NASCAR at Sonoma 2016: Winners and Losers from the Toyota-Save Mart 350
Oh man, I’m not usually a blowhard when it comes to most things, least of all NASCAR races, but the finish to the Toyota-Save Mart 350(km) was a sham.
Sorry, getting ahead of myself. Let’s state a few facts: Tony Stewart “won” this race when Denny Hamlin “messed up” turning for home.
Meanwhile, the FS1 broadcast went all "2015 Jeff Gordon at Martinsville in the Chase" all over Stewart. We saw no shortage of high-fives and general good cheer*.
Stewart earned his win; now he must crest the top 30 in points, and he’ll be Chase-bound.
More on this and more inside this slider.
Read on for this week's winners and losers.
*As a result, you’ll have next to no quotes from drivers since the broadcast couldn’t get enough of Stewart’s car doing nothing after the race.
Loser: Clint Bowyer's Nightmare Season Continues
1 of 8
The nightmare season for Clint Bowyer continued at Sonoma Raceway.
Within the first 10 laps, Bowyer’s No. 15 car started smoking with that electric-fire gloom. He pulled out all plugs, ripped down the netting and jumped the heck out of that car.
“Damn—it choked me out,” Bowyer said on FS1. “That’s a great way to start the day.”
Er, end, more like.
Until the fire, Bowyer had five straight top 10s at Sonoma. In 2016, top 10s come about as regularly as a solar eclipse for the No. 15 team.
As it stands, Bowyer is counting down the days until he can saddle up the No. 14 car for Stewart-Haas Racing.
Thankfully, Bowyer had about four hours and 50 minutes remaining on that 5-Hour Energy Drink.
Winner: 2016 Rookie of the Year Jeff Gordon
2 of 8
Let’s give it up for Jeff Gordon’s rookie season.
Fox, as you know, hands the reins of the NASCAR horse buggy to NBC and NBC Sports for the July 4 return to Daytona International Speedway. As a result, we will no longer hear Gordon’s excellent analysis. We’ll also miss the spirited back, forth and back again with Darrell Waltrip.
SB Nation’s Jordan Bianchi tweeted during the race, “Jeff Gordon correcting Darrell Waltrip is something I’ll miss when #NASCAR coverage switches to NBC next week.”
Gordon’s presence in the booth felt so timely and relevant. He’s so freshly retired that you actually get the sense—despite the new aero—Gordon’s insights are about as close to the riding in the car as a viewer will get.
Waltrip, for all his accolades, hasn’t been in a Cup car in decades, so he sounds more like a quacking grandpa rocking to and fro on the porch swing, sweet tea in hand*.
No more "boogity, boogity" (rats), but we await the 2017 Daytona 500 to hear Gordon’s sophomore campaign.
*Got nuttin’ but love for ya, D-Dubya.
Loser: AJ Allmendinger's Lost Tire
3 of 8
This was AJ Allmendinger’s chance at making the Chase. He could have finished second, and he would be a loser here because it’s these tracks where Allmendinger can’t afford a non-win in his bid for the Chase.
An uncontrolled tire late in the race took a sixth-place car with hope of victory to a back-of-the-pack also-ran.
According to USA Today’s Jeff Gluck, Allmendinger was none too pleased with his team. He still finished 14th, but now he’s left with what could have been.
Now Allmendinger must put all his eggs in the Watkins-Glen basket, the Sprint Cup’s final road-course race. That track just so happens to be the site of his only win. That came back in 2014.
In the short term, Allmendinger will look back at this race, a race where he led 20 laps, as a missed opportunity and a truly sour experience.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Winner: Luck
4 of 8
Before the race at Sonoma, FoxSports.com's Tom Jensen wrote: “To win at Sonoma, the racing gods have to be on your side, especially in terms of when caution flags come out and how they align with your strategy.”
He was referring to the “L” word: luck.
According to Jensen, Kyle Busch’s crew chief, Adam Stevens, said:
"These races are really hard to win and they don't always go to the best car. It's really tough to pick a winner. There's so much dependence on track position and road courses and so many things that can affect track position—pit strategy, getting a lucky break with the way the cautions fall, having a fast car. Everything can come into play.
"
Busch, who finished seventh*, was on pit road when a caution came out. It got him out ahead of drivers who hadn’t had a chance to pit yet.
Who else would benefit from such luck?
That’s right, Stewart.
While gambling on timing, Stewart stayed out and stayed out. Then he pitted. Then the caution came out for debris—a spring rubber**.
Such luck allowed Stewart to inherit the lead. He still needed to hold on for 20 more laps and one more caution, but that’s the luck only Sonoma can grant, for better or worse.
*A spectacular rebound after four straight finishes of 30th or worse.
