Brickyard Takes

- Overall, I thought it was a solid B to B- race. There wasn't a lot of passing up front, but that's to be expected at a place like Indy. This track wasn't built for stock car racing. However, between Juan Pablo Montoya's inexplicable pit penalty, and a mildly-exciting final 20-lap duel between Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin, the race was about as good as you'll see here. It doesn't fully erase the bad feelings from last year's tire debacle, but it's a good start.

- Speaking of Johnson, is it just me or does the #48 car always start stepping on the gas and blowing away the competition at this point in the season? JJ's third Indy win in four years could catapult him to an unprecedented 4th straight Cup championship.

- I fully believe in conspiracy theories, so when JPM was penalized for speeding in the pits, I couldn't help but think he got screwed. I mean how can a driver of his caliber and his experience with a FIVE SECOND LEAD allow himself to make such a crucial mistake? It cost him a sure victory - nobody was touching the #42 car on Sunday.

- I wonder how much more losing it will take for people to give up on Dale Earnhardt Jr. Junior qualified 3rd despite having the "flu" (I heard from a trusted source Dale Jr. was this kind of sick as opposed to this kind of sick), and ran in the top ten all day, only to blow his engine late and finish 36th. Afterwards, he chalked it up to "driver error". Dale hasn't had a top ten finish in a points race since April's Aaron's 499, and is 22nd in the points standings. I know people don't root for losers, so I'm assuming it's only a matter of time before I stop seeing one-third of the fans at the Brickyard with #88 National Guard gear on.

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Dale Jr. makes Danica Patrick look like Richard Petty

- Outside of Johnson, I thought it was a great day for both Carl Edwards and Joey Logano. Edwards' #99 Aflac machine was slow all week, but he was able to climb from 41st to a 15th place finish. The 19-year old Logano, making his first ever Brickyard start, finished a strong 12th despite starting dead last (due to changing motors).

- It was a bad day for Joe Gibbs Racing as both Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin had car issues. Busch's blown tire and 38th place finish drops him to 14th and out of The Chase for now. As for Hamlin, he's still solidly in The Chase, but had a drive-shaft problem which sent him back to 34th.