Chase Does It Again; Wins His Second Snowflake 100

Chase Elliott with Snowball and Miss Snowball Derby after winning the Snowflake 100.

Chase Elliott has won on many occasions at Five Flags Speedway including the 2011 Snowball Derby and the 2010 Snowflake 100, but the Dawsonville, Georgia teenager proved once again that he is wise beyond his years in Saturday night’s running of arguably the biggest pro late model race of the year.

Elliott and fellow young gun Kyle Benjamin from Easley, South Carolina ran identical lap times in qualifying; however, it was underfunded Alabama competitor Justin South who surprised many by setting the fast time for the 100 green flag lap event.  South himself was not surprised, remarking that “we expect nothing less.”  He proved this was the case as he shot into the lead from the start and pulled away from the field for the first 23 laps.

Elliott bided his time, which was the focus for the race.  “We got to be there when it counts and go get this thing,” Chase said over the radio to his team prior to the green flag.  Elliott began his move to the front following a brief caution and cleared South for the lead a quarter way through the race.  South was not finished yet and took the lead back two laps later and led past the halfway point.

At this point in the race, South’s machine began to free up allowing Elliott to move back to the lead in turn three.  Benjamin followed to second.  Another caution would fly shortly thereafter, but Elliott proved that he is a master at restarts in these cars.  Throughout a longer green flag run towards the closing laps, Ben Kennedy was moving swiftly through the field.  Kennedy started seventh, but slipped back a few positions before making his run to the front later on.  Closing in on the ten lap to go mark, Kennedy had driven past Benjamin for second and set his sights on the leader.

Things would change at lap 91, when during a caution Kennedy was forced down pit road with an oil leak.  A series of cautions and restarts then culminated in a nine car pileup in turn two forcing a red flag period.  South caught a part of the wreck and was relegated to a 17th place finish.  Following the race, South recapped that “it was a matter of time before they would get us.  We felt we could be there for all 100 laps, but we weren’t.”

After a brief break in the action the race resumed and despite another caution period, Elliott continued to get the jump on the competition.  Five Flags Speedway pro late model champion Mike Garvey ran in the top five the entire race, but didn’t make his move for second until the closing laps.  Benjamin settled for third.

It was once again Elliott’s night though:  “I knew the late caution would come out…that never fails.  I knew to be prepared for multiple restarts and we were able to hold on.”  Most importantly, the over 100 laps on the track will prepare Elliott once again for a possible Snowball Derby repeat and could result in him being the first driver to win both Sunday’s prestigious race and the Snowflake 100 in the same weekend.

Snowflake 100 qualifying results plus Snowball Derby last chance race starting lineups

I’m currently sitting in the infield on Five Flags Speedway so I can’t get into the SB Nation system to post stories. But I wanted to be able to post something from the track so I hope you don’t mind stopping by the Racing Observer Online blog.

The blog is a place where me and my occasional photographer Aaron Creed post niche racing content. For example, the post below this is a recap of last night’s Snowball Derby Southern Modifieds feature.

So check that out if you feel particularly inspired.

Meanwhile, Snowflake 100 Pro Late Model qualifying just wrapped-up with Justin South winning the pole for Saturday night’s main event. Chase Elliott, Kyle Benjamin, Mike Garvey and Austin Luedtke complete the starting top-5.

Elliott, Benjamin and Garvey are amongst those looking to win both Saturday’s Snowflake 100 and Sunday’s Snowball Derby.

Here’s the qualifying results for the Snowflake 100:

1 43 Justin South 16.905
2 9 Chase Elliott 16.978
3 71 Kyle Benjamin 16.978
4 1 Mike Garvey 17.030
5 6 Austin Luedtke 17.106
6 22 Augie Grill 17.152
7 96 Ben Kennedy 17.164
8 29 Spencer Davis 17.181
9 12 Brandon McReynolds 17.204
10 83 Scotty Ellis 17.208
11 3 Brandon Kelley 17.211
1211Johanna Long17.220
1314Corey Deuser17.230
1466Korey Ruble17.235
15O2Matt Smith17.242
161CCody Coughlin17.253
174JErik Jones17.260
1864David Jones17.280
1929BAnderson Bowen17.295
2054Daniel Hemric17.328
214Donald Long17.365
2277Bryan Silas17.368
23121Joseph Meyer17.372
244PKyle Plott17.381
2536Rodney Benefield17.418
2645Dwayne Buggay17.444
2781Brandon Odom17.452
2891Zak Hausler17.480
2988Garrett Jones17.480
3029TAustin Theriault17.490
3198Russell Fleeman17.492
32112Kenzie Ruston17.498
335Chase Miller17.505
3433Wes Griffith, Jr.17.525
3541Chris Davidson17.543
3656Gus Dean17.544
3799Wayne Niedecken, Jr.17.595
3824Kyle Wolosek17.596
3979Kyle Bryant17.707
4089Bobby Reuse17.840
414MElliott Massey18.040
4230Rusty Sanford18.254
4310Matt MontineriNT
44O7Kevin DonahueNT
4516Terry ClarkNT

