Jimmie Johnson claimed his first Sprint Cup win of the season at Talladega in one of NASCAR’s closest finishes. All four Hendrick cars were there at the end as Dale Earnhardt, Jr. gave Johnson the push he needed to nip Clint Bowyer at the line. Tying Ricky Craven’s record set at Darlington in 2003 for the closest margin of victory, Johnson and Earnhardt gave the fans their money’s worth Sunday at Talladega.

VICTORY LANE
Hendrick Motorsports – All four drivers in the Top 8.
Talladega – I enjoyed the race to the finish and my heart was beating hard at the finish line.
Clint Bowyer – Making strides after early season struggles.

THE GARAGE
Toyota – Last two weeks, 2 Top 10’s and a total of 14 laps led.
Kyle Busch - Two weeks after leading 455 laps with 3 top 3 finishes he has back to back bad finishes.
Storyline that we will remember: Jimmie Johnson edging out Clint Bowyer by 0.002 seconds
Storyline that we will forget: Mark Martin not blocking the bottom line as Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. came through.
Quote of the Week:  "What a bummer, I saw him coming” – Clint Bowyer talking about Jimmie Johnson. That basically sums it all up.
Tweet of the Week: @AllWaltrip “racing at Talladega is like life,you never know how good you can be until someone pushes to do something you wouldn't normally do,push on !”

Power Rankings
(Rankings will be based off of who is running the best, with an emphasis on the last several races but having respect for the duration of the 36 race schedule. Last Week’s Rankings can be found in parenthesis.)
1. (1)Carl Edwards – Only driver with 6 top ten’s. Leader of the Sprint Cup Standings.
2. (4) Jimmie Johnson – First win of the year at Talladega.
3. (8) Dale Earnhardt Jr. – Right now this man is the most improved Driver form last year.
4. (6) Kevin Harvick – 2 Wins, and 4th in the points.
5. (2)Kyle Busch – Only reason he is in front of Kurt is the win and 4 top 5’s
6. (7)Kurt Busch – Only driver in the Chase right now that has only one top 5.
7. (3) Matt Kenseth – Dropped 5 spots in the points getting mixed up in an accident.
8. (5)Ryan Newman – Beat up car but did not lose a spot in the points.
9. (9) Juan Pablo Montoya – Will find out over the next 4 races whether or not he is Chase material
10. (10) Jeff Gordon – Still in the chase through the wild card spot though.
11. (12) Paul Menard – Would be last driver in the Chase.
12.  (NR) Clint Bowyer – Best car at Talladega, 3 straight top 10’s and is making his move towards top of the points.

Driver of the Week: Clint Bowyer – Leads 38 laps and finishes second by a record tying 0.002 seconds.

Stat of the Week: 0.002 seconds – amazing finish and these guys will now go back to Daytona in July with 2 tandem restrictor plate runs under the belt.

Prediction for Richmond: Winner: Kyle Busch

Strong Finish: Juan Pablo Montoya
 
Question of the Week: Do you think Paul Menard will make the Chase?

Send me your on twitter @thomaseharris or on facebook and I will gladly respond.

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