Two victories for Edwards, who runs second in points

Newman makes the most of his first Truck Series start

By NASCAR.COM
October 27, 2008
02:39 PM EDT

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A recap of the NASCAR weekend from Atlanta and Memphis:

Figuratively speaking

12 -- Consecutive top-10 finishes in Chase races for Jimmie Johnson. He closed out 2007 with five and has top-10 finishes in the first seven races this season. Included in the 12 are six wins and two second-place finishes. Johnson finished second Sunday at Atlanta.

Cup Series

Pit Crew of the Week

No 48. Chevrolet: Who else? Crew chief Chad Knaus called for a two-tire stop and air-pressure adjustment on Lap 200 and the 48 car was first out of the pits, marking a 12-spot improvement. Jimmie Johnson led his first laps of the race and from there coasted to the title.

Tip of the Week

Radiators are often ignored. Yet keeping engines cool and running in the right temperature range is critical to taking the heat off your engine.

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Race
Lineup | Results | Standings | Central

• Carl Edwards won the race but it was Jimmie Johnson who once again stole the show. Saddled with a pit-road speeding penalty that put him a lap down early in the race, Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus stayed the course and used pit strategy -- a team strength -- to overcome the mistake. By race's end Johnson was charging through the field en route to a second-place finish, which widened his lead in the Chase to 183 points over now second-place Edwards.
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Qualifying
• For the third consecutive week Mother Nature wanted no part of qualifying causing the lineup to be set based on owner points. That put the Chasers out front led by Jimmie Johnson.
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Also check out:
• Aumann: Penalty can't tarnish 48's Chase
• Biffle, Burton come up empty, lose ground
• Hamlin left to ponder possibilities at Atlanta
• Montoya's good day goes bad in a hurry
• Notes: Edwards likes tires that push driver
• No simple solution to qualifying rainouts

Nationwide Series

Race
Lineup | Results | Standings | Central

• Carl Edwards had a better handle on his car than Clint Bowyer did on his, and Edwards won at Memphis to cut 80 points off Bowyer's championship lead. Bowyer finished 16th. David Reutimann attempted to give Edwards a run for his money after a green-white-checkered restart but settled for second.
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Qualifying
• Teenager James Buescher turned a lap in 22.961 seconds (117.591 mph) to claim his first career pole. He had never started better than 17th in five previous starts.

Truck Series

Race
Lineup | Results | Standings | Central

• Ryan Newman, driving Kevin Harvick Inc.'s No. 2 Chevrolet, became the fourth driver to win in his Truck debut when he beat teammate-for-a-day Ron Hornaday in an eight-lap shootout at AMS that reached a crescendo on the final lap. Hornaday, who led a race-high 110 laps in KHI's 33 truck, trimmed his points deficit from 69 to 31 behind Johnny Benson, who finished seventh and failed to lead a lap.
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Qualifying
• With only 33 drivers entered, it was decided to forgo Saturday's quals and instead give drivers a practice run when rain at the track on Friday canceled both sessions. The lineup was set based on owner points, led by Johnny Benson.

Survey says ...

After Jimmie Johnson rallied from an early pit-road speeding penalty to finish second at Atlanta and increase his Chase lead from 149 to 183 points, NASCAR.COM asked: By how many points will Jimmie Johnson win the Cup?

Answer	Votes	Pct.

50 or less	2,561	7%
51-100	5,591	16%
101-150	7,389	21%
151-200	6,388	18%
More than 201	6,290	18%
He won't win the Cup	6,794	19%

Off the Marx

Bill Marx of the Sporting News Wire Service weighs in with his top 10:

Pos.	Driver	Need to know ...

1.	Jimmie Johnson	Johnson's fantastic finish basically negated Edwards' win.
2.	Carl Edwards	One more win and Edwards ties Kyle Busch for the lead.
3.	Greg Biffle	By finishing 10th, Biffle puts all five Roush cars in the top 10.
4.	Jeff Burton	Last week a pit penalty cost Burton, this week it was tapping Dave Blaney.
5.	Jeff Gordon	Gordon may not be winning, but he is running with the leaders.
6.	Matt Kenseth	Solid again: Leads most laps, finishes fourth.
7.	Denny Hamlin	Those darn restarts. Still, Hamlin posts his second consecutive top-five.
8.	David Ragan	Scores another top-10, his fourth in the past five races.
9.	Clint Bowyer	Bowyer's kind of consistency -- 11 top-20 finishes in a row -- will get you into the Chase, but it won't make much noise once you're there.
10	Kevin Harvick	Three races remain, and Harvick, Gordon and Kenseth need one win each to keep their streaks alive.