Also here’s a the staring lineup for Saturday’s 50-lap Snowball Derby Last Chance Race:

1 20 Brian Campbell
2 10 Paul Kelley
3 29 Austin Theriault
4 83 Landon Cassill
5 47 Allen Karnes
6 1 Stephen McCurley
7 42 Dennis Prunty
8 56 A.J. Frank
9 29 Anderson Bowen
10 10 Danny Bagwell
11 23 Dalton Grindle
12 67 Jeff Fultz
13 31 Kyle Grissom
14 73 Cole Powell
15 43 Dennis Schoenfeld
16 99 Jr. Niedecken
17 29 Spencer Davis
18 21 Scott Carlson
19 02 Matt Smith
20 1 Tim Martin
21 39 Kenzie Ruston
22 88 Roger Reuse
23 7 Erik Darnell
24 9 Brandon Watson
25 8 11Mason Mingus
26 17 Chuck Tuck
27 92 Ron McDonald

Follow me on Twitter @MattWeaverSBN for complete on-site coverage.

Billy Melvin Uses Opportunity to Grab First Snowball Derby Modified Victory

Modified race winner Billy Melvin in victory lane with track mascot Snowball and Miss Snowball Derby.

It certainly did not look like Billy Melvin’s race to win until the first turn of the last restart during Friday night’s edition of the Snowball Derby weekend featuring the IMCA type open wheel modifieds.  The Trussville, Alabama veteran driver started towards the front, but did not reach the five until close to halfway through the 50 green flag lap event.

Central Florida resident John Sappraicone Jr. claimed the pole position, but it was another Alabama native Jeff Letson who grabbed the lead from the outside.  The green flag racing would not last long when a multiple car wreck towards the rear of the field caused the red flag to be displayed for cleanup to occur in turn two.

When the race restarted, Letson and Sappraicone battled side by side with Sappraicone maintaining the high line.  As the laps started going by Letson pulled ahead and Snowball Derby driver this weekend Bubba Pollard slipped into second.  Pollard began to pressure Letson and took the lead on lap 16; however, a caution reset the field to the previous lap’s order.

A lap into the restart, triple duty driver Augie Grill’s tire went down and his notable #112 went into the turn one wall with several drivers plowing into the turn trying to check-up initiating another red flag.

Sappraicone had another head of steam and took the lead prior to halfway as Letson’s car appeared to fade, but as the race went on Pollard powered to the inside of the start-finish line to grab the lead.  Another driver climbing through the field was 16 year old Texas native Bayley Curry, who moved into second in the closing laps.  It looked like it would be all Pollard and Curry, but a caution slowed the field with only three laps remaining.

On the controversial start, Curry showed the advantage coming to the start-finish line, while Melvin drove past Pollard as well and dove under Curry for the lead and the win into turn one.  This was Melvin’s second win this season during a high-level short track racing weekend, as he claimed the rain-shortened victory at Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville during All American 400 weekend.

Pollard recovered to claim second, but when asked about the final restart he simply replied “the leader is supposed to start the race.”  Curry maintained third, and although he was somewhat dejected about not coming away with the victory it was an impressive run for the young Texan.

It was certainly an emotional night for Melvin, who was racing with a collapsed lung.  To add to that after sitting on the pole and leading laps in years past, he was able to bring home the Snowball Derby trophy that has eluded him until now.

Snowball Derby Moment (1989): Rick Crawford wins first Derby before long NASCAR career

Track action in the 1989 Snowball Derby at Five Flags Speedway Photo Credit: ESPN Speedworld Clip

The Snowball Derby begins in just a little under a week. With that in mind, the countdown is on to the most prestigious race in short track late model racing. We’re going to spend the next few weeks here at Racing Observer Online reliving some of the most famous moments, all leading to Snowball Derby week which begins on Nov. 28 and lasts through Dec. 2 and the 45^th Running of the Super Bowl of Short Track Late Model Racing.

