Jeff Gordon powered his way to a soggy finish in a two-day delayed AdvoCare 500 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway on Tuesday. Dominant for most of the race that was supposed to run on Saturday night of the Labor Day weekend, Jeff Gordon captured his 85th Sprint Cup win securing his already prime place in NASCAR history. His Hendrick teammate and five time consecutive Sprint Cup defending champion Jimmie Johnson was close on Gordon’s tail, but Gordon ultimately sealed the deal crossing the finish line first. Johnson had to settle for second.
Jeff Gordon’s 85th Sprint Cup victory sprung him out of a tie with drivers Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip and put him third for all time Cup victories behind Richard Petty (200) and David Peason (105). With the depth of talent in the series, it is doubtful anyone will ever be able to assemble the amount of wins Jeff Gordon has done in this era. He is truly a champion in every sense of the word.
Tony Stewart brought home a third place finish while Kurt Busch came home fourth and Carl Edwards sewed up fifth. Brad Keselowski turned in a solid sixth place finish showing no signs of weakness in the past several races (Win, 2nd, 3rd, Win). Kevin Harvick placed seventh, while Denny Hamlin, looking to secure a Wild Card slot in the Chase, took eighth. Matt Kenseth delivered ninth and A.J. Almendinger captured tenth.
Jimmie Johnson sits comfortably at the top of the Sprint Cup Points standing currently, rising one spot, while last week’s leader, Kyle Busch, fell one spot to second. Carl Edwards came up one place to third while his teammate Matt Kenseth dropped one spot to fourth. Jeff Gordon ascended one place to fifth with his win at Atlanta. Kevin Harvick, meanwhile, fell one spot to sixth. Staying true to the trend, Kurt Busch picked up one spot for seventh, while Ryan Newman dropped one place to eighth. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart stayed in their respective spots of ninth and tenth. The two wild card spots would be occupied by Brad Keselowski and Denny Hamlin.
The next Sprint Cup Race will be run at Richmond International Raceway under the lights on Saturday, September 10th at 7:30pm on ABC for the running of the Wonderful Pistachios 400. This enormously entertaining, exciting short track race is the last event of the regular season before the Chase is set. This is a free for all to try to get in the Chase, secure another win, and keep momentum going into the playoffs. Don’t miss it, the next eleven races are going to be spectacular!
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