Could Jimmie Johnson hold on to his precarious lead in the Cup this weekend in Talladega?

Who would have thought that out of the top six cars, five would have been Toyota? Or that the highest a Chase contender would qualify would be 17th? Many of the television announcers danced around this delicate subject. Instead, they chose to focus of the fact that Tony Eury Jr. was serving his last race as crew chief for Dale Earnhardt Jr. amid graphics that compared him to his father.

So while I have the power (or at least my Fourth Amendment right and a keyboard), I want to take a moment to acknowledge Michael Waltrip, Dave Blaney, Brian Vickers, Joe Nemechek, David Reutimann, and Jacques Villeneuve for their season best qualifying efforts! And before they were bumped out of the race by drivers who wedged themselves in by owners points, AJ Allmendinger, Sam Hornish Jr., Boris Said, Scott Riggs, and Jeremy Mayfield, all qualified within the top 15. HURRAY UNDERDOGS!

Many drivers came into this race with much apprehension, due to the many unknowns that lay ahead of them. It was the first time that the COT would run at Talladega, which stirred the issue of not being able to see hand gestures from one cockpit to another due to the large wing on the trunk of the car. Others were more concerned with the new surface and how the COTs would run in a large pack.

Most of this concern and nervousness was quickly laid to rest. Race winner Jeff Gordon summed up the general feeling of the day best, "I've never yawned in a racecar in my life and I yawned back there."

The first 20 laps showed multiple grooves, fast speeds, and 16 lead changes. By definition, that does not exactly sound like a boring race. But as the race progressed, the multiple racing lines dwindled to one. And while speeds remained high, there was less movement in the front of the pack.

“The package is all right,” Dave Blaney commented after his early exit from the race, “It just maybe needs tweaking a little bit."

Come February, many drivers like Blaney hope to see all the kinks in the COT smoothed out, to supply fans with the classic bumpin’ and rubbin’ racing associated with the Daytona 500.

An ominous rain cloud may have followed Jacques as his first Nextel Cup appearance drew closer. David Ragan showed last year that it is not exactly a wise decision to send a verdant rookie out to a track, especially a super speedway, like Talladega. But Jacques and his team made a wise decision and forfeited their sixth starting place and shuffled to the back of the line. By doing so, Jacques was able to get experience in a stock car while keeping his nose clean and out of trouble. At the end of the day, his strategy seemed to have worked; he didn’t cause or get caught up in any wrecks, and managed to bring home a solid 21st place finish. Félicitations à Jacques! And if you ever need a translator, call me up!

Four drivers under the DEI/RCR program blew engines yet again this week. And no surprise, one of them was Dale Jr. Teammates Martin Truex Jr. and Aric Almirlo’s engines gave out, along with Jeff Burton from RCR. 16 engineers from both camps were brought together to try and figure out the failing engine issue, but problems are still bountiful. According to Steve Hmiel, the competition director for DEI, all three cars running under his supervision appeared to have the same problem.

“The hole is in the same place in the oil pan. It's breaking something inside and it's breaking it in all three engines,” he told reporters after examining all three cars.

The one DEI driver who did not experience a failed engine was Paul Menard. Even though Menard was collected in “The Big One”, his car will as serve a starting point for research.

Menard was not the only one collected on lap 145. Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Jamie McMurray, David Reutimann, Bobby Labonte, Dave Blaney, Brian Vickers, David Ragan, and Robby Gordon all walked were all forced to pack up early when Labonte’s 43 Cheerio got loose and tipped down the track, causing a bottling chain reaction. Three Chase contenders were involved, shaking up the point standings.

With his win, Jeff Gordon is now six points over second place finisher Jimmie Johnson. Denny Hamlin moved up three spots to take third, while Kurt Busch and Carl Edwards advanced themselves into sixth and seventh.  Jeff Burton fell two spots after losing his engine to begrudgingly hold twelfth.

We are four races down with six left to go, as the Championship looms ever closer. Find out how your favorite driver did, along with the winners and losers from next week, here, at the Checkered Flag!

Race Results

Cup Standings

Questions and comments may be sent to larissasmith@sportsgrumblings.com