This isn’t so much a Snowball Derby moment as much as a cool internet discovery.

There are a lot of classic racing gems on the internet if you’re willing to dig deep enough to find them. The following video is one such example and includes clips of Ray Evernham and Martin Truex Sr. competing in the Thanksgiving Turkey Derby Super Modified race as well as clips of some promising open wheel prospect by the name of Jeff Gordon.

Video embedding has been disabled by request but you can watch the clip by clicking here.

But we’re going to focus on the portion of the clip starting around the 2:20 mark. There you’ll see a retro-looking Five Flags Speedway, without a pit road, playing host to the 1989 Snowball Derby. Rick Crawford won that race after making a late pit stop for tires and passing Rich Bickle Jr. and Bobby Dotter – his only career victory in the event.

Joe Nemechek finished seventh in that event, good enough to clinch the All-Pro Series championship by just five points over Crawford.

Crawford eventually translated his late model success into a NASCAR career where he gained popularity in the Camping World Truck Series, winning five times and starting 336 races – a Series record, all after turning 38 years old.

He was 31 at the time of his Snowball Derby breakthrough and was just a few seasons removed from winning track championships at both Pensacola and his hometown Mobile International Speedway – a track he promoted from 2011 to 2012.

The complete 1989 Snowball Derby Results can be found after the jump.

The 45^th Annual Snowball Derby is set for Sunday Dec. 2, 2012 with the green flag dropping at approximately 2 p.m. CST.

Brian Scott wins Phoenix Truck Series race, Four drivers have mathematic championship shot

Photo Credit: Matt Weaver

The Camping World Truck Series promises to have an exciting championship conclusion next weekend at Homestead due in large part to what happened on Friday night in the penultimate race of the season at Phoenix.

In short, Brian Scott won just his second-career Truck Series race but an accident involving James Buescher will make it a four-team battle to decide the championship once racing resumes next weekend. Buescher will enter the finale leading by just 11 points over Timothy Peters and 12 over Ty Dillion.

Even Joey Coulter has an outside shot now as he faces a 29-point margin at Homestead. Once there, anything can happen, especially judging from what happened at Phoenix.

Parker Kligerman’s championship hopes were all but dashed in an accident on lap 54, getting loose off turn one and crashing into two other trucks. He entered the race third in point but finished 27^th. He’s now fourth in the standings — virtually eliminated from the championship.

And then there’s Ty Dillon who was caught up in an accident between German Quiroga and Brendan Gaughan on lap 110. The accident was so severe that it brought out the red flag for 10 minutes, giving Dillon and his crew ample time to diagnose the problem.  And once the caution resumed, they were able to keep Dillon on the lead lap. He finished 15^th and was the primary benefactor of the Buescher accident — title leader finished in 17^th.

The race was marred by nine cautions for 46 laps with the final yellow on lap 148 making the difference in the battle for the lead. Fresh off his K&N Pro Series East championship, Kyle Larson was pulling away from Scott in the closing laps until the final caution, for Buescher, set up a green-white-checkered finish.

Scott benefitted from the front row restart and pulled away from Larson to win by just over a half of second. Scott apparently learned from a restart with Ty Dillon earlier in the race and credits the championship contender for helping beat Larson.

“I probably have to give a dozen roses to Ty Dillon,” Scott said, “because he was able to get by me on a restart earlier by holding me down and driving in deep through the corner and just keeping position on me — and I learned from it.

“Luckily I was able to come back and have the opportunity to do the same thing to somebody else, somebody that probably wasn’t expecting it. Fortunately for us, I was able to apply something I learned earlier in the race. I just went into the corner really hard, held him down and got him a little loose.”

Joey Coulter, Timothy Peters and Ryan Blaney completed the top five.

Now back to the championship battle. The final race of the season can be summed up like this. Buescher needs to finish seventh or better without leading a lap, eighth with one lap led or ninth while leading the most laps. If he cannot then it is up to Peters, Dillon and Coulter to try and capitalize.

Sounds like a lot of fun. The complete race results and a box score can be found on the other side of the jump.

