As heartbreaking as it was for Earnhardt and Stewart,[X(][X(] substitute driver David Stremme –filling in for the injured Dario Franchitti – ran strong all day but was also eliminated in the final accident of the day.

Stewart jumped into the lead at the start on a balmy day at Talladega's two and a half mile speed emporium that has produced some of NASCAR's most exciting races.

By lap 10, Talladega favorite Earnhardt had moved from ninth to third.

It was a short day for Chip Ganassi Racing driver Reed Sorensen, who retired to the garage with engine problems after just five laps.

Behind the leaders Stewart, David Ragan and Earnhardt, pole winner Nemechek settled into fourth with veteran Schrader on his bumper.

[/align][align=center][b]Four-time series champion Gordon had moved from 20th to eighth by the 19th lap when former champion Matt Kenseth slid into the turn four wall for the first caution of the afternoon.

Nemechek lost valuable time in the pits while his crew switched his car from "qualifying mode" to "race mode," such as reconnecting belts like power steering that might produce a little more speed.

On the restart, Stewart was still leading with Kyle Busch second, Sadler third and Gordon fourth, followed by Brian Vickers, Earnhardt, Ragan, Jamie McMurray, Montoya and Scott Riggs.

Shortly afterwards, McMurray and Hamlin hooked up in the outside groove and streaked past Stewart and the others. After pushing McMurray to the front, Hamlin ducked to the bottom in turn one and took the lead himself on lap 33.

By lap 37, Earnhardt pulled out of line in front