| Clint Bowyer wins at Kansas. Well, not according to | | | | everybody's just assumed that that's the rule |
| NASCAR. Greg Biffle was leading the Nextel Cup race | | | | forever," Mark Martin said. "But if it is, there are a lot |
| when the caution flag came out on lap 207. NASCAR | | | | of people in this garage area who assume that you |
| already shortened the race from 267 to 210 due to | | | | have to keep pace with the pace car." |
| darkness. NASCAR made the call not to have a | | | | Biffle and NASCAR sees it another way. |
| green-white checkered flag finish. With the field | | | | "Their opinion really doesn't count, as far as I'm |
| frozen, all Biffle had to do was cross the finish line on | | | | concerned," he said. "They're probably thinking, 'Oh, it |
| lap 210 to win his first race of the 2007 season. | | | | ran out of gas, I coasted across the line, everybody |
| One problem, he was running out of gas. | | | | went by me, I went into the grass and then they |
| NASCAR mandates that you have to maintain | | | | pushed it to Victory Lane.' |
| caution speed and you can't be pushed on the last | | | | "That's not the case. The car runs right now ... you |
| lap. | | | | can go and start it. [NASCAR] told me not to start it. |
| With Biffle's car running out of gas, he slowed down | | | | I was unbuckling, and trying to save my gas, because |
| and moved to the bottom of the track coming out | | | | I knew the race is over. The field's frozen. The |
| of turn four. The pace car steadily pulled away, | | | | caution's out. And I didn't know they were going to |
| indicating he was indeed not maintaining pace car | | | | go by me. So should I have bumped the clutch again, |
| speed. Jimmie Johnson passed Bowyer and Biffle. | | | | gave it a little more juice, so nobody would roll past |
| Bowyer then passed Biffle, Johnson let Bowyer pass | | | | me coming to the stripe?" |
| him. Casey Mears followed to cross the line third. | | | | "I can go start the car up and do some burnouts in |
| Biffle crossed the finish line in fourth position. | | | | the garage over here, do some doughnuts if that will |
| "Everybody was slowing down trying to figure out | | | | make everybody feel better about it," Biffle said. "I |
| what he was doing," said Jeff Gordon, who finished | | | | don't know what to say." |
| fifth. "We were almost at a stop to run his pace, and | | | | The problem I have is the way Biffle crossed the |
| the pace car was driving away, so we all just starting | | | | finish line. |
| going by him. So in my opinion, he's not the winner of | | | | Biffle was obviously out of gas. He pulled into the |
| that race." | | | | grass right after he crossed the line. But instead of |
| Jimmie Johnson agreed. "If you don't maintain | | | | doing donuts in the grass, which is about the ONLY |
| pace-car speed, you don't hold your position," he said. | | | | reason anyone drives into the grass after a win. To |
| "And it was clear to everyone that he couldn't do it. | | | | further this he NEVER even spun his tires in the rain |
| If he could have, he would have stayed on the | | | | soaked infield grass. He just shut off the engine; well |
| bumper of the pace car to the finish line. So in my | | | | it may have been shut off already, and climbed out |
| opinion, where he coasted across the finish line | | | | of the car. |
| relative to the other cars that could maintain pit-road | | | | For what we thought NASCAR rules stated, Bowyer |
| speed is where he should finish." | | | | should have won the race. |
| "This might be one of those things where | | | | |