Disrespected contender, Brad Keselowski is looking to make history by defeating Jimmie Johnson in NASCAR Championship

Brad Keselowski poses with a fan prior to the Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 last month at Talladega Superspeedway. Photo Credit: Matt Weaver

What Jimmie Johnson has been able to accomplish over the last decade is the stuff of legend — five consecutive championships from 2006-2010, 59 victories and he’s the only driver to make the Chase for the Championship every season since its inception in 2004.

And yet, what Brad Keselowski is trying to do over the next three weekends would be even more remarkable. Since 2006, no driver has gone head-to-head with Johnson and survived with the championship in hand.

Denny Hamlin was the last driver to find himself in this position, two years ago, and even entered the final race of the season with the championship lead. But a fuel miscalculation at Phoenix, combined with another herculean effort by the 48 team at Homestead sealed Hamlin’s fate.
Johnson went on to win his fifth-consecutive championship.

Hamlin was hardly the first. The story has been repeated several times during Johnson’s reign with Mark Martin falling just short in 2009 and Jeff Gordon failing to topple his protégé in 2007. The theme has been repeated over-and-over in recent memory and most recently at Martinsville, when Johnson won that race and took a two-point championship lead over Keselowski as a result.

Most onlookers saw Martinsville as a turning point in the 2012 Chase, some even prematurely crowning Johnson as the eventual champion. These cries were repeated on Friday when Johnson won the pole for Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.

This is an insult to Brad Keselowski and his season. He’s won five times this year and is surrounded by a championship-rich organization in Penske Racing.

Keselowski has wins at Bristol, Talladega, Kentucky, Chicago and Dover. In short, Keselowski is no push over at any style of race track remaining on the schedule. In fact, he’s really the perfect match for Johnson. He appears immune to Johnson’s mind games and has nothing to lose. He’s competing for his first Sprint Cup championship at 28 years old and for a manufacturer that is leaving at the end of the season. Team Blue Deuce is all-in and that’s a powerful combination for Brad Keselowski.
Count him out at your own peril.

Johnson’s on the path to becoming the greatest of all time but what’s more impressive, winning five-straight championships or becoming the first driver to go hand-to-hand with that driver and beat him? The NASCAR community is just three races away and two points apart from finding out.
Prerace quotes from both contenders and qualifying results from today at Texas can be found after the jump.

2013 ROO fantasy Schedule would include popular short tracks, recall to NASCAR heritage

Track shot from the infield of Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville prior to the 2012 All-American 400 PASS Super Late Model race. Photo Credit: Matt Weaver

I published a story to SB Nation NASCAR on Tuesday that explained what most of us here already know – that NASCAR needs more short tracks. The story explained how my dad and I watched a race together for the first time this season and it was only because Martinsville, or real racing, was on the television.

The modern NASCAR is plagued by speedway follow-the-leader parades and the racing won’t improve until either the schedule changes or the car is altered – and I’m not referring to the 2013 car. At first glance, it looks like more of the same.

Nevertheless, the jury is still out.

Martinsville did serve as a reminder of what NASCAR used to be – hard-nosed, tight-quartered and aero-stupid racing (a popular phrase from my Tuesday column) and a preview of what it could be again. Even if it is within the fantasy world, I’m about to illustrate it here.

The current schedule isn’t going anywhere, for various reasons including market size and track ownership. But as a popular crew chief friend told me at the All-American 400, “NASCAR is cyclical. There will come a day where the TV contract won’t be able to pay for all the empty stands and the sport will be forced to come back to tiny half-miles like Nashville.”

Until that day comes, here’s my ideal fantasy Sprint Cup Series schedule.

