Carl Edwards (19) finishes 13th (photo/Jerry Coleman)
By Bob Priddy, Contributing Editor
NASCAR)—Columbia driver Carl Edwards saw his chance for a historic victory at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway vanish when his car got loose during a late-race restart after a caution period. Edwards had started from the pole and had run in the top five during most of the race. He and then-leader Kevin Harvick started side-by-side on the restart but Edwards (in the 19) fell back rapidly when his car had a control problem in the first turn.
Edwards rallied back to finish thirteenth.
Edwards’ teammate with Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle Busch, outran Joey Logano on the final restart of the day to win the Brickyard 400. It’s Busch’s third win in a row, his fourth in the last five races.
Edwards had hoped to give Toyota its first win at Indianapolis. Instead, the honor went to Busch.
Joplin’s Jamie McMurray finished sixteenth, maintaining his position as the driver highest in NASCAR points without a win this year. His points lead over Jeff Gordon improved because Gordon was involved in an early-race crash and finished 42nd, fifty-four laps down. McMurray remains the only driver to win a race at the Indianapolis Speedway, which held its first automobile races in 1909.
NASCAR’s next race is at Pocono next week.
