Texas Motor Speedway had no mercy on November 8th, bringing down a few racers even at the start. Joey Logano had a rough time by the fifth lap as ones of his rear tires failed him early on in the race, already taking him into the garage. Two more cautions came out for Ryan Blaney and Kevin Harvick and Tony Stewart took a spin early on in the race as well, his car faltering into the grass.
A couple of cautions piled up as debris was occasionally found on the track, leading into the halfway point of the race. Brad Keselowski was riding smoothly as he lead 170 laps in the race, while Dale Earnhardt Jr. practically slid across a portion of the track soon after. Flaps of the car were lifted in order to slow the car down as it ultimately slid over the track on its side.
Kevin Harvick did something that not too many drivers have to do often: drive with one hand. The #4 driver’s car kept “popping out of gear” so he was forced to drive with one hand while manually shifting gears. Even with his attempt to stay in control one of Harvick’s tires failed him, forcing him to pit and lose his second place position.
From the halfway point in the race, Keslowski had continued to command the racetrack for another 130 laps, bringing his total to around 300. It was an amazing feat until there were four laps left in the race. Jimmie Johnson came up from behind a stole the winning spot, forcing the #2 car into second place, while Kevin Harvick trailed behind the two of them to land in third place.
Johnson’s win was not only a steal from Keslowski, but removed his chance to be in the running for Sprint Cup Champion. There are just a couple of races before the Champion is crowned, hardly giving racers time to celebrate as they move right on to the next one.