1. Daytona 500 – Daytona International Speedway
2. Rockingham 500 – North Carolina Speedway
3. Richmond 400 – Richmond International Raceway
4. Subway Fresh Fit 500 – Phoenix International Raceway
5. Kobalt Tools 400 – Las Vegas Motor Speedway
6. California 400 – Auto Club Speedway
7. Food City 500 – Bristol Motor Speedway
8. Goody’s Fast Relief 500 – Martinsville Speedway
9. Wells Fargo 400 – North Wilkesboro Motor Speedway
10. Samsung Mobile 500 – Texas Motor Speedway
11. Aaron’s 499 – Talladega Superspeedway
12. Sun Drop Music City 500  – Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville
13. Southern 500 – Darlington Speedway
14. Sprint All-Star Race and Coca-Cola World 600 – Charlotte Motor Speedway
15. FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks – Dover International Raceway
16. Pocono 400 – Pocono International Raceway
17. Quicken Loans 400 – Michigan International Raceway
18. Toyota Save/Mart 350 – Sears Point Raceway
19. Quaker State 400 – Kentucky Speedway
20. Coke Zero 400 – Daytona International Speedway
21. All-American 400 – Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville
22. Lenox Industrial Tools 301 – New Hampshire Motor Speedway
23. Brickyard 400 – Indianapolis Motor Speedway
24. Pensylvania 400 – Pocono International Raceway
25. Finger Lakes 355 at The Glen – Watkins Glen International (boot configuration)
26. Federated Auto Parts 400 – Richmond International Raceway
27. Geico 400 – Chicagoland Speedway
28. Sylvania 300 – New Hampshire Motor Speedway
29. Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 – Talladega Superspeedway
30. Bank of America 500 – Charlotte Motor Speedway
31. Napa Auto Parts 350 – Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
32. Tums Fast Relief 500 – Martinsville Speedway
33. Holly Farms 400 – North Wilkesboro Motor Speedway
34. AAA Texas 500 – Texas Motor Speedway
35. Phoenix 400 – Phoenix International Raceway
36. Advocare 500 – Atlanta Motor Speedway

You’ll notice several changes. They include:

• Two dates each for traditional short tracks at North Wilkesboro and Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville
• A third road course, in the Chase for the Championship, at the popular Montreal twisty
• Atlanta Motor Speedway retains one date but is rightfully the season finale, as it should be

This is indicative of both of my favorite hashtags, #WeWantShortTracks and #WeWantRoadCourses, but I’d hate to speak for everyone else. Did I miss something? Which changes and tracks would you include in your fantasy Sprint Cup Series schedule?

Tell us in the comments section below!

Videos From Fright Night In The Valley

Modifieds Headline Unique End of Season Racing Format Saturday in the Valley of Northeastern PA

Eric Beers looks to ride the momentum of a win on October 6th to a $5,000 pay day.

Mahoning Valley Speedway, a 1/4 mile banked asphalt oval nestled in the borough of Lehighton, Pennsylvania, will be presenting perhaps their most prestigious series of races this coming weekend.  Coining the event as Octoberfast 2012 “Fright Night in the Valley,” over 40 tour-type modifieds and a similarly impressive amount of late models and street stocks are expected to compete for their largest purses in their longest distance races of the season.

Many outside the Northeast region may not be familiar with the track, but it has quite a history starting out as a dirt oval in the 1960s before being reopened as a paved oval throughout the 1970s.  The track has operated continuously since it was last reopened in 1987.  MVS is arguably one of the most competitive of its size in the country, producing side by side action around the entire track during a majority of the laps throughout the races held every weekend from April to October.  The unique roundness of the oval and somewhat lack of straightaways makes the competitors work for every position on every lap, in which many of the fastest modified drivers complete in less than ten seconds.

Among the favorites in the modified division will be NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour regular Eric Beers, who won the last time out at Mahoning.  Not to be outdone will be his neighbor Matt Hirschman, who literally lives on the same street as Beers and has turned in several victories at the track as well as accomplishing the Race Of Champions Tour championship in 2012.  Matt’s father, five-time NASCAR Modified Tour champion Tony Hirschman, will be making a rare start and will certainly be vying for the victory even though he has never won in a modified at the track.  In addition, Nevin George and Chuck Hossfeld’s expected appearances coupled with the aforementioned drivers make up for 48 career NASCAR Modified Tour wins.  Other drivers to look out for include some 2012 area track champions:  Mahoning’s Earl Paules, Mountain Speedway’s Dave Brigati, Shangri-La II Motor Speedway’s Jimmy Zacharias and Wall Speedway’s Anthony Sesely.  Altogether, the field on hand will be competing for one of 24 spots for the 130 lap feature.

Switching to the full-fendered machines, the late models and street stocks promise to put on a good show as well.  Earl Paules not only won the 2012 modified title at the track but comes in as the favorite and champion in the late model division.  Don’t be surprised to see Zane Zeiner pulling double duty as well.  Zeiner has several wins in a modified, including four in 2012, but has never won in a late model at Mahoning.  It looked like that would come to an end as he crossed the finish line first back in September, but was disqualified due to low ride height specifications and is sure to be even hungrier for that elusive win.  Area hot shoe Travis Fisher comes off a win this past weekend in a 75 lap show at Mountain Speedway and should challenge once again despite it being his first start at MVS in 2012.  Mike Sweeney is a proven champion and will bring his Port City chassis to the track one more time before possibly branching off to race in some touring series in 2013.