**Apparently, it came off Jimmie Johnson’s car. Conspiracy theorists may think NASCAR waited for Stewart to pit before waving the caution to help him out.
Loser: Martin Truex's Poor Timing
5 of 8
With about 15 laps remaining, Martin Truex Jr. was up on Stewart’s bumper. From the perch of second place, Truex appeared to be the car to beat.
All he needed to do was pounce.
He didn’t pounce.
“For some reason, on that last set of tires our car got real loose,” Truex said during the FS1 broadcast. “We were a sitting duck there. I took a few shots at Tony knowing I was going to be in trouble in a few laps if I didn’t get by him there—I was going to be backing up, which is what happened.”
Where Stewart benefited from the timeliest caution of the season, Truex never received similar luck.
“All in all, it was a good day,” he said. “We just could never get the strategy. It seemed every time we passed the cars we needed to pass to command the race, the caution came out and guys caught it just right and come out ahead of us.”
Truex’s win in the Coca-Cola 600 a few weeks ago was the feel-good moment of the season. Voters may beg for a recall after Smoke won at Sonoma.
Winner: Carl Edwards Hangs In
6 of 8
Carl Edwards won the pole at Sonoma and finished at fourth on the day. He led a bunch of laps early but eventually relented the lead to the quiet desperation of Allmendinger.
The ’Dinger would fall, but Edwards stayed strong. He survived a brush with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and came home in the top five.
“Man, we had such a fast car on the short run,” Edwards said during the FS1 broadcast. “I got a run on Joey [Logano]. He got out there wide and came back across, and Dale was going under me. I really appreciate Dale giving me some extra space, even torn up like this. I thought we had a shot for the win.”
Edwards’ effort showed his range and the power of Toyota (three cars in the top five) on all tracks.
It’s on to Daytona now where the plates go on for a Saturday night romp.
Loser: Denny Hamlin Lets Tony Stewart Win
7 of 8
There could be an entire column dedicated to Hamlin’s final lap, but I’ll try to keep this as short as possible.
According to the FS1 broadcast, after the race, over the radio Hamlin said, “I shouldn’t have given him that opportunity.”
Yes, Hamlin, a former Stewart teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing, gave the race to Stewart. Hamlin drove flawlessly in the final five laps as he closed the gap on Stewart, eventually passing Smoke on the white-flag lap.
Then, inexplicably, he swung wide in Turn 11 to give Stewart enough room to win the race. Via the FS1 broadcast, Hamlin said:
"Looking in the rearview more than out front. I got in there. I didn’t wheel-hop or anything. I slid up just a little bit in the middle, and it allowed him to get a good run. Once he got inside position, we weren’t going to drag race at that point. I knew he was going to put me in the wall.
"
Then FS1’s Chris Myers said, “We heard from Denny, who didn’t seem as bothered as I thought he would be. It looked like a driver miscue.”
In reality, Stewart in the Chase is a blessing for championship contenders. Let’s face it: Smoke can’t get out of the Challenger Round where perhaps another bubble driver could.
Maybe Hamlin saw a chance to let a weaker car qualify for the Chase, thereby increasing his chances at advancing further in the playoffs.
Merely a thought, but by letting Stewart have his day in late June, Hamlin may have secured better odds to be the car to beat in mid-November.
Winner: Tony Stewart 'Wins'
8 of 8
Darrell Waltrip and Jeff Gordon had the pompoms out when Stewart had the lead up through the last lap at Sonoma.
When Hamlin passed Stewart in Turn 7, Waltrip yelled, “No! No! No!”
Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte will be better than this for NBC starting next week, right? Anyway...
Hamlin then took the longest distance between two points in Turn 11, allowing Stewart the sliver he needed to trade a little paint and sprint to the win.
An exhausted Stewart, after taking several significant swigs from product placement, said during the FS1 broadcast:
"I made mistakes the last two laps. I had too much rear brake for Turn 7 and wheel-hopped it two laps in a row. I felt a nudge, and he knew where it was. He did the right thing, and if I could get to him, he knew it was coming. He just told me he was proud of me. He knows what it means. We were teammates for a long time and we respect each other a lot.
"
That’s called Hamlin throwing you a bone. Stewart knew it. Everyone knew it. This win doesn’t feel earned so much as granted. Hamlin, who didn’t need to win the race, gave it to someone who did need it.
Stewart won his 49th career race, snapping an 84-race losing streak that dated back to June 2013.
In a sense, the win was a feel-good triumph for fans and even drivers. For some, like me, it feels hollow. It feels phony. He drove like a former champ, but it came undone at the end. These things happen. Then Hamlin, saddled with remorse or impeccable foresight, let Stewart have his day.
Stewart will climb into the top 30 and take his place in the bottom flight of the Chase.
Drivers without a win sitting on the Chase bubble? Their job just got a whole lot harder.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