The Street Stock division was the most competitive division at Mahoning in 2012, with 21 different heat race winners and a dozen distinctive feature winners.  TJ Gursky claimed his second straight championship last time out and leads a stellar field of past winners and champions for the impressive $1,800 first prize.  Jason Frey and Joe Steigerwalt will certainly be forces to reckon with as well, since they claimed wins in the other 100 lap races in 2012.

Seating along the frontstretch allows fans to see the entire track in one view without any obstructions, as the pit area is outside the track.

This is the first running of what will hopefully become an annual event, but it isn’t the first time the track will feature racing this late in the year.  After a postponement of the season finale in 2011 the track decided to reschedule for Halloween weekend.  A freak snowstorm forced another postponement to mid-November, the very autumn-like afternoon did not disappoint as 32 modifieds showed up for their last points event, the remainder of the local divisions had impressive turnouts despite their features being non-points and most importantly a convincing amount of fans showed up to see some racing one last time before the winter break.  Growing upon last year’s success, another fall event is expecting to bring in all of the same if not more.  This is the perfect place for a fan to attend and see some short track racing for their hard-earned dollar.  The opportunity is given to walk the pit area after the festivities conclude each night, and as an added bonus this weekend kids will be allowed to enter the pit area for some Halloween themed fun and treats during the afternoon’s intermission period.

No time trials will be held, the start of the heat races will be determined by a draw as well as a redraw for the features.  This along with the fact that no points will be on the line will equate to some certain jockeying for every position possible throughout every lap of competition on Saturday afternoon.

Matt Kenseth survives Kansas melee, championship battle takes shape

Matt Kenseth survived a wild race on the new Kansas surface and won the Hollywood Casino 400 — his third victory of the season and second of the Chase for the Championship.

Meanwhile, title contenders were involved in several dramatics and near-miss accidents as we rapidly approach the conclusion of the 2012 season. Brad Keselowski started the day with a seven-point lead and left with it too, nearly missing a crash on lap 181 between Kyle Busch and Ryan Newman. The championship leader just missed the accident and would have been collected if not for a fortunate shove from teammate Sam Hornish Jr. who sent the No. 2 Dodge up the surface and away from the melee.
Johnson matched Keselowski in a more heart-pounding way, leading much of the race, before getting caught a lap down on pit road, using a waive-around before spinning hard into the turn four inside retaining wall on lap 136.

Much like Ricky Stenhouse Jr. a day before, Johnson’s team minimized the damage, repaired the car, and watched as their driver marched all the back to a ninth-place finish.

If the will and good fortune of the top-two contenders are any indication, this will likely be the top-two drivers fighting for the Cup all the way to Homestead-Miami, a fact not lost on the two drivers themselves.

“Well, I didn’t know coming to Kansas it was going to be the same as Talladega,” Keselowski said. “Just wrecks and accidents and blown tires, everything you can imagine happened today. Just an action-jammed race and I felt really lucky to survive it.”

And Johnson.

“I really hate to miss an opportunity to get points on Brad on a mile and a half track,” Johnson said. “That’s a strong suit and they’re good on them. Today we had a fast car I think could have gotten some points on them so I’m disappointed in that, but at the same time, with all we went through to finish and have it all be even on points, that’s pretty rad.”

Meanwhile, Kenseth has slowly dug himself out of the Chase cellar and is doing everything within his reach to grab some attention and momentum before departing for Joe Gibbs Racing at the end of the season.

At Kansas, Kenseth was in front of the field when most of the dramatics exploded late in the race but recalled one moment where his race could have ended much sooner.

“I thought it was over when I got in the fence when Aric [Almirola] wrecked under Mark [Martin],” Kenseth said. “I was watching them and trying to make sure I didn’t hit them and I flat-sided it pretty bad. It ended up working in our favor. They fixed the body as good as it was when we started, and we had to take less gas in that last pit stop, and the pit crew put me out front.

Track position is all Kenseth would need the rest of the way.

Just four races remain in the season. Next up is Martinsville Speedway, a Saturday-Sunday doubleheader featuring the Camping World Truck Series and Sprint Cup Series.

A complete running order, video and a brief editorial can be found after the